Man, oh man, I had some weird dreams last night! The family and I dined at one of our favorite Mexican food restaurants, and I wound up with some serious indigestion that set my brain off on a path that could rival Alice’s “Wonder Land”. I don’t remember a thing about it, but if it’s anything like most of the other weird dreams I’ve ever had, I’m sure it was rife with some mundane task that I tried repeatedly to complete but never quite managed to accomplish because I was constantly being interrupted, distracted, or otherwise side-tracked by some other weird aspect of the dream.
Have you ever dreamed about scrapbooking? I do all the time. Sometimes I will wake up from a sound sleep with what I think is the “perfect” solution for a scrapbooking page or a card. If I’m lucky, I might even manage to remember it long enough to sit down with scissors and paper. The results aren’t always as spectacular as my dreams might suggest, and I sometimes have to put a lot of effort into them to make them into anything worth completing at all, but sometimes my sleeping brain gives me a surprising idea that is so good it’s worthy of posting here, like the Dandelion page.
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| Diamond-fold lacing made with "Hot Off the Press" stencil #7312; flower stem by Deluxe Cuts |
I created this page many years ago after a vivid dream in which I used an ordinary hole-punch to create the parts to make a paper-pieced dandelion. I thought the idea was brilliant, so I spent hours that morning working on the flower and as I worked on it, I remembered the essay my daughter had written as a school assignment many years earlier. The flower turned out to be the perfect embellishment, since I had no photos, and it wound up being one of my favorite layouts for a long time.
Whether you dream about scrapbooking in your sleep, or imagine perfect layouts while driving your car, harness that creative energy into something useful. Dreaming and daydreams are the power of our imagination exploring the limits of possibility, and the more we imagine, the more our creativity grows. Daydreams come when you are most relaxed and your mind is open and free to explore the possibilities. Have you ever had a great idea in the shower? My husband has a creative friend at work who keeps a waterproof recorder in his shower so he can take down all the awesome advertising slogans that pop into his head while he’s taking his bath.
Make use of your grand ideas by keeping a sketchbook, notepad, or other recording device handy. I keep notepads everywhere…in my purse, on my desk, in the car, next to my bed…I even have one in my scrapbook tool tote. That way, if inspiration strikes me, I can at least jot down some ideas, make a sketch, or even write out an entire blog. Oh, and by the way, the inspiration for this little post came to me as I was just waking up this morning.
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The Crafty Neighbor
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