The question has been asked (on
Calamity Kim's blog), What inspires you to create? I like this question because I have a lot to say about it!
First of all, I create many different kinds of things. I quilt, I paint, I craft, I photograph, I redo furniture... I pretty much do anything that catches my fancy!
As for where my inspiration comes from, it really comes from everywhere and anywhere. I might see a blog with
fantastic photography,
lovely paintings, or
whimsical stories. I might see a pattern in a photograph I took. I love looking through coffee table books; you know, the kind that have glossy pages and interesting pictures, about subjects like
traveling,
home decorating or
the life and works of an artist.
I also find lots of fun projects that I want to try from quilting magazines, like
Quilting Arts or
Quilts and More. Sometimes, when I look at fabric stores (
online or in person), there is a wonderful fabric that jumps out at me and I know I just have to buy it and make something wonderful with it. I like looking at lots of photos to find new and interesting colour combinations. Traveling, or doing something new also inspires me because I am outside my normal routine and I find the creative juices tend to flow more freely during these times.
I really am a visual person and so many of the things I see contain beauty and interesting shapes or patterns. I love nature and organic forms. There are so many ideas that I have inside my head, all fighting to get out! One day, I hope to be able to express them all.
(Photos are of some small quilting projects that I have completed in the last month or so. Top: a cute little quilt with some wonderful fabrics. Middle: a table runner wedding gift made for my friends Ashley and Sean. Bottom: Two file and paper holders that I made for the two fantastic teachers I worked with last year.)
Happy inspiration to you all.
xo Nicole
Don't you just love bicycles in photos? There is something so exciting about them. They have been somewhere and could go anywhere. And just who has left their bike behind while doing another activity? Will they come back for it? What if someone steals it? I love the old style bikes especially.
For some interesting surfing (of the web variety):
