One of my biggest goals last year was to increase my regular creative output. I knew that I was capable of getting more done and I went on a mission to figure out how. Along the way I discovered that my organizational system played a huge role in keeping me on track. Finding something that works has made a world of difference in my mood, my levels of anxiety, and how much I can get done each week.
Back in November I started working through Marion Deuchar's book Draw Paint Print Like the Great Artists, committing to doing every single exercise.
I called this project a creative experiment because I wasn't really sure what would happen. I hypothesized that working through every exercise in this book would yield creative returns, but I didn't know what those would look like. I hoped that it would help me to develop some creative discipline and that I would get better at creative play. You can read more about my expectations about the project here.
Since making a commitment to everyday creativity, I've learned a few things about why I don't seem to have enough time. I've learned that often what looks like "not enough time" is really a mental block tricking me into thinking I'm too busy. Sometimes I really am too busy, but most of the time, it's all in my head. Below I outline some of the mental blocks that have gotten in my way, and that may be holding you back, plus some ways that I've learned to dismantle, or at least work around, these blocks.
You guys I am so excited about these cards. I'm not even really sure why I'm that excited. Maybe because it's the first time I've tried something like this, maybe because it's the first goal I get to check off my list for 2015 or maybe because I just really, really like the way they look. Either way, I am super excited to unveil my first ever line of body-part themed, punny Valentine's Day cards. I say Valentine's because it's coming up but really these cards are great for any occasion when you want to tell someone that you care (or you have a pesky admirer that you want to scare away...).
I've spent most of my life struggling with creativity. Even as a child, I often felt like it was an intangible entity, just out of my reach, floating above me while I was stuck on the ground. I thought that creativity was something elusive and inconsistent. I thought that it was avoiding me. It didn't help that I was a perfectionist and extremely self-critical. My expectations were astronomical and I was frequently overwhelmed by them.
I really believe that our bodies know things that we might not consciously have access to and if we let them move, they will fill us in on their secrets. This isn't another New Years call to get yourself to a gym. This is just a gentle reminder that a moving body is a happy body - and movement can mean anything from stretching at your desk to dancing to scrubbing your baseboards. According to a study at Leiden University in the Netherlands, participants' performance on creative tasks went up when they were exercising regularly.
Whether it's a massive shift in understanding or just a small flash of insight, epiphanies feel pretty good.These moments are rare, and that's what makes them magical, but do we have to wait around until something randomly bursts through the clouds? Or can we cultivate an environment where epiphanies are more likely? I think we can and lately I've been trying to figure out how. Here's what I've come up with so far.
For a lot of people I think this fear of not measuring up is what stops them from pursuing their creative interests. It's easy to look at what other people are doing and think "what could I possibly add to that?" The problem is that when we let those thoughts get in our way, we not only deprive ourselves of the joys of creating and sharing our work, but we also deprive our audience of experiencing it - whether that audience is a craft show or gallery customer, or your best friend admiring the card you sent her, or your husband appreciating how you redecorated the living room.
One year I made ornaments for my family as gifts and I was hooked. The joy of making something pretty to hang on the tree, plus the fact that I've spent most of my adult life on a tight budget and can't splurge on decorations, means you'll often find me pulling out the glue gun at this time of year to make a new decoration or two.
Christmas is coming and for me, 'tis the season to watch Muppet Christmas movies. There are so many to choose from! When we were growing up, the Muppet Family Christmas was on TV every year. Moments from that show stick with me as if they were my own Christmas memories: the Swedish Chef chasing Big Bird, Kermit meeting the Fraggles, Doc cuddling with his dog Sprocket and trying to avoid the chaos, and of course, Fozzie's Ma yelling "Watch out for the icy patch!"
