Native Palettes

I recently led a “native palette” wildlfower walk where we created natural palettes from native plants along the trail by smearing and rubbing petals, leaves, and stems on paper.

It was a relaxing gathering of creatives on a wildflower wander, learning a little about some favorite desert flowers while exploring the Santa Rosa San Jacinto Mountains National Monument visitor center trails for a variety of shapes, colors, and fragrances to help our creativity blossom. We had a great time with the exercise, each making our own native palette and revealing some unexpected and surprising colors!

An example palette made

from plants & other natur-

al substances in my yard.



This is a great exercise to try, easy too. Grab some paper (water color, card stock, printer paper, pretty much anything goes), I recommend cutting an 8 1/2 by 11 inch sheet in half for easier handling. Press and smear or rub a variety of plant materials onto your paper. Experiment with different parts of the plant, try to keep pollen separate from petals, try fruits. Go beyond plants by smearing moist soil or mud, charcoal, minerals and other natural sources you find.

Want to take part in future outings that fuel your creativity? Check out Let Nature Be Your Muse meetups!


The group's collection of palettes (the first round)!



Nature Time: Creating A Word List

Come along for a little nature time. Your task is to generate a word list to keep as a source of nature-inspired word prompts to engage your creative spirit. Bring along a sketch pad and a pencil, find an area where you can take in the pace of nature and let the flow of words begin. Notice which words are common in your daily vocabulary and how your response to them might change once they're associated with a natural environment. For example the word surface. What images come to mind during your morning commute with the word "surface?" How about if you scuba dive? Or take a walk in the desert? What about reading a topographic map? Think about the many "identities" of words as you do this exercise, you'll greatly expand your word-list and your opportunity for creative interpretations. Watch the video below to get started.

In this short video, my 45-word list was compiled during a 20-minute desert walk. I can refer to this list as a source of ongoing prompts for a variety of creative outlets. For starters, I decided to choose the 2^nd, 4^th, 8^th, 16^th, and 32^nd words off my list as random prompts for a poetry exercise (shared at the end of the video): velvety, patina, gravel, sky, surface.

How will nature inspire you today?

Happy Creative New Year

Realize that every time you make space in your life for creativity—even if it’s just a sliver of space—you’re making yourself a better person and the world a better place. ~Sandy Ackers "10 Resolutions For A Creative Year"

It's that time of year when we dig deep and shift focus toward new ways to fulfill the desires of our inner creative. Make this year the year of creativity! Resolve to honor your gift of expression through unique and inspired creative outlets. Explore, dig, excavate, unearth, rediscover, dust off your creative impulses and give them light and life!

 

In numerology circles, "11" is the most intuitive of all numbers, representing illumination and deep insight as well as being very sensitive and inspirational. Sounds like '11 is an opportune year to follow your creative intuition, and let your expression run wild to gain deep insight.  As I am always saying, make your creative time a priority. If you take the numerology fun a step further and add up 2011 (2+0+1+1), you're good to go! As the number "4" typically signifies the grounded nature of all things...think the four seasons, four directions, four elements--very powerful natural elements providing a balanced, stable home-base for your creative exploration! Protect and keep your creative time a priority as a way to get back to your creative roots, to maintain balance and center yourself--again each of these representing the symbolic meaning of "4."

 

It's all intriguing fun, but even if you're not into the numbers game, the point is to recognize the conditions are always primed for your creative journey. Start by making mistakes (release your perfectionist tendencies), try techniques or materials you've never worked before, make messes. Read Sandy's link at the top of this post for motivating ideas that will get your creative juices flowing. Then lose control, creatively speaking, be wreckless and wild and raw. Transform.  Always remember to be kind to and love your creative self. Exhale magical poetry, brush strokes, images...

 

When you're ready to grow creatively, then your moment has arrived to begin a new journey. Seek and you shall find inspiration everywhere. It will even begin to find you.

 
 
Image/artwork: M. Hedgecock, "Seastar Grow" mandala
Numerology source: spiritual-numerology.com

100 Tiny Muses

So many because they are tiny—with big possibilities! Each of the random entries below is centered around a simple moment, or a small element of nature, and presented as a muse to inspire you. (For five ideas, please see bottom of the list.)

1. the feel of natural clay
2. butterfly’s flight
3. the smell of rosemary
4. beach combing
5. pounding surf
6. watching deer
7. blue ice
8. bird calls
9. wind caves
10. velvety rose petals
11. thunder
12. the octopus
13. sand dunes
14. meteor showers
15. smell of rain
16. icicles
17. texture of driftwood
18. redwoods
19. rainforest
20. the milky way

21. wolf howls
22. pine cones
23. desert expanses
24. beach sand
25. river stone
26. meadow
27. oasis
28. inside a volcano tube
29. tide pool
30. coyote yips and barks
31. summer monsoons
32. a rainbow
33. the sound of raven wings
34. shark
35. spider web
36. finding a tooth
37. whale song
38. the moon
39. watching sunsets
40. crunchy snow

41. powdery snow
42. animal tracks
43. campfire
44. dry falls
45. tree bark
46. pine smell
47. thunderous waterfalls
48. fog
49. lightning
50. starry sky
51. wind in the pines
52. soft rain
53. thorns
54. spirals
55. water
56. acorn
57. echo
58. boulder
59. feathers
60. natural hot springs

61. limestone
62. reef
63. descending a steep trail
64. flying fish
65. clouds
66. forest
67. deep holes
68. fossils
69. moutains
70. cicadas
71. bone
72. leaves
73. lush ferns
74. desert wash
75. roots
76. bloom
77. caverns
78. currents
79. lady bug
80. sea stars

81. dandelion wishes
82. wildflowers
83. highlands
84. native ochre
85. following a mossy path
86. spongy
87. sting
88. stalagtites
89. fur
90. lichen
91. quartz
92. nest
93. aurora
94. ocean
95. summit
96. canopy
97. marsh
98. owl
99. shelter
100. wilderness

Ideas:

• Grab your camera and pick an entry from the list, then head out to capture at least 5-10 interpretations of your chosen word(s).

• Chose a word/phrase and write an inspiring or informative tweet (140 characters or less), then tweet it!

• Pick a number (1 – 100) at random and doodle that entry for 5 minutes.

• Randomly pick 5 of these words and connect them (any order) through a 5-line poem.

• Choose a word as inspiration for creating a mini painting, illustration, sculpture, etc. Go at least 50% smaller than you are used to working.

Please add to this list by sharing your entries in the comments! Especially any creative works or posts any of these may have inspired :)

What’s Your Story?

Last night my son (4 yrs. old) asked me to draw one of his stuffed animals. I asked him what details I should include in the picture, “what makes him Baby Fox, what parts of him do I make sure I have in the picture?” He immediately answered, “His ears are tall and pointy, his face is cute, his nose is cute too mommy, and his tail likes to be wiggly like this, and his tummy likes to see things.” I tried my best to replicate such a carefully detailed description, but it was difficult to draw—I was a mom fully captivated by the spell of her son’s cuteness—and I missed the mark. When I showed Jeffery my drawing he said simply, “oh, no you drew Baby Fox’s mommy.”

I loved that he looked at “Baby Fox” in such a way that included field marks like big pointy ears; and that he saw emotion, personality and behavior in his “cute face” and “wiggly tail.” He also found a way to let me know you could see Baby Fox’s tummy behind his legs. Jeffery decided to draw Baby Fox himself (I wasn’t getting it quite right), he also added Baby Fox’s family and home (a hole in the African savannah—wow)!

What a good little naturalist and artist, I thought proudly! Such attention to detail and imagination involved in this little stuffed animal’s extended history. How wonderful that he looked at his little fox in such a way that would bring the critter to life in a drawing as well, like an actor who develops an entire background story and personal history about a character they’re portraying. Ten minutes later, when my son moved on to one of his dinosaurs to draw, I heard him say, “Tell me a story about your family, triceratops.” He proceeded to draw some circles with horns.

It made me think about the creative process. I think this is natural for many artists to carry a deeply personal connection to their work through a message, an experience, or a desire that needs to be transformed or expressed in some way. It is something that has a way of coming through when we go beyond our intention and explore a kind of backstory, or origin of our piece. To be fully aware of where the inspiration comes from and the reason for our subject. Circles with horns.

Fifty percent of the time the material, for me, “has the story” and dictates the direction of the work. Other times I have something quite specific in mind and mentally store it until the perfect element is in my hands, or it’s simply “ready to be created.” Still, other times I am inspired by a moment from an experience or feeling from a situation that I try to replicate. And, of course there will always be that unaccounted for percentage that I leave wild for the sake of creative exploration. Aha moments.

I try to make people smile, or escape into world of whimsy, or ultimately connect with some insight or knowledge discovered within a piece. I have not spent much time on the backstory that led me to want to create art that evokes these particular responses. I have my reasons, but the story behind each piece? Hmmm. I understand that what I am trying to create is something I want to maintain in my own world. I want to laugh, not be so serious about every little thing. I like the magical moments and whimsy of unexplainable things—which I want my son to embrace as long as possible. I want to be environmentally responsible in the way I live and create. I like to get people thinking. But I know there is much more to my story.

Each time I share a part of my story through my art, I find I am able to create something more meaningful. Yet, finding a way to make that happen for every piece is an indefinable part of my creative process. How far do I go to get to my cirlces with horns?

What’s your story?

Curiosity...What Extravagant Respite!

Laguna Beach, CA. As you're walking downtown, there's a little path that takes off from the sidewalk, if you follow the sculpture and plants, you will discover this little deck and the endless ocean view with a beautifully crafted fence that reads: "In this fleeting moment what extravagant respite as booming surf speaks its mystical passage across the undreamed depths." Surrounding the quote, are bits of stained glass treats and the tiny print framing the quote is the word "sound" repeated along the top and bottom.

My friend and I came across this little offshoot after an already long day on our feet--which were killing us, my shoes were starting to rub uncomfortably too. We were both ready to sit the next couple of hours out on the beach (shoes off), and dive into the glorious depths of girl talk, while the end of day approached. But curiousity got the best of us and we wanted to see what was down this short path.

I'm happy we did, I loved this quote fence, its shadow on the deck, and the sound of breaking--yes booming--surf below! We were there less than 10 minutes (the beach was calling), yet I was revitalized by our discovery and temporarily forgot about my sore feet. Respite indeed.

Yes! Pursue your curious side. Answer its call when it beckons you, no matter how tired you feel. Curiousity energizes. Curiosity is your escape from routine, it is the trail less traveled that invites you to explore.

Explored curiosity fuels our creativity.

Inspiration Fest

One way I find inspiration is by going to art festivals. I love outdoor events that pulse with art, music, and dance. It's a plus when you're surrounded by nature and plenty of working artists or performers who are bringing their talents to life right in front of you! I'm heading to the Sawdust Festival this week in Laguna Beach, one of my favorite art festivals. The environment is so inviting. It's funky, established, and filled with plenty of nooks and crannies bursting with inspiration. The art and the artists are amazing in their talent, creative in their displays, and happy; with personalities as colorful as you can imagine.

For me, a day spent at an art fest or a powwow, and the surrounding environment that inspired its beginnings is complete "inspiration immersion!" I come home so full of the creative spirit that I cannot wait to get knee-deep into a project. The heart of the experience--all of that artistic expression and sensory mojo--pulses through my veins and into my project.

Go enjoy a nearby festival, there are plenty to be found year-round, some quite famous, some obscure, yet all with high potential to inspire you. You can search for festivals by region on-line. You might be surprised by what people are willing to celebrate. I encourage you to feed your creative side by absorbing the inspiration that awaits you at a soul-thumping powwow, or the next jazz, art, hot air balloon, or whale festival!

Perhaps I'll see you at Sawdust...

Cultivating Creativity

As an artist, my creations may not be something you see everyday. I like to incorporate humor, death, birth, the unexpected, whimsy, nature, critters, into the things I create. I like weird and mysterious. I think my son is starting to pick up on that; he is one week shy of his 4th birthday, and developing an eye for the strange.

For example, I have a Dia de los Muertos piece where I shaped and painted skeletal dinosaurs. He digs them, "I rweally like your trisohatops mommy, they're rweally good dinosohs!" Most recently, I placed one of my creations front and center on our car dashboard for him to discover on our way to his swim lesson. I jokingly told my mom (the original lover of morbid art) I might be scarring the little guy with my work. In the meantime, I wondered how he would react to this macabre little hitchhiker:

His first reaction was, "Mommy, what is that?" Said in the tone of, what the hell is that thing? Fifteen minutes down the road he was trying to get me to agree that he should have him. "I like that spidohr's face, mommy. He's funny." He promptly named him Skele-Spider by the way, but he apparently goes by Spider Bones too.

Jeffery quickly adopted Skele-Spider and insisted that his new friend wanted to learn how to play his video game and wished to be added to his bed with his stuffed animals... "Mommy, I prawmise 'kay? I heard you, he's not a toy, I will be carefoh mommy, pleeeeease." I agreed that Skele-Spider would probably love to learn how to play MarioKart but I didn't think he should be with his toys. After much negotiating, Jeffery agreed to show him the games then return Skele-Spider to the car to go on trips with us instead.

For a child who is terrified of all things Halloween, he always has something nice to say about my art. Sometimes he’s wanted to play with some of my materials. I wish he could hang out with me more while I'm working on garage pieces, but currently it’s something that doesn’t really happen because,

1) I work with dangerous, sharp, and crusty metal objects

2) he's usually asleep anyway, and

3) there's just not a lot of room for him to do his own creative thing while I'm doing mine.

One of my sooner-than-later dreams is to create a better space in our garage that is safe, with more room, and more inviting for both of us to be out there together. I want him to witness a variety of creative outlets while freely developing his own...just like I was able to do when I was young.

Growing up, I watched my parents create a variety of wonderful work and joint projects. I was always encourged to create my own things and I always had plenty of space and materials to do so. I want to provide a similar experience for my little one...surrounded by skull beads, humanized bugs, and creepy creatures made of found junk, complete with skeleton spider friends.

If you want to be creative, cultivate that desire by surrounding yourself with all things creative. Things that stimulate your creative process like color, photos, idea journals, books, materials, good light, natural light, unique inspirations, other’s art. Not just in your studio or work space, go beyond and keep it a part of your daily routine. Like writers who write every day, your physical mantra must be to create every day. Work your creative muscle.

I also believe it’s important not to get caught up in creative habits or projects that no longer represent you. When a favorite medium or theme begins to leave you feeling uninspired, it’s time to switch it up! Honor this sign that you are creatively growing and evolving! Don’t freeze up or get bored—try stretching your creative spirit. Incorporate new concepts, new methods or materials or processes—I did this just last weekend and it was a creative shot in the arm for me (and a future post)! You never know when or where inspiration will hit you.

Whether you wish to foster creativity in your child or yourself, make sure you have the space and the materials you need to create. Keep a fresh approach by trying something new, and have fun with what you do create! Then inspire others by sharing your wonderful work…

aMAZingly You!

When I was a teen I was big into mazes. I loved trying to find my way out of hedge mazes, hay mazes, and even a huge corn maze once. In fact, the seasonal “Maize Maze” staff warned us to plan a couple of hours for navigating our way through the huge maze, complete with look-out towers. They also gave us an emergency “help” flag mounted on a tall pole so we could be found and rescued, along with a quick lesson on how to signal for help! It was great fun! We prided ourselves on finding the right clues along with our sense of direction for getting out on our own.

Intermingled and prior to that, as a pre-teen, I made tedious, complex mazes that filled up entire notebook pages and then asked my parents to make Xerox® copies of them so I could do them later. It was a fun thing for me, I would spend hours drawing out the home path, then filling in elaborate dead-ends and fake routes.

Now that I’m *ahem* older I love the metaphor a maze presents for the unique paths we take along our journey. When you think about it, there is one true, deeply intuitive path we are each following. Many times we stray from it, we get lost, or we might get fooled or lured into taking false paths that lead us away from our core values, or our natural instincts. Sometimes we get stuck (cue rescue flag pole). Some of us simply choose to meander—whether we’re unfocused on our goal, or enjoying some extended opportunities while accomplishing our goals. Now and then these alternative paths lead us back to our original destination, sometimes they just end and we have to go back and figure out where we went off track. No biggie. Because, in the end, if we were to turn around and trace our steps, we would see this amazing journey that brought us to our end goal. We might gaze across a series of repeating patterns, mistakes, and doubling back; but we could surely appreciate the beautiful design it created. One that is so purely our own blueprint embedded beneath our creative decisions, growth, and actions at that moment of our life.

Life invites us to be amazing! Don't retreat into creative non-action because you are worrying about choosing the wrong path (or project), if it turns out to be a dead end or takes you away from your values, turn around. Create your own path, create your personal maze, YOU know the best route to your creative success. Make it fun, make it happen!

Nature Time: Moon Meditation & Thesaurus of the Senses

Below are the last two Nature Time exercises moved over for any comments you'd like to share! IWe would love to hear how these exercises opened up a creative flow (or not) and how you decided to use the exercise!

Thesaurus of the Senses

Create a thesaurus of the senses (Strangling My Muse). This week’s exercise is taken directly from one of my fave creative beings and online inspirations, Sandy Ackers. I could only add, in keeping with the Nature Time element, that this is a great challenge to create a nature-themed thesaurus too! Enjoy this creative challenge from Sandy’s blog:

“How many words or phrases can you come up with to describe the color of the sky? See how many words or phrases you can produce for each of these: the color of the sky; the taste of sugar; the smell of rain; the feel of air; the sound of laughter; the shape of eyes. This is a great exercise when you don’t have much time. And if you keep thinking up words to describe the sight, sound, taste, feel and smell of various items, you can compile your own thesaurus of the senses—a wonderful reference when you need interesting words for your fiction, essays, poems or other projects.”

Moon Meditation

The moon is a great mentor in living your life to its fullest. Find a comfortable spot in the moonlight and try this moon meditation: Our silvery moon has long been the source of inspiration for artists, philosophers, and poets. Both science and art continue to seek ways to study and interpret its profound affect on our lives. Think about the people in your life, and how they inspire you; awaken those same inspiring qualities in your self. Meditate on your ability to express yourself as passionately as those who inspire you and others will not be able to resist supporting you in achieving your creative calling.

 

Your Creative Voice: Teachings From The Scorpion

When we feel a connection with the natural world, we begin to appreciate its value and every species’ right to share our world. We wish to protect its future as our own, and we will find a creative way to share this passion with the world. What we learn from nature gives us insight into ourselves.

Like some art, the scorpion is a creature often misunderstood and reviled. But once we learn to appreciate its value and its rightful place in our world, we feel connected and can learn much about ourselves. Like the scorpion, you are a truly amazing being and key to your environment. Everyone and everything you share your creative “habitat” with may have an impact on how you express yourself and vice versa.

Daily interactions shape your inner nature, the core from which you pull from each time you take action in your life. Who or what are you allowing into your environment and how are they shaping or influencing your creative process? Read on for encouragement and advice from an unexpected source, the scorpion.

TEACHINGS FROM THE SCORPION

1. Scorpions rely first on their strength for nourishment, using their strong pincers to capture and hold prey, not their venom.

Respond with your inner strength for facing challenges, do not sting with your words. As creative beings, we are usually our own harshest critic, quick to tear apart any creative effort. Be strong and do not succumb to venomous comments or thought, be honest and thoughtful with what you create, these are your most vulnerable expressions. Nourish your talents with inner confidence and by capturing and holding onto supportive critiques and trusted guidance.

2. Throughout human history scorpions have had their share of both negative and positive “press.”

Consider this when dealing with an undesirable situation or unwarranted criticism. Become aware of all perspectives, yet don’t let others take away your creative voice!

3. Scorpions molt throughout their lives as they grow. Newly molted scorpions must keep stretching while the new exoskeleton hardens to ensure that it can move when the hardening is complete.

Shed old skins as you grow. Create opportunities for multiple transformations that inspire you. Stretch your creative boundaries. Allow yourself room to grow as you fulfill your creative calling.

4. Burrows are a very important aspect of the ecology of desert scorpions, offering shelter and protection while molting and from predators.

How often do you allow yourself time for a little “burrowing?” What can you do to ensure those quality, restorative moments vital for maintainining your creative energy and focus? Creative beings tend to be emotionally sensitive—protect this treasured way of directly experiencing the world around you, this is part of your personal inspiration—retreat and “burrow” when you need to regroup or reclarify your creative voice.

5. Scorpions tend to change their habits rather than their form in order to adapt to a new habitat.

This is a great reminder to stay flexible while pursuing your creative goals, rarely do things go as planned. Expanding your comfort zones and growing as an artist means adapting and navigating new territory! Find new inspiration akin to a new habitat in order to punch up your creative survival. Shake it up a little, avoid those habits that drain your creativity. Don’t change the positive, Über-cool YOU, adapt by changing the habits or your studio’s appearance/workability that is stifling your creativity.

Adapted from: “Teachings From the Scorpion” M. Hedgecock, 2009
Scorpion photo: M. Hedgecock

Creativity Tool: Spirals

Spirals have inspired artists for ages, first appearing in megalithic art in the form of petroglyphs. Spirals have symbolized the sun, growth, evolution, hypnosis, and the universe. In nature, spirals can be found everywhere—perhaps the source of ancient inspiration—and are usually described as whorls when found in plants and animals. In mathematics, “a spiral is a curve which emanates from a central point, getting progressively farther away as it revolves around the point.” (wikipedia.org)

What does a creative spiral signify for you?

How could you use spirals in your art or writing?

How would spirals appear in your work as a chef, or a dancer, as a sculpture?

SOMETHING TO TRY: seek out spirals, any size, shape, or form for 3 days. Take notes, photographs, sketch, or mentally list your finds for possible jumping off points for future projects. Where do you notice spirals most, in nature or man made environments and structures? Do you find more while you’re purposefully looking for spirals, or when you’re occupied with other tasks? What do your answers tell you about your creative process?

Full article here.

Nature Time Exercise: Nature Journaling

Last week's Nature Time exercise moves over for discussion. Let us know how you took time to break out your inner nature journaler....

If you’ve never kept a nature journal, consider it a great way to build your writing tool box! It can be as simple as documenting a quick note of the first time you notice your favorite wild blossom, or migrating bird in your yard, or the first rutting calls of elk.

Nancy S.M. Waldman (The Practically Creative Quarter) found she did it for two reasons, one having to do with creative writing. She writes, “When writing, it’s often useful to have at your fingertips real notations of when the Indian Hawthorne blooms in Texas or if it’s believable that the first snowfall of the year might be as late as January in Connecticut or if a character could be hearing the frogs at dusk in Nova Scotia in mid-April.”

This is a fantastic way to connect nature to your craft and I encourage you to start a nature journal today to see where nature inspires you…

Summer Solstice

June 21, 2010 begins the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year. Imagine what creative projects you could accomplish with longer days! How many times have you heard yourself say, if only I had an extra hour or two in my day, I could really get into a creative zone. Well, why not let this ancient “midsummer” event get you in the zone.

Think honestly about your time today and this evening, or over the next week; how and where can you make changes that will open up minutes or hours? Every minute you save will add up to a block of time you’ve successfully managed for yourself.

I might add that it helps to have an ongoing list of creative projects you would like to do, if you had the time. It should inspire you to enjoy your time in a way that is most uplifting for you. When the moment comes that you have an extra 30 or 60 minutes, you won’t go blank and waste time in trying to come up with “something” to do that you’ve wanted to accomplish. Will it be planning a yard project or a room re-do, starting or finishing that creative project, or trying out a new recipe? Of course, never underestimate the recuperative power of free time that involves doing nothing! As a creative being, it is essential to protect your creative time for daily snippets of inspiration or productivity.

Enjoy the beginning of summer marked by the solstice. There are many ways to celebrate this seasonal marker, from ancient to modern. What will you do to maintain your personal, creative time as the days grow shorter from now?

“Summer Solstice” by Ursula Freer, please visit her beautiful gallery.

Nature Time: Snap To It!

Last week's Nature Time is up for comments now that there is a new exercise (side bar). Please feel free to share you experience!

Carry your camera with you wherever you go today. Most cell phones have cameras built right into them, take advantage of the video option found on most cameras and phones today. Let your eyes explore around you throughout the day, snap photos of anything that strikes you: friends, your lunch, flowers outside your office, the sunset, colors, leaves floating in a suspended dance on a swirling current of wind. Don’t worry about the perfect shot—just get it so you can access it later.

Note what inspired you to take each shot, either at the time or when you’re finished, go through your photos/video, recall what inspired the image (liked the color, great emotion, delicate lines, etc.). Write these down as bullet points and look for a theme or pattern that may connect each photo. This will give you a sense of what inspires you.

Nature's Palette: Lavender Fields

In a previous post, I talked about the inspiration that could be found at your local harvest festivals, like lavender festivals, cherry festivals, etc. My family and I just spent the weekend at a nearby lavender festival and had a great time! These are fun for the whole family and events like these are a fanstastic source of inspiration for all the senses! While there, all I wanted to do was sketch or try my hand at a little painting or pastels like these artists...

I kept thinking of how fun it would be to set up a mini-easel for my son and let him go with finger paints and brushes and just see what we might create--perhaps something lavender-y, perhaps he would paint his famous monkeys :) We did manage to collect some flowers and make our own "magic petal potions!"

How will this nature palette inspire you today?

For ocean-inspired nature palettes, click the links below:

Ocean <--click

Seashells <--click

 

Nature Time: Clay Play

Clay play is up for comments now that there is a new nature time exercise (side bar). Please feel free to share you experience from last week's exercise below!

It’s all about texture and patterns. Grab some clay, Play-doh®, modeling clay—even natural clay if you are lucky enough to have a source. Roll out and pre-cut flattened, 4” x 6” pieces to take with with you into your backyard or nearby park. Find patterns and textures to start pressing your pliable, flattened pieces of clay onto. Try trees, interesting building surfaces, rocks, leaves, man-hole covers, outdoor sculpturs, sidewalk cracks. Use these pieces to stamp patterns onto your work or apply to clay works, or assemblage pieces. Or, let these impressions inspire a character or setting. Use as you creatively wish!

Lavender Festival

The site of lavender fields, lavender flowers, the smell lavender can inspire many creative outlets: drawing, cooking, gardening, photography, writing, painting—I’ve read lavender oil is a great oil painting medium!

Here’s a fun way to spend Father’s Day, and/or feed your creative mojo--the 123 Farm’s 6th Annual Lavender Festival this June 12,13,19 & 20, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day. If you’re interested, please visit their website for details, directions to their Cherry Valley, CA location, festival activities, schedule, and organic herbs and oils for sale (including lavender, peppermint, rosemary, and sage!).

Lavender farms can be found throughout the region, check your local area for any local harvests, find out what's available in your area. Don't worry if lavender is not a likely harvest--now's a great time to learn about the organic goodies in your region to discover a local farm that celebrates the harvest publicly for natural inspiration!

Mmm...what inspires you most about lavender? Scent, sight, taste, touch...?

About the 123 Farm: http://www.localharvest.org/farms/M14941

Ten Fascinating Nature Phenomena to Inspire You

It's a 'natural' kind of creative inspiration. Give a peek at these curious natural expressions. Pick one as a prompt for a poem, an article, or your next piece! The last one (I don't want to give it away) really intrigued me! But it was the huge "Penitentes" that immediately inspired a sculptured piece for me...I can't wait to bring it to life with my own interpretation in clay :) How will YOU be inspired? Ten Fascinating Natural Phenomena

Idyllwild Earth Fair

Hello Creatives!

Saturday's Idyllwild Earth Fair was the best year ever! The event was overflowing with a variety of vendors, booths and friendly visitors who all love and celebrate the earth. Always one of my favorite events, this year was indeed the busiest!

The Nature Coach (me!) was there with a booth, inviting people in for a little creative break with my Tree Mandala exercise. We were busy with activity, chatting with old friends and new friends, and of course a little creative play with many participants throughout the day! I was especially happy to meet two fellow Let Nature Be Your Muse MeetUp members, Michele and Jenny (and families)! Thank you both for stopping by and introducing yourselves--it was a pleasure to meet you!

I had a great time meeting people and enjoying their personal tree mandala creations! We received wonderful feedback from everyone who took a creative break with us, including a few participants who shared some very heartfelt and kind words about creating their mandalas...it was a very inspiring day for me to be in the company of so many creative souls willing to try something a little different! Thank you all :)

A little about the Tree Mandala exercise: “Mandala” is Sanskrit for circle. Traditional meanings of mandalas vary by culture, although many share a common belief in its significance as a spiritual or ritual expression. Mandalas are also used for meditations, establishing a sacred space.

Mandalas are filled with symbolic art. They are sometimes used as a teaching tool depicting stories, events, the cosmos, even our perspective of the universe, through detailed symbols and designs. Jungian psychology view mandalas as a symbol for connecting with the self.

Participants were asked to choose a tree cookie and draw a symbolic design of their own that tells a story, perhaps their story for that day. They were to reflect on how their creative process during this exercise could shape the outcome of their own personal, creative goals. For example:

Were they easily distracted?
Did they get into a creative zone?
Was this something they'd ever done before?
Did they experience a relaxed state of mind, or something else?
Did they plan out a design first, or jump in drawing to see what emerged?
What was their agenda?

What do these questions reveal about your creative process, and ultimately reaching your goals?