tips: Developing Creativity

photo by: jake dillard

Hey all! Happy Sunday! Wanted to share with you all several tips I've been learning in my course on the psychology of creativity. Hope these tips get you just as excited as I was and especially hope that these spring forth brilliant ideas for you! :)

1. Switch up your routine! Drive a new way to work; use the stairs rather than the elevators; or go a day without electronics! You'd be surprised to realize how easy it is for us humans to get desensitized to things around us in our habit and familiarity. This will give your mind and eyes the opportunity to discover "new" things.
2. Change your environment. Whether it be rearranging your furniture or visiting a place or event you never thought you would, this will definitely help start your mind thinking of the idea of choices and alternatives. There are ways people choose to live and to do things. You never know, some new thing you experience might just fit well for you.
3. Learn something new. Read the newspaper or have a friendly conversation discussing ideas with someone different from you. I have been learning that breath of knowledge builds more building blocks for your own creativity. Most always our new ideas actually stem from a refining of an old one.
4. Expand your knowledge of something you already enjoy and know about. Try reading up on the latest reviews or findings on something; or try scheduling a lunch date with someone who has been in the know a little longer to chat about their experiences/thoughts. Depth of knowledge is key in growing creativity. Again, the idea of the more you know, the more you can use.
5. Lastly, have fun. Be open to failing and looking silly. I've had some great times doing things that were abby normal. And I know you know this, but just for my peace of mind, be wise and safe :) You're cared about too much to get hurt...or arrested :)

Happy venturing! May you have many "Aha!" moments this week! Let me know if you try anything. Would love to hear what new thing you did and influences, if any, it might've had on you.

trash, treasure, good: Balloons

Balloons...

good for decor.

good for photography.

Anything else?

Yup! Good for compost :)

Besides using latex balloons for decor and photography, how would YOU use and re-use these colorful lovely things? Can you guys think of any craft projects?
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A little heart-felt note: Please think over the uses of your stuff before throwing them away. This way, you won't miss out on awesomely unique opportunities and will help keep the landfills' trash to its minimum :) If interested, a lot more unexpected trash-able items that we could re-route to the compost bins can be found here!

things to :) about

Hi friends!!

Apologies for very sporadic posts. There's a lot of things that excite me and that I want to share with the world :) And honestly, I feel good about just laying it all out there and waiting for my blog to come into its own more naturally. Is that okay with y'all? Will you journey with me? :)

Still hoping these posts bring you joy, hope, and love to your days (!) so be on the look out for some craft DIY projects, photography tips, entrepreneurial tips, and creation care ideas (i.e. upcycling, composting, recycling, etc.) in the near future! Yayyy!

Martin Luther King Jr.

In 5th grade I was assigned to memorize and recite the famous "I Have a Dream" speech by the Martin Luther King Jr. I honestly had no idea what I was saying and it is only now, many years later, where I find myself extremely grateful for this man's courage, faith, and obedience. What an epic part of transforming humanity for the good that he chose to step into and carry out. Where would we, on both a national level and personal level, be if not for this gift? Reminds me a lot of a song that I really love by Israel and New Breed called If Not For Your Grace. Listen. You may like it :)

So I hope you really enjoyed your day off of work/school yesterday and the freedom we all were/are graced with today and the days to come! Happy Tuesday, my friends!

By the way, if you have any thoughts or stories relevant to Dr. King and (de)segregation, I honestly would love to hear them. Something I've always wondered was how people of another minority (non-black) were treated back in those days. Any ideas?

inspiration: Ceramics

A few weeks back, David had bought me a crafts class as my combined birthday and Christmas gift. I chose ceramics; and these are what make me so ecstatic to start THIS friday! :)

Love the possibilities of shape and form;
by Anthropologie, of course :)

love the pretty patterns;
[Anthropologie, TwistedRiverClay, and cynthiavardhan]

and love the utility & creative design.
[Anthropologie, RedHotPottery and VeronicaButtons]

engagement: Steph&Nick

My lovely cousin is getting married! Here's to a ridiculously fun shoot & a great marriage!

What a perfect way to spend my birthday with these two & my other family members behind the scenes! Definitely one of my favorite birthdays...Spending time with the people I love & doing the thing that I love equals major :)'s

Would love to hear about one of your favorite birthdays or photo shoots. The comment section's all yours!

inspiration: The Way Things Go

In class yesterday my professor shared this incredibly fascinating video with us. It is a 1987 art film entitled The Way Things Go by Peter Fischli and David Weiss. If you like re-purposing, fire, dominoes, and creative design, I think you'll be highly inspired by this. I couldn't find a full version of this to post so here it is in three parts. Well, maybe it's a fortunate thing that the parts are broken up because it is REALLY long (almost 30 minutes). The entire thing is down right brilliant, but personally, I'd just skip the first video and get straight to the second and maybe stop there if I didn't have a half an hour to spare. Enjoy!

part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRnsXLjpWRI&feature=related

part 2: 

part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJxUkoWXrD8&feature=related

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Fischli and Weiss's film sprouted from their 1984-1985 photography series "Quiet Afternoon." Ironic, as all of their photos were intentionally taken at the closest time of its collapse.

Here are some of my favorites from the series:

I just love their creativity with the ordinary.

Does anyone else get a sense of subtle warmth when looking at how these commonly unrelated objects touch?

It's Official.

T'was three days after Christmas and all through...my family, we celebrated my birthday!

I had tons and tons and TONS of fun that day. Oh man, did we laugh :) Loved sharing the day with my family and David as we went on my very first official photo shoot (as a secondary shooter)! A glimpse of the shoot coming soon :) Ha. Since the 28th, I've gone on night photo adventures with friends, shot on the set of a video shoot, and again the engagement session. Oh man, so fortunate to have these experiential opportunities and so grateful to have my brother and mom in the business to encourage and guide me as I dive deeper into photography. It's official; the arts adventure has begun! :)

good times with my buddy at LACMA

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testing. testing.

a lovely date with my D at the Griffith Park Observatory

If you haven't yet gone to visit LACMA or the observatory in Los Angeles, I'd highly encourage you to. They are great spots to experience this grand city., as the observatory provides an extensive view of the skyline and LACMA encapsulates the boldness and diversity of L.A. through its big art structures and various exhibitions. My brother says they have $3 admission for classic movies too! I believe he saw Breakfast At Tiffany's there.

Well, I really hope you had all had a beautiful & merry Christmas, safe & fun New Years...and day today!