Episode 394 of the Creativity Matters Podcast: preparing for a challenge and a “trying it on” mentality. Plus, microns and a colorful graphic novel.
Simmer. Percolate. Stew. Consider. Contemplate. Ponder. All of those things! Over the weekend, I suddenly thought, “I should make my ICAD series a series of possible logos for the CMP.” That idea has merit. It really does. A series of 61 cards all with the intent of being used as cover art (or maybe a… more…
Thoughts on the Index-Card-a-Day (ICAD) challenge as week two concludes. Looking back and taking stock, fourteen days into the sixty-one day challenge.
A look back at ICAD (Index-Card-a-Day) 2016 and getting ready for ICAD 2017.
Three pinwheel-themed sketches that formed a mini-series of sorts in response to a Wonder31 prompt. These daily sketches are part of my personal creative routine.
Thoughts on fountain pen inks, the mind-boggling amount of time it takes to run through a cartridge, the allure of a crazy green ink that may be my next fill, great resources for fountain pen inks and content, and tracking and documentation projects. Plus, a book on embroidery and one on mindfulness.
Favorite things… mostly basic tools that come to the surface when I think through what I use day to day and most often.
An off-the-cuff look at Inktober, a daily challenge in October. You should!
Some ICAD cards take a different direction than I expect. As became the norm this summer, I often contemplated the daily prompts and then found some way to approach the prompt in my own way, often from a different angle or back door. Sometimes, no one else would even realize the prompt was there…. more…
Another birthday has come and gone. It was a good day. I believe you have to craft and make days to be what you want them to be. I believe this for myself, and it is advice I give to others, a view of proactive being that was gifted to me several years ago… more…
Dive into the world of the Midori Traveler’s Notebook (MTN) system–the ultimate, flexible system for people who love notebooks.
Trying something different in May, a spin on daily concepts we have talked about many times. I am curious to see how the month will take shape and am hoping this will rekindle something approximating the kind of “daily” that was, for a while, such a big part of me.
It has been a not easy week. It gas been the kind of week that makes me doubt everything. But the fruit I picked up a few weeks back for my next EDM were going soft. It was the right thing to do this morning, centering in its own way. Why pencil? Not sure. It… more…
No Fear of the Blank Page Here. This was a bit ago… after we spotted a Townsend’s Warbler (yellow and black with mask!) for the first time in a bush across from the house as we were going to the park to make a “first” YouTube video about folding paper airplanes. Once we were all… more…
These are not ones I’ve been racing to the blog to show. But in the spirit of “it is what it is,” here are drawings (however sparse) for Every Day Matters 11, 12, and 13.
EDM #10 – Draw Your Hand Drawing my hand isn’t one of my favorite assignments. But drawing my hand, in fact, was one of the first things I did a few years ago when I started working in a visual journal. Since then, when I’m stuck or wandering, a friend always sends me the same… more…
Everyday Matters #6 – Favorite well-loved object (Or a childhood toy) For some reason, it seems this EDM challenge “expects” something stuffed. While there is a lingering collection of stuffed things gathering dust on shelves throughout the house, there is little attachment these days to stuffed animals from the kids,. (Though there room still… more…
Everyday Matters #5- A bed We decided not to draw a bed but to draw the couch, which was recently used as a bed. I didn’t fill in all the pattern on the quilt, just the gist. (I love drawing fiber art… but to fully do so ends up being a long exercise in pattern… more…
Everyday Matters #4 — A cup or mug Perspective (on mine) is way off. I started to scrap it and start again later, but just let it go. It’s actually a favorite mug of mine — part of a growing collection of Starbuck’s coffee cups. In the moment, there was a lot of reflection… more…
EDM #3 – A Bag or Purse If you are following along, you know that I’m negotiating my attempt to do the Everyday Matters list with a student artist in the house. We’ve had a hiccup here and there getting started, but here’s #3. I have to admit I have a ton of “bags”… more…
EDM #2 — Lamp. I have strong memories of drawing a different lamp in the house back when I was first exploring visual journaling, was keeping a more daily routine, and was sharing the story of rekindling a creative journey via the podcast. It’s a stained glass lamp, and while I can’t put my fingers… more…
Everyday Matters #1 – Shoe But before the shoes… I am sure it seems I’ve completely disappeared. It feels that way at times, but the truth is that the site, the podcast, the blog, the journey… none of it is ever far from my mind. I had good intentions for something in June around… more…
I will save my surprise and the story of how this came to be for a story someday (that thing I sometimes do called a podcast). But once he spilled the beans to me that he had sort of liked my idea to do a panel a day (or even part of a panel) and… more…
I’m glad I managed to get both to the Roadworks events with me. I thought it was amazing — and we got to see the steamroller in action several times, which was very cool. The lino-cuts that were being inked and printed by steamroller were enormous and mind boggling in detail. We also got an… more…
I believe this may be the final “prompt” on the CT site where I’ve been part of the team of artists over the last two years. During that time, I came to love the discipline having a “deadline” for working on these pieces gave me — as well as the (self-imposed) challenge of making sure… more…