I had so much more to say about this series of images.� I had a long post written in my head, my analytical nature incapable of simply tossing online four pictures without some sort of explanation.� Unfortunately, I have a touch of the stomach flu.� Clearly I am on the mend, or I wouldn’t be here.� Still, I am not yet recuperated enough to artfully say everything that is in my heart.� I’ll do my best right now.
Late last year, around my birthday, I felt within me a need to be more creative.� I can’t explain it, other than to say it felt more like a compulsion, an absolute “time is up, your paper is due tomorrow” call for action far stronger than the whims that often grab me on ordinary Wednesdays.� I answered by registering for Holly Becker’s Blogging Your Way class a week after my birthday and made a note of other classes of interest, held later in the year by other bloggers, which focus on creativity and the satisfaction of living a life fulfilled.
If the other classes I am considering are as useful, I will be very happy–although Holly is working me a bit like a pack mule with some of these homework assignments.� In a good way.� I can’t divulge the assignments I have done thus far, but I will say that they force you to focus on what you want from your blog (hobbyist or not) and how these goals mesh with the passions in your life.� Not a simple task for someone who started a blog on nothing because her friend twisted her arm.
The inspiration board you see above is homework assignment three, which was the creation of an inspiration board that best defines your style and what you want to cover/do cover on your blog.� The second part of the assignment was to post it online where your instructors (and classmates) could check it out.� Mine looks nothing like what I expected.� There are so many things I write about that didn’t seem to make the cut, but it feels right.
I read in waves, one book after the other until I stop, exhausted. Occasionally I will write something that makes me proud.� I like things natural and simple, but I am a contradiction.� Sometimes I am drawn to labels and sparkly things.� The extended family I grew up without continues to shape who I am and the decisions I make, and almost everything I do is done with my husband and our children in mind.� My faith is becoming increasingly important to me.� I remain regimented.� Most of my classmates posted inspiration boards layered with images.� I retook the first picture because the pencil was crooked.� The only thing I thought I didn’t effectively communicate was my sense of humor– until I realized the thrift-store book I tore up for this project was perhaps a bit…spicy. Heaving breasts and quivering loins can be funny, right?
…i love this very much…is so different…and that i love…this individual style…do something in another way…here not so much pictures…only you and your thoughts…love it…thanks for sharing…get well soon!…
cheers
ines
Gosh, Ines…I didn’t even notice the fact my board didn’t have many pictures until you mentioned it. How very telling, right? Thanks for the great comment–you’ve given me even more to think about! :)
love love love it. will you please come visit new york (when we’re not in the middle of a snow storm)? also, kudos for signing up for something that stretches your brain in a new way. a couple weeks ago, a year and a half after my grueling econ degree, i signed up for grad school classes in graphic design (color theory! typography!) and i swear to god, last night while doing my homework my mind smiled.
Hannah! I had no idea you were taking grad classes in graphic design! Of course, how would I? You know longer update your blog, hint-hint. :)
And, yes, I would LOVE to visit NYC. Chicago, too.
First, I just want to say I’ve really enjoyed reading your blog since I discovered it on the BYW blogroll. If I had known about it when the class started, you would have been in my top 5! Second, your board is beautiful. Ines is right, it’s really unique, and you can tell your ideas weren’t influenced by others’ work. It’s simple and pretty and meaningful. Really nice.
I love your board, it’s so calming and peaceful. I absolutely love the ‘read in waves’ idea, so cool! You are full of creativity and inspiration, can’t wait to keep reading your blog!
Your board is so beautiful. I love that you chose to use different elements, like the rock. So original.
What a simple and beautiful board! I love how you photographed it on that amazing wood floor! You can tell that you put your heart into making this.
What a lovely board. I love its simplicity and earthy tones!!
~Theresa
My goodness, this is sophisticated and super refined…would I expect anything less from someone who can write like you? It takes real thought to edit -as you know with words -same goes for design. This is what I see going on here -an incredibly developed sense of editing which I think makes the best kind of art…in all forms. Incredible.
I love the calm elegance of this board, Jules. It’s absolutely gorgeous, but, not what I expected from you in some way. And THAT is what I think is so interesting. You let your instincts guide you and came up with a really beautiful piece.
looks like solid ground and faith to me.
Simply stunning. I love the dimension, literally and figuratively. Your board is uniquely inviting. My first thought was, “I’d love to have her over for tea.” I want to know more. Thank you for sharing.
This is really lovely. I went a similar route, in terms of not layering images and including things that can’t necessarily be folded up and tucked into a folder�but our boards couldn’t be more different. Which is why I loved this assignment! This is organic, simple, chic and yet I LOVE the thrift store book “WRITE” snippet. We’ve never met, but I want to know you. (erm…..not in the quivering loins kinda way of course….)
: )
oh, I love your board, I am drawn to it ! not only i appreciate how you disposed the objets, the tones of colours you choosed, the organic elements, the sense of space. And to me, the white spaces, empty spaces are as important as the filled ones. I look forward to go and wonder on your blog later on … and someone who uses the word “french” in a blog banner, well, do I need to say more, ahah :)
So different than all the others, you have a very own style, love it! Very clever. eline
Jules this is so pretty, I really like it!
I hope that you feel better soon!
Since you cannot easily fold this up and keep it with your class notes for future reference, it’s good that you’ve blogged it. Maybe you can even print the photo out and include it in your notebook so there is some physical record of it?
Have a nice weekend…
xo
Holly
very inspiring! I love how you used lots of different elements…
Jules, I love how calm and organic this is. It feels so warm. I especially like the rock!
Holly–that’s exactly what I plan to do!
It’s gorgeous … it has a hint of nostalgia … the old mingled with the new … what you know with faith for what you don’t. I love it. What a wonderful project!
as a painter ( who is having a bad day) your board is a little predictable …open you junk drawer, a sink full of dirty dishes, unmade beds … those images are so alive they almost breathe …study a degas painting .. his composistion is flawless… because he is a master of the positive and negative space .. he lets the viewer connect the dots. i adore your blog, the tenderness, the struggling, your sense of humor …. i know it can be difficult for lawyers not to be so literal, i am married to one and my son recently passed the bar. good luck and enjoy!
wow! a real gem! life essentials. Well done my course mate!!
This board appeals to the wannabe minimalist in me – love the palette and the textures!
So very interesting with such strong concepts and ideas. I really love the rougher elements juxtaposed with the more delicate ones! Oh, and I just read the novel page! Wonderful touch. Thanks for your visit and comment! � g
Such a wonderful mood board. So simple but so meaningful. I love it.
I think it’s perfection! It’s so you and it is beautiful! So clean and I love that you re-shot because the pencil was crooked, why? Because that is who you are and embrace it. The elements are great, very natural and the palette is soothing. I don’t care that some may think it’s predictable, it’s YOU and that’s a beautiful thing. BTW, the whole point of going to a blog you love is that it’s ‘predictable’ in some sense, but I like to call it branded. You have a consistency that makes me want to come back again and again….
This is really great, so clever and original. Love the 3D aspect!
i think your inspiration board is my favorite…shhh – don’t tell anyone!
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fabulous, intriguing and original. Makes the looker of your inspiration curious and want to know more. Very very nice. really like it
Wow. I’m blown away.
This is so different- I like the sparsity, the simplicity, and how such disparate items and images are pulled together by the neutral scheme. You obviously made this project extremely personal- I’m so impressed, as that’s something I’m having a little bit of trouble doing!
OK, I just made one of these boards tonight and it was hard! I love yours, and I know the thought you put into it (because I know the thought you put into everything), which makes me love it even more. I think the inclusion of the rock may be my favorite part.
Thanks, Nicole! (And everyone else, too.) :)
Nicole, you may not remember this, but the story behind the rock is one of the handful of posts you have commented on. I can’t believe that was way back in 2008!
And, yes, this assignment was impossibly hard. After four days of agony, I decided to stop thinking about it and just started grouping things together that I loved. The fact they were all of the same color palette was coincidence. Well, if you think about it, it’s probably not coincidence at all–but it wasn’t intentional on my part, either. I’m surprised my law career didn’t make the cut. It was in there, but I had to remove it. It looked wrong. In fact, many things I write about (food, weight, shopping, the agony of decorating my house, etc.) just didn’t fit. It made me realize that the posts I am most proud of all center around a specific theme and subject.
I love your still life board… so creative and full of nostalgic warmth!
beautiful and intriguing. i love the junxtaposition of rocks and earring danglies. nicely done. so happy to fall into your pretty space here!
Wow! I love it! The elements all work so perfectly together in such a heartfelt and tender way. This is my first visit to your blog and I know that I will be back time and time again. So happy to discover you.
It’s beautiful. Serene and quiet, yet powerful.
Thoroughly enjoyed your post on our homework assignment. I love your description of the elements incorporated,very nice.
Blogging your way classmate,
Shay