28 December 2020

Thoughts on Creativity in 2021

What will the new year bring?  Are you setting new goals for your creativity?  Will you be exploring new mediums?  Are you thinking about expanding your skills with an online class or two?  Will your style change and grow this year?  I think these are all questions we are asked as makers, either of ourselves or by others.

I honestly never know what the new year will bring to my art and creativity, but this year I have some thoughts on what I aspire to focus on.  One of the major things will be buying less of the monthly new releases of stamps and dies from my favorite companies.  It's not that I love them less, I'm just tired of buying all the things and letting them stack up on my desk faster than I can use them.  

Instead, this will be a year of focusing on tools and mediums.  Reinkers for all of my Distress Inks and Distress Oxides are high on that list.  I'd like to snag a few more Windsor & Newton Cottman watercolors.  Copic refills need to be put ahead of stamp buying as well.  I'm also toying with the addition of a Gel Plate.  That's not to say I won't be buying any stamps or dies, but I'll be shifting my focusing to the gaps in what I have for seasonal or occasion stamps.  More about filling in the holes rather than mindless buying of all things.  I'll be testing my willpower that's for sure!


The thought of setting creative goals almost gives me hives.  I don't really set goals, as I am not much for following them.  I have a dear friend who refers to me as a rebel because I don't like rules or goals.  What can I say?  They make me feel confined, and I'm claustrophobic.  

As for new mediums, I won't really be adding a lot of new things.  I will however be using what I have!  I will be doing more with the supplies I have invested in, things like Dina Wakely Acrylic Paints and Gessos, Tim Holtz Collage tissues, Prima Patina Effects Pastes, and Finnabair Paper Texture Paste.  Many of these are considered art journaling supplies, but I'll be using them in my cardmaking.


I have a love hate relationship with online classes.  I like the idea but rarely enjoy the experience.  Maybe I've never tried the right one.  I do plan to work my way through a Procreate video series or two on YouTube.  I bought an Apple Pencil and I need to learn how to use Procreate for my art.  I'm currently working my way through a watercolor floral tutorial series from iPad Lettering.  I am enjoying what I am learning and the fact that it's broken down into very digestible segments.  

Style, mine is ever-evolving, and has been for the 20+ years I've been a maker.  So will my style change and grow this year?  Yes.  I have my sites set on adding more mixed media and more watercolor to my work this year.  I also have a bit of a focus on creating more art, not just cards.  We'll see how that vision takes shape.  


I think after all that we've been through in the last year many of us have shifted priorities in everyday lives, as well as our creative lives as well and will continue to do so.  This past year has taught us, as makers, what is nourishing to our souls and brought us together in new ways.  

What about you?  What are your thoughts as a maker for the new year?  

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