inspiration

I was thinking of blogging earlier, but I really didn't know what to write about. Not that my topics are so mindboggling astute or that I have just the right thing to say about anything. So, I played some World of Warcraft, and thought about inspiration. I mean, considering that yesterday I wrote about the crafting studio of my dreams, you would think I knew about inspiration, at least.

Here are some of the things that inspire me, time after time. The list is by no means exhaustive.

First, the inspiration of others. Talking to people about their creative work, whether it is written, or crafted or ??? gets my own creative juices going. That would be one of the reasons that my ideal studio would be open to creative friends. I love being able to throw ideas around, and watch them evolve, and take on the different creative faces of different creative people. I also think it is nice to be able to ask someone "These together???" and get a good answer. My brother Carl is good for that. Believe me, I have put some things together thinking it would be good, then, about the time its finished, decided it was alll allll allllll wrong. It is also really important to be able to say to someone "Look what I made!" or have others say and show you what they made.

I also think the act of creating makes one creative. I made all those little dragons for Christmas, and no two of them were alike. I'm not just talking about color of yarn, either, although I did experiment with the yarns and designs. There is just nothing like being up to your elbows in a project and thinking, hmmm I wonder if I did....

Then there is nature. Nature will get me every time. I know I'm not alone in that, and maybe its cliche, but it is also true. There is nothing like seeing the colors and shapes and varigation that you find in nature to inspire you. The organic movement and lines, the sharp clarity. Sometimes, even the stuff you don't really want to see...