“I think everybody can agree that you can hear a certain song and it will put you in a certain mood, and that’s just the beauty of music and I am so inspired by that.”

–Shaun White

“I am inspired by life, past experiences, what’s to come, women around me, art, colors, paintings, and emotions.”

–Rachel Roy

You’ve probably heard the saying, “There’s nothing new under the Sun.”  And you’ve probably experienced that awkward moment when you are staring blankly into the soul-sucking time vortex – better known to humans as The Blank Canvas. Sometimes finding inspiration can be a tough feat to overcome. Today, I thought I’d share a few of my own tricks.

1. Listen to your granny – Draw from what you know. It’s a simple concept that has been handed down through the ages. And it works. The better you know a subject – the more you’ll be able to work with it, whether it’s writing, designing, painting, or what have you. Your granny’s a smart lady.
2. Don’t be a thief – Taking someone else’s idea is not only lazy and pathetic – it’s illegal. BUT there’s no harm in being inspired by their work. Put your own spin on an old idea. Jazz it up a little. See what happens.
3. Shaun White is right – (See the quote at the top) I’m glad to see that underneath all of that crazy red hair, and sweet snowboarding skills, Shaun’s got some brains. Sometimes silence is deafening. Put on some music to fit your mood and see what inspiration comes your way. You should be able to find inspiration in a good tune (As long as it’s not Justin Bieber…). Many times I find it best to listen to something new. You can do that easily on Pandora or through Spotify.
4. Go out on a limb – I’m not gonna lie, I have used some silly stuff for inspiration before. I’m exposing my inner geek here, but I’m a huge Doctor Who fan (If you’re a fellow Whovian, you probably caught my time vortex reference!) I’ll admit I’ve let that work its way into some of my designs. Don’t get me wrong; I didn’t smack a T.A.R.D.I.S. onto a business card or anything (Although… No, no! Too geeky! Focus, Mary!). But I did draw some inspiration from colors and sounds and ideas from the show. And I came up with a pretty sweet tri-fold design from it, if I do say so myself.
5. Quotables – If you have read my other posts, you might have noticed a motif. I like to start my blogs with a quote (or two in this case) that goes along with whatever topic I’m approaching. Looking up inspirational quotes is quite (wait for it…) INSPIRATIONAL. I know, shocking, right?
6. Pinterest – If you’re not on the site already, I would highly recommend it. Pinterest is a great place to store loads of inspiration. There are tons of ideas, pictures, and quotes to browse through. You can create your inspiration boards and collect whatever pins you like. (Fair warning: Prepare to become fully obsessed.)

These are just some of my silly little ideas. I’d love to hear some more! Leave a comment with some of your ideas below!

Article written by: Mary Steele