Found Words - Filling the Creative Well - Blog Series

 

Words are powerful, the ones we say to ourselves, or those we allow in from other sources.  We can also stumble upon them unexpectedly and we can look for ways to find those words that speak to our lives.  We can challenge ourselves to make a poem or journal page using found words and cut them out from magazines, books, or even junk mail.

You can make a start by collecting these words that speak to you. Don’t overthink it, if you are leafing through a magazine and come across a word trust your instinct and put it aside to use it in your journal and that time when you are ready to play.

Check out the video on creating word plaques - you can add these to your art journal pages or creative projects.

What else can you do?

Arrange the words into a sentence or poem. Let the words surprise you. You may find a theme emerging or it might be something that your heart wants to say. You can glue them onto a painted background, write around them, or turn them into mini word plaques.

Found word poetry can also a form of collage, combining meaning and language. It is a great way to incorporate text into your art.  It is another activity that you can do to kickstart a mood or inspire you.

This can also be a way to sidestep writer’s block or deepen your journaling. Found words become journal prompts, and even affirmations. They remind us that language is everywhere—and that meaning can be playful.

Takeaway Nuggets:

1. Found words can give voice to what you didn’t know you needed to say.
2. Poetry lives in the unexpected when you look closely.

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Check out some of the free and paid resources below to enhance your creative journey 

Course Platform - there are a variety of FREE courses and resources for you to use in your creative practice.

FREE Tier - Patreon - I have a Free Tier on Patreon that has a selection of early release posts and monthly Digital Download Papers for you to use in your creative projects - Learn More Here

YouTube - Weekly Videos to encourage your creative practice, Slow stitching, art journaling and Artists chats - Learn More Here

Check out Filling the Creative Well which helps you establish your creative practice. In the course Filling the Creative Well, your journal is also a place to answer questions, encourage and motivate you, some days you need a reminder and so filling it with encouraging words so that you can come back to it, especially in those days where you are in a valley is really important. .

Experiment Freely - Filling the Creative Well Series - Blog Series

How often do you try something different in your creative practice? Maybe today is the day to follow a new idea, to use a supply you’ve ignored, and I know I have quite a few of the supplies that have been neglected and that need to be rescued.

The fantastic thing about experimenting is that it can lead to unexpected breakthroughs and learning.  Can you give yourself the time and space to experiment on a daily or weekly basis?

What have you been curious about? That ink that’s still sealed? That stencil you bought but never used? Pick something that feels unknown and let it guide your creative play.

In this video I experiment with fabric

Where do you start?

•      Choose four materials you’ve never combined before—perhaps gesso, watercolor, tissue paper, and stitching. Or try drawing with your non-dominant hand. Or swap your brushes for sponges, twigs, or old toothbrushes, think outside the box.
•      The goal isn’t to make a masterpiece, it is to spark curiosity. You might discover a favorite texture, or combination of supplies that you want to try on a bigger scale.
•      Document what you learned, there are no failures.  Every step outside your comfort zone helps you to become a more confident artist.
• ·    As you will be doing this on a regular basis, why not dedicate a journal to experiments. Make it a space where you don’t judge yourself. Let it hold your trials, errors, and surprises.

Takeaway Nuggets:

1. Every experiment is a teacher - even the messy ones.
2. Curiosity is more important judgement - don’t hold back.

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Check out some of the free and paid resources below to enhance your creative journey 

Course Platform - there are a variety of FREE courses and resources for you to use in your creative practice.

FREE Tier - Patreon - I have a Free Tier on Patreon that has a selection of early release posts and monthly Digital Download Papers for you to use in your creative projects - Learn More Here

YouTube - Weekly Videos to encourage your creative practice, Slow stitching, art journaling and Artists chats - Learn More Here

Check out Filling the Creative Well which helps you establish your creative practice. In the course Filling the Creative Well, your journal is also a place to answer questions, encourage and motivate you, some days you need a reminder and so filling it with encouraging words so that you can come back to it, especially in those days where you are in a valley is really important. .

Doodling - Filling the Creative Well - Blog Series

 

Doodle Daily

Doodling might seem simple; it is something we often do without really thinking. When I used to have to sit in work meetings, I would have my note pad making marks in the margin. I also found myself doodling if on the phone to a friend - having a pen in your hand and a scrap of paper enables you to not only make the necessary notes for your understanding of what is being said, it can also help you process some of the thoughts that maybe going through your mind using mark-making.

Check out the video below for more examples

Doodling it holds amazing creative power. I now set aside time just to doodle or ‘mark making’ and in each of my art pieces there are aspects of doodling in the work.

What can you Try?

Start today with a pen and paper. Don’t worry about what you’ll draw. Begin with one line, then another. Let your pen dance freely. Make patterns, spirals, simple faces, or abstract textures. Doodling isn’t about the end result—it’s about the process.

Set a timer for five or ten minutes. Let yourself get lost in the motion. You might find that your mind relaxes, and your breathing slows, and you get totally caught up in the process.

Over time, regular doodling builds visual vocabulary. You’ll find motifs emerging that you can later use in larger work. Flowers, dots, arrows, waves—all unique to you.

Try doodling during a phone call or while you are listening to a podcast. Doodle in the margins of your journal. Let it become part of your daily practice. Don’t underestimate the power of something so small – it has a meditative feel about it that you can embrace.  Once you have mastered doodling on paper, try other material.  Below I doodle with fabric paints and stitching.

Takeaway Nuggets:

1. Doodling is a mindfulness practice disguised as play.
2. Tiny repeated acts of creativity build long-term confidence.

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Check out some of the free and paid resources below to enhance your creative journey 

Course Platform - there are a variety of FREE courses and resources for you to use in your creative practice.

FREE Tier - Patreon - I have a Free Tier on Patreon that has a selection of early release posts and monthly Digital Download Papers for you to use in your creative projects - Learn More Here

YouTube - Weekly Videos to encourage your creative practice, Slow stitching, art journaling and Artists chats - Learn More Here

Check out Filling the Creative Well which helps you establish your creative practice. In the course Filling the Creative Well, your journal is also a place to answer questions, encourage and motivate you, some days you need a reminder and so filling it with encouraging words so that you can come back to it, especially in those days where you are in a valley is really important. .

Collage Play - Filling the Creative Well - Blog Series

Whether you are using fabric or paper Collage can be one of the most joyful and freeing practices in the creative toolkit and is a great way to revive yourself if you are feeling off or need a pick me up.  You can get yourself moving with your supplies fairly quickly - you probably have most of them close to hand.  You will need some paper ephemera, magazines, a few paper scraps, a pair of scissors, glue and you can get so much from a session.  (If you are working with fabric then take out your fabric scraps and other supplies.  There is no pressure to create a masterpiece, or expectations for realism. Instead, let your instinct lead and have fun.

I sometimes use collage as a way to settle myself before starting my work, I will use it as a filler if I only have a limited amount of creative time, sometimes just laying paper down on my art journal is all I will have time for. I will dig out some of my handmade paper and work on a journal page.  I also have the option of being more focused and working on a specific collage piece if I have more time.

Check out the following video and see one of the ways I approach collage in my art journal.

There are some other Collage Videos for Inspiration, and you can check them out here:

Review - Fabric Art Collage - Check it out HERE 

Collage Unleashed Review - Check it out HERE

What Can you Try?

Today, explore collage and play with some of your supplies. Raid your recycling bin, pull out magazines, used envelopes, maps, or even receipts. Look for textures and shapes that intrigue you – and see how they fit together.

Once you have your pieces, begin arranging them. Don’t glue anything down right away. Instead, move them around, overlap papers and see what story might be emerging on the page.

Collage also teaches us that nothing is wasted. Every scrap has a second story to tell. You can also use the opportunity to explore visual storytelling. Create a page that feels like a dream, write between the layers, add figures you have cut out – go with the flow of the piece and see what you can combine together.  Remember to have fun and see where it takes you.  Let this page be loose and do not judge. You don’t need to explain it to anyone not even yourself.

Takeaway Nuggets:

1. Collage transforms everyday scraps into artful meaning.
2. Trusting your intuition opens up wonderful creative surprises.

👇👇👇👇👇👇

Check out some of the free and paid resources below to enhance your creative journey 

Course Platform - there are a variety of FREE courses and resources for you to use in your creative practice.

FREE Tier - Patreon - I have a Free Tier on Patreon that has a selection of early release posts and monthly Digital Download Papers for you to use in your creative projects - Learn More Here

YouTube - Weekly Videos to encourage your creative practice, Slow stitching, art journaling and Artists chats - Learn More Here

Check out Filling the Creative Well which helps you establish your creative practice. In the course Filling the Creative Well, your journal is also a place to answer questions, encourage and motivate you, some days you need a reminder and so filling it with encouraging words so that you can come back to it, especially in those days where you are in a valley is really important. .