if you ever feel uninspired...

Sometimes, finding inspiration can be pretty hard. Most creators have been in a rut, right? Some are harder to get out than others because multiple different factors can be at play. The key is not to lament on the idea. You have to go outside and experience different things, mundane or brand new.

Here are a few ideas where you can start:

Take your craft outside, literally.

Go to a park, a coffee shop, or anywhere and bring your materials with you or just a sketchbook or notebook to doodle. This also includes travelling to different cities, states and countries. Travelling to uncharted places can really help with inspiration. Even though we have the worldwide web, when you are physically present in a unknown environment, you discover the different ways of living in that environment by going through the motions yourself. You truly go outside of the box.

Try a new medium or go to a local art class.

If you are based in LA, LACMA has a series of classes you can join. CourseHorse is also a art class search engine for multiple different cities.

Listen to new music. 

Here's a productive playlist Ellie has created for you all.

Clean your space to clear your mind.

We like to clean to music, so here's a cleaning playlist you can dance around the house to.

Read a book or watch a movie.

Both of these will help remove you from your current headspace and take you somewhere new in the comfort of your own home. Make sure it's something you've never seen before for the full, immersive experience.

Try these movies: Uzumaki (2000), Mad Max Series, Arrival (2016), Victoria (2015), Talk to Me (2022), Moonlight (2016) or check out Letterboxd.

Try these books: the Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, A Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, the Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury, Go Ask Alice by Beatrice Sparks, Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs, or check out Goodreads.

Discover artists.

Check out what other artists are working on! Many artists, especially the younger generations, use Instagram almost like a portfolio. You can also look at forum sites like Reddit, Pinterest or Landing for art boards. We just discovered Landing, which is a great app that allows you to easily create vision boards and share them with niche, virtual "spaces" that connect you to other creatives within the subject of that "space".

Lastly, we will have our profile posts up soon that highlight artists we have been watching and, hopefully, will help facilitate discovery!

Get Uncomfortable.

And we're not saying put yourself in danger. It's more the idea of putting yourself outside your comfort zone, emotionally and mentally. A rut could result from a "bad" or "good" emotional change; it can come from a distressful life event or it can come from complacency or a busy routine.

When it comes to the "bad", use art as a way of expression and therapy. It may be hard at first, so start off with something easy, something small and mindless, just to get things moving. Then, work your way towards facing what happened and how you feel and try to turn that into something tangible.

When it comes to the "good", just make time. If you sit and think to yourself, "everything is okay right now", then it's safe to say you can add something more to your plate. Make time to learn a new medium or make time to create an idea board for your next project. Create motion at any degree so your mind and body can have continual growth.

But if you sit and think to yourself, "I don't know how much sleep I can get tonight and I don't remember the last time I ate" then maybe it's time to pause. Make time to do absolutely nothing except rot. You have to make sure to decompress and catch up on your sleep (those are two different things, by the way).

Take care of yourself and your body. Stress to your body isn't always immediately noticeable. Stressors can include lack of sleep, lack of nutrients and sunlight, straining your back, overusing your eyes, plus more, and this can cause all types of imbalances to your system. So, make time to give yourself a spa day, order takeout, and put on your favorite brain-mush show.

If you have any tips or suggestions on how to find inspiration or if you want more information on anything we've said above, let us know in the comments below!