Happiness Typography Geometric Screenprint Embroidery Hoop
Do you love crafting, but have too many projects and ideas and too little time?
Do you get that feeling like you’ve got to create/sew/paint/bead right this second or you’re gonna blow up, but you can’t decide where to start?
Believe it or not, I can help! Last week, I wrote about a powerful technique for directing creative flow that I call “Looking for Threads”. It’s useful for craftspeople, artists and even for directing the creative flow of our daily activities like meal planning and designing your house’s insides! (ie. interior design) This technique is useful because a flood of undirected creativity can leave you just as frustrated as a period of creative block. But if you can harness and direct your creative energy, then all of your crafty, artistic, creative efforts will transform into fulfilling, meaningful life experiences which will help fuel the fires of creativity even more! There are two ways to look for threads: Consciously and Unconsciously.
This week, I’m going to help you start consciously identifying those threads that have been running through your creative pursuits, but you didn’t even know where there. All jazzed up and ready to go? Me, too!! Let’s connect the dots!!
Consciously Looking for Threads, Defined.
(first, let’s recap from last week what the heck we’re talking about here!) Consciously Looking for Threads is taking the time to look over your past creative activities and brainstorming to help understand what similarities exist through all of them. What are the qualities that draw them all together. Connect the dots! For example, in college my art professor encouraged me to uncover the threads that connected my passion for Geology and my passion for art. It took me a long time, years, but I think the connection is that they’re both tools for understanding the big, universal “What is the meaning of life?” question.That’s what
jewelry design is for me, too! All my creative pursuits are really investigative tools that I use to ask myself what life/existence means. I knew I wanted to feature natural materials in my jewelry, I was passionate about it, but didn’t really know why. When I looked closer to sift out the threads that connected jewelry making with the rest of my creative pursuits, I could see that I was drawn to natural materials because it was another facet of
growing closer to the real true facts, to the “real business of life.” With that closeness comes a greater sense of meaning and fulfillment, which is what makes this whole life thing worth it!
How to Identify What Threads Connect Together Your Creative Pursuits.
On the one hand, this is really easy, and on the other, it’s super tricky and elusive. Consciously identifying the threads that run through your crafty, artistic, creative pursuits is simply taking time to reflect and brainstorm on the reasons why you created/crafted/drew what you did, and then finding the elements that connect each creative project to the next one. What do they all have in common? The tricky part is that a lot of times we’re just crafting/drawing/painting away and aren’t aware of the reasons behind it, we just know that we gotta do it! Here’s where I come to the rescue!
This is my Rx: Sit yourself down with a copy of that worksheet, a cup of hot tea (or coffee), some colored pencils/markers/crayons and an hour of alone time and play connect the dots!Until next time, Happy Creating!
12. Aug, 2011 
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Very helpful! I like the worksheet, it’s a great visible way to connect the threads!
Cute, I like the bunnies. Thank you. Looking forward to filling this out.