Day 312: Good old British Afternoon Tea

Today my Mum, sister Becca and I have eaten our weight in cake. It's not something we normally do, I have to add, but Becca and Mum have come across to Bath to visit. What better way to celebrate than with cake?

We went to this really posh Hotel thingy and had afternoon tea as a belated birthday present for my sister (thanks Nanny), which made us feel a bit snobby, but man, the cakes were good.

As you can see, there was a lot of them. I'm pretty sure they were locally made which made them taste better somehow. None of this shop bought nonsense! It was someones job to experiment, make and display those cakes we enjoyed. What a cool job! I'm going to look into such a career I think...

We're now all sitting here looking a bit full and feeling a bit sick, but it was worth it for that scone with cream and jam. Mmm...

Day 274: My Grandparents

Today's blog is dedicated to my Nanny and Granddad, Doreen and Malcolm.

Nanny is a talented and wonderfully creative lady. Even though she's retired, she isn't just sitting around in the garden, she's even busier than she was when she worked!

This morning she sent me an email at 7:40 in the morning to show me these:

She's made them out of paper! How cool! It beats my origami 'flower' any day.

It's not just animals she makes out of paper. My Nan makes the most beautiful cards which she sells at craft fairs all over the country. She also knits amazingly complicated scarfs, she cooks and wears really funky clothes. She even paints her nails every week! I mean, what a cool Nan!

If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be such an enthusiastic knitter!

As, for Grandad, well he is the most enthusiastic reader I've ever met. He's always got his nose stuck in a book and they've got the most amazing wall in their house, completely covered in book shelves. He used to be a type setter (organised book's layout) and after that he was a proof reader, so naturally he's getting involved in my writing competition/anthology project!

There is a lot to learn from grandparents, so don't rule them out. What could you learn from yours?

Day 212: Make your own thank you cards

There's always people you get pressies from at Christmas who you don't see to say, thank you too. So you need some cards, right? Well, try these ones out.

I spent a few hours making them yesterday and, as they're creative, I thought I'd tell you about them. It's super easy to make them, so get involved if you want to save some cash and make your own funky thank you cards.

All I did was get some old magazines and cut out patterns, colours and textures I liked. Then I cut each bit into a letter and stuck them on the card! Easy.

Here's some tips;

• Chose your card colour before you start cutting. I did mine on black, but had loads of black/dark patterns which I couldn't use. Equally, if you do it with white, you don't want anything too light.
• Work out roughly how big you want each letter, so they fit on your card.
• You could use different magazines for different people. If you're doing one for a boy, maybe use a boys' mag. If you're doing one for a kid, use a kids' mag...it's up to your creative slant, of course!

So, have a go at creating your own cards this year. They make pretty good birthday cards too...

Day 210: Location Location Location

Today is one of those busy days where you go visiting (probably 'cause it's Bank Holiday). First, I went to my cousin's new flat. She was a bit embarrassed 'cause it was messy, but it's to be expected, right? There was a sofa here and a table there. I found myself thinking, 'hmm, I'm not sure I'd really put that there,' or, 'I wouldn't paint it that colour.'

Then, we went to see my sister's new flat, which is literally just a shell. No furniture, no curtains, just carpet. That was even more fun. I imagined the furniture, colour scheme, where the bookcase would go, how will it all fit around plug sockets, where to put the 'feature wall'...

Do you do this too? Do you find yourself becoming an interior designer in other people's houses?

I even think about the layout, 'I would've put the door opening the other way...that radiator should be on the other wall.'

Like I really have a clue about any of this stuff!

Next time you go round someones house, have a secret nose around. What do you think? Get your creative thinking cap out. Or why not plan your own future house? What will it look like, how many rooms, where will the lounge be? Will the bedroom have an en suite...?

So many things to think about... 

206: Sing Star vs. Just Dance

Around Christmas time everyone tends to do the rounds, visiting family, opening presents together, eating food together and, at least with my family, there's a game or two shared together.

My family is pretty big, which means lots of games (like Epic Mickey, as I explained yesterday). The whole family gets involved with some games, whereas others, only the kids play. Take Just Dance, for example. First the kids have a go, then the teens and then a willing parent/auntie/uncle have a go. (You know they secretly wanted a go the whole time!) Just Dance seems to be one of those games where most of the family eventually join in, even though it's potentially embarrassing.

But what about Sing Star? You know the one. You pick a song and sing along, trying to reach the right notes for the right amount of beats (basically kareoki). My experience with this game is, only kids are willing. None of the adults in the room will budge. Maybe it's different with your family, but that's certainly what I found this Christmas.

So, what does this say about singing and dancing? Do people find singing more embarrassing in public? What about in the shower? Is dancing around like a prat really less embarrassing?

I think yes, dancing is less embarrassing than singing in front of people, but why is that?

It would seem that some creative things are more 'acceptable' in public than others. Is this something we should change? Is it something we want to change...?

Feel free to ponder these creative thoughts for a while. Oh, and let me know your thoughts...

Day 204: Gingerbread house

It's a bit of a family tradition of ours to get a gingerbread house and cover it in icing and sweets. Then eat it, of course. So, here's this year's effort:

I did say it was on my list of creative things to do over Christmas, so one by one I'm ticking them off.

How's yours coming along...?

Day 203: Decopatch

Do you like my hearts? Well, actually, mine is the middle one and the other two were decorated by my sisters. Amongst Boxing day's festivities, we took time out to do some Decopatch.

What the heck's Decopatch, I hear you ask? Well, basically, it is covering stuff in little patches of tissue paper to jazz them up. Find out more on their website.

It's proper easy, so if there's a scuzzy old ornament you need to sparkle up, why not try to Decopatch it? You can do it on anything; lampshades, boxes, bowls, chairs...

Chose your colours, patterns, shapes, sizes...see how creative YOU can be...

Day 201: Christmas Day Holiday

It's Christmas Day!!!

A day for a holiday I think, but just for a little creative input, here's a clip for you to enjoy. It's still about holidays though, so it's ok! Plus the kids are super cute!



Although this is a bit of a Christmasy Chick Flick, it's actually pretty creative too, 'cause it's all about the film industry; one guy write music for movies, one girl makes trailors and another used to write for film.

But for the purpose of today, it's about having fun at Christmas, so make family, eating and opening presents your priority!

Merry Christmas!

Day 157: Reminiscing with Helen Cross

Today I went into the little primary school in Saltford as I always do, but this morning, Helen Cross came with us. She got the class thinking about what they would miss if they left home for a holiday or wherever. We looked at a poem by Grace Nichols called, Like a Beacon, where she misses her mum's home cooking from Jamaica.

It was all very pleasant until I thought, hang on, I'm away from home right now! Uni is one of those strange times in your life when you have two homes, but neither of them feel quite right. When I'm home with my family I miss my home at uni and vise versa.

So, as I'm at Uni, I was thinking about my family home five hours away and this came out of it:

Opening the fridge and picking at fresh grapes,
five varieties of cheese, crisp cucumber,
red peppers and thick yogurt.
Bracken and Bramble sleeping, stretched out lazily
on the most comfortable sofa imaginable,
or curled up by the hissing fire.
Being surrounded by my dad's teddy-bear hugs.

Kind of a poem, I guess. What would you miss? I don't know about you, but thinking about it makes me really want to be there. All that feeling and emotion...

Try writing a list of what you'd miss and put those ideas, feelings, senses into your creative work somehow, whether it be writing, painting, animation, music, dance, drama...Using what we know from our own lives touches other people's lives and that's the power of creativity.

Work with what you got and see how far it reaches...

Day 151: Home sweet home...?

As you can see, I have put up a picture of a tea pot. I think it's pretty cool, but what do they people that own it think?

Who is it? When do they use it? Do they use it? What's their house like? How many people live there? Do they like the tea pot? Where do they live...?

Isn't it great how you can create a character, a life, a story out of just one picture, an object.

Try it yourself. If you don't like the tea pot, find your own object. Search 'front door' or 'duvet cover'. Why not try 'toilet seats'! Anything can get your imagination going and create ideas.

Don't you just love creative thinking...?

Day 150: Story makers

Yesterday I got the bus up to uni. Normally I get the uni bus (makes sense) but I decided to get the 'public' bus and walk up from where it drops you off.

I have a confession. I have always been quite fond of eaves dropping. Usually when I'm on the uni bus I don't bother 'cause all the conversations are the same, about uni work, going out, getting drunk etc. Bit boring really. I've been doing less of the eaves dropping because of this.

In fact yesterday, when I got on the 'public' bus, I wasn't even planning on eaves dropping, but as I was reading this women behind me was talking on the phone and I just couldn't ignore her.

Now, the interesting thing was, I didn't know what she looked like. I didn't notice her when I got on and I couldn't very well turn round and stare at her. She'd think I was weird. So, obviously I invented her face in my mind. As she talked in her incredibly posh British accent, I couldn't help but try and piece her life together.

This is what I got. I presumed the person she was talking to was her sister, who is the only person she can confide in (on a public bus for all to hear). Her father is impossible (perhaps in a home with early signs of dementia). She can't talk to her mother about anything because she'll tell it all to her father (so maybe he hasn't got dementia in a home, but he's just impossible.) Oh and she's a teacher, but hates her job, especially a student called Louise apparently. Daniel is okay though. But maybe they are her own children...

Who knows, eh!

The thing that fascinated me about this conversation was my own need to piece her story together, to create a story, a character...I totally had a picture in my mind of what this women was like and what she was going through, all from half a conversation heard on a bus!

So, today, I encourage you to do a bit of eaves dropping in a public place and see what stories you hear (or is it create?) I'll let you decide that one.

Happy creating...

Day 65: Verity

Today's blog entry is dedicated to this gorgeous girl, my sister Verity. She's in New Zealand an has been for nearly 2 years now so I haven't seen her for AGES!

What's your sister got to do with my creative blog? Well, just look at this picture! She screams out creative to me. What she wears, the things she does, the places she goes...she's definitely a creative thinker!

She has been really supportive about this creative endeavor of mine from the start and has been a constant source of creative inspiration to me. That's why today's blog is for her, on her birthday.

Happy Birthday sis!

Think about someone you know who supports you in your creativity. Go give them a hug or something. We wouldn't be anywhere without support! Perhaps do something with your creative talents for them today...just something little...