Tapping into creativity, inspiration

Posted by on Aug 3, 2012 in Blog, Susan LeVine

When I started Uccellino people who knew me would often ask,”Where did this come from?” I was a stay at home mom and I hadn’t worked in ten years or painted or done anything creative.

Truthfully, I got divorced and the world that I knew came undone. I was sad for a long time but when so much was taken from my life I started to appreciate what was left. I took classes, I learn to meditate, I practiced yoga and I read a lot of poetry and self help books and novels and when I wasn’t with my daughter, I spent a lot of time alone. I journaled and listened to music and tried to make sense of things.

It was a hard way to reconnect to my spirit and inspiration but I don’t regret anything really. Well, that’s not true I regret somethings but not enough to dwell on them. Mostly, I’m grateful because I rediscovered a part of me that was lost.

I think that one thing I discovered when I was trying to nurture my heart and spirit back to life was the importance of writing and painting my dreams. Some of my products came form those dreams and some are scattered about my home or in my studio. I have a secret to share with you; actually I have lots of ways to tap in to creativity, but this in one of them: Do things that you loved to do as a child.

I would go to a park and skip and skip when no one was looking. Sometimes I would skip for an hour until my spirit was lighter and my body ready to settle down and work. Also, I take baths almost every night. In my bathtub I have blowing bubbles that I blow and blow and blow, sometimes to music, sometimes to my thoughts. I have been know to wear a tiara in the bathtub and even eat frozen cherries with hot chocolate sauce. This it the main thing that I do in the bathtub: I paint and I write! i don’t care if its pretty and I don’t care if it makes sense I just let it all out! Sometimes I’m lucky and I will discover a thought or a design that I will elaborate on later.

Sometimes if i have a pain in my body or in my heart I will tap into that spot and feel that shape that that feeling is and what color it is and then I will paint it. I often paint my prayers and hope that G-d doesn’t mind that I’m in the bathtub when I do this. My sweet husband and daughter know that this is my time and they give me this space uninterrupted. I’m grateful and lucky that they do.