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365 Series: Week 5 of the Creative Journey

Monday, February 28th, 2011

It finally happened. The ambitious idea of a creative a day surrendered to the hectic schedule that is my life. If you think about having to set aside time for a creative a day, the task can sound daunting. There was a secret thought lingering in my head leading up to the busiest weeks of my work year, that I perhaps would not have time for my Instagram posts or creating. Luckily I was busy enough to be distracted from thinking about not being productive for my 365 project. Looking at the glass half full, I did make it through more than a month of creatives a day, which is more than I can say for last year! That’s the beauty of this project… Keeping your own personal pace and interpretation without the pressure. My 365 is rebuilding my crafters spirit, which is plenty to be thankful for! So here are another weeks worth of creatives that are behind, yes, but nonetheless made with love! Happy and creative week to you all!

Day 29: Can you make a disguise and fool anyone? “They’ll Neva Know!”

Day 29

Day 30- Work with toys or even work with kids!

The heart balloon and monkey were made by a balloon artist at a fair, I was his “assistant” in handing him the next balloon he needed. Most rewarding after seeing the smile on that little girls face!

Day 30

Day 31- Make a path for someone to follow and invite people to try it out.

Chalking on a sidewalk. Instead of physically making a path this prompt spoke a little different to me, the paths we take in life and the one I want to take. In the simple, poetic words of Bob Dylan “May you stay, forever young.”

Day 31

Day 32-Create something that will dissipate but displays quickly like soap, smoke, butter, etc. “Smile like you mean it.”

Day 32

Day 33-Use pens as your tools today. A hoop earring and pens turned into a “pendelear” lampshade.

Day 33

Day 34- Use wire today, thin gauge wire, paper clips even.

Two wire hangers with a side of heart.

Day 34

Tags: 365 Series, 365: A Daily Creative Journal: Make Something Everyday and Change Your Life!, Merryl Magnuson, Noah Scalin
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365 Series: Week 4 of the Creative Journey

Monday, February 7th, 2011

Congrats to Merryl for reaching week 4 of her creative journey! They just keep on getting better I can’t wait to see next week’s creatives…

Day 22: Create a bridge. Thanks to Alisia and the inventory closet. Rough terrain for those sour patch kids!

Day 22

Day 23: Waste not! Use materials from the recycling bin today! I made a journal using the book backs from Day 8, bottle labels, and pop cans.

Day 23

Day 24: It’s not easy being green. Use green materials and maybe even create with a green background! These are friendship bracelets with letter charms for my 365 friends on Instagram!

Day 24

Day 25: Work with nature. Walk outside in the yard or a park and find your materials. “The weather is here, wish you were beautiful.”

Day 25

Day 26: Make something portable that usually isn’t. I don’t live in the same town as my family, and I think the idea of them being “portable” (even the ones not pictured) at any moment would be quite a blessing. So instead I put them in my mini wallet, and heart of course! Home is where the heart is!

Day 26

Day 27: Use an event dream as an inspiration. I often times, can not remember my dreams. So instead, I used this photo I took recently at the beach one night. It was so dark and so beautiful out, it almost felt like a dream. There is a quote I LOVE by Neil Gaiman that speaks perfectly on this photo, the way I feel about this project, and life in general. I wish you all good madness, and make art!

Day 27

Day 28: Use traditional school supplies like a number 2 pencil and lined notebook paper to make something not so traditional. A couple of paper chimes!

Day 28

To see Merryl’s daily prompts follow her on Instagram @Merskies

Tags: 365 Project, Crafts, Inspiration, Merryl Magnuson, Noah Scalin
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Creative vs. Craft

Monday, January 31st, 2011

Merryl Magnuson is a weekly contributor on 8Balloons, sharing her journey of daily creatives from Noah Scalin’s book, 365: A Daily Creative Journal-Make Something Everyday and Change Your Life.

In the beginning of this Daily Creative Journal, I was having an inner struggle on where I thought this adventure was heading. Certain ideas were attainable, yet sometimes the final product was not what my original intentions were to be. This project has become such a wonderful outlet, why was I feeling frustrated? Almost instantly I became my own worst critic putting pressure and too much thought into the process. I inhaled the word creative and spun it into this synonym for crafting, finding myself confused on what was sitting right in front of me. What direction am I taking and why am I finding it difficult to make a decision? I couldn’t just “do” my creative prompt. The motivation was abundant but the jumping right in felt stalled. I read Scalin’s message on how this was supposed to be a stress free, fun, small moment of my day and pretty much chose to ignore it. Until I re-read why he created this book in the first place and the break through happened. I was thrown into this parallel universe of the Creative vs. the Craft. My ideas were fighting my ability to construct. This was all wrong. They coincide together and should work as a team. Having a creative idea is where the craft originates. So after taking all of this into consideration I threw my arms up took a deep breath and just worked. The heavy feeling was released and the next couple of prompts came easily, without any hesitation! I hope you enjoy this week’s batch!

Day 15: Use a dollar bill as your inspiration today. New readers and a bookmark for 6 bucks, beat that big chain bookstores