The Dragon Project

Christiana in Wood Heights, Missouri is on a quest to capture a dragon every day for a year in The Dragon Project...

Why did you decide to do this project? After having my creative self on a starvation diet of strictly functional creativity for years, I craved something more.  I longed to push past adding artistic touches to my day to day needs and jump headlong into exploring, learning and creating just for fun.  I had just made a deal with myself to start taking a bit of time to play each month when I came across Noah Scalin's book.  I told myself there was no way I'd have time for something everyday, but I still couldn't leave without the book.  So after some encouragement from my husband, I leapt into The Dragon Project.

How has doing a daily project affected your life? Everyday has become an adventure.  I'm learning how to use technology, trying out a variety of mediums and seeking out opportunities to do new activities.  You never know where a new dragon will pop up.  I've met them geocaching in the woods, shopping with friends, at local sketchcrawls and even had strangers tip me off to where I might find others.  I've found that I'm more excited to learn than afraid of failing.  That in itself is so exciting!!!  I love that I'm making new friends and I look forward to being inspired each day.  It's like waking up knowing that you're going to receive a present.  You can imagine how that's changed the way I see my surroundings!  I haven't been doing this challenge quite 2 months yet and already I can't picture my life without it.   

See how Christiana's dragon hunt is progressing HERE.

Making Something New Every Week

Pat Naylor in South Buckinghamshire, England (near Windsor) Making Something New Every Week...

Why did you decide to do this project? I love new and different, I love making things but I'm a chronic non-finisher.  I have a 4 generation household and a job so I knew it would be too much of a challenge to make something new every day. I wanted to find a way to encourage myself to not only be creative but to finish each project I start, so I'm posting photographs and instructions on how to make each project and that is keeping my integrity intact.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? So far, I've finished everything I've started!  I have found that it is the part of my week that I look forward to the most. Some of my makes have been less than perfect and I've found that is ok too.

See all of Pat's new things HERE.

Kari's Collage-a-Day

Kari McDonald in Rockford, Illinois is creating 365:Collage-a-Day Project "A Printmaker's Year-Long Collage Project to Stimulate Her Artistic Brain"...

Why did you decide to do this project? After graduating from Northern Illinois University with a B.F.A. in Printmaking in December 2010, I needed to still be challenged on a daily basis while being home and an hour away from the studio on campus. The art community at NIU, especially in Printmaking, is very collaborative and very involved. Since I can't just magically create money to build my own printmaking studio, I needed something to keep my creativity going and to motivate my brain to keep thinking artistically while I build up and collect supplies and equipment. I was inspired by two people. I saw Noah speak online for the live Etsy Symposium, but I also have been inspired by one of my local artist friends, Jennifer Mullin. She is an art teacher and a collage artist (also on Etsy: TinyArtbyJMullin). So, I decided to do my own project based on a combination of the two people and their ideas for my year-long project of artistic stimulation.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? Following through and staying on target everyday are the hardest parts of this project. I am excited to get each collage done, but when it is 11pm I just want to go to bed. Time management is crucial for this project and I need to allow for mobility if I want/need to bring the little collages with me on vacations and day trips with my husband. Creating something everyday has definitely helped my brain really think about composition and content, rather than just throwing things down on the paper. I've also learned to think faster and freer. Maybe I'll even "strike gold" by the end of this when I plan on doing a show with all 365 pieces! ... but I should only think one day at a time here.

See all of Kari's collages and more on her blog HERE.

Flower A Day

Kristen in Jersey Shore is making a Flower A Day...

Why did you decide to do this project?  I had been in a crafting rut for the past 4 years because of a career change- I didn't have the time, energy, or in some cases a need to make things. I wanted to change this, because I miss being using the creative part of my brain...that and my craft closet is full,
I decided on flowers primarily because of my upcoming wedding- I have no desire to have real flowers for financial and ethical reasons, and I had been talking about making fabric flowers for awhile. Then I saw a cookie bouquet and flipped out because it was so awesome. Then an origami bouquet on etsy. Then felt rosette boutonnieres. Basically I kept changing my mind on what I wanted to make. So Flower A Day seemed like a good project because I could try out new techniques, or even just making different types of fabric flowers to see how they looked, and so far things are going pretty well!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? So far it hasn't had a major effect (but I am only on day 4), except for on my 12hr shift days. I'm a Veterinary Technician by trade, and some days I don't get home til 8 at night after working since 8am. I'm trying to make simple projects on those days so I don't completely lose my mind, and save the more complicated projects for my days off.

See all of Kristen's flower's HERE.

Become More Me

Carol Sessums, who lives "near" Jackson, Mississippi is posting every day to her blog Become More Me. She explains that her blog is about, "daily strategies for self-improvement and personal development, such as self-improvement book studies, as well as anything else I can use to better my life and help others to better theirs."...

Why did you decide to do this project?   I needed to make more time for reading.  So, I did.  I got up a bit earlier than normal.  I started to read the intro to The Purpose Driven Life and had an epiphany!  I need to share this!  What an inspiration!  How can I do this?  Get a book club together – Nah!  No time for all that.  I need to do something that will bring people together, get people to read, get me to read, get people motivated to change their life, get me motivated to change my life, and do all this while not taking any quality time away from my daughter and our daily routines.  A blog!

So, then I decided this would be the first book, and then I thought of others that inspired me, jotted those down, and decided to make it a part of my daily routine.  Get up, get coffee, sit down, read the chapter, journal about it, blog about it and how I can relate.  Perhaps others can relate.  We are all different and interpret what we read differently and figured this would be a good way to share with each other.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life?  I’m only 73 days in, but it’s made a tremendous impact on my life, thus far.  I see so many ways I can better my life and I want to be the best I can be, not just for myself, but also for my wonderful daughter, mom, family, as well as anyone I come in contact with.  I want to help others do the same – to be their best.

Since beginning, I’ve also started a weight-loss self-challenge, posting pictures of myself before, during and after, keeping up with numbers (weight, size, calories consumed daily, length of workouts, etc.), hoping to shrug off 52 pounds in 17 weeks (March 13-July 10) and actually be ok with wearing a swimsuit this summer.  I’m going to do it, too!  Who’s with me?

Read more from Carol HERE.

Crafter's Devotional

Michelle Jensen in North Adams, Massachusetts is documenting her journey through the Crafter's Devotional...

Why did you decide to do this project? I decided I needed to infuse every day with a creative project. I needed to keep my creative well full and active.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? My life has become much more focused on creativity, not just in regards to what I make to sell but just in how I see the everyday world. It's fantastic!

See all of Michelle's days HERE.

Finding The Beauty In Life - 365

Lily Verlotte in England is doing a project about "focusing on the good things about each day. Instead of dwelling on the negative things I'm going to try and create pictures from the positive aspects of my daily life." She calls it  Finding The Beauty In Life-365...

Why did you decide to do this project? After I had my son I developed postnatal depression, and it seemed to radically alter both my personality and my perception of things around me. My son will be two in May, and a few weeks ago he put a sticker on my knee, when I asked him what it was for he told me it was "to make mummy feel better." I asked him what was wrong with me, assuming we were playing a game, only to be told that "mummy is sad."

I started thinking a lot about what I surround myself with, what I put out into the world and more importantly what effect I have on my son. I always thought I hid it well, I play games, read stories and try and make things as fun for him as possible, but he is bright and clearly much more perceptive than I gave him credit for. I realised at that point I need to make some major changes to the way I think and handle life, so instead of dwelling on bad things I began documenting at least one positive, or inspirational moment, or one completely beautiful moment about each day.

 I've been doing this for about two weeks, (though I'm only on day 5 of the 365 project) and at first I really had to dig deep to find something positive- never mind beautiful about each day but now I find it a lot easier, and I'm beginning to view bad things as something to learn from rather than be defeated by. When I discovered the 365 project I immediately thought that I could merge it with my new positivity regime. Having the chance to turn my written experiences into visual reminders that I do have good things in my life other than my son makes me work that bit harder to focus on the positives. As I love books, and like the idea of books as art I opted to keep my project in book form, the challenge will be seeing how I can keep each page interesting!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I’m fairly new to it, but I am already finding that I look at things in a different way. Problems are more manageable, and I usually tend to swing wildly between not caring what others think and being quite thin skinned, so previously if someone said something unpleasant to me this could affect my entire mood all day. I though I might really struggle to find something on those days, but although they do still touch a nerve I don't give in. I’m hoping that through this project and by exposing myself to potential criticism by putting it out there publically I’ll toughen up a bit and develop a thicker skin!

I have also found myself myself more ready to agree to invitations to social gatherings, so I have the experiences to use in my project. My major goal to achieve by the end of the 365 days won't seem like much to others but I would like to go on a date with my husband. When I had my son I really struggled to leave his side, the result was my husband and I have never left him with anyone overnight and anywhere we do go needs to be child friendly. I'm now beginning to feel like I want to find someone to babysit and go out just the two of us, unfortunately family members think I'm joking when I ask, but I still have time! Even more importantly, at the moment finding positivity to focus on can still be a bit of a challenge, but it is my hope that looking for the beauty in life becomes second nature to me, so even if I have dark days I can still remember there are good things to be found.

See all of beauty Lily has discovered HERE.
 

Wordie

Krystal Giles in West Virginia is using prompts from my book to create a daily word in her project Wordie. She says, "I am trying to connect the word both to the given inspiration and to basic life lessons that I would like for my daughter to learn. "...

Why did you decide to do this project? I discovered Noah's blog via another blog called Young House Love.  I liked his blog so much that I read its entirety in just one sitting.  Then, I downloaded the book. I loved the idea of creating a yearlong themed project. 

I previously wrote often and even had my own blog. Once I became a mother, however, my creative juices just seemed to evaporate.  So, I really liked the idea of being helped along by the book.   I wanted something to put some spark back into my imagination!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I have only just started my project, and with only about 14 days under my belt, it is hard to know about the end result.  However, I am truly enjoying tackling each new idea.  I like the challenge that it provides and also the need for perseverance a daily task such as this requires.  My word creations have become a bright spot in my day and I really look forward to the time I get to work on them. 

See all of Krystal's words on Facebook HERE.

100 Earrings in 100 Days

Jodie Vieira of JoMarie Jewelry in Nashville, Tennessee is making 100 Earrings in 100 Days.

She explains, "I create a new pair of earrings everyday for 100 days straight.  Come rain or come shine, I must create a new pair of earrings everyday, no excuses.  I started on Wednesday, February 9th, so I'm on my 44th day, at first I found it to be very difficult.  Actually the first day I was so freaked out about my first pair that I couldn't even get started.  But that's part of the whole challenge, being able to get over the need to be perfect, because let's face it not all 100 pairs will be perfect.  There are days when inspiration is wanning or time is running out.  But there is no rule that every pair must be a masterpiece, the only rule is that I must post a picture of the new earrings to my facebook fan page by midnight (central time) every day.  I can use any materials, any style, and any techniques that I want.  And I can draw inspiration from anything and everything.  Which brings me to the main point of this project, and that is to expand my arsenal of skills.  Through this project I am able to try new techniques, use different materials and increase my creative capacity."

Why did you decide to do this project? I was inspired to start my own daily project after listening to  Noah's talk about the skull project at the Etsy Symposium. I had just started up my own jewelry shop on Etsy and was searching for ways to make it better (I'm continuously looking for ways to improve), and this just seemed like a perfect fit.  I needed to expand my line, as well as get over my perfectionism and learn new skills.  I'm not quite half way done, but I can already see the benefits.  I now have over 70 items in my shop, I took silversmithing classes which has opened up a whole new world to me,  and while I still struggle with perfectionism it's getting better!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? So far it has been a wonderful experience, I have a goal to work towards and push myself everyday.  I have several new designs that I have added to my etsy shop that I would never have come up with had it not been for this project.  And through the giveaway I have become much more involved with my customers, they comment on my new designs and post pictures of the earrings they have won.  It's become a little community, and their enthusiasm helps me to find the creative energy needed to make a new design everyday.

Check out Jodie's work on her blog, Facebook page, and Etsy shop.

Ramblings by Dawn

Dawn Larson in Lenexa, Kansas is making a project she calls Ramblings by Dawn. She says, "My project is 365 days about life and love.  I use different mediums and the world around me to provoke thoughts and feelings and toss them to the universe for consideration."...

Why did you decide to do this project? I decided to do this project to see if I could pull myself out of a long dormant period in my life.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? This project has affected my life profoundly.  I have started dreaming and living again.  I have reconnected with my life and many old friends.  My heart and soul have been dusted off and are thriving as a result of this project.

See all of Dawn's ramblings HERE.

365 in Brooklyn

I lead two workshops based on the daily method outlined in my 365: A Daily Creativity Journal this past week in Brooklyn:

The first was for the Gel Conference, where I worked with 40+ attendees at Etsy's headquarters in DUMBO...

The second was a book signing/workshop/talk at Williamsburg's Spacecraft...

See more pix from the events HERE and HERE.

And hey, if you want me to come and do a creativity workshop with your business, school, group, etc. get in touch!

The 365 Day Bird Project

Peggy Turchette in Boulder, Colorado is doing The 365 Day Bird Project...

Why did I decide to do this project?  I am a freelance illustrator, and I was having such terrible burnout from working endlessly on assignment to other people's specs under truly insane deadlines, that I was starting to hate being an artist.   I really needed to do SOMETHING to reacquaint myself with the fun part of being an artist.  Also, I'd just moved, and for the first time had a real studio where I could make a big mess and not have to pick everything up at the end of the day.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life?  First, I am having way too much fun.  Second, I'm no longer making any money (good thing I'm also a dog-sitter).  Third, I am trying all kinds of mediums that I would have never worked in, since everybody hired me for just one particular style.  Fourth, I am thinking of myself in a whole new way, not as a "hired brush", but as a very interesting, creative, fun person.  Fifth, I have no social life, because I take care of dogs all day and make a bird every night.  (Actually, I didn't have a social life before, either, so that hasn't changed.

See all of Peggy's birds HERE

365give

Jacqueline Inwood Way in Vancouver, Cananda is doing a project called 365give. She explains, "365give is launched on a simple premise: One person wanted to create positive change in a world; one person wanted to leave a legacy of giving; one person wanted to create a movement that would mobilize people to give back every day of their lives. 365give is an online diary of one woman’s actions and impact in changing the world every day for 365days. 365give has the potential to create a movement of giving and a community of committed 'givers' that can educate and inspire future generations."

Why did you decide to do this project? I am a giving addict and I love to give, but as I recently became an adoptive mom and continued my life as a wife, a small business owner, a daughter  and sister, my giving actions needed to be rethought.  The 365give project enabled me to intentionally and thoughtfully give to my family, my community and friends and keep it in check.  What I did not expect but rejoice in is the effect that my daily intention has on my son and his development as a person.  As a journey, my giving has become more meaningful to us, it spurs creativity in our day, and I see how it has grown my relationships as I document my journey.  My giving which could have been viewed as a burden has flourished into a mission that gives not only to my community but also to me and my family.  Though this was not an intention to do this project but it has become my inspiration to continue the project.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? This yearlong project has focused me as a mom, a friend, a sibling and a wife.  I thought previously that giving had to be big, committed, lots of hours and in some cases a large monetary commitment.  I have learned that this is not true and the small micro-gives I do each day have brought me more joy than any large expenditure of time or money has ever done.  This keeps me in check, and teaches my son the concept of everything in moderation, dedication, commitment and compassion.  My old philosophy was go big or go home.  My new philosophy is slow and steady….a much easier and less stressful ideology that is more comfortable and more meaningful.

Read about all of Jacqueline's daily giving HERE.

Lucretia's Letters

Maaike Klarenbeek & Jo Tunderman aka Lucretia LaLune in Dordrecht, The Netherlands are working together on a project they call Lucretia's Letters (in Dutch, English version is HERE). They explain, "In Lucretia’s letters we follow the life of socially somewhat awkward Lucretia LaLune in words and pictures. Lucretia’s thoughts and behavior are recognizable in a funny, sometimes little embarrassing way, but also shows us that our personal idiosyncrasies are not that awful… Maaike writes Lucretia's love letters to Amadeu, who is the man Lucretia sees on metro rides and is in love with. Jo's illustrations complement the letters and bring them to life."
 

Why did you decide to do this project?  We both wanted to challenge our creativity in a 365 project. First we thought of doing our own projects separately, but it seemed so much more fun and inspiring to combine our strengths in this project. We wanted to create something (or someone) that is recognizable to a lot of people, but at the same time is such a caricature, that most people feel relieved that they're not THAT bad. Lucretia puts thoughts that every person might have, into word. It's fun to be able to say anything you want and hide behind an alter ego. ;-)

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? For now is hasn't really effected our lives yet. It might though. It's going to be a real challenge to commit to this every day, while jobs, social life and other activities also require a lot of time and energy... :-)

Follow Lucretia's correspondence HERE in Dutch and HERE in English.