Want to get creative but don’t know where to start? I often find myself wanting to do something but I spend more time thinking than doing! Here are some tips to help get you started or stay creative: 1. Look at Pinterest; it’s a great visual toolkit for finding inspiration. 2. Create separate Pinterest boards for the art you like e.g one board for landscape paintings, one board for photography, one board for design inspiration 3. Get sketchbook small enough to carry around with you or download an app- doodle ideas as they come to you or when you are waiting for the bus, early for an appointment, waiting for a friend 4. Carry around a notebook or use you phone or tablet to write ideas down 5. Make lists of books and articles you have seen and want to revisit when you have time, sometimes you can get notebooks with a pocket in the back which are handy if you take an article from a newspaper 6. Collect postcards and leaflets 7. Look at other artists online, Instagram is a good way to see what other artists are working on 8. Artist challenges- artists set creative challenges to create something different every day for a month or to recreate their image in your own style. It’s a great way to free up your style and find new ideas 9. Try a subject that it different for you 10. work outside of your comfort zone, this could be size, process or material 11. Listen to music or watch a film, sometimes inspiration comes from lyrics or other visual information 12. Go for a walk, collect flowers, shells or stones to sketch at home or take a sketchbook with you 13. Word association, brainstorm ideas from a word 14. Take an old piece of work of yours or a famous artists and see if you can recreate it differently 15. Look at an old project and brainstorm other ideas of other directions in which it could go 16. Write a list of where you want to go with your creativity, do you want to make a career in it or get better skills 17. Stuck on a current project? Brainstorm ideas of the problems and what you could do differently 18. Which artist/creative people do you like and why? 19. Try a different routine, walk home a different way 20. Look at different creative genres and styles 21. Pick up a magazine or newspaper 22. Visit the local library, look through their online catalogue you can often borrow books from other local libraries if you can’t get to them 23. Recreate Album covers from CD’s and Vinyl 24. Take a break! Overloading yourself and forcing it will deplete all your energy and leave you frustrated when trying to get ‘in the zone’ 25. Analyse something you enjoy, why do you enjoy it? 26. Create a mood board, this can be collections of colours, found objects, written feelings or other words 27. Illustrate a short story or a favourite book 28. Redesign a book cover 29. Create a zine! A self-published work of original or appropriated texts and images 30. Working on a large project? Take the pressure off and do something for fun 31. Create a work space just for you 32. Rearrange your studio or workspace, you may find forgotten items that spark some inspiration 33. Create something away from your usual workspace, if it’s a nice day work in the garden or the park 34. Stuck with a piece of artwork? Turn it upside down and work into it again 35. Merge unfinished projects to see if they can be salvaged 36. Make a playlist of music to work along to 37. Listen to a new style of music or something you haven’t heard for years 38. Set up your workspace with everything you need plus favourite beverage and snack 39. Set time aside every week to create by writing it in your diary, make it a priority if you want to achieve a goal 40. Look at designs or genres you have previously dismissed, is there something new or something that you didn’t notice before 41. Restrict the materials you use or colours, challenge yourself 42. Start a project with no rules, think surrealism 43. Work with someone else, collaborative projects can bring many other ideas and skills to the table 44. Look for creative submissions online, you don’t have to actually submit a piece of work just use their guidelines to start something for yourself 45. Create a creative group online or meet in person to discuss ideas or ask for feedback on projects 46. Keep a sketchbook for nobody to see, doodle and sketch without the pressure of having other people analysing your work and thoughts 47. Write a story, write about your own creative journey 48. Switch off from distractions- the phone, the computer, the radio, stop thinking about the housework it can wait 49. Sit somewhere alone to think- the park, the beach, the woods, a coffee shop, somewhere you have never been 50. Stop overthinking the project, write down or brainstorm your ideas, create, then think about the next steps 51. Ask someone else to critique your work, sometimes other people ask questions we forget to ask ourselves 52. Be free and work loosely- if you start out trying to make it perfect you are more likely to be frustrated and stop, allow for mistakes and drafts. Artists often make several ideas and copies before the final piece of work 53. Look through old sketchbooks, designs, lists 54. Visit a museum or exhibition- most are free to get in and have loads of resources, some offer workshops, visual guides, tour guides and books 55. Do something tactile- make with lego or clay 56. Opposites- Work in 3D or work in 2D whichever is opposite to what you usually would do! 57. Daydream- what do you daydream about 58. Dreams at night- write these down, they may be useful later on if not now 59. Read a poem 60. Take a poem or song, deconstruct it and put it back together- literally print out and cut up, rewrite it 61. Go for a really long walk, try a route you have never tried 62. Look at plants, bugs and wildlife 63. Go to a different town , county or country- different places have different buildings, dress and traditions 64. Go to the theatre, watch a play or a comedian 65. Look up! Buildings can have really interesting architecture 66. Visit the market- they can be full of interesting colours, textures, unusual objects old and new 67. Start a journal- dedicate a few minutes a day to write about how you feel or stick in things from your day like receipts 68. Listen to podcasts or audiobooks 69. Look at posters 70. Read a novel 71. Go to a skills workshop- meet people, ask questions, learn 72. Do a short course- colleges sometimes offer evening classes 73. Get enough sleep 74. Write down your aspirations and goals for your project 75. Make a plan- 12 month, 5 year, where do you see yourself creatively 76. Ask yourself why you enjoy being creative, make a brainstorm or list and look at it when you have doubts 77. Look at old photographs 78. Do something fun you haven’t done since you were young- trampoline, roller-skate, water fight or illustrate or design something that you enjoyed as a child, be nostalgic 79. Make a list of your favourite projects, why were they the best? What did you achieve? 80. Make a list of your least favourite projects, what didn’t work, how would you change them? 81. Make a list of favourite artworks, what do you enjoy them? 82. Make a list of least favourite artworks, analyse them. 83. Make a piece of artwork from a piece of music 84. Get a mentor- allowing someone else to set tasks and teach new skills 85. Read articles and manifestos around your interest 86. Read articles on current events 87. Look at other blogs and tutorials online 88. Subscribe to online creative websites if they offer free or paid tutorials and tips 89. Bookmark favourite bloggers or artist sites, put them in one favourites folder you can easily access 90. Create your own tutorials 91. Use found objects as part of the work or to inspire something new 92. Use a viewfinder when looking- single out or focus on an area 93. Use your fingers rather than a paintbrush 94. Download a drawing app and try new effects 95. Cut up a drawing painting that isn’t working, piece it together differently 96. Go to a life drawing class 97. Make a collage, use painted papers, found papers, receipts, patterned paper 98. Make a colour wheel 99. Mark making with different tools- draw with twigs, fingers, cotton buds, a fork, a cocktail stick
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