For someone who is a devoted summer child that gets through the transitioning of colder weather living for the holidays, the hardest part of January is saying goodbye to the warmth that lasts into Christmas and finally accepting that winter's presence has set up shop outside my door. However, there is one saving grace that keeps me from feeling the chill.... uninterrupted and dedicated time for art!
There is no better time to get all your creative ideas and visions going than when you are forced to be cooped up inside. I used to count the days away until the sun invited me out again, but I realized that in doing so I was taking for granted a great opportunity that I could otherwise appreciate. I learned to appreciate the winter for it's ability to take away distractions and make time slow down. That's time that can be put to great use in all your creative endeavors! Time to evaluate. Time to make changes. Time to start projects that have been on the back burner during spring, summer and fall. Allow time to slow down and start creating!
This winter has granted me time to work on a multitude of projects that I cannot wait to share! While I have multiple designs in the works going for Echoing Waters and am still fulfilling orders for both Etsy shops, in my personal time I've been able to come back to my other favorite art mediums like pattern making and hand making paper.
Speaking of which, if you haven't tested your hand at making your own paper, then you need to reserve some of your creative juices this winter solstice for this fun and eco friendly art form! I promise you that you will become quite addicted to all the possibilities that you can try with it. All you need to do is grab your old mail or scrap pieces of paper, throw it in a blender with water and press through a mold and decker. I plan to write another post soon on how to do all that but in the meantime...get excited about how you can make this...
Turn into this...
Plus you can throw in your own "mix ins" to give your paper personality. Imagine the possibilities!
In terms of inspiration, while I keep my mind open to anything and EVERYthing that pops into my head, typically I use current seasons or upcoming events as a theme to indulge my projects. Not only does it help keep me committed to a hard deadline, but it's an added challenge and hey, it's fun! The biggest source of my inspiration this time of year comes from yet another one of my favorite holidays just around the bend...
Valentine's Day! Look out for my next post on this year's Valentine's day projects coming soon!
Stay inspired!
Love this post so much!! Thanks for the inspiration! 😀