Creativity – Go With What Feels Creatively Strong

Creativity – Go With What Feels Creatively Strong

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Don’t force your creativity. What is inspiring you right now? Go with what you want to do rather than what you “should” do when you can. The end!

OK, ok, I’ll give us a little more.

In my day to day I like to have a schedule so that I can get a little bit of everything fit into a day. Work, home, studio, dinner, knit, read. BUT this doesn’t always come across in a productive way. Some days I really want to be knitting, and most I want to only draw all the things. You see where I am going with this.

I know that if I have a set time, let’s say an hour, where I am going to sit and read, but I don’t feel like reading… then that will be a waste of time. Or if right after work I want to be in the studio, but the creative juices aren’t flowing, how productive will that stare at the wall be?

One thing that I do know about myself is that I am happiest with a variety of options on hand. That way, there should always be something to do. If I don’t want to knit, there’s a sketchbook and reading book on hand. None of those fit? Maybe some social media updates or dishes to do (just kidding, I almost never pick dishes over a hobby – that’s a cry for help if you see it happen lol).

Even in my day job I think I have a pretty good balance. I can illustrate, or do some testing, if those don’t work I can organize files or clear out the inbox. If I was always doing one thing all day with no options for variety that would be rough.

Having this variety allows me to go with what feels creatively strong to me in any moment. I am going to draw a lot more, and with more confidence if I have an idea I am excited about.
This happened at work for me recently. I was tasked with coming up with a topic for a lunch seminar this month. I had a list of some things, but they all felt generic or buzz word-y. They were topics that hold a personal interest to me, but ones that felt a little played out lately (burnout, work-life balance, etc). I knew I could come with good content, but I wasn’t exactly feeling on fire about the whole thing.
Then I thought of how I could bring my own personal skills to my topic. I thought of all the things I do with a pen/pencil and paper in a day/week to help take care of me. As soon as that came to mind I felt like I wanted to work on the presentation, I had a dozen different ideas of how I could present the concept, all because the content was exciting to me.

Now, we don’t want to let things go too far the other way either. Don’t force it but don’t wait too long either. Keep a skill/idea/activity on the surface so it’s still in your mind to get it done. If you leave something too long, you will run into more frustration when your skills aren’t up to your usual standards because they have been idle for so long. Then you might not get back to it at all.

Try to listen to what excites you and when. Personally, I find my “get up and go” for personal projects is 2:00 in the afternoon. I get all my good ideas for my arts just after my morning coffee (if it uses its powers for good that day). Are you too tired to paint a masterpiece? Maybe fuel the creative juices and turn on some music. Are you excited to get an idea down on paper? Why force yourself to do some other creative thing first?

So what is feeling strong creatively to you right now? Do you have a minute to explore it? Let’s go!

*Disclaimer. I am in no way suggesting that you sacrifice work, relationships or basic adulting in favour of this method. Please feed yourself and do your job. Don’t get fired because of me, I hold no responsibility. The message above is meant to encourage productivity and excitement in your personal time.

Creativity – Ask Why

Creativity – Ask Why

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Personally, I find that creativity can be full of roadblocks. These can be idea droughts, full stops, and sometimes just a lack of motivation. Sometimes this can happen because things get busy, or we are a little tired, or maybe there can be another reason. I find it really helpful, when I think of it, to take an extra step back when I find I am blocked, and ask why. Why might this be and what can I do?

An example can be one block I ran into a few years ago. I found that I wasn’t posting a lot of my work. I had a lot to post, and a lot that I wanted to share on the socials, but I kept holding myself back. So I took a second to ask why that might be. I realized that it was because I had, at the time, one social media account for all of my creative projects, so all of my studio work and knitting type projects (@hues.and.tones). What was holding me back from posting some projects was wanting to maintain a balance in the content. I didn’t want to deter the people who were following me for studio work by sharing too much knitting and vice versa. So I opted to start a new account for my yarn crafts (@hues.and.tones.knits). Now that I have the two accounts I post a lot more frequently and worry a lot less about the how the content might impact my audience. The content on each account is more in alignment with what the audience would expect.

Another example had to do with my sketchbook. I have an art journal that I have with me all of the time. I use it for notes and ideas, with the intent of sketching. But I stopped one day and I asked, despite having this on hand, why wasn’t I sketching as often as I used to? It wasn’t about “ruining” the pages or anything, I am pretty at one with the idea of “bad sketches. Plus, I love a page full of doodles, notes and ideas. On further reflection I realized that maybe the smaller page size was getting in the way. So I went out and bought myself a larger scale sketchbook. Now I can’t get stopped! All the sketches. I have more room to explore ideas, brainstorm, and work through my ideas.

In the end, creative block rarely has anything to do with how good we are or how talented we are, at least in my experience. Usually something is getting in the way. So take a step back and see if you can find out what it is. I bet you’ll find something that you can fix easily and get you back on track. 

What is getting in your way right now? 

Prompt – Make/Create What You Want to See in the World

Prompt – Make/Create What You Want to See in the World

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Last week I posted about the “definition” of a good idea. Here’s where we work through finding those good ideas!

Go through your notes, your memories, or your history. What is something that you are always looking for? What is something you wish you had? What do you need on a shirt? That’s it. That’s your idea.

A good example is the book “The New Plant Parent”. The author was looking for something to help him with his plants at home and couldn’t find what he was looking for. So he wrote it!

When I am googling things like “how to use Express as an illustrator” and I can’t find what I am looking for, I write down my experience (post to come).

“Why can’t I find a shirt that says… xyz… ?” Make it!

If you’re looking for it, so is someone else. The audience may be huge, it may be small, but it is an audience. And why wait for someone else to make it? Take the opportunity to put your stamp on how the information/product/idea is shared.

Maybe it’s not something that you need, maybe it is a cause/subject that matters to you. Do you want to draw attention to something that you feel is being left behind? Do you want share your experience with something to raise understanding/awareness? What is a gap that you see? How can you use your skills to fill it?

What is something you’d like to see in the world? How can you use your creativity to make it happen?

Creativity – Defining a Good Idea

Creativity – Defining a Good Idea

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I have attended quite a few different talks done by the wonderful Lauren Hom. In one of these talks she broke down what she thought defined a good idea.

This is a place where I think a lot of people can get stuck, whether we are talking creativity or not. I know I have had a lot of ideas come to mind, I ponder them and toss them, because I fall into the “No one will like that” categories and don’t pursue the idea.

I am also back and forth on having too many rules on things, especially when it comes to the creativity we all have. But I do think that a few guidelines do tend to help me, especially when I am a little unsure about what I have in front of me.

Here is what Lauren had to say for her guidelines:

EASE – Does it feel easy?
ENERGY – What is my capacity to make this now?
EXCITEMENT – Does it excite me?
ENGAGEMENT – Have people asked me about topics related to it before? (something that comes up in conversation regularly)
EXPERTISE – Do I have tangible proof of expertise related to my idea? (ex. I love movies, and research all I can on them, so I have movie knowledge in my back pocket that I can apply to a project)

These guidelines can always be used for brainstorming or getting out of a creative slump too. I always make sure to write down when someone says “I need a shirt that says that”, or make note of what really pulls the creative heart strings, anything that excites me etc.

If you use that “good idea” then maybe you can turn it into a great portfolio piece or series for you to use.

There are SO many different ways that you can define a good idea. I just loved what Lauren included here as her collection of basic criteria. I found it accessible, adaptable and relatable.

What are your good idea guidelines? Which ones are you working through right now?

Creativity – Let Your Sketchbook Work For You

Creativity – Let Your Sketchbook Work For You

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One thing I have Googled most frequently is “what do I show on my social media?”. Do I show finished work? Do I show work in progress? Do I show my mistakes? What do I do? The internet’s answer is… maybe. If I get anything clearer, I promise to share here.

I did participate in a session at MAX a couple years ago where Octavia Bromell was speaking. She encouraged the sharing of sketchbook pieces. She had a few great reasons too:

  1. Career development. Working in your sketchbook consistently will help you to find your style for some of your work. It will help you to build your skills and the execution of different styles of projects.
  2. Sketches do well on social. Personally I love to see people’s process. Looking through someone’s sketchbook really helps me to learn about them, their thought process, and their art development. As an artist I like to see what pieces went through to get to the final stage, and learn from that what I can.
  3. You can’t get hired for work people don’t know you do. A lot of artists have WAY more in their sketchbook than in their finished pile, I know I do. But you may have that perfect idea in there somewhere that someone has been looking for. If you don’t share it, that someone doesn’t know it’s there.

In my mind, the process is just as important as the final result. My favourite part of any project, especially the much bigger ones, is the research phase. But I am learning to really appreciate that initial sketch and development parts where I am watching the illustration develop into its own piece. Working on my own work has really allowed me to “let” my pieces take over and evolve as they go. Why not share that process? Your process is important too.

So while I still don’t know what you are “supposed” to share on social media. I think that Octavia makes a pretty solid case for sharing at least some of your sketchbook work. Even the bad stuff! You have to get that stuff out of the way to make room for the good stuff, making it an important part of the process too.

Creative Prompt – Zentangle Your Heart Out!

Creative Prompt – Zentangle Your Heart Out!

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Zentangle! Who is tired of hearing this one from me yet? Anyone?

I’d apologize, but this is one of my favourite ways to get out of a creative slump. Get some paper and zentangle myself into a creative frenzy.

As I have mentioned countless times, there is no one way to do zentangle. I use mine in specific areas of a piece. Others will fill a whole page of just patterns. Some people will use one sort of shape, while others have no limits.

You can do this with paint, markers, pencil, digital… the possibilities are literally endless.

This is my favourite prompt because I find this style really easy to fall into without too much of a plan. It’s a great way to start filling page and let your mind wander. Personally, I find that doodling like this will loosen my brain up enough to let more ideas to flow and create more potential illustrations down the line.

If you need some inspiration, toss “zentangle” into a Pinterest search and you will get an absurd number of results.

Grab your pens and markers, and let’s get going!

Creativity – Only You Can Create What You Create

Creativity – Only You Can Create What You Create

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Only you can make the things you make. – Wendy MacNaughton

One of the biggest things I see holding someone back from claiming their artsy side, or something in their career or personal life, is comparing themselves to others. “Oh, I am not as good as that person”, “They have more experience”, “I could never to something like that”. One thing that most artists, or people in general if we are talking life skills, will tell you is that comparing yourself to others is the easiest way to make sure that you don’t do something.

The reality? You are the only person who can create in the way that you do. Just you. That’s it.

I am always jealous of people who know what they are doing in the kitchen. They taste something and know exactly what it needs. Or they get a pile of ingredients and come up with a masterpiece. I am definitely in need of a recipe and the exact right ingredients. But, unless I am going to feed that creative side of my brain, there is no use in feeding that jealousy. This stuff doesn’t just happen. Even if I did feed that side, I wouldn’t be the same chef as Gordon Ramsey. If I could do that, then there wouldn’t be a Gordon Ramsey. 

You could try to copy someone else’s style or approach, but you would still be putting some “you” into the mix. It’s unavoidable. 

I also encourage that you take your own approach to whatever Creativity path you’re on. Speaking from experience, it makes things a lot easier. Any piece that I have tried to force in a direction or style has produced a lot more frustration. Nothing is happening naturally at that point. If you just let the style flow out of the pen, brush, knitting needle, whatever, then you’ll get a much nicer, more “you” approach. 

It’s also a great idea to take that all important step back. I post my final pieces on Behance. One day after I posted a piece I felt medium about, I went to the home page and scrolled through all the beautiful pieces that had been posted recently. I went through and saw some amazing things. What I didn’t see? Art that looked like mine. This is a good thing! The work that I am doing is all my own, not anyone else’s. And your creations are the same. 

Be encouraged by this, let this inspire you rather than overwhelm you. You are unique, you are enough, and your art (craft, science, etc) is amazing! 

Creative Prompt – Try Something That You’ve Never Done Before

Creative Prompt – Try Something That You’ve Never Done Before

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I am always up to try something new. I like it because I almost always learn something each time. Maybe it’s something I can use towards other hobbies I have or just a new skill to have in my back pocket. I’ll keep my examples to crafty/artsy projects, but really a lot of this can apply to anything really.

My example for today is diamond art. I had never done a diamond art piece before my birthday. My family up north sent me a custom diamond art project with a picture of Mr. Mojo on it. So adorable. So I started almost right away.

At first I thought of approaching this project like I would any art project. Start top left and work my way down. On a chalk or pencil piece, this direction would prevent me from running my right hand through the media and smudging the final result. After talking with some experts and watching a video or two, I quickly realized that that wouldn’t work. On diamond art this approach would have my hand all in the adhesive, challenging the final piece. I learned something new, luckily before I got started.

I also might have tried pulling larger chunks of the plastic covering off at once, but again, that would allow all the dog fuzzies to get onto the valuable adhesive of the surface. So I am sticking to the smaller sections to work in. 

I am using some of the methods I do use in my other hobbies though. Like colour grouping. Once I have a section blocked out to work on, I choose one colour at a time and finish all of that one colour before moving on to the next. I would do this in my cross stitch projects so I reduce the amount of thread switching in a small space.

What I am getting at here, is that there is always room to grow and learn something new. Also, some new things might not need to be so scary, because maybe you already have a few tricks to bring to the table. So don’t be afraid, expand your tool set. At very worst you have just another thing off the “been there, tried that” list. 

Creativity – Take Something Off Your Plate

Creativity – Take Something Off Your Plate

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I have mentioned it a lot in this series, that creativity is something that needs to be fed and nurtured, but it is also something that needs to be listened to. Throughout the month of February, I was starting to feel the burnout coming on. It came from a few different directions, but the first impact is usually on my studio time. I took a look at what I was able to do for myself to get nicely reset and back on a new track. This doesn’t always have to be something big, sometimes the adjustments can be very simple, so don’t let this cause you more stress. 

  1. Tried taking something off my plate: 
    When I took the March illustration of the month off my list it was followed by quick relief, and then a flood of inspiration. That tiny bit of pressure was removed from the way and everything started moving. The coffee might have also been using its powers for good, but it was a good feeling I hadn’t had in a while.
  2. Look at stressors: 
    I was finding that I was getting stressed with my posting schedule and trying to make sure that I was on top of things. I removed all of that as well. I didn’t pressure myself for two weeks. No deadlines, no must posts, nothing, unless I felt like it. Eventually I became excited for projects again. I looked forward to posting content. I was interested in learning more, creating more, and wrapping up idle projects.

Creating is supposed to be fun, even if it is how you make a living. For me it’s an outlet. I use my studio as a place to get centered, to calm down, and to express myself, so I am extra sensitive to the mood there. If something is out of alignment, and it doesn’t bring me happiness or joy, it causes me to become more stressed. If I don’t have my outlet, what do I do now?

The key is to make sure you don’t get to that burnout point, and if you do, to have tools on hand to help get yourself back to where you want to be. Taking this small break was great for me, it took pressure away, I could create for fun, and enjoy what I was doing every day. It is unsettling to be out of the groove, but recognizing it and acting on it really helped me out. These small adjustments were all I needed to get back into it, because I didn’t leave it for too long. Ideally I’d have a set up that isn’t “burn until you crash”, and that’s a balance I am currently working on. Level for longer periods would work better for me, but everyone is different. How do you take care of yourself?