Inspiration
By Cathy Koos
Inspiration comes to me from the strangest origins. Color. Texture. Shape. Even intended purpose.
There are at least five different mosses on this rock. The grayish green cluster on the center left is actually “leggy”!
As I look out the window on the ranch this morning, I see a wild range of rampant color in the oak woodland, the sloping meadows, and an English lady’s cottage garden. Here and there in the enclosed garden, I see the brilliant pink of a Double Delight rose, the pompom-like white blooms of a smooth leaf hydrangea. In the far corner of the garden, I see the deep purple of a small stand of Dutch iris.
On the slopes where Zinfandel grapes once grew, the spring grasses are now curing to a greenish yellow. We have three different oak species here: Blue, Valley, and Black oaks. Each has a remarkably distinct leaf color, acorn shape, and bark texture.
Google Lens tells me this is a Spanish lavender.
Sometimes my projects have a specific purpose or recipient and that drives my inspiration. Kitchen towels? Napkins? A birthday scarf? A winter shawl or a prayer shawl? One for warmth of the body and one for warmth of the soul.
Last Christmas, my son told me his niece was really into Nancy Drew and mysteries of all sorts. Inspiration! I found a hardcover Nancy book at the thrift store as well as a large, outdated, hardcover chemistry book and set to work, dismantling the chemistry book so I could repurpose the covers into a storage box. In my drawers of “stuff,” I found a vintage compass, magnifying glass, some little glass vials from my dad’s chemistry lab, and a soft makeup brush with a bamboo handle, all to create a private investigator’s kit. With the page block removed from the chemistry book, I cut foamboard to make dividers where each tool could be nestled. Then I used old maps to line the inside of the box. Recovering the original chem book with heavy bookcloth, I then painted a Sherlock Holmes-style deerstalker cap on the cover.
I find the social media site Pinterest to be invaluable for keeping track of ideas, rather than a corkboard or poster board. My living space is small these days, so I quite often use a digital tool like Pinterest. Canva, Photoshop, and Adobe subscriptions are alternative, but “free works for me.” There is a way to both share your Pinterest boards or make them private.
Digital mood boards are amazing collaborations of ideas, and I also have Pinterest boards for weaving, bookbinding, paper art, textiles, sewing from weaving, and even calligraphy. Pinterest keeps the boaards alphabetically. Here is a screen shot of some of my “C” boards.
A couple of years ago, I was on a batik kick because my wardrobe needed a linen jacket. When I could not lift the wax off my test sample well enough, I went down the resist alternatives rabbit hole of rice paste, Clorox pens, and even simple, washable, school glue. I had little test squares of linen hanging on the line in all stages of “yes or no.” Turns out the washable school glue was perfect for my jacket, and I even used the samples for a preschool art project. The kids had so much fun and were able to take home little linen napkins for Mother’s Day.
Sometimes inspiration is just around the corner, in a museum or gallery, or a friend’s kitchen. The important thing to remember is to collect what intrigues you now for when you need for inspiration!