MAKE ROOM FOR CHAOS

Creative people are some of the messiest people. I was reading this article earlier today, which pointed out a mess is not necessarily a bad thing - a messy desk is a sign of a messy mind, and an empty desk can be a sign of an empty mind.

While I find this to be true, I'm the sort of creative person who in order to be productive needs the only mess around me to be that of my current projects. This is why I tend towards the extreme of owning and using as little as possible. When I'm on a creative kick, less household clutter means there's more room to spread out my scribbled notes, opened books and jars of paint-clouded water.

Do yourself a favor and make room for a little chaos, if that's what it takes to stoke imagination and compel a discovery or masterpiece.


more on being creative:
The Gap by Ira Glass
18 things creative people do differently (also on Avelist)
an old favorite: how schools kill creativity

BURN A CANDLE

A mother by day and a writer by night, I sometimes find it hard to switch my brain to creative thing at the end of a long day of wresting with teething, grocery lists, and dirty dishes.

Recently I have begun a new evening ritual.

Once Henry quiets down in his crib and I have tidied up the living space, I light a candle.

The flame's bright shudder and the glow of melted wax relaxes and eases my mind into a creative dimension. This simple routine has become a sort of addiction for me. If you struggle to loosen your mind at the end of a day, or just need to detox from a long day at work, try clearing your work space, and burn a candle.

(Stay tuned for a simple candle making project).