When I was younger I used to wonder where my ideas came from. I knew I was capable of coming up with more ideas then most people, but they seemed to come randomly. I didn't think I had any control over generating ideas. If I had a project to do in an art class, I felt like I was lucky if I came up with a good idea. That perhaps they just spontaneously appeared when I needed them. Sometimes they would be good ideas and sometimes they were just average. Then there were the times that I felt like there was no idea and panic would set in.
Tara's Tapestry Earring KitI studied graphic design while I attended Iowa State many years ago. I took a class called "Sources of Design." This class was a life changing class for me. It was the first time someone actually taught me that I had control over coming up with an idea. I learned that they were everywhere, all of the time. I believe that ideas don't really belong to anyone. They are out there for everyone and it is up to us to allow them into our experience. It is a learned process. Many times in my life I have come up with an idea thinking it was an original idea. Then realized that someone else very far away, who had no way of knowing I had come up with the idea, had the same idea almost at the exact same time. It has taught me that to believe we own our ideas is a false belief and only creates fear, greed and jealousy in artists.The Artful Soul Earring Kit, Tara's Tapestry was inspired by an angel, believe it or not. I have a very good friend that lost her daughter to cancer a few years ago. One day I was on my way to see my friend and I felt the urge to make a pair of earrings to take to her as a gift. I started putting pieces together with a feeling of some kind of prompting. It is a flow that happens when I get my mind in the right place while creating. I made the Tara's Tapestry earrings for her in a pretty periwinkle blue. When I arrived at her house and gave them to her, over a period of time while talking and looking at them, we realized there was much more to these earrings then a simple gift. My friend had on a necklace that matched them almost perfectly. I had never seen the necklace. She told me that she had always wanted a pair of earrings to go with the necklace. Then as we went into a room that had many of the things that her daughter, Tara had loved in it, we noticed a shawl that belonged to Tara. The earrings matched the shawl perfectly. The tapestry like design of the beads was identical to the design of the shawl and the colors were the same. The feel and design of the earrings was a perfect match to the shawl. It was as if I had made the earrings to wear with the shawl and I had never even seen it! It was in that moment that I realized that urge to make those earrings came through promptings from her daughter. I had a feeling while making the earrings that somehow the idea was coming from outside of me. Tara was an artist as well while she was alive and somehow she has been able to speak to me from beyond and use me as a vessel for creativity and a gift for her mother. This to me is true inspiration....In Spirit! And only goes to show that our ideas are not to be owned, they come through us and are always available if we are open to inspiration!
If you aren't sure you believe in angels, look at the picture my friend took on the first anniversary of Tara's passing. It is an amazing example of what is really around us. Angels are everywhere! Click on the picture to really see it.....
