4 Benefits of Exploring Other Creative Outlets

4 Benefits of Exploring Other Creative Outlets

Are you the type of person to think that developing something outside of your chosen craft is a potential waste of time? “Why learn how to ski when I can spend that time learning how to paint better?”
Sometimes, it’s actually more beneficial to explore creative outlets rather than developing the main one you are currently trying to grow. You might ask me with skepticism: “How could taking a cooking class possibly actually improve my drawing skills?”
I’m here to tell you how it certainly can!

Finding a Mentor/ Teacher
I am going to take a sushi-making class on the weekend and I’m very much looking forward to it. I was contemplating against taking the class because I technically know how to make sushi rice, and I also know that making maki rolls often just takes practice. “Why don’t I just save the money and just do it myself?” was my train of thought. But I was pretty much missing the point. The point is to be an apprentice; by letting someone else with the experience show you what they’ve learned so you can fast-track yourself to creating something that can be a success because you have someone guiding you through each step. With someone there to show you, it takes the pressure off the potential to make a mistake for every step along the way. At least for me, that stops me worrying about messing stuff up! Plus a class can just be a lot of fun! Sometimes I can take what I’ve learned from this mentor to my personal work at home. By trying something new, I remember what it’s like to truly be a student and I go into it with the willingness to learn, not the expectation that something will be perfect.

Connections and Networking
Sometimes you never know who you might meet when you take the chance to explore something new. Maybe it might be someone whom you can learn something truly valuable from. There is a saying that goes: “Your vibe attracts your tribe.” Sometimes you just need to go out there and start to express your creative passions, and from there, you are able to attract the people who will help you on your creative journey. I’m really excited about the type of people I might get to meet at this class! At the very least, I know that my instructor is very passionate about healthy eating, and I am looking to have this passion rub off on me so I can better nourish my mind and body to benefit my energy and my craft.

Getting More Productive
What exploring other creative outlets does is it piques your curiosity. It gives you some time away to clear your mind and shift your focus onto something that really works on the inner you. When you do something that excites you, something within you wakes up, and you get driven. This is when the magic begins to happen. I notice that when I try something new or finally get around to doing something that I’ve always wanted to try, I’m buzzing for the next few days. I end up being more productive, engaging, and everything just ends up flowing much more easily! I stop getting stuck in my head because I realize how easy it is to connect and be in a state of creating.

A Balanced Perspective
Sometimes when we’re working towards a bigger goal, we forget to have fun and it can begin to suck the drive out of us. I know that when I find myself asking “why did I even start this?” it’s because I’ve lost touch with having fun with trying new things and lost touch with that fun feeling. I start to dread projects that I thought were really cool when I first thought of them, because I end of focusing on trying to execute them perfectly (and in doing so, I end up procrastinating and avoid executing them at all!) When you approach something with playfulness, you end up shifting yourself away from a place of doubt and instead shift into a new perspective. But by having fun again, you end up bringing a new sense of balance and harmony back to your work once more.

I encourage you to explore some other creative outlets! By doing this, we open ourselves up to loads of new ideas, finding new passions, and making connections that will impact us for a lifetime.
You never know what you can take back to your personal work, your business, or even in your day to day.

Do you have a story where you were able to bring back some of the things you’ve learned to your main craft? If you could choose something new to explore, what would it be?

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Challenge: Improve Your Art in Minutes!

Do you want to know how you can improve your drawing skills ONLY within a few minutes? If you’ve been hitting a plateau lately, then this challenge is for you!

Watch my youtube video here for the full challenge:

In essence, this art improvement challenge (I’ll call it the Instant Improvement Challenge) is something that you can also do on a daily basis to help you form healthy habits with your artmaking. It’s also super quick to do if you only have time once a week to squeeze it into your schedule. Honestly, if you spend only a couple minutes on each drawing, you can finish this challenge in only 15 or 20 minutes. You can even use it as a warmup tool in the morning to get your creative juices flowing!

 

So, as a recap for the challenge:

1. Get a word prompt, and begin drawing from memory with 2* minutes on the clock.
2. After your time is up, stop. Find some reference and spend a SHORT amount of time drawing from those reference images.
3. Put the references and practice drawings away. Time the clock with the same amount of time you used in Step 1, and try it again.
4. Repeat this as many times as you’d like!

*Tips to keep in mind:

Your first prompt drawing doesn’t have to be 2 minutes. You can spend however long you’d like on your drawing-from-memory or your reference drawings, but I recommend spending less than 10-15 minutes on these. Doing so will train you not to overwork your art, and to concentrate on recurring shapes and patterns instead of the smaller detail.

If you would like personal training with Instant Improvement Development, or even with feedback on your sketchbook or portfolio, feel free to get in touch with me over on my contact page and we can look to set up a program specifically tailored to your needs! Or if you have any questions or want my opinion on your artwork, then please get in touch!

 

Raw Halo Chocolate

Lately, one of the things I’ve been trying to incorporate to combat the effects of stress is to eat better: include more fresh fruit and veggies, and remove gluten and dairy. This is because fruit and veggies are full of micronutrients that the body uses to heal and keep the brain healthy. Gluten and dairy can actually cause brain fog, headaches, and other symptoms in people who are typically in highly-stressful environments due to a weakened immune system*.

I still like to make room for yummy treats occasionally. Especially chocolate. I freaking love chocolate so much that I have to be conscious to have it in moderation. Recently, I was overjoyed to discover that I was the winner in Raw Halo’s recent chocolate giveaway. Their chocolate is dairy-free, super tasty, and actually of so much GOODNESS that you won’t feel guilty at all on indulging in one of their bars.

Raw Halo is an artisan chocolate brand that makes handmade, organic, refined sugar free, gluten-free, and 100% natural Peruvian raw chocolate.

Handmade: These guys use only trusted organic farmers and hand-craft their chocolate in small batches to ensure the quality is always there. Handmade in the UK, they are also soil-association approved; organic crops have 90% fewer harmful metal and chemical traces compared to non-organic crops.
Quality Ingredients: To sweeten these bars, Raw Halo uses only a little organic coconut sugar and lucuma (fruit) powder. Both of these ingredients are great for diabetics because it doesn’t spike your blood sugar as much as unrefined sugar does. Lucuma is also rich in betacarotene (a type of vitamin A). And why raw? Raw chocolate is minimally heated to maintain more nutrients found in raw food. Instead of using milk powder, Raw Halo uses ground cashews to give the chocolate that creamy, luscious taste.

Oh, and for those of you who are allergic to nuts, Raw Halo has some scrumptious dark chocolate that you can definitely get your hands on.

Yes, there is chocolate out there that is healthy for you. This is totally not a sponsored post. I just needed to spread the word! Why not choose to have a treat that’s nourishing? Pick up some Raw Halo online or at a store near you!

*You can read more about the effects of stress on the digestive system in Patrick Holford’s The Optimum Nutrition Bible.

Photoshoots

Just having a bit of fun with fashion and poses!

Thanks to Farah Al Zadjaly, Daria Adamitskaya, and Josh Riddle for the amazing photography!

Arguably THE BEST Doughnut in the World

If you know me, you’ll also know that I’m a doughnut-fanatic. And as a doughnut-fanatic, I seriously need to spread some incredible news to you all: I have found the best doughnut EVER. Yes, EVER. Even if you don’t like doughnuts, you’ll like these. I promise.

Let’s start with a bit of history. For literally the longest time, I have been on a quest to find the perfect doughnut in the UK. I wanted a doughnut that wasn’t just good, but one that would take be back to memories of my childhood in Canada. I never used to have them too often when I lived in Toronto, but moving away made me realise that a good doughnut is actually really difficult to find, so I began to crave them. Doughnuts from the supermarkets tasted like stale sugar-coated bread, no matter what variety I tried, and since bakeries usually just offer jam or custard-filled, I’ve always been left a little bit disappointed. Let’s face it, American-chains like Krispy Kreme just don’t compare to the homemade variety. But where are my apple fritters? My cruellers? My beloved old-fashioneds? Why are doughnuts so unpopular in this country?!

Luckily, last weekend, I stumbled upon a doughnut-revolution:  a Brighton-based coffee shop called Glazed Coffee that only started up in May of this year. And I am serious when I say that these babies are possibly the best doughnuts I’ve ever had! (And I’ve had my fair share of doughnuts around the world.)

Blueberry, Raspberry, Chocolate-Coconut, and Peanut Butter!

THESE babies are what I have been searching so long for.

Yes, THESE babies take doughnuts to the next level. Trust me when I say this: I have tried all of the other recommended places: Bread Ahead, St. Johns, Crosstown, YouDoughnut, FlintOwl, Churros Garcia, and more.. and whilst they are good, they have nothing on Glazed Coffee.

I really recommend you take the trip to Brighton to visit and support them. Glazed Coffee offers deliciously soft, pillowy, chewy, vegan (yes, vegan) doughnuts. (Check them out on Instagram, too.) The owners James and Eva are a delightful pair who clearly have a passion for what they do, so go give them a visit and try all of their delicious goodies and rotating flavours. Although I haven’t tried every doughnut in the world, I can definitely say they are the best I’ve had yet!

 

Beat the Art Block by Travelling!

 

Are you suffering from a creative block? Travelling is a great way to get unstuck! You don’t have to travel far, either! Just go outside. Here are a few ways how travelling can help get the creative juices flowing:

New experiences = New ideas:
Travelling opens you up to new experiences, perspectives and it can definitely inspire you to create. Being there in person gives you new experiences and associations, which can spark new ideas. It’s much more beneficial than just seeing pictures or reading books- this is because you can completely immerse yourself. It makes you grow.

Breaking a Habit:
Habits are great for when they’re in place for a specific goal, but you can become stagnant if you’re just going through the motions day in and day out. While habits are great to get you to produce, sometimes you will want to switch things up. Travelling helps you to break your usual routine, which can stimulate the mind and make your brain work in a way that keeps you fresh and your work exciting!

Taking a Break:
When you travel you force yourself to take a break because you’re breaking a habit.It’s a well known fact that your body needs rest; that’s why we sleep! We need to refresh ourselves. A break can be extremely beneficial. Going to a new place allows you to ground yourself and hit the reset button. Sometimes you need to step away to see what you’re doing wrong. Stepping back gives you fresh eyes.

If you happen to come across the opportunity to travel somewhere exciting, I urge you to go! It really works!

 

I recently went to Vienna to attend NUCL.AI a very special conference that focuses on Artificial Intelligence with a big emphasis on developing for games. As part of my work as a games animator, I took part in Animation Tracks, Workshops, and Roundtables that exposed me to aspects of my medium that I never considered possible before. With art for videogames, things can get extremely technical, so being able to interact with like-minded individuals and ask questions was really rewarding. I met some amazing minds and watched some really cool talks which left me inspired and motivated to try new solutions to my own specific workflow issues.

Now if you’re in Vienna and you don’t have access to creative conferences, there are many other ways to get inspired:

Visit some museums and historical sights!
Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to, but there are some really fantastic sights in Vienna that you can discover just by walking around. The inner city is full of galleries and museums and you’ll be able to stumble into any within a few minutes’ walk.

Get “lost”!
Not in the rude sense, (and I don’t actually mean for you to get lost) but I urge you to just start exploring without a real purpose. Just walk! You never know what sort of things you’ll end up finding that could inspire your next project.

Go places or events that you’ll enjoy!
Check out what’s going on whatever place you’ll be visiting during the times you’ll be there. Local events, like festivals,  things that you personally love. I found out there was an amazing film festival going on during the days of the conferences, so in the evening I went there to experience great music, films, food, and fab company. It helped that there was great weather, too. I love food, so I made sure to go to the 3 best sweet shops in the city!

Travelling nourishes the mind and definitely gets the artistic juices flowing. By getting away, you broaden your knowledge and get ideas (even if they don’t come right away.) Be patient and just enjoy the new experiences, and you’ll eventually find that they will help you grow as a person, and as an artist, too!

And feel free to share some art, music, or photos that you’ve taken away from your usual routine and surroundings. I’d love to see them!

The 3 Best Sweet Shops in Vienna

 

 

Vienna is renowned for its cakes. You really are spoiled for choice in this city! It can be overwhelming with this much choice, so here are my top 3 favourite places in this wonderful city (all within walking distance of each other!)

Xocolat Wien

Probably my favourite place in Vienna. I’m a chocolate-lover and this place certainly has your fill of chocolate, but what sets it apart from any regular chocolate shop is that it focuses on craft chocolatiers and fine cacao. Owner Maria brings together some of the greatest bean-to-bar chocolatemakers around the world and hosts everything from raw “criollo” bars to homemade truffles. (Freyung 2, 1010 Wien, Austria) http://www.xocolat.at/de/en/

Zuckerlwerkstatt: (Candies made by hand to old, traditional recipes)

We all know sugar isn’t the best for you, but if you’re looking for a funky souvenir, this place makes some very interesting handmade sweets. If you have time, you can order your own bespoke candy, too! (Perfect for events, businesses, parties, or just for something special.) You can even sample favours before buying or watch the candymakers at their craft on the counters! Either way, popping in for a blueberry-flavoured moustache shaped lolly is an absolute must! (Herrengasse 6-8/4 , 1010 Wien, Austria)  http://www.zuckerlwerkstatt.at

Simply Raw Bakery

It’s hard trying to watch your waistline in a place like Vienna, but Simply Raw Bakery makes it a bit easier. This cool café is all about raw, vegan, and healthy treats! Yes, that means everything is nutritious, ethical, and delicious! From apricot dumplings, to gluten-free pizza, the fresh lunches, homemade iced teas, and the quirky atmosphere will have you wanting to come back for more! (Drahtgasse 2, 1010 Wien, Austria) http://www.simplyrawbakery.at/

Do you have a favourite sweet-spot abroad or at home? Tell me where I should visit next in the comments below!

Beyond Bread: The Best Gluten Free Bread in London

A fellow animator and friend of mine recently stressed the importance of eating well in regards to keeping your mind sharp and unfoggy. Did you know that wheat and dairy could contribute to artist-block*? Well if you’re not willing to give up the bread and cheese just yet, but you want to stay productive and creative, have a look at these new and delicious alternatives that I recently discovered in London.

 

Beyond Bread is a completely gluten free bakery I discovered recently in Fitzrovia, and I personally think it’s seriously one of the best bakeries (gluten-free or not) around. Their brioche was amazingly soft and surprisingly easy to slice! Usually most gluten-free breads will crumble just by looking at them! But these bakers really know what they’re doing; they have everything from baguettes to danishes. I’m just hoping they can add some amazing croissants to their menu soon (especially since Genius didn’t do a very good job at them.) Oh, and doughnuts please!

To accompany my lovely toast, I have some of Gozo Deli’s Casheese; a cream cheese alternative that tastes even better than the real thing. It’s one of the fluffiest, most amazing spread I’ve tried. The basil flavour is to DIE for. I really wish that they were stocked closer to where I live (in Horsham) so I can try some of the other flavours! But you CAN indeed order their stuff online, and if you’re a Londoner, you can find some of this lovely stuff at Planet Organic or Wholefoods in London. Next time I visit, I’ll need to stock up!

* Seriously, I’m not kidding. Certain foods can help or hinder concentration and mental alertness. Try cutting some of these foods for two weeks, if you’re daring, and see how you feel! It might just help you get those projects finished!

Coffee Valley, Japan

Coffee in Japan is pretty different. You can get coffee both hot and cold from vending machines (which are pretty much on every corner), but cafes still can get pretty busy since artisan coffee is becoming more and more trendy. Some of the more popular chains like Starbucks also have exclusive items on their menus such as matcha-flavoured drinks and sweets. When I visited in May, I found that iced lattes were one of the most popular items, and that you can get free refills of any iced “americano”-style coffee, too! (Good to know, huh?) As a side-note, some of the trouble I faced during my trip was how to ask for non-dairy milk or how to ask for decaf!

Hands-down, Coffee Valley in Ikebukuro is the best cafe that I visited during my trip to Tokyo, Japan. The service was friendly, and the ice coffee was some of the nicest I had ever tasted, but what I loved the most about Coffee Valley was the ambiance and style. In a sort of a Japanese-Scandanavian-minimalism way, coffee is served on cute wooden trays and everything felt rustic with a slight modern twist.

If I have to make a choice, then I would definitely skip the maid-cafes in Akihabara and choose this place instead. Honestly, when I go back to Japan, I would seriously consider choosing a hotel in Ikebukuro just so I can wake up and enjoy spending some time here every morning.

What are some of your favourite coffee shops around the world?

Why I’m Living a More Organic Lifestyle (Part 1)

I never used to concern myself with anything organic. I used to think organic was mostly just for those who had too much money to spend, or hipsters who mainly want to be part of a health-food trend to outwardly seem more upperclass. Strangely enough, I’ve found myself at a place where I am extremely concerned with making green choices.

I started to make the Organic transition over the past year mainly for health reasons.

Why?

Both my body and my mind had been placed under a lot of stress about a couple years ago, reaching my lowest point (and my lowest weight) at around 2013. I worked a lot on my anxiety, but I’m transitioning to this new lifestyle in hopes that it will help my body re-balance itself.

• I’ve decided that the best way I can keep my mind healthy, is by nourishing myself with whole foods from good sources.
• I’m trying to use Organic as a way to destress. Using natural oils and extracts are a amazing for this. I find that when I use organic beauty products, I feel more relaxed and my skin looks better.
• I want to know exactly what i’m putting in my body. I want to know any sort of effects it can have on me health-wise.
• I’ve always been a sensitive person so I see direct correlation between what I put on or in my body, and what effects it has on me.
• I want to finally have lots of energy, positivity, balance, and to be able to help others with my talents.
• I want to love myself fully from the inside out. I feel like going more organic really helps with this. It feels better to get products made from people who really care what they’re making and want to better the lives of others. I love to support them, and in turn, what they create supports me too!

What?

These are some of the things I’m doing:

• I’m eating more fresh vegetables; it’s a healthy choice in general! I’m introducing more and more organic veggies, when I can (it’s true that it can be expensive!)
• If I buy meat or fish, I choose organic/ local.
• Avoiding milk/ dairy and wheat. This is a bit more of a gradual process, and I haven’t yet been strict with cutting out everything with milk ingredients (for example, sometimes spiced nuts have milk ingredients, or when I’m at a restaurant, something cooked with butter, but I’m slowly looking to do this.)
• I’m currently seeing a nutritionist. (Stress is bad for your belly!) Who has currently recommended digestive enzymes, probiotics, and no fruit (only berries) to help with my belly bloat. I am also taking a tsp of apple cider vinegar with water 10 minutes before every meal.
• I’m drinking lemon water, as I heard it is supposed to help with digestion, concentration, and has a lot of other little health perks!
• Switching to a daily physical, not chemical, sunscreen.
• Only using organic body wash/ shampoo/ deodorant/ other personal items/ etc.
• Using Anna’s Wild Yam cream to balance my hormones along with gaining a bit of weight.
• Trying yoga/ more relaxation techniques. I continue to go to the gym on average 2 times a week for 40 minutes.
• Seeing an osteopath to see if that will help with my headaches (and posture from being hunched over my desk all the time!)
• I am using pea protein powder to get a little bit more protein into my diet. I am still using whey protein, too, but after I finish my package, I will stick entirely to pea protein.
• Avoiding artificial sweeteners.
• Challenging myself to being less hard on myself. Working on self-acceptance.
• Getting enough sleep (this is a tough one!)
• My next steps will maybe be to try acupuncture and to try some herbs too.
• I still allow myself to enjoy treats (like chips and chocolate!) because life is about enjoying a balance and loving what you eat, too!

I want to send this message out to other people, especially with other artists, as I know that artists can be particularly stressed and hard on themselves. I find we struggle a lot with not being good enough.

With society being the way it is today, we are all really susceptible to having issues from stress. I hope that posting more about my journey can help inspire you to take better care of yourselves, and help you all find a balance, too.

Let me know if there’s anything that has helped you find a balance over the years in the comments below, and thanks (as always) for reading!