Facing the Artist’s Block

This week it's part two of our inspiration posts. Last week we covered what inspiration was and how you could go hunting it down. This week week talk about where it goes and why.

Have you ever sat down at your workbench  or drawing board, feeling good, proud of what you've accomplished so far, and intending to get some new ideas for work together, but then, all you can do is stare at a blank page, because nothing is coming to you? Slowly your good mood drains away, and all you can think about is "but where did all my ideas go?" Or you start to draw, but nothing is looking right, despite the fact that you know this is a good idea? These two problems, and other related ones are collectively known as Artist's Block.
There are people who swear it is a real thing. There are also others who say it's all in your head and can be avoided with proper care and work. While it is entirely possible that both camps are correct, it boils down to the same thing. Your inspiration is gone.

So... Where did it go? One idea is that you've done too much of the same thing. Another is that it's been too long since you soaked up some of whatever it was that inspired you in the first place. A third idea is simply that you've worked too hard for too long. A fourth is criticism, whether from yourself or others has got you down. Are there other theories? Probably. These are just the ones I've run across, and experienced.

Luckily, each of these has a 'fix' of sorts.
1. Try something different. If you've been working on beads all the time, try doing some wire or metalwork. Or even just a new stitch.
2. Go hunt down the thing that originally inspired you. Watch that show again, read that book. Go for a run, or look at pictures.
3. Take a break! Breaks are just as important for your brain as they are for your body. Your brain needs time to relax and review what you've learned so that it can keep innovating and coming up with new ideas.
4. This one is two options, and depends entirely on you. Option A is to grab a supportive friend and talk it out. Sometimes having a second opinion can help. Option B is to write it out. Play devil's advocate with yourself. One side argues in favor of the criticism, the other side argues against it. For some, having it down on paper helps to put things in perspective. That's it for this weeks discussion of inspiration and the perils of Artist's Block.

Like the post?

Have thoughts on the peril's of Artist's Block?

Do you secretly have a dragon hatching in your fireplace?

Feel free to comment below!

Inspiration… what’s that?

I'm thinking a lot about inspiration today. Where does it come from? Where does it go when you're facing the dreaded artist's block? Is there a way to guarantee you have it every time you sit down at your bench?
Let's start with the definition.

in·spi·ra·tion

\ in(t)-spə- rā-shən, -( )spi-\

noun

1 a : a divine influence or action on a person believed to qualify him or her to receive and communicate sacred revelation; b : the action or power of moving the intellect or emotions; c : the act of influencing or suggesting opinions;

2 : the act of drawing in; specifically : the drawing of air into the lungs

3 a : the quality or state of being inspired b : something that is inspired <a scheme that was pure inspiration>
4 : an inspiring agent or influence

Wow... That's a lot. Well let's see. We can cross of the second one. Although we are all breathing* that isn't the one we need.  The third one also doesn't seem to be what we need. And 1a is just a whole can of worms that we can leave to theologists.
So that leaves us with 1b,  c, and 4. To restate:

1. b : the action or power of moving  the intellect or emotions; c : the act of influencing or

suggesting opinions;

4 : an inspiring agent or influence

Those seem pretty good to me. An inspiring agent or influence. One that moves the intellect and emotions, and influence or suggest opinions.
Now we know what the dictionary says.... But it still doesn't really explain where it comes from..... In reality, that question is as complex as trying to figure out motives for why people do things. Some of the most common sources I've seen are art, emotions, people and scenery. For me, I find a lot of inspiration by going for a run. I'll see a particularly interesting arrangement of rocks in the water. Or if I'm up early enough, I'll see the sky turning some really strange shades of red and purple. Sometimes, as y'all have seen on Fridays I'll get inspired by reading or watching something.

This is just me though. For others I'd suggest, look to what you find fun, interesting, or moving. See if there's something that springs to mind from it. Am image? A shape? A pattern?  Another suggestion (and one I know I need to listen to more often) from other artists is this: draw every day. Draw everything. Draw all the things. Even if it looks positively horrible. If you do it every day, you'll get better at it. Honest, you will. (Or so they tell me.)  What this does is give you a basis to improve your skills, so that when you want to draw out the pieces you want to make, you'll actually be able to. You will have developed the skill to accurately depict what you want to make.

Wow this post has gone on longer than I thought it would. O.o We’ll continue on next week and ponder the myriad ways that the evil artists block can steal your lovely inspiration next week. Have a good day! :-)

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Have thoughts about inspiration? Comment below!

*(right? All of you are in fact living, right? I don't have any zombies following me? ;-))

Chronicles of Elantra

All over the internet, people are constantly looking for inspiration, and where to get new ideas. This includes yours truly. There are some days when   I can't step away from my notebook, for all the designs that are coming to me. And then there are other days when, I can't think of a blessed thing. So when those days happen, I go back to one of my old standbys. Reading, playing a game or watching some tv. Why? Because I get ideas from watching the characters. What personifies them? What would look good with this outfit they're wearing? i ask these things and the ideas start to come, even if they are still slow as molasses. It doesn't matter if I can make the pieces with the supplies I have on hand or not, what matters is that I'm coming up with designs.
Since that's the case, and I'm all for talking about geeky things, I figured I'd do a post every week with whatever I'm reading/playing/watching and the designs that came out of it. Why? Because it's good practice for me, and it could be fun to discuss it with others :D
I wanted to use  one of my favorite book series, the Chronicles of Elantra.
The first book is called Cast in Shadow, and it's a fast paced, head twisting novel that never ceases to amaze me.
(Go ahead and click the picture, you’ll get a great description of the book )
This series is so..complex and layered that I end up finding something new every time I read it again. It's also been so well liked by friends that I've given away the first book three different times. T.T I still need to pick up a new one....
The good news about the series being so complex, is that every time I read it, I can spend some time figuring out new jewelry for the different characters in any given situation. So that'll be the post for next week, this week is just a sort of 'heads up' for something new coming ;). I'll be putting these up once a week, probably on Fridays and see how things go.
What do ya'll think? Sound interesting? Boring? Have some ideas for things I could design for? Comment below!

Kumihimo and Wire

Next month's book review is going to be "Kumhimo with Wire" (I know, I know, I can't believe I'm telling ya'll early! ;) but this post doesn't really work without ya'll knowing.)  So as I was reading the book, I really, really wanted to try out some of the experiments in the book. This is the troubles and tribulations I faced while doing it. And boy are they a doozy!
My first thought was to try and use painter's tape and the copper pipes I have to wrap the wire around and keep them out of my way while I'm working. Yeah. That failed. The pipes were to heavy in comparison to the wire, and so the wire just sproinged off and made these beautiful slinkies that would've gotten tangled quicker than I could say 'Rapunzel'. 
So the next idea was to again use the painter's tape and adhere the wire to empty medicine bottles I use for bead storage... that looked like it was going to work. Until I put the board on my knees and again Sprrooing!  =sighs= 
Round three, Mia vs the wire. This time, I'm going to anneal the wire (as much as possible considering I've got the ends of the 8 pieces twisted together). Then wrap it around bobbins. Hopefully this will work. 
 So far so good, I've got the wire semi-annealed and wrapped around the bobbins, and I'm already making notes on how to better go about this next time. Unfortunately this takes so much fuel!
Once again I've hit a wall.
Unlike with thread, the wire doesn't want to stay next to each other, it doesn't want to be close to it's buddies and actually look like a cord. So I need to figure out someway to fix this. For now, I'm cutting the wires free, scrapping the ends, and winding the wires tight on the bobbins. I'll use some thread to make cords for now. 
New rule. If I'm working on a necklace, there's going to be bobbins involved. No exceptions. This means I need more bobbins :/
Today's experiments have left me daydreaming about Ez Bobbins and VictorianGypsygirl's BEAUTIFUL sari ribbons. I would love to play with those and make things.. -sighs- Ahh, gotta love working on a tight budget!
 
If ya’ll have any thoughts or experiences working wire with Kumihimo, please let me know.