THE LITTLE SPARK

A professional artist presents a guide to unlocking one’s inspiration and inventiveness.

In her debut how-to manual, fabric designer and artist Bloomston offers hands-on techniques and hand-holding encouragement to help overcome an inert imagination. The author recognizes that inspiration can be blocked and that creativity is sometimes offset by procrastination. In this book, she presents practical advice, motivational words, fun suggestions and write-in exercises in a colorful, highly attractive format designed to produce tangible results. The book’s design beautifully weaves together text, blank write-in spaces, stellar photos and a host of other charming design elements. The titular “spark” refers to a person’s creativity, which the author says is “like a pilot light—it’s always on, even if you aren’t using the stove.” She explores how to get cooking creatively in 30 short chapters that advise readers to, among other things, not be stingy with materials, begin with tiny goals (“achievable, quick steps you can take every day until you are less intimidated by starting”), carve out workable work spaces, discover personal learning styles and disrupt normal patterns of activity to “see the world with new eyes.” Along with encouraging quotes, the author offers practical ideas, such as keeping mugs and jars filled with markers and colored pencils at the ready for when inspiration strikes. The book also offers ways to “share your creations with the world.” Extremely valuable “Do This” exercises in each chapter invite readers to make specific items, such as a “soul box” or a “vision board”; to answer soul-searching questions; and to do activities outside the home that may be beyond one’s comfort zone: “Step outside the normal. Step outside the expected to find your creative self. Be curious.” Bloomston also offers her own personal anecdotes as well as stories and tips from numerous others; the extensive list of contributors includes designers, artists and business owners.

A sparkling blueprint for stimulating creativity.