Hi there! It still isn’t the 10th… But I do have the January instalment of the ‘new’ Inspired by for you!

Inspired by is a blog series by my friend Riikka and I. As I explained in this post, we’re no longer deciding on a theme beforehand, and we’re also not creating something with that theme or thing in mind anymore.

From now on, each month, we’ll share our personal sources of inspiration with you (and each other) from the past month.

I decided to make a list because I’m finally getting my mojo back and I found I got excited and inspired by a lot of things. Which feels good, so good!

And it’s a long list… So let’s dive right in!

Susannah Conway inspires me to keep looking. Even if the weather seems too gloomy and too dark to take photographs (I like).

Susannah hosted the photo-a-day project ‘December Reflections‘ in December and to create a soft(er) landing, she’s currently hosting ‘Gentle January‘.

I can’t seem to manage to take daily photos because December was so busy (and January appears to continue in the same fashion), but projects like this always help me see things in a different light.

Just this week I spotted a particular door on my way home from the gym and some things about the graveyard in my neighbourhood that I haven’t noticed before. At the very least it makes running errands a lot more enjoyable!

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Xanthe Berkeley continues to inspire me to keep trying to catch stuff on video.

I’m not very successful at staying on the bandwagon yet, and I’m also not taking the time to edit the footage very often. But I’m determined to really make this happen at some point in 2018. Sooner rather than later!

Max Ernst. A visit to the Max Ernst Museum in Brühl, Germany at the beginning of December turned out to be a massive influence on my work the rest of the month. And I don’t think its impact is over just yet.

Max Ernst developed frottage (a rubbing technique) in 1925, and there was a wall full of his frottage artworks on display.

I tried my hand at crayon rubbings for my January n*Studio Creative Squad post.

I also looked into how I could best present the rubbings, which prompted me to look into frames and mats.

Mystele Kirkeeng inspired me to put some pastels on my Christmas wishlist. She also continues to prompt me to create crazy backgrounds and to draw girls.

Lykke Moodstore inspired me to buy an Araucaria which then led me to change all the plant pots in the house!

Julie Fei-Fan Balzer and lots of people that followed along with her Carve December challenge inspired me to carve two stamps.

Those stamps (and a couple of others that I’d carved before) found their way into my Gelli Arts video.

Lou Ann Gleason of Gelli Arts inspired me to try Gelli printing on transparencies for my January Gelli Arts video.

It was so much fun!!! And in the process, I discovered a technique that I will show in my February video for Gelli Arts.

Babette Schrijft and all of her Dutch handletter pals who raised money for the Red Cross with their Serious Lettering!

They not only inspired me to give generously during the annual 3FM Serious Request fundraising event but also to visit the Glass House in Apeldoorn and explore the city.

Emily Quinton (Makelight) inspired me to create a flat lay with some of the German cookies and yummy chocolates we bought for the holidays.

Allerhande inspired me to pick up meal planning and cooking again. This is a magazine that is published by Albert Heijn, a Dutch supermarket chain.

Having braces installed unfortunately has meant that I had to radically change my eating habits in 2017. And frankly that I lost my appetite… It’s not back yet, but at least I’m making an effort again!

And last but c e r t a i n l y not least: Creative JumpStart 2018

I thought about how I could follow along with CJS2018 and make it work for me.

I figured I was more likely to keep up with it if I could work in a small journal. I settled on a passport-sized Traveler’s Notebook insert.

Which is a lot smaller than I usually work on/in. But it seems to do the trick because I’m now creating on a (semi-)daily basis!

I love Creative JumpStart so much!

You never know what the featured teacher is going to show that day and what materials you are going to use. I’m going from acrylic paint to Pan Pastels, to crayons, to watercolours and back to acrylic paints again.

I’m taking the time each day to learn, to try and to figure out what I like and what I don’t like about the lessons, the materials and the techniques.

If you want to follow along with what I do: I tend to share my results in my Instagram Stories.

And… If you want in on Creative JumpStart 2018: it’s not too late to join us! There is plenty of time to catch up!

Go to Nathalie Kalbach’s website (affiliate link) to find out more and to register!

That’s a wrap!

That’s it for this month’s Inspired by!

Don’t forget to stop by Riikka’s blog Paperiliitin and read what has been on her mind in the past month.

Inspired by is a blog series by my friend Riikka and I.

On the 10th of each month, we share what inspired us that month with you and each other.

It can be anything from a person, a film, a book, a painting, to an item, something found in nature or in the city, a colour scheme or some materials we bought or discovered.

We will also share how the source of inspiration affects our work. Consider it as a window into our creative minds!