"Creative" Problem Solving

These are two examples of my "coffee bean" bracelet. The one on the left is the original, made a long time ago, which is still the bracelet I personally wear most. I've made it a number of times over the years for others, always with the simple hook-and-loop clasp you see here.

But when I made one for an old friend recently, she had trouble working the clasp and sent it back. After my adjustments were still not enough to enable her to wear the bracelet, she sent it back again. This time, I decided to cut a big hole in the last "bean" and created a toggle on a short chain to go through it. Here it is on the right. Much easier to manipulate and I think it looks better, too!

Ring Challenge

In Gretchen Raber's classes at the Art League School, she often hands out some weird random "thing" and challenges each of us to make a particular item out of it. Past challenges have included: making a necklace out of a sheet of window screen, a necklace out of a pencil, earrings out of a piece of gray packing foam, etc. This week's challenge was to make a ring out of 2 popsicle sticks, using all of the popsicle stick material and adding only glue, metal and paint.

Here's what I came up with. I could say it was inspired by all the ruins I saw on my visit to Rome earlier this month, but the truth is it just came together this way. Not fabulous, but it is a ring and it does fit!

For Creative people ;)

My husband recently made a post on his blog that i really appreciate as a "creative person" plus i love the show This American Life and Ira Glass....
anyways i thought some of you might get a kick out of this if not appreciate his advice and experience on the topic. ;)

originally from justinhamilton.org/blog by Justin

What do YOU do?

I am sure we all have those times, like I had last night. Where we sit down to work on a piece, and nothing goes right.

Last night I was sort of 'fiddling' rather than really 'making'. I've been a bit 'off' the past couple of weeks, low creativity, lots of stress in our house. But I finally made it to the bench last night. YAY! Or so I thought.

I fiddled with some 14ga wire, just slowly bending, allowing the shape to come together on its own, going for an organic look. But I was hating the outcome the whole time. I perservered and continued bending, tacking in spots with solder, then planished flat some of the wires, then textured some spots, then reshaped a little - then, IT happened.

I overstressed one portion and it broke.

So I quickly smashed up the other earring intentionally (I DID mention that I"ve been stressed, right?).

So, my question(s) to the group -

What do you do when you're frustrated with a piece? Walk away, push through?

And what do you do when you are in one of those 'down times' - when creativity just doesn't seem to be in large supply? Do you try to respark it or just live in the down time til it passes?

~Janice