Creative resources are all the little tools and strategies you use to play and express your creativity. It’s the eye you develop to spot the perfect shade of paint for your next project, the deal on vintage furniture worth restoring, the sale on herbs for your garden or the fresh new journal you can’t wait to crack open, filling the pages with ideas that come to you in dreams.
These simple examples of creative resources are the things I get excited about, and even if I don’t have a use for them right away, I know I will when the mood strikes. I snag them when I see them, when I get an intuitive feeling that they fit in perfectly with what I’ve already collected for my creative budget.
Do you absolutely need to buy creative resources? It depends on your interests. I can be completely happy writing on scraps of paper that I use from the printer (writing on the other side of older drafts), but that’s just one way I get a double use out of a resource. As far as my other creative interests go, like reading, beading, up-cycling, cooking and more – well, that requires I build up some creative resources so I’m ready to play when the mood strikes.
The Line Between Hoarding and Storing Creative Resources
Shopping and collecting things from nature like rocks, pine cones and feathers is fun for me – when I have a bit of a strategy in mind. I definitely enjoy a good “looky-loo” excursion, collecting ideas and playing with possibilities, but I’m always clear on whether I’m looking, buying or gathering creative resources.
I also try my best to re-purpose something or look for gently used items first because, why not? Not only are they lower cost, but I’m doing my part to support the planet in a sustainable way and I can get more to play with on a smaller budget. It also helps with my thinking around creative experimentation – I don’t feel limited by the idea that a specific resource was expensive and can’t “ruin it”. I simply play and see what happens.
While making sure you have tools to support your expression is part of the fun of having a passion project, simply buying or collecting supplies doesn’t fill the craving to create or offer a full expression of your creative self.
It’s easy to get excited about starting something and “stocking up”. Committing to use what you’ve got and opening space to create is when you make a clear choice between being a “hoarder” or a “storer”.
Storing feels good at first because you see your stockpile of supplies growing, inviting you to get into a different state of mind and the possibilities that live there. It can easily turn into hoarding if you look at creative resources as a prize instead of using them, building them up like a museum for creative ideas that are stuck in the land of “someday”.
Making the Choice to Experiment, the Ultimate Expression of Creative Passion
Balancing creative resources with desire is crafted one choice at at time. Build creative resources the same way. Feel into a color. Sit with a pattern. Experiment with different pens, journals, spices, routines, tools – whatever you need to discover what feels good for the person you are right now, and what’s worth giving away or saving for a future project.
It can also be fun to collaborate with someone you can share with freely and learn from at the same time. Watch how the blended energy between you feels different, how it can inspire your creative play in a way that you never expected.
Taking lessons, classes or practicing your craft is another way to add more creative resources to your life. The energy and time spent lifts your spirits, get’s you excited and adds skills and confidence around how you choose to express yourself in the world. The effort might also inspire you in new, unexpected ways.
There is no one ultimate personal expression, although as humans we are conditioned to search for it. As you grow and change, so will the creative resources you collect and appeal to you. Honor yourself and the supplies you pick up along the way by being selective and leaving room to expand beyond “the collection”. Creative resources don’t define you – they are simply tools to express the passion you are discovering as you grow and learn.
What are some of your favorite creative resources? What’s your strategy for pulling together items to express yourself freely in your creative budget?
Looking for a way to sort through your creative habits, frustrations and tools and start fresh? I would love to chat with you and find out how I can offer support.
*This post is part of a series on crafting a creative budget. You can also check out previous posts on the other creative budget essentials, including joy, inspiring creative space, physical movement, and brainstorming for creative fitness.
Photo credit: epSos.de, Matt, Andrea Janda