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Friday 27 June 2014

Organized Hyper Stimulated Inspiration

Sometimes I feel like the only thing keeping me together is my skin. The possibilities and ideas are endless. There are so many fun mediums and so many ways you can make something old new again. A random youtube video leading to another, a new craftsy class or scrolling through pins for much longer than you intended can bring a spur of ideas. Sometimes working on a project with only your thoughts to keep you company can bring this on as well (this happens a lot at night when my mind doesn't have to compete with my energetic boys). One really odd time, it happened in the middle of watching a movie where there didn't seem to be an obvious trigger.

Finding focus in these hyper stimulated moments can be challenging. When I get into these modes (like today), focus is no longer my goal; recording those ideas down is. I like using the Magical Pad app to mind-map those ideas. I keep webs to include photo ideas for peyote patterns, color inspirations, knitting pattern ideas and other ideas for mediums I want to experiment with in the future. Not everything sticks or turns out great but when you're having a dry spell it's perfect to remember those incubating inspirations.

What I like about using the app is that I always have that web of ideas with me everywhere my phone or iPad is. Remember those peyote photo ideas? Maybe I can take some of those photos while I'm out walking and enjoying the sunshine. Remember those ideas in other mediums? Maybe the boutique art store downtown has some interesting classes coming up or a book store has a book with the know how to make those ideas a reality.

If you're an avid pin collector on pintrest, maybe adding the ideas you like to your mind map can help separate the "thats cool" from the "lets change this and that and then make it happen." With app you can add to do lists, photos, sketches and more. You can delete sections that really just don't work or move sections to a different part of the web. You can hide sections of your webs or view it all at a glance.

I don't always write directly in my mind-map. Sometimes I just let the ideas pour on to a paper envelope or scrap then organize it in the mind-map later. There are journals, whiteboards and poster boards can be just as effective too. Whether mind-mapping is for you or not, don't fight the flood or try to find focus; ride this wave, see where it takes you and record those ideas!

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