Dreamboard. Full Frost Moon. November 2009.

This dreamboard didn’t turn out as I had planned it, not at all. And here I thought I had clear idea for what I wanted to bring into November! Since I’ve been spending my autumn expanding, following my heart, being in my creative process, participating in projects, resetting my internal compass, getting to know new friends and connecting with old ones, I felt it was time to, consolidate. To retreat to my home, to prepare for the holidays, find peace, bring beauty to my home, do yoga and sort out drawers. That is what my dreamboard was supposed to be about, but it took a direction of its own.

What I see is a dreamboard that’s about giving my creativity wings! Finding creative freedom. And a dreamboard strongly influenced by the bright colours of the autumn leaves, that bring me so much joy and inspiration!

For those of you who feel inspired by this dreamboard, I created Satsuma Sky, a desktop wallpaper and calendar for November with this motif. I hope you enjoy it!

Tags: birds, collage, creative process, Creativity, dreamboard, dreams, full moon, making wishes, nature, orange, sky, watercolours

Dreamboard. Full Harvest Moon. October 2009.

A Dreamboard for the Full Harvest Moon. Layers of transformation, expanding creative expressions, painting, photography, writing, type… The past, the present. And finding a focus for the future.

I was standing in the museum of a castle ruin, reading fascinating (no I’m not being sarcastic) and informative text on those typical museum boards, when suddenly the graffiti on the wall behind the board caught my attention. Or rather came forward to me, like a wave of text, like light, layers and layers of graffiti carved onto the stone wall. And I started to photograph the graffiti, going from room to room, floor to floor, captivated by it, following its light, and forgetting everything else… The earliest date I found was 1609, and the most recent was 2009. It was like a living memorial to all those people. I imagined each person writing their name on the wall, carving glorious moments of stolen kisses, or writing a “here I am, I exist” in the middle of an everyday experience… I wondered if people ever recalled, later on, the moment when they crafted that graffiti…

When I returned from my journey to Öland, my best friend wanted to see my photos from my trip, but I mostly have loads of photos of this graffiti from the castle… One of the images, the one below, was the starting point for this collage, and was meant to be the focal point, and yet it didn’t make it in! Somehow it just got to be too much.

Here is a desktop wallpaper and an October desktop calendar version of my Harvest Moon dreamscape.

Centuries of layered graffiti on the wall of a castle ruin.

Tags: collage, creative process, Creativity, dreamboard, dreams, fonts, full moon, grafitti, handwriting, history, layers, letters, making wishes, orange, Photography, purple, vintage, watercolours

Autumn leaves.

Today is The Day. I can feel it clearly. The Snap. It’s as though a switch has been flipped. There’s a crisp lining to the day, a chilly backdrop, it’s the first day of autumn.

Autumn holds the promise of new beginnings for me. The glorious display of autumn leaves. Change. A fresh start. I think part of it comes from my childhood, from going to school. A new school year, new books, new subjects, new teachers, pencils and notebooks… Sometimes a new school, and a new route each morning and afternoon.

My theme for the autumn is to connect with my friends, inspiring artists, places and creativity. And to give myself some creative challenges.

The Creative Every Day Challenge is a fantastic, fun and simple way to infuse your life with a daily dose of creativity. It’s a low-pressure and freeform challenge to bring some focus and inspiration to your day-to-day life. Highly recommended! October’s theme is “Connect” – which also happens to be my theme for the autumn!

Next, I’ll be connecting with my senses in Unravelling Further: Exploring the Senses, a workshop where you stop to smell the roses. It’s about living a rich and enchanted sensual life, seizing the day, immersing yourself in taste, touch, sound, scent, sight and intuition through a series of photo assignments, projects and challenges. And I’m so looking forward to reconnecting to some of my online friends from this summer’s course, Unravelling: Ways of Seeing My Self, who also will be revelling in their senses this autumn! From unravelling to revelling…

Another project for my autumn is In The Fish Bowl: Life As An Artist Online with Marisa Haedike of Creative Thursday. The transparency and exposure of being an artist online can make you feel like you are a fish in a bowl, and this course is about navigating the fish bowl by staying fiercely loyal to your vision. I’m incredibly excited, this really feels so right for me just now! The course started last week and I’m feeling elated and thankful for lovely Marisa’s first class and the wonderfully creative and inspiring community of women crafters, artists and designers who are all swimming in the fish bowl!

Dare I connect with my dreams too? Speak my wish out loud? Jamie Ridler hosts Full Moon Dreamboards, and I’m tempted to participate one of the dreamers!

Finally, and this is still in the works, I hope to take a trip to London this autumn. To connect with my English self. Family and friends in England. I’d like to take some courses at The Make Lounge. Return to the Tate, Greenwich Market. The Maison Blanc, Holland Park, Chinatown, The Chelsea Physic Garden, St. Martins in the Fields. Oh, so many favourite places…

Tags: carpe diem, connecting, courses, Creativity, dreamboard, fresh start, seize the day, senses, sensual

About the Creative Collection

Stylish, tactile and unique, the Creative Collection is designed to give you the tool to be an inspired, creative bohemian and still have an effective system for finding your creative projects at your fingertips.

Creative is a refined and original collection of icons with a vibrant, radiant colour palette and elegant wood textures.

Workflow Personal Licence $7
Workflow Commercial Licence $37

• Writing, quill pen, documents
• Books, stack of books, to read, reading
• Published, printing block and printed green leaf, gone to print, eco-friendly printing
• Composing Music, pencil and pencilled g-clef
• Music, vinyl LP album, music collection
• Photos, photographic camera lens, photography, camera, photo collection
• Design, color wheel, graphics, swatch, colors
• Art, palette, paints, colours
• Needlework, cotton reel, knitting, wool, crochet, weaving, embroidery, quilting
• Crafting, scissors, scrapbooking, editing,
• Recipes, recipe book with traditional red and white check tablecloth pattern, my cooking experience, nutrition
• Gardening, plant in clay plant pot, garden and landscaping, growing, growth, ecological, eco, environment, green
• Matching Light Wood Folder Icon
• Matching Dark Wood Folder Icon, available as free sample download.

Download a free sample of the Creative collection.

Tags: creative, Creativity, folder icons, getting organized, glass, organized, paper, productive, productivity, texture, wood