Curing Creative Slumps

There is nothing more frustrating then a creative person going through a slump. But sometimes it is just difficult to feel inspired to sit and create. And worse yet even when you do it may be that every single thing looks so wrong to you. There are times I scrap an entire project because my creative blues are dreary blues that make me think anything I'm gluing to paper is all wrong. So what do we do when we need to pull ourselves out of a creative slump before it totally over takes us?

Challenges are a great way to kick start our creative flow. Choosing something that interests us and gives us a bit of a challenge is at times all we need to get out of our slump. And lets face it Paper Issues has the best challenges around, hands down. There is something for everyone, the creative team puts together some awesome inspiration, and as an added incentive we can win a prize! Can't be that.

Lifting is not just a way to get out of a slump but it can also make us learn new styles, techniques and working with things we don't normally choose for ourselves. Lifting is the greatest compliment to another person to so you don't have to feel bad for lifting anyone. Scrapbook etiquette does suggest that you give who are lifting some credit though.

Printed Ads are honestly such a resource of inspiration. Between color schemes, layout placement, techniques and just something very different we can choose to be inspired by. It could be a color, a photography, or any number of things that speak to us. So when you are in a slump,hit a local book store, grab a coffee and thumb through some printed magazines.

Taking a look back at some of our albums and pages that we have done already give our creative ego a boost when it so badly may need it. It can also inspire us to use a technique we haven't worked with for a while, or a texture, or color, and even a theme that makes us want to sit down and get a blank background to get started on.

Getting Digital as a former digital scrapbooker I tend to look back to my roots and work with digital templates. While they are a bit different then a sketch because you can work with the given layers on your computer. But they also many times come with images and shapes that we paper scrappers can use with our cutting machines. These files can be used over and over again with your machine and it greatly helps lift you out of a slump and it doesn't have to be an overwhelming process. I actually used a digital template for my page below, It was fun and helped me use Crate Paper's Cute Girl that I've had sitting in my stash! one thing I would suggest is look for digital templates that include PNG formats it makes it much easier to import for use in your machines software.

Whatever you choose to do to get out of your creative slump just remember to not allow yourself to stay there for too long. Its a temporary feeling that sometimes feels a bit overwhelming so its better to kick it straight in the rear fast and send it on its way. Far away from you.