An Idea Partner

Last week there was a post to inspire you to create your own cheer squad, and it sounds like pretty much everyone has their squad in place. That's great, because we can always use a little support.

Sometimes you need more specific support, to flush out ideas for your business or art. Finding one person you can go over your ideas with is beneficial for you and your business.

My sister is my idea partner. Anytime I have an idea, she is the first person I call. 

I have been working on Embracing Harmony: 5 Days of Creating ME Moments, and I called her as the idea came to me to help me flush our my ideas and create a plan. We also brainstormed the name together.

For me, just having her to throw out words and ideas inspires me, and gets my creative juices flowing.

Our partnership works well together. I can be a up in the clouds creative person at times, and she is well grounded bringing be back to earth when my ideas get a little crazy.

Some traits you want for your idea partner:
• Someone with the same hopes and dreams 
• Good chemistry, so you will work well together
• Easy to talk to and share ideas

When you find the perfect person, create a working relationship. That way you can inspire, support, and count on each other to work out all you ideas.

Do you have a idea partner?

Motivation Monday

Push Your Boundaries

We all have boundaries.

They are almost all illusions.

Drawn by fear.

Or self-protection.

Or laziness.

Test some:

push them slowly at first.

See how they bend and disintegrate.

Learn not to trust them.

Take pride in pushing through them.

It's Never Too Late... by Patrick Lindsay

DIY Friday - Hair Accessories

I recently got a super short hair cut. I love it so much, it only takes about 15 minutes to style now. I have been looking for cute hair accessories to hold back my bangs on those days I am working in my studio. I found lots of great DIY idea via Piterest, they are all pretty simple, and really cute.

Ruffled Headband

Hair cuff

Beaded elastic bands

No sew headband

Bobby Pins and old buttons

Hair comb and fiber 

Bobby Pins and Nail Polish

What kind of hair accessories do you like to wear in the Spring & Summer?

A Sharing Moment

It has been awhile since I shared anything that is going on in my world, so I thought I would do a little sharing today.

April has been a crazy busy month so far, not to mention cold. I really can't wait for it to warm up, and for things to start turning green. 

On a personal note:
My husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary last week (4/15). We made the best of the day. It was cold and rainy, and there was the awful event in Boston that made the day a little hard to enjoy, but we were very happy to be able to be together all day.

Today we are taking the 3 1/2 hour drive to our daughters college. She was nominated for a scholarship and they are having the awards banquet tonight. We have our fingers crossed that she will win one.

I have my first show next Friday. I have been trying to build up my inventory, but it has been challenging. My husband is starting a new job, so these last couple of weeks he has been home. We seem to have a new project or place to go everyday.

The view from the window

May is going to be busy as well, I have two shows, and my daughter comes home for a month and then we have to pack her back up as she heads back for summer school in June.

My sister and I are going away for a few days in the middle of May. I am really looking forward to hanging out with her. We rented a house on Lake Michigan with no TV, so we are just going to relax the whole time.

A few things happening on Everyday Inspired:
Watch for a week that will be all about you. Embracing Harmony: 5 Days Creating ME Moments will be coming in May. It will be a week of ideas to find and enjoy time with yourself.

There will be a extra post each week on Saturday or Sunday, so watch out for more ways to enjoy ME Moments all summer.

If you have not considered advertising on Everyday Inspired, now is the time. It's easier then ever with passionfruitads.com. I would love to have an ad for your shop or blog on my sidebar!

Etsy Shop update:
New items are going to start showing up in my Etsy shop in May. They are going to have lots of color and stones. I have been experimenting with lots of new ideas and I can't wait to start listing them. Watch out on Facebook and Twitter, I will list them there first.

Here are a couple of pieces recently listed in my shop.

I have been sick for the last week and trying to get back into the swing of thing. I will be around to everyone's blogs next week.

I hope you're having a great Spring!

Do you have anything going on in your world you would like to share, I would love to hear about it in the comments!

You Can Never Have Enough Flowers

Still need an idea for Mother's Day, or maybe just a little Springtime cheer for yourself, check out these flower finds from Etsy. Each shop offers a little something different, so stop by and see all their handcrafted treasures.

Dried FlowerWreath by NaturDesign

Flower apron by unabellavita

Tea Lights Candles by serenitylane

Flower Burst Botanical Print by 7WondersDesigns

Gray Infinity Circle Scarf with Satin Flower Zojanka

Spring Ombre Paper Flowers by FlowerThyme

Wall blooms by potteryandtile

What kind of flowers do you like in the Springtime?

Create Your Own Cheering Squad

When you have people around that support you, it creates a feeling of security and helps build confidence.

There is strength in numbers, and finding the right people to cheer you on can make a significant difference in how you approach challenges.

A little boost from your peers can help propel you to work toward your goals and achieve them. That encouragement is also important for getting you through tough situations.

Finding the right people for your cheering squad can be a process. You may meet someone and you know will be perfect right away, and other times you stumble upon someone through trial and error.

When you start your search consider these questions:

Do I feel a real connection to this person?

Am I comfortable opening up to them?

Have they ever said anything that would make me doubt myself?

Your group can be just a couple of people or a large as you need, go with whatever you feel most comfortale with. Once you find you squad, talk with them regularly, share challenges and successes, and listen to what they have to offer.

Remember it's not a one-sides relationship. As your cheering squad cheers you on, return the favor. Over time you will have a group of people who will always be there for you so your business can thrive.

Do you have a cheering squad?

Motivation Monday

There is a great need for the introduction of new values in our society, 

where bigger is not necessarily better, where slower can be faster, 

and where less can be more.

-Gaylord Nelson

Happy Earth Day 2013

Create Your Own Me Moment

Enjoy some time to yourself listening to your favorite music. 

It's good for the mind, body, and soul!

DIY Friday - Create Your Own Maxi Skirt

I love when longer skirts are in style. The maxi skirt is one of my favorites, and their are so many options for creating your own. Even if you have limited sewing skills check out the links, it is easier than you think to create your own maxi skirt.

Duni's Studio Hippy Maxi Skirt

Maxi Dress

Easy Knit Skirt

The 10 minute Maxi

One stitch maxi

tiered Maxi

Do you like to wear maxi skirts?

Master List

Tuesdays post asked the question what has been stopping you from meeting your monetary goals, now that you know what is stopping you it's time to create the list to help you generate ideas for what to do next.

Coming up with new ideas to increase your income can sometimes be the hardest part of growing your business. If that is the case for you it's time to create your master list.

Master List

Make a list of all the ways you can make money. List everything, don't edit. List things you never thought you could do, things that seem scary, things you think are too expensive to start, just list everything. Then put the list aside and come back to it in a couple of days and add more ideas. You can continually add to your list for as long as you are running your business.

This list is going to become your go to list when you need to make some extra money, are ready to grow your business, or need to make a change in your business. It is as simple as reading over your list, picking a couple of ideas, research what you need to learn, and incorporating these new ideas into your business plan.

The process of creating your list is simple, and over time it will become an important part of generating ideas for your business.

Do you have a master list?

Inspiration for Mother's Day

Mother's Day will be here before you know it, and time to start thinking about what you want to get the Mom's in your family (or maybe for yourself). I have been getting lots of inspiration from Etsy, these Etsy artist have lots to offer, click on their shop links and check them out.

Chamomile French Roses and Lavender Organic Tea by namastea

Embroidered Love Pillow by bluebellsandbunting

Personalized Engraved Wood cutting Board by woodink

Mom Necklace Heart Charm by GlowWish

Green Painted Flower Vase by MichaelDanielMetal

Crochetted Daisy Flower Bag by NzLbags

Body Butter Neapolitan Creamy Body butter by PuraGioia

Teacup Candle by pinkfence

Will you be doing handmade for Mother's Day?

Money Talk

Making money, is the ultimate goal. We may be creating and selling our creations as a hobby for extra pocket money, or we may be working our business to support ourselves. Whatever the reason, we set monetary goals to inspire us to keep moving forward and making money.

I know for myself, I always set goals with a plan to have an increase over the previous year. Sometimes I make the number and sometimes I don't. I know if I did a few things differently, or worked a little harder I could do better at meeting my goals.

Ask yourself this:
What has been stopping me from meeting my monetary goals?

Making a list of what is holding you back is a great way to see the areas you need to work on, and what needs to change.

While you are working on this list, it's also the perfect time of year to look over your goals and make sure you are on track to make your monetary goals. That way if you need to make some changes, now is a great time. There is still a lot of time for adjustments, for you to meet your yearly goal.

When was the last time you thought about your monetary goals?

Motivation Monday

I struggle with #3, but try to work on it everyday. What number do you need to work on?

DIY Friday - Earring for Spring

Earrings are the easiest way to dress up an outfit, why not create your own and get exactly what you want. Even if you don't make jewelry, give these ideas a try they are easy and fun to make.

Shrink Film earrings

Paint chip earrings

Paper Dot earrings

Embroidery Thread earrings

Update old earring by adding bright colored nail polish

Recycled plastic earrings

Lace earrings

What kind of earrings do you like to wear in the Spring?

Switch Gears

When you have been working on something for a long time or you're trying to come up with some new ideas and you get stuck, why not try switching gears.

Stop trying to come up with ideas and start with the technical side of your project. Switching to a new task is a great way to get your creative juices flowing, and thinking about the technical side of things will give you a little insight into your working process and help you see new options.

All you need to do is create a list of all the steps involved in what you are working on, down to the littlest details. Then create a flowchart from where you start your project, your action steps, the decisions you have to make, and where you need to stop.

When you are done with your flowchart you should feel the creative juices flowing back, not to mention you now have a tutorial for your project that you could use in the future.

If you really want to challenge yourself create your list of steps starting from the end and working your way back to the beginning.

Working on the technical side of your project is a great way to get inspired.

Have you ever listed all the steps involved in creating your art?

Artist to Know - Robert Longo

Today's artist to know works with charcoal. All of the artwork featured are drawings, even though they look like amazing photographs.

Robert Longo

Robert Longo was born in 1953 in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Long Island. He had a childhood fascination with mass media: movies, television, magazines, and comic books, which continue to influence his art today.

Although he studied sculpture, drawing remained Longo's favorite form of self-expression. Longo's "portraits" have a distinctive chiseled line that seems to give the drawings a three-dimensional quality.

Longo projects photographs of his subjects onto paper and traces the figures in graphite, removing all details of the background. After he records the basic contours, his long-time illustrator, Diane Shea, works on the figure for about a week, filling in the details. Next, Longo goes back into the drawing, using graphite and charcoal to provide finishing details.

His work has been displayed in museums all over the world, in books, magazines, film, and on an album cover. See more of his work on his website.