The end....and the beginning

Good Morning!

Thank you all for signing up and taking part in A Taste of Creativity. I hope I have given you a taste of Cultivating Creativity. I hope if nothing else, you take away a renewed sense of, a renewed desire to get creative in your life. 

As I stated earlier in the week I believe we all are creators. We all create in our own unique, personal ways with everything we do in our days. I thank you all for sharing with me part of your creativity this week. 

As you move forward be aware of how you bring creativity into your life. Keep in mind that creativity isn't producing the "usual" things we think of when we think of creativity. We all are creating a life for ourselves and our loved ones. This weekend try to create a bit of fun, create memories. One of the biggest memories we love to create at my house is a spontaneous trip to the beach to watch the sunset. 

What sort of memories will you create this weekend?

*****

I wanted to give you all a little bit more information on the full course Cultivating Creativity. It will run for three weeks beginning on June 1st and ending on June 19th, just before the summer equinox. Emails will arrive in your inbox three times a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday to give you time to delve into the prompts and get creative with them. 

I also have a few interviews with creative women who inspire me in my creativity to share with you, along with some fun giveaways throughout our time together. 

My main purpose with writing this course was to get others thinking about living creative lives. That creativity is a part of who we are, it flows through us with everything we do in our daily lives. I have heard many people say that they aren’t creative because they can’t…..sew, draw, cook, write, etc. But that just is not true. We are creating a life, the life that we live in the here and now. I want to share that message with other creatives and with those who cannot see themselves as creatives. 

If you feel like you would like to sign up for Cultivating Creativity I have a special discount link for you as a thank you for signing up for A Taste of Creativity. 

The link to the full the course can be found here and if you know of anyone who may be interested, please share it! 

I cannot thank you enough for all you have shared this week. I look forward to following each of your creative endeavors as they unfold! Please feel free to continue using the hashtag #atasteofcreativity.

Jen

Day 4: Creativity!

Good morning!

Today we will be focusing on week 3 of Cultivating Creativity: Creativity!

This is the week where we will dive into the creativity we create with our hands. There is pretty much a non-ending list of ways we can be and are creative: painting; sewing; knitting; taking pictures; drawing; writing; singing; playing an instrument; face painting; wood working; glass blowing; pottery; planning a garden; and so many other things.

While we all are creative, we all have different areas of creativity where we shine. We can practice any creative endeavor we wish to, but some of us are experts in one or two places while others of us are amateurs in those same places.

Throughout this week we will focus on the areas of creativity we shine in, and we also will dive a little bit into a creative endeavor we wish we had talent or expertise in. For me it is drawing and painting. I am not good at drawing, my five year old can draw better than I can! But I enjoy it. And am getting more confident in doing it once I let go of any preconceived notions of I have to be good at it before I can do it. I think many people feel that way about approaching doing creative work. The thing is though, in order to get GOOD at something or even to be OKAY at something, we need to practice. Do things over and over.

For today I would like you to take a few minutes to create something. Doodle on an index card. Write a poem about your morning coffee or tea. Grab a coloring book and color a picture. Sketch your child. Finger paint. And the list goes on. Chose something you like to do and get creative! 

Week three is all about how we view creativity, how we express our own personal brand of creativity. So today get creative! Get your hands dirty! Get brave and try something you have been wanting to do, but that you normally hold yourself back from because you think you won't be "good enough". Then show us what you did so we can marvel at the creativity you produce!

Day 3: Creativity of Body

Good Morning!

Today we focus on week 2 of Cultivating Creativity: Creativity of Body. How we get creative in the way we move, feed, care for our bodies.  And how we view our bodies.  I know how we see ourselves, see our physical body can sometimes be painful or harsh or even downright mean! We can be indifferent to ourselves and our beauty and this beautiful body that we have to live our creative life with.

Week two will be focused on self-care for our bodies and how we nourish ourselves. How do we get creative in caring for our physical bodies. How can we get creative in how we view our body with all its flaws, limitations, beauty, strength. Do you listen to your body and the cues it sends you? So many of us these days push our body to it’s limits. Ignoring the exhuastion that can overtake us. Ignoring the need to to hydrate more (this is a big one for me!) Ignoring the need to move. Ignoring the need for healthy, nourishing food.

In week two it will be all about creatively viewing our bodies, rather than ignoring or treating them harshly.

But for today, I invite you to take a few moments and look at your body in the mirror. Focus on a part of yourself that you may not particularly like. For me, it’s my feet. Today I will feel gratitude for them. They are able to chase my little one’s around. Drive my car to grocery shop. Walk around the house doing laundry and dishes and all the other things that I do. My feet get my body where I need to go. So today there will be a little pampering for them. Some moisturizer, a new coat of nail polish on my toes, and just a more positive way of thinking about them. 

I have never been good at showing my body love, but I am realizing that I need to. Not just by treating it better, giving it healthier foods, but also by having a more positive outlook towards it. This is the only body I have! I need to treat it right, be kind to it so that I can continue living the life that I love.

What part of your body will you show a little extra love to today? Or will you choose to show some extra love to the whole thing? I think in addition to giving my feet a little bit of tender love and care I will also sit out in the sunshine. There is nothing my body enjoys more than soaking up some vitamin D!

I look forward to seeing how you will shower your body with love today!

You can share on Instagram using #atasteofcreativity or comment over on the blog A Taste of Creativity   

Day 2: Creativity of Soul

 Good morning!

Today’s email focuses on week One from Cultivating Creativity: Creativity of Soul. During this week we will focus on our soul, who we are, what we dream, desire, wish for in our cores. What makes us want to create, what forces drive us, what holds us back from creating.

I believe that in order to live a creative life we first need to be in tune with our souls and our desires. Anyone who has felt the pull of creating something has first felt it as a small itch inside of us. The writer knows the feeling of the words inside pushing against the walls, begging to be written into a notebook or typed onto a screen. The painter or photographer knows the feeling of needing to capture the sunrise or the flower or the mist. The mother knows the feeling of needing to nourish a loving home for her family.

In order to use these feelings, these desires, we first need to be in tune with ourselves, so that we are able to recognize these calls to create. 

Today I invite you to try to sit in silence for a few minutes. What silence may mean for you: the tv on in the background, kids running around, or actual silence with a warm cup of tea. Just try to take a few moments to yourself to close your eyes and daydream. Go back to what you thought about yesterday and what creativity means to you. Now think about what type of life you want to create or what type of life you ARE creating. How do you want to feel as you move throughout your days, how does that differ from how you ACTUALLY feel as you move throughout your days.

Take some time today to find an area in your life where you would like creativity to flow better. In simple ways: if you long for more beauty, bring in a bud from a flower and place it on the table. Create a small nature table in the kitchen. Pick up a book of poetry. Go outside and look up at the clouds for a few minutes. 

Today is all about recognizing that pull of creativity in whatever aspect of life it is in. If you want to act on that pull today, awesome! If today you want to simply recognize it and sit with it, awesome! 

If you feel called to share, I look forward to seeing where you felt called to bring more creativity to life and how you manifested that today.

Day One: Creativity

Good morning!

***I took off the password for the blog. It was a huge annoyance rather than a help! 

Like I said yesterday, today’s email is an overview of Cultivating Creativity. This course came about when I began thinking about how I wanted to go about my days being mindful and notice the beauty in the simple moments, to make the ordinary, everyday routines of life sacred. To dive a little bit into self care and self love through my self expression---by being creative. 

The more I thought about and journaled about all those themes, the more I came to realize that everything I wanted to accomplish was a form of creativity. Many times we hear people say I am not creative because I can’t…..sew. Paint. Draw. Write. Knit. 

And for years that was me too. I can knit, I can sew a straight line, but it is only recently that I saw those things as being creative. I believed that to be “creative” meant that you had to know how to paint like Picasso or write a Pultzer Prize winning novel. 

My goal is to introduce you to the idea that every aspect of life is enfused with creativity. Our every thought, movement can be seen as a form of creativity.

CREATIVITY---Phenomenon whereby something new and somehow valuable is formed: an idea, theory, invention, literary work, painting, song, etc.

Something new and valuable is formed.

Yes. 

I want to live a life focused on mindfullness. That is creativity.

I want to have a home full of joy and laughter where my people feel loved and nourished. That is creativity.

I want to weave words together, to create art projects with my daughter, to take yarn and some needles and knit a pair of socks. All of that is creativity.

Every one of us has some form or another where we are creative. What is yours? Where in your life do you want to find your creativity, try something new that you may have always thought, "I can’t do that?" 

I chose "Cultivating Creativity" as the name for my course because I believe that creativity can be cultivated. We can provide soil for our creative pursuits to grow and flourish; we can encourage creativity in ourselves by finding where our passions are, what do we want to create and then provide soil for those creative pursuits to grow and flourish. 

How we go about cultivating our creativity is unique to each individual and each unique creative pursuit. Cultivating Creativity will walk us through providing soil for our creativity by using our souls, our bodies and those creative activities we wish to do more of.

For today I invite you to take a few moments and sit with your idea of what creativity is. What does it mean to you? Where do you see you are creative? When you think of the word creativity what comes to mind? 

I invite you to share, if you wish, a little bit about what creativity means to you, or share an aspect of life where you are living creatively. 

On the Eve

I am so glad you are here, that you have decided to explore creativity for these next five days with me. Before we begin tomorrow I wanted to take a few moments to explain a bit of what will happen with our time together.

A Taste of Creativity is the  mini version of my e-course Cultivating Creativity. During this week I will condense each week of the full course into one day. Monday will be an overview of the entire course. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday will comprise a bit from weeks 1, 2 and 3 and on Friday will be a closing day along with a giveaway.

All that is needed for both courses is an open mind and an open heart. All the prompts that I will be giving you can be completed in real time as we go along or saved for when you feel moved. This is a gentle approach to finding, acknowledging, or reigniting the creativity in your life.

I believe we all are creative beings, especially us women. We all have an innate sense of wanting to create. Whether it be a home for our family, nourishing meals, writing a novel, taking pictures, drawing, painting, sewing or any of the other many many ways we create. 

I have set up a private blog for us to communicate through these five days if you desire. Once there you will be able to comment and have conversations if you wish. The link is http://a-taste-of-creativity.blogspot.com. When prompted enter the password creativity. This is my first time setting up a password protected blog....if you have any issues please let me know! Each day I will be posting the email prompt over there as well as sending you a morning email.

If you prefer to do the prompts privately that is fine too. If you use Instagram and take pictures of our time together, use #atasteofcreativity so we all can find one another. 

One of my desires with A Taste of Creativity is that you get a taste of the creative powers that lie within you, that you feel the creative energy bubble up inside of you and need to be let out in some form or another. 

My big desire is that A Taste of Creativity will leave you with wanting more, and if it does I invite you to sign up for Cultivating Creativity. On Friday I will have the full course sign up and a discount code for you to use. Although there is absolutely no obligation whatsoever to sign up for the full course! A Taste of Creativity is my gift to you all, as a thank you for being inspiring women to me. Every single one of you who are here inspires my own creativity. I thank you for that.

I look forward to spending this week with you.