Merry go round - Does geographical location affect your art/craft?

It''s time for another ride on the merry-go-round! Jump on and join a group of 9 artists/crafts-women as they link around the world and tell you a little about their lives in art and craft.

This month's question that we will answer is: How much, if at all, does your geographical location affect your art/craft?

A bird in the hand.....

A piece that reflects how fortunate I feel to live in such a wonderful environment.

 I feel so lucky to live in a lovely rural environment in Northern California.  The scenery, the birds, our vineyard, the wildlife, are all so beautiful and inspiring so it naturally plays a huge part in my creations. Also the fact that I feel so comfortable, happy, and at ease here frees my mind so that I can be creative.

The only grape design I've ever made!

We have many lemon and citrus trees in our garden

While I have done very few obviously vineyard inspired pieces - ie only one grape necklace, we named our vineyard Birdland Vineyards for a reason! We get lots of different birds visiting us all the time - building nests, bathing, eating, singing, growing....  And if you've ever seen any of my jewelry - you'll know that birds feature in more than 50% of my work!

We built a duck float for our pond one year and thus came this ring!

There is a certain tranquility to our home.  When people come and stay, you can see a visible difference in them after they've been here 2 or 3 days. Their shoulders drop, they relax, they breathe slower and more deeply......The wonder of nature is all around and you can't fail to be affected by it.  It is a little piece of heaven. 

In terra pax - On earth peace

And when you live in this environment,  it seems obvious that I would categorize my jewelry in terms of "playful, happy, serene, homey, and comforted".   Those are the emotions that surround us and thus my work reflects that.

"Songbird" - we  are lucky enough to share our property with countless songbirds everyday

So yes.  My geographical location - my little slice of heaven - plays a huge part in all that I create.

I hope you'll check out how the geography of the other merry go rounders affects them by clicking on the links below.  We live in many different places around the world from Singapore to Turkey to the Outer Hebrides, to the Netherlands ...... so it'll be interesting to see how these places affect the artist who lives there. (Remember that this also means that we live on different time zones so some may post later than others.)
Thanks for looking.

Alison at Tweed Delights - http://idreamoftweed.blogspot.com
Mitsy at ArtMind - http://artmind-etcetera.blogspot.com
Kim at Vilt a la Kim - http://viltalakim.blogspot.com
Sara at Crafts of Texture - http://sarastexturecrafts.blogspot.com  
Fabienne at Easterya Jewellery Creations - http://easterya.blogspot.com
Mariana at Florcita - http://www.florcita.eu/
Agathe at Le Bar du Vent - http://lebarduvent.blogspot.com
Lily at Lily Pang Art and Design - http://lilypangart.blogspot.com

Merry Go Round - Inspiration: pinboards, journals, folders etc

It's time for another ride on the merry-go-round! Jump on and join a group of 10 artists/crafts-women as they link around the world and tell you a little about their lives in art and craft.

This month's question that myself and other merry-go-rounders will answer is "What inspires us? - a peak into journals, pinboards, folders or wherever we keep our little snippets of inspiring stuff...

My everyday visual "pinboard" is, in fact, a nest. Well, it is Birdland!


I have this little nest hanging from my ceiling in my studio. The ceiling to start with is very low and you can only stand up in the room right in the middle.....but I hang this nest that is very difficult to avoid and inside go little "trinkets" that I like and make me think of new designs.

Inside there is a kaleidoscope, a yo yo, a couple of birds, frog, horse, flower, car, truck, duck, spinning top, windmill, mannequin...and a few other snippets! I enjoy a little rummage through when I'm looking for inspiration.

I also have a couple of folders and little books that I keep ideas in.

And inside I scribble! Alot of my scribblings are words - quotes or song lyrics or poems or ... Quotes and poems are increasingly inspiring to me lately.... I love collecting quotes as I come across them - the little stack of green cards in the photo is a different quotation on each page...some in different languages too....

And then two books that I have that I find inspire me are:


Hmm. What does this say about me? I guess there isn't the usual "cut this out from a glossy magazine"....But if I am struggling for a new idea ( and thankfully, I don't seem to struggle very often) I suppose it is toys, kids illustrations, and quotes that are great sources of inspiration for me.

I photographed all these items on this little rug that only just fits in my studio. This is where I sit and rummage through my nest, folders, leather books and nursery rhyme books when I'm looking for new ideas! So now you can picture me, sat on the rug, reading nursery rhymes....

Let's go and see what inspires the other merry go rounders in their art. Here are their links:

Fabienne at Easterya http://easterya.blogspot.com
Wendren at Wren http://thewrendesign.com/
Sara at Sara's Texture Crafts http://sarastexturecrafts.blogspot.com
Marian at Florcita http://florcitasart.blogspot.com
Agathe at Le Bar du Vent http://lebarduvent.blogspot.com
Charlotte at FancyPicnic http://fancypicnic.blogspot.com
Lily Pang at Lily Pang Art http://lilypangart.blogspot.com
Jenny at Jenny Karlsson design http://designjennykarlsson.blogspot.com/
Nikki at Beaded Zen http://beadedzen.blogspot.com

Creativity sparks - ideas to inspire: ideas book

One of the key things that helps with my inspiration is my ideas book/folder/file. Just a bunch of sheet protectors in a file that I put little snippets in that I find as I go about my daily living. Then when I'm trying to come up with a new idea, I sit on the floor in my studio on my little birdie rug and flick through the pages.

The kinds of things I put in my file vary tremendously. It can be photograph showing an interesting way to use props in a photo......it can be a font I like.....it can be a saying or quotation.....it can be a picture....it can be a story...it can be song lyrics or a nursery rhyme.....it can be a sticker.....it can be anything.

Just something that catches my eye and makes me stop and look at it twice. If it is in a magazine, I'll rip it out, or online- I'll print it or else I'll write it down or photograph it.

Currently it looks like I need to organize the file a little. That's because it is seriously bulging and won't close and is tricky to flick through! I just need to put everything in either two files or one larger one...but that doesn't seem to happen. I think the disorganization of it all adds to the charm and inspiration.

Do you have a stash of goodies you look at for inspiration? Tell us about it.....

Creativity sparks - ideas to inspire : A quote

OK. Today's creativity spark is short and simple. It's a quote from Juan Ramon Jimenez, a Spanish poet (1881-1958):

"If they give you ruled paper, write the other way."

So give it a try! Let me know.

Creativity sparks - ideas to inspire: left and right

In one of my yahoo groups this week a suggestion was made on a trick you can try if you are having problems deciding what to create and want to "unblock" your mind. I hadn't heard of it before - so thought I'd share it with you!

The suggestion was made by Robert Dancik. I met him this past summer when we were in a bronze clay class together at a conference. He is a guy with lots of cool stuff! He seems to find or create all these difference materials to use - and then puts them together and tweaks this and tries this new thing here and voila! Something totally unique! And he's a great teacher too. Sign up for any of his classes if you ever get a chance!

Check out his website http://www.robertdancik.com/ - and you can learn about his product faux bone there too.

Anyhow - back to inspiration....

His idea is that you switch the hands that you work with - so if you are right handed, try making something with your left hand - and if you are left handed, try it with you right hand.




So - who is up for the challenge? Want to give it a try and see what we can do - and more importantly - see what it sparks in our heads?????

Creativity sparks - ideas to inspire : Music

If you look at my jewelry, you'll notice that several of my pieces are entitled with music lyrics or song titles. Music is a big part of my life - I sing a lot and listen a lot. A whilst listening to an old Beatles song or some CD may spark works like "driving along in my automobile" and "fly me to the moon".....music can do so much more.

Take for example just sitting back and listening to Ralph Vaughan Williams' "The Lark Ascending".....

Here is a link to it - just play it as you continue to read..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbcuteYm-EA

or else just stop for a while and close your eyes and listen. I first heard this piece live at the Three Choirs Festival in Gloucester cathedral. It was just so breathtaking......

Or another piece is Barber's Agnus Dei........I find it takes me on a journey that is difficult at times but at the end, I am so uplifted through going through the difficulties......

Here's a link to it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkObnNQCMtM

Just getting lost in music is a wonderful thing. To help you get into it, as the piece starts, imagine yourself starting to walk on a path and then see where the path takes you and what colors appear and......expect nothing, just observe....

Take the time. Sit comfortably and do nothing but close your eyes and listen.

Is there a piece of music that you get totally absorbed in? Something that shifts your mind....do tell us. Please add it in the comments section so we can listen too......... Let's share our experiences...

Creativity sparks - ideas to inspire : Go shopping

One of my favorite ways to find inspiration for my creations is to go shopping. Actually, just window shopping - but I find it really does help.

Depending on what sort of art/craft you do - you may have your own type of shop or store that will do it for you. For me, it's toy stores! Especially those that have old style toys.

My husband is not quite used to this new source of inspiration and often wonders what I'm doing heading into a toy store - then it clicks and he leaves me to it for a while, to check out the different toys, from the wooden toys to little cars to animals to just the packaging design. Toy stores just are happy places with lots of bright colors and playful things that often inspire my creations.

For example, I'm half way through making a type of jack in the box necklace. I'm still figuring out how to work the clasp right now - but when I do that, I think it'll be sweet.

My Bubo the flying owl necklace was inspired by a toy, anyone can fly a kite, also my fish mobile earrings,.....I also keep looking at old toy musical instruments......and spinning tops and ....

The other type of store that I enjoy browsing around for inspiration are hardware stores. Sounds a little odd, I know - and I have never really been a hardware store person......but since I now use "power tools" - I'm quite into them.....I wander around and see all these different textures and shapes and little screws and tiny components and it sparks off ideas such as hinges and kinetic movements in items and more mechanical aspects to my jewelry.

So next time you are out and about - try doing some window shopping for inspiration and see what comes to mind. What kind of store inspires you the most ? Antiques, garden store, sweets, kitchen gadgets?????? Give them all and try and I'm sure something will catch your eye - whatever our style!

Creativity Sparks - Ideas to inspire: The Elements

In the ancient world, Philosphers used a set of classical elements to explain patterns in nature. The Greeks elements were Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Aether/Void. These same elements were also used in ancient India and Japan where they formed a basis of analysis in Hinduism and Buddhism. The Chinese used a slightly different series of elements, namely Fire, Earth, Water, Metal and Wood which they understood to be different types of energy in a state of constant interaction and flux. The Elements have also served as powerful symbols and metaphors.

The Earth alludes to the land of the world - its soil, dirt, clay, caves, mountains and also to the animals, vegetables and minerals that is sustains.

Air is all that is about the Earth, space and atmosphere, as well as breezes, swirling winds, hurricanes, and tornadoes.

Fire is the sun itself, giving warmth and light, helping plants to grow but also fire causing damage.

Water is essential to life and also the dew, dampness, fog, rain, ice, snow, oceans, lakes, rivers and streams.

Aether or often referred to as Void or Quintessence, meaning fifth was added to relate to 'heavenly' things. It was reasoned that whereas fire, earth, air and water were changeable and corruptible, no such changes had been seen in the heavenly regions and thus the stars and heavens had to be made from a different, unchangeable, heavenly substance.

Earth, Air, Fire and Water can have both positive and negative forces: water can be refreshing moisture to the dry parched ground or it can be a torrent of destructive floodwaters; fire can burn out of control or purify; air can be stagnant or a refreshing breeze, earth can be barren or fertile.

As subject matter, the elements can provide an endless source of inspiration for artists... from the jagged mountains and canyons created by years of erosion, to monsoon rains or gentle drizzle, reflections in a pond, a fiery sunset, lightening and wildfires.

From what I've learnt recently, it seems that each individual seems to have one element that inspires them more than other. Dale Chihuly, the glass artist says that he is inspired by water. He says he lives in the North East because it rains so often there and thus is a constant source of inspiration. He loves to take walks in the rain and come up with new ideas or else sit by the window watching the rain come down. When he travels and the weather is dry, he says he takes lots of showers and baths each day, as he feels he needs the water! And in fact, every DVD I've seen of Dale Chihuly and his work has shown him lying in a bath. I hadn't quite figured out why until I learnt of his "water" inspiration!!

I think personally, the Earth is my main element for inspiration. While mountains and caves don't really do it for me - the life that the earth sustains does - the animals and the birds and plants. If I look out of my window now as I'm typing, I see a little gopher sticking his head out of the ground (don't tell my husband - he gets very annoyed with them!)....He's busy uprooting our plants (grrrr....) and running around......and he makes me think of making a little animal something with a whole big plant in his mouth - roots and all.....

Or else there is the moss growing between the slabs - it has found it's own little place, it clings on in there, has no real nourishment, but it hangs in there.....the moss could inspire a "hang in there" piece of jewelry or something nestled into a tiny crack - just peaking out.

So what element inspires you the most? Do you get your best ideas when you are by a pond or the ocean or in the bath tub like Dale - or do you gaze into a sunset or cycle fast to feel the wind in your hair? Consider the different elements and see what comes up in your mind.....

Creativity sparks - Ideas to inspire : Review of the day

As a regular feature in my blog, in keeping with the core of what "inside the artisan" is all about, namely where I tell the stories behind my creations, I'm going to start posting about how I find my inspiration to create my pieces and also name them. Sometimes the idea for the piece comes first and sometimes the name comes first. It may well be that I end up not making the piece - or maybe I will one day, months later...... but I will explain how an idea comes to me - and then maybe you can use a similar process for your own creativity - whether it be in art or craft or whatever......

So as I write this - I don't have any idea in my head at all....so if I want to come up with a new idea - (something unique so that it follows my word of the year, from yesterday's posting :-D!), I'd begin by thinking about what I have done, said, heard, and seen today.....and noting anything that sticks in my mind.....

My day started with a man coming to our home to measure up and look at the feasibility of us converting two of our fireplaces into gas fireplaces....General chat - although occasionally the guy would just stop talking, right in the middle of a sentence, and look out of the window - and then comment on how many Jack Rabbits he had seen hopping through the vineyard.....He did this a few times...

Then I went to a board meeting and lunch for the Sonoma Newcomers group and during lunch we spoke of movies and the such.... When I got home my husband wasn't in, but shortly after, he came home and told me he'd been to a card shop and saw two funny cards - one of people in a restaurant and one of rabbits with big ears.....And now here I am, sitting at my computer...

So as I'm writing this blog, I wrote as a stream of consciousness - just writing what came into my head - just those couple of paragraphs. If I wasn't writing it down, I would just replay it in my mind.... just think back on my day and see what comes about.......

Immediately as I've finished my "review", the rabbits stick out, as rabbits came up a few times today........and I think of large ears - as our Jack Rabbits have enormous ears....and then moving to the board meeting..... the movie I was recommending to everyone over lunch was "The Reader" which I absolutely loved.....

And voila! How about creating a rabbit piece with really big ears and calling it "The Listener"??

The next phase is to check that it would fit in with the themes of my jewelry creations...... I've recently changed my themes of jewelry so the categories are that the jewelry evokes one of the following feelings: Playful; Happy; Loved; Comforted; Young at heart; Homey; and Serene. So would a rabbit of some sort with big ears who is a great listener fit into any of these? Yes - I can see him fitting into "comforted" - we all know the great feeling when someone really listens to us, and he could also fit into playful or happy. He has a touch of whimsy - big ears suggesting he's an excellent listener........and so now I'd just go forward and think should this be a necklace, charm, earrings or what and then look at the structural design elements that are necessary for hanging etc etc .

So - "The Listener." I'll now write down this idea in my little book and maybe one day.....watch this space - he may put in an appearance .....

In comparison to "The Listener", here's a photo of a rabbit we saw in Washington state. I don't think he'd be a good listener! Whatever happened to his ears????


Now as I'm thinking about Jack Rabbit....other thoughts are also coming into my head, like Jack in the box and maybe I could do a rabbit like a jack in a box - but the rabbit is coming out of a top hat - like a magician's rabbit....the rabbit could sit on a spring....the top could be a magician's glove with a hinge and when you open it....out pops the rabbit....... Definitely playful...so that will also go in my little ideas book.....

If you are a creator, try the above technique and then email me and tell me your story - I'd love to share it here on my blog.