Color Outside of the Lines

Image from Full Color Old Time Label Art by Dover Books

I got the most lovely comment from Liss C here yesterday:

"This is unrelated to this post, but I needed a space to post you a li'l note. Just wanted to say "THANK YOU!" I have probably 30 or so jewelry books now, and a zillion magazines. Yours however, was the very first I bought, quickly followed by the 2nd book I ever bought. And of course as soon as your third came out, I jumped all over it.

I learned so much from your books. Although I don't have the same style as you do, I love your think outside the box technique and that is very inspiring. And the way you wrote in a girl friend tone, versus a boring text book reading made it fun too!

My niece became interested in beading last year, she is 12, and of course, I went right out and bought her your books. So again, THANK YOU!

Have a fantastic day! "

Thank you, Liss! This is why I do what I do. I know I'm not reinventing the wheel. My work is about inspiring people who long to be creative to take that first step. I'm here to guide them as they tip toe gently into basic jewelry making, wire working and mixed media and then I want to inspire them to add their own unique personality and flair into the mix.

So when I get a comment or an email like this, I know that I have achieved my objective, especially when I see that love of creativity being handed down to the next generation. I could write complicated books about complicated techniques...but I don't want to preach to the choir and I really don't want to write those books. There are plenty of folks out there to write them. I want to inspire the folks who have lived their lives thinking that they aren't an artist because some weenie told them so somewhere along the way to let go of that dialog and write a new one.

I try to inject a sense of fun and to show the seams, because I try not to take myself or my work too seriously. Let's face it people, crafting isn't rocket science. Creativity though, has the power to change everything down to the molecular level. That's some good stuff to ponder.

Make glorious messes! Color outside of the lines! Create without filters! Don't worry about the result, art is about the experience of creativity. The artwork is merely the residue of the creative experience.

Love
Madge