180 Degrees

Tiffany Parris in Winston-Salem, North Carolina is creating 365 Postcards in her 180 Degrees project. She explains, "I am taking mail that I receive, some of it pretty yucky (read the description on the blog), and repurposing it into new postcards. I am opening the project up to any readers to send me mail and if they choose, I will send them a 'repurposed postcard' in return."...

Why did you decide to do this project? I decided to do this because I am in a season in my life when my mail really sucks. I hate opening my mail. I wanted to turn it around into something positive.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I actually enjoy looking into the gruesome mail slot these days. I know that whatever financial, emotional, and spiritual struggles I am currently in right now will not last forever. There is a light at the end of the PO Box. I enjoy these little moments of creative energy. I am not setting out to make a piece that will be sold or that will ever hang in a gallery, but it makes me happy to unwind and just tear and glue paper.

If you'd like to send/get some "happy" mail from Tiffany contact her through her site HERE.

Card-A-Day

Flo Kane in Buffalo, New York is making a Card-A-Day...

Why did I decide to do this project? I wanted to be more conscientious of reaching out to friends and loved ones on special days this year. I also happen to love working with paper, collage, etc. The two seemed made for each other. Oh, and also because my Free Will Astrology horoscope said I would have both the creative stamina and willpower to be prolific this year.

How has the project affected my life? It's been 13 days. But, I've felt progressively more creative and curious about learning new things. I've also been more creative in general. I also feel more connected to the people I'm mailing cards to.

She even made this card for me!

See all of Flo's cards HERE.

365 Postcards

Jakki in Perth, Australia is creating 365 Postcards...

Why did you decide to do this project? I'd just recently started my first full time job near the end of last year, and whilst I love my job I also needed an outlet to express myself a bit more creatively. I love drawing and illustrating, but had been a bit demotivated to create anything worth putting on my site especially since I was busy with my new job and all! As any person who likes drawing may know - it can take a lot of effort to actually start something - especially if you don't have many ideas in mind.

As soon as I heard about the 365 project I decided I might as well give it a shot - after all, I could improve my drawing and creative output all the while having some way of creating something new each day. I decided on doing postcards because everyone loves postcards - they're simple yet such a great way to show off different artwork.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? The progression I've made from January up until now has been quite noticeable I think. I originally thought I'd just take half an hour - maybe an hour to complete one postcard a day, and as a result, my postcards were simple and quite easy to create at the start. Not saying the designs weren't effective, because I do like some of my earlier ones but I rather like how I've progressed now the most. I now take a lot more time to think of ideas, and to draw them as well.

My illustrating techniques have improved a fair deal as well, which is awesome. A lot of people have commented on how cool it is to see the progression and a new illustration each day; it's really flattering. I always have to remember to set aside some time each day to make a postcard, especially since I'm busy with a full time job as well. Sometimes I've even gotten my boyfriend to help me create a postcard for the day because I've been so busy (which is really nice because he really wants me to finish this project too!) so if it wasn't for him, I would have already skipped some days! It was hard to get into a routine at first, but now I think I could do this for quite a while yet! :)

Making something everyday is so much fun, and I even have notes scribbled everywhere of the things I'd like to draw next. Every time I have an idea, I jot it down and when I'm stuck on a blank canvas there's always something to turn to for inspiration. I love thinking of new ideas to draw - especially on the bus! - and it's so satisfying to see the end product at the end of the day. I'm hoping to print some postcards at the end of my project and distribute them - maybe even make a huge wall collage. My creativity ebbs and flows - but now that I've seen what I CAN do, I can't wait to see all my postcards at the end of the year!

See all of Jakki's postcards HERE.

A Postcard A Day

Claressa Wilcox of Smiths Station, Alabama is making A Postcard A Day...

She explains...
I'm making a postcard every day for a year. I started on January 5th, and my sister teased me for not beginning with the new year. But now I'm nearly half-way through my year of postcards. I have used different mediums and found inspiration in places I certainly would not have expected, from things that make me laugh to things that make me angry, kids' cartoons to classic literature, exotic animals to my mom's glasses. I've learned a lot along the way: such as how to ride a bike, make a fantastic soup, draw with painting software, and cut kirigami.  I've also discovered things about myself, that I'm more motivated than I thought I was, that I'm more flexible, and that manila is my favorite paper.

Why did you decide to do this project? I wanted to test myself and push myself to really do something creative. I'm starting college in the fall, and I wanted to see if I had the discipline and maturity to take on (and keep on going) a project like this. To be honest, before I bought the Daily Creativity Journal, I'd heard of this kind of project before, but it never occurred to me that it was something I could do. I was inspired to start my own year-long, daily art project as I flipped through the Journal over the sales table at Barnes and Noble. That was over 130 days ago.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? It has become a regular part of my routine, even if that means staying up later than I'd planned three nights out of five. So far this is the longest single project I've ever worked on (except for school, of course), and I've been doing it so long that my day feels incomplete if I'm unable to make a card. It has also made me practice art daily and forced me to stretch my creative muscles in trying to think of new things to do every day. I can definitely see my art improving, even if that just means it's getting cleaner and more "professional". By making postcards my medium and theme, I intended to use this project to connect with my family and friends and even strangers. But so far I've been so busy making the cards that I haven't been sending any out!

See all of Claressa's postcards HERE.