HOW TO BECOME INSPIRED

I have read that artists tend to be collectors, and I have to say that it is true of me. I didn't used to think so, until I took a personality test in which one of my top 5 strengths was a term which meant that I collect things. I protested to my husband that the test was wrong...at which point he showed me my "collections". I collect books on art, music, things of beauty, journals - even different types of pens to find the one I like using the best. 

I have accepted that I DO collect "things", and that I do it in order to surround myself with what inspires me. A number of years ago, when I was in Seattle, Washington, in a kiosk at Pike Place Market, I found a journal which I absolutely could not leave behind. It had a soft burgundy cover with a beautiful smooth, shiny stone/ elastic closure. Inside were soft, slightly toothed pages which had been sewn together in groupings...5 groups of pages in all. It was horribly expensive for me, but I HAD to have it for some inexplicable reason.

When I brought it home, I couldn't bear to use it for quite a while. Then I had the idea that I would use it as an inspiration journal. And so I took a deep breath and wrote on the first page the purpose of this beautiful journal.

Mostly, I write quotes that have resonated with me over the years, that inspire me to fully embrace each day, and that help me to not limit myself because of circumstances or feelings.

I find these quotes on people's blogs, in articles or books that I read, on FaceBook, Twitter, Pinterest, or in podcasts or dvd's/cd's that I see and listen to. It is wonderful to go back into the early pages and read these bits and pieces to feel the winds of inspiration blow through my studio again.

As well, I tape in little bits of treasure that I find which are meaningful to me.

Here you see a tiny feather from a Downy Woodpecker that visited our bird feeder and squeaked at us watching him eat. The brilliant turquoise blue strip is the shed skin of one of the dragonflies that hatched in my greenhouse each summer in Calgary. They were so beautiful...

This is one way to become inspired. It takes very little effort to record thoughts, quotes, ideas and inspirations in my journal, but the benefits of that time spent writing and recording pay big dividends. Reading and recording in it helps me to remember that "life is good", and that I am most blessed to be able to pursue my passion in art most every day. So simple, so effective!