Category: creative

My tiny creative corner


I have always dreamed of having my own space to create. A place where I could have all my books displayed, all my supplies organised by type and colour, where my sewing machine would always be ready to use, where I could leave all my on-going projects on a desk without having to tidy up every time, a place with lots of storage units and a big desk where I could do some proper painting. Well, this is still a dream, but I’m working on it.
In the meantime, I tried to make the best of what I have available, meaning just above 1 square meter of space stuck against our living room wall.
The space is tiny, but is well organised with minimal furniture (thanks IKEA!): a white desk and a very useful drawer unit, a readapted and painted wall storage unit and a black swivel armchair.

The desk area is where I do all my crafting, painting, writing (obviously!), so I try to keep it clear to avoid having to tidy it up before starting any work.
Unfortunately it doesn’t always work and most of the time the desk is covered in clutter.
For the past year or so, this working space has been neglected big time! It has become a place to dump stuff waiting to get sorted, making it a living mess and an unusable surface. Without mentioning the fact that my 2 year old was extremely interested in what was going on on the desk and as soon as she was able to pick above it, we had a few accidents…including inking her hands with black permanent ink!
So, to go with my word for 2014, CREATIVE, I thought it was time to gift myself, once again, with a creative space where to explore my word and live all the mess of my living room behind.
I cleared the desk and organised, more or less, the storage space.
Halfway there
Loose pens, pencils, colours, scissors and cutters are stored in three black containers, while I keep some cute cards, mails and generally any unclassified stuff (including my hand cream!) in a wired basket all hanged on a rail mounted on the wall. This turned out to be a great workspace saver.
The white wall storage unit contains a bit of everything. My on-going pocket/small sketchbooks and all boxed paints, pencils, pastels, etc are stored in the left hand side. The middle section has two storage boxes which contain all my stamps and inks and some more colours. The right hand side houses sprays and varnishes, and a pencil holder where I keep some highlighters, pens and pencils that Mr G is allowed to use (as the rest if off limits).
The top of the unit houses a few boxes, containing generic stationery, my sewing tools and craft supplies, refills for my printer, some jars with all sorts of buttons and some artwork.
My sewing machine and a wicker basket with all my knitting tools and on-going knitting work are kept under the desk.Together with some imperial sheets of watercolour paper.
The drawer unit is my favourite. It has 5 drawers and each is designated to a specific activity:
minibooks; painting tools; cards making supplies, including lino printing, embossing and die cutting tools; fabrics; notebooks and sketchbooks. 
Additional fabrics and painting supplies and all my books, magazines, reference materials and sketchbooks are not so neatly displayed on the bookshelf, but I’m working on that too.

I love this space, I love sitting in my chair and feeling creative, I love that when I’m at my desk the rest of the living room is behind me and I can concentrate on what I’m doing. It feels like I’m in a completely different world.

Current reads

In relation to my One Little word for 2014 (you can read about it here), I’ve chosen a number of books that I’m hoping will help me through my creative journey. Funnily enough, all of those books were bought in November last year, way before I began this adventure and way before my word was chosen. Maybe it was by owing these books that my OLW came to me…who knows. These books spoke to me, one way or another; for some was the cover, for others the raving comments, or just the title. They all had great reviews overall, but you know, people have different opinions and needs and sometimes a great book for one could be a waste of time for another. I’m planning to give it a start to all of them and then eventually ditch the one that are not for me. I’m just hoping I will be able to find some quiet time to get lost into these books.

Amazon book description: Cultivating Your Creative Life: How to Find Balance, Beauty, and Success as an Artist is a multifaceted book where creativity and wonder intermingle to show how to live a creative and balanced life while moving toward your goals. You’ll delve right into the creative process and find practical and inspiring suggestions on making a living as a working artist. This book holds reverence and respect for the natural world in high esteem, using a central visual metaphor of the growth and blossoming of a tree. Alena Hennessey’s illustration style combines nature, whimsey, delicacy, and a modern sensibility; vibrant pen and ink illustrations accompany relevant quotes of inspiration, tips, and creative journal exercises. Cultivating Your Creative Life is not only an interactive creativity guide; it is a work of art, in itself—a beautiful, collectible volume—to save and to savor, or to give as a gift to the special creative person in your life.
Amazon book description: Utilize your creativity to manifest your personal intention. Work in the spirit of the laws of attraction to visualize the life of your dreams. Follow the journey of twelve artists, each who will set a personal dream or intention. Witness the process that each artist takes, as they create a mixed-media piece that sows the seeds of their intention. Step-by-step techniques for a variety of mixed-media processes accompany each piece of finished art. Read about how their lives changed as a result and learn how to set intentions of your own using the bonus tear-out “dream-prompt” cards.
Raw Art Journaling by Quinn McDonald
Amazon book description: In a raw-art journal, you don’t need to know how to draw; you don’t need to know how to write well. You don’t need worry about messing up techniques you’ve never attempted before inside your raw-art journal. You just need to be you because raw art is you and it thrives on creative play, on experimentation and even on making mistakes.
Raw Art Journaling will teach you how to embrace your art, confront negative self-talk (a.k.a., your gremlin) and make meaning with your words and with your art. Inside Raw Art Journaling you’ll discover how to:
·       Write meaningful thoughts with a single sentence
·       Create thought-provoking poems through found poetry
·       Uncover images hidden in your photos
·       Make personal meaning with the simplest of lines
·       Finally feel free to make mistakes
·       Use clever techniques to keep your secrets secret
Quiet your gremlin, grab your permission slip (it’s on page 19) and start making meaning in your own raw-art journal today!
All I Did Was Listen by Rachel Awes
Amazon book description: Rachel Awes, licensed psychologist, tells a story of wholeness + healing for everyone through colorful drawings, prose-like reflections, + inspiring quotes from her clients. Show More
Amazon book description: Tumble down the rabbit hole and find yourself in an inky black-and-white wonderland. This interactive activity book takes you on a ramble through a secret garden created in beautifully detailed pen-and-ink illustrations all waiting to be brought to life through colouring, but each also sheltering all kinds of tiny creatures just waiting to be found. And there are also bits of the garden that still need to be completed by you. Appealing to all ages, the intricately-realized world of the Secret Garden is both beautiful and inspirational.
this book is currently sitting in my drawer at work. 
i need some creativity when i get fed up with with numbers

Craft-a-doodleby Jenny Doh

(This book was actually the chosen prize of a giveaway I won from the craft institute)

Amazon book description: Using a simple doodle as a starting point, 18 artists take you on an inspirational, crafty journey! Filled with inventive prompts designed to fuel the imagination, these 75 exercises motivate crafters to pick up a pencil, brush, or marker and explore their artistic voice. From quick ‘try it’ ideas using shapes and patterns to doodled portraits and contour drawings, these step-by-step projects are wild, creative fun. The featured artists include Cori Dantini, who provides a ‘Recipe for a Face’; Flora Chang with innovative watercolour designs; and Teesha Moore who offers ideas for adding personality to doodled characters.

The little light of mine by Kelly Rae Roberts and Hope Lyda
Amazon book description: Kelly Rae Roberts’ unique and compelling art inspires all women to shine in all that they do and all that they become. This delightful treasure will be received with a bright smile by women embarking on new ventures, honoring friendships, and igniting dreams. The engaging paintings of popular artist Kelly Rae Roberts illuminate this colorful celebration of hope, faith, kindness, courage, and gratitude. Inspiring quotes and reflections of possibility invite readers to explore their personal adventure of life and joy.Show More

Happy reading!

My One Little Word for 2014 // CREATIVE

This year I embarked in yet another year long project called One Little WordSM by Ali Edwards (more info here).
Yet again, as most of the things I do, it was all decided impulsively in about 3 minutes late at night. With one eye already asleep and the other halfway there, I clicked on the ‘Register Here’ and that was it!
I had heard about this project before, but really didn’t know exactly what it was all about, so I started reading all Ali’s posts on previous years and got hooked up. The workshop is really a personal journey to embrace a meaningful word of your choice into your life, through prompts, exercises, reflections and actions. The journey can be documented through scrapbooking or in a way that suits you best. There are suggested ways of doing it, but it is really a personal choice.
My One Little Word for 2014 is: 

Choosing the right word was not easy and straight forward. During the past year, I tried a lot of different things and new approaches to my creative and practical life. I didn’t signed up for any art classes, as I used to do, but enrolled in online workshops and challenges, covering sketching, photography, scrapbooking. I discovered the work of some artists I now love and admire. All this experimenting led me to some discoveries about what I’m good and bad at, what I like and dislike. But my interest and commitment for any of those things was merely superficial and temporary. After trying one new thing I moved straight to the next one, following the trend of the moment.  I read somewhere on the internet (haven’t been able to find it again), that intelligent people can do anything, but clever ones only focus on what they are best at, or something like that.

So, one of my plans for this year was to narrow down my interests and actually stick to a couple of ideas that I enjoyed playing with last year. I want put more effort into those few things, giving them a chance to evolve and become something more than a hobby of the moment. So with this in mind I started thinking about a word that would sum up this early concept. Many popped out into my head, but none would stick or felt appropriate. Also reading other people’s words made me feel a bit superficial in trying to pick a word that would have an impact on my practical side than my inner side, so I took more time to choose my one little word.
I thought and read a lot and the word CREATIVE arrived. And the more I think about it, the more I’m convinced it is that I need this year. I still haven’t explored this word and its meaning, what are my expectations and in what ways I’m going to include this word into my daily life, and all its aspects. I have yet to decide how to document this word of mine, but I will be sharing regular posts here on the blog, towards the end of each month.

Wish me luck in starting this new journey!