So why is taking time off so good for our creative brain? Even if you don’t THINK that you are creative… you are. In whatever job you have, you think in a creative way, come up with solutions to problems, find patterns. Those are all creative ways of thinking. Our capacity for output is only as good as our input. We spend so much time working and thinking about work that our brains get overloaded with information. Everyone needs a different amount of free time for their brain to sort through all of that information, but everyone does need some time.
Read Moresketch
Drawing Fall, an Exercise in Play /
Happy Fall! I hope you all are having a terrific Fall Season. Since the leaves have been changing, I've been enjoying my walks in the evening the beautiful colors and patterns. I get so busy working during the day that having a little break to reconnect with myself, my husband and nature have been essential.
I normally spend time in the morning drawing an inspirational phrase in my sketchbook that I feel I need to remember that day and some sort of freeform pattern. This helps get me out of my head and all of the things I need to do, and connect me with my creativity.
One day on a walk, I began picking up some of these leaves. I had an idea to draw on them instead on in my sketchbook. I wasn't sure how or if it would work. But I like to pay attention when I have the question "WHAT IF....?". This question is the beginning of play and is essential to inspiration.
I loved how that first leaf turned out, so I've been creating more and sharing them on my Instagram feed. This isn't some giant success story, my Instragram following didn't suddenly grow to 10,000 and I didn't get offered a book deal or anything. I just created something that was fun for me and people seemed to enjoy it too. And it fulfilled my need for play, fun and exploration.
So much of the time we are paying attention to deadlines and our to do list and we don't give ourselves time for fun. I find when I haven't made time for it I get grumpy. That's just a sign that I need to do whatever it takes to fulfill that need - soon! Play helps us learn and gets us out of our stuckness. Why don't we do it more?
What do you that helps you get out of your head and into the realm of creative flow? It could be cooking, dancing, playing with your kids. See if you can commit to 5 or 10 minutes of play/ exploration this week and see how it impacts your life and your imagination.
Practical tips for finding an Illustration style /
Hi Everyone! I recently began working in a different style of illustration, one that I've been thinking about and playing with for a long time. I thought I'd share a bit about my process and my creative "breakthrough". I feel that I have a consistent style as far as my illustrations go, but my paintings are a bit more free flowing and intuitive.
Read MoreLocal food love /
I decided to take on the 100 day project by Ella Luna in which you choose to do something, anything creative for 100 days. I thought that since I've already started trying to sketch what I eat every night, that this collaboration would help. And it definitely has. And I've realized something... social media is friendly.
Read MoreTempeh Fajitas! /
I'm not sure why, or when it started, but we have a tradition in my house of having tempeh fajitas on Friday nights. This tasty meal has also improved since aquiring a cast iron skillet! It's an easy, vegetarian and vegan option when you don't want to cook much. I just brown the tempeh and then set it aside while I cook saute the onions, peppers and tomatoes. I add the tempeh back in and then add some seasoning (usually salt, paprika, garlic salt and cayenne pepper). Serve it with tortillas and any toppings you want!
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