Creative Mom's Must Make Time To Create

My days are full and not unlike this picture. All that I do is filled up and punctuated by all that they do. I'll be honest I don't always appreciate it as much as I should. I have actually timed the interruptions - going three to five minutes without someone running up to ask a question or tell me something is quite a long stretch many days.

For many years my creative time has come in spurts - catch as catch can and finding the time to create has been a continual challenge. I knit sporadically and I sometimes sew. Those are rather easy when you have young children and don't have a studio or dedicated space to work. (No spare bedrooms in our home for a few years yet!)

[bctt tweet="For a creative mom the urge to create seems to be strongest when the daily work and responsibility is heaviest."]

But amidst the chaos, interruptions and daily work and responsibility that comes from caring for a large family the urge to be a creative mom never really leaves. Sometimes the cry is strong. Each time that siren call wailed in my ear I would think about the stacks of sketchbooks, drawings and illustrations that I had shoved in the back of the closet waiting for just the right time. Next year I turn forty and I have begun to understand - that perfect time - it will never really alive. So not too long ago I drug them all out and piled them all up. (There were so many more than I realized!)

As I watched all that evidence stack up in front of me I became convinced that I should just shove some things aside and make room. So I am just doing it. I am making time to be creative.

I try to make the most of many little moments during the day and work consistently in the evenings. I am learning to keep my focus, returning to the work at hand after the interruptions. I am striving to not be so sporadic but to develop a consistent habit of not only drawing but bringing my sketches and ideas to completion.

You can follow me on Instagram if you want to watch my progress.

How I'm Learning Online

Taking time to learn is just as important as taking time to be creative. Last year I began to refamiliarize myself with the Adobe software by subscribing to the Creative Cloud and using Lynda.com as my classroom - it's been a long time since college, ya'll! Thanks also to classes on SkillShare and CreativeBug I have learned how to take many of my sketches and ideas and turn them into repeat patterns. I have also learned how to combine Photoshop and Illustrator so that I can use my natural media drawings in surface design.

Creative Mom's Must Make Space To Create

I still do not have a dedicated space to create - I have taken over a small sewing table that is tucked in a dormer window in by bedroom and then work at our school table when I want to make a bigger mess. I have suffered only a couple of toddler 'accidents' which resulted in some pieces of 'shared work' and wasted ink. Through routine, conversation, and ensuring that they have space and materials for work of their own my space and materials (while still a curiosity) are now respected.

(Since writing this I carved out a larger space in my bedroom...check it out!)

What I'm Doing Right Now

Right now I am working now through that stack of sketchbooks and illustrations that I have accumulated over the years. My goal is to build a portfolio of my illustration and surface pattern designs here on this website. I'll be sharing my progress and process on this blog and more frequently on my Instagram feed.

I am also putting together some fun prompts for creative mom's who like me have struggled to find the time and space to play with a bit of color. Click Here To Read More If This Sounds Like You