Thankful that the CreateCrochet Team at Etsy is helping me begin to blog more regularly, here goes!
What Inspires Me? Where do I find my muse? Hmmm.
People I know are inspirational to me. I find it easiest to create the most unique things when I know a person well, because I can incorporate their likes, dislikes and personality into the item. I began crocheting again several years ago primarily to make gifts for friends and family. I still have my clearest ideas when I know the person who will be receiving my handmade piece.
Otherwise, inspiration usually surprises me. Shapes, colors, color combinations, textures, sounds and scents - all these things are what draw my attention and form ideas in my head for crochet designs. Being outdoors is almost guaranteed to lend me inspiration in some way. I will see an interesting cloud shape, explore the various blues, grays and browns in a bed of pebbles, admire the texture of high grass waving in a field, revel in the scent of blooming garden phlox, or marvel at the aerodynamics of dragonflies, and then begin to think about how I might present those qualities in crochet form.
If stalled, I'll watch a home design show on television and/or go look at design magazines at the bookstore. The colors and uses of materials will always get my mind humming again with new ideas. Sometimes inspiration is found by having to meet a real need for warmth or comfort, or by the necessity of having something that performs a certain function.
And I find overwhelming amounts of inspiration by taking a look at other crocheters' work. There is always something new to learn, or a different application for a common stitch, found in a team member's creation. I think this is what is so wonderful about crocheting. The art of crochet is so flexible that each crocheter can do something totally unique using the same stitches in their own way. From a small washcloth, to a parabolic coral reef creation, the possibilities are endless.
Wow Linda, it is amazing how something so simple or outrageous can inspire a new creation. I love your expression of inspiration and thank you for sharing it with us. I love your style and your creations. You Go Girl:0)
ReplyDeleteYou're right, every crocheter can do something different with the same stitch. Inspirations really are the basic necessities to create. You inspiration paints pictures in my mind and yes, when we know a person well, the process of creation becomes so much easier.
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