finding inspiration

I am really excited to announce my partnership with the Creative Council by UGG Australia. I will be collaborating with UGG over the next few months - interpreting their color focused Spring 2014 line, bringing it to life and putting my own creative spin on their inspiration.

To kick off my partnership with the Creative Council, today I am sharing my top five favorite tips for finding inspiration! Inspiration is the most important part of my creative process. Without excitement, joy and understanding of what it means to look for inspiration, you run the risk of losing motivation to keep up a creative routine. My goal as an artist is to stay offline when looking for ideas. I want my work to be authentic and speak to my daily experiences and the only way for me to do this is by seeking inspiration in everyday moments and in the things around me.

1. CARRY A CAMERA EVERYWHERE: One of the most important things I do is carry a camera everywhere I go. I make sure I always have a way to capture the things that catch my eye. From the farmers market to my neighborhood to my daily walk on the beach, I am always on the look out for things that inspire and can be captured in a photo. The result is a library of thousands of photos that I pull from when I sit down to draw, paint, craft and come up with tutorials and classes. Taking photos has become such an essential part of my creative process that I cannot survive without a camera these days.

2. HUNT AND GATHER: I've always been a treasure hunter- from beach combing to picking flowers to looking for leaves and stones on the ground, I love finding things that catch my eye. And now that I am a mom, this ritual of hunting and gathering has become one of the special ways that I can inspire and connect with my daughter Lucy. All of the things we find are put to use as inspiration or get transformed into art and craft projects.

3. WALK WHEN POSSIBLE: This is an incredibly simple concept - choosing to walk instead of driving - but this concept has changed my life and the way I gather inspiration. While I don't have lots of free time I do make a point to go for walks. We live in a small town and many things are within walking distance so while it would be much quicker to jump in the car to go to the store, I try to walk instead. Often it is during these walks that I find myself feeling most inspired and connected with my life, creativity and ideas. 

4. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH BEAUTY: I am a big believer in having things around me that inspire and keep the creative juices flowing. I like to fill my studio with flowers, decorate with color pattern and texture and create inspiration boards when I am working on projects. My hope is that surrounding myself with beauty will influence my work and spark unique ideas.

5. PERMISSION TO PLAY: While I love going out looking for inspiration, I have also discovered that staying in the studio and "playing" is just as valuable. When I need ideas one of the first things I do is pull out my supplies and have fun! I don't get caught up in creating anything specific instead I give myself permission to just mess around- I splatter, I blend, I finger paint, I scribble. Whether I am painting, drawing or sewing, I know that this process helps me explore and discover new ideas.

What about you? Do you have favorite ways to find inspiration?

This post is a collaboration with the Creative Council by UGG Australia

Photos by Alisa Burke and Andy Gunthardt

My shoes- Delizah Stripe,  Lucy's shoes Bailey Bow