Getting lost in inspiration...and how to find your way back!

At my machine this morning - I find it interesting how the color of the fabric is reflected in the metal of the machine

Recently I heard a question asked:

How do you strike the balance of finding inspiration every day without getting lost in it?

I can identify with this!  I think every creative can...getting lost in inspiration is probably the opposite of the stuckness of the "blank page".

For me, Pinterest is a wonderful organizational tool, but just how many tutorials on painting a triad tree in watercolor do I really need?  What is needed is to get into the studio and put water and paint on paper and use just one tutorial to get started - any one of us learns more by doing rather than just being a perpetual student.  And actually, the feeling/need/idea to keep learning may just be a stall tactic to keep from risking or avoid failing.  It will keep one from finding his/her "own voice" creatively.  And who we truly are, who we were created to be, and the things God wants to express through us remain inside - unexpressed and ungifted to the world.

Since we also learn by doing, we are still being a student, but in a way that will ultimately allow us to move in the direction God is leading...and that is what we all want anyway!

I like the following ideas.  I know these sorts of helps encourage me be more mindful of time passing (some adapted and expanded from here):

1.  "Create before you consume".
2.  Don't confuse inspiration with getting things done.
3.  Stack your inspiration stash...make a stack of your creativity inspiration, then browse the stack
     for a few minutes before bed, or during a time of rest during the day.  Think about setting the timer
     for 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or 20 minutes to avoid getting "stuck" in the inspiration mode.

     Ideas for "stacks"*:
                            magazines
                            "how to" books
                            recipe books (doesn't everyone read cookbooks to relax?)
                            devotional books/Bible Studies (I get so much inspiration by reading other people's
                                                                                 insights - their words that create a picture)
                             the "stack" can even be integrated into the creative decor of the room in which you
                                                                                 choose to place it.

             *how to "stack" digital products:                           
                           grab a URL of something you want to search out more and put it in a list of "Needs
                           further exploration" on Evernote, on a special Pinterest board, or even in an email
                           that you mail to yourself.  You can also paste the URL in a document on your
                           desktop.

How is your inspirational stack looking?  I know mine is a little more tamed now...
Now, is it back to the stack or the studio? {Smiling}