My Mojo is missing

[Margscardcrazy]

Help! has anyone experienced this? I have been crafting or involved with art and creativity all my life and for the past 20 years it has been card making and painting.


2016 / 2017 was a very exciting year for me, being admitted into the Dirty Dozen and so many of my cards acknowledged.


I did 41 cards for DTGD and after this challenge I felt I needed a little break. Out of this I also ended up with a few commission cards that had to be made and I struggled a little because I was being paid for them so was under pressure.


I became quite depressed over the number of cards I had in my stash and started to feel there was no point to creating all these cards.

I missed Falliday Fest and VSN, I just couldn't see the point in participating :(

I have since found two organisations that will take cards that I create to hand out to there residents or sell to raise funds so I'm a little happier with the stash.


At about this time DH had a medical scare that was quite disturbing and while he is fine now it was a huge warning and he is now on medication so I felt I needed to spend more time with him and less time in my craft room.


Add to all of this my arthritis has kicked in quite severely in my back, neck, shoulder, hip, knees and in the morning it takes nearly an hour to get moving properly.


The few cards I have made since August, just not uploaded, I have enjoyed creating but the burning desire to create has gone and given the amount of craft equipment I poses I am very concerned.


Has anyone else gone through this and if so what was the outcome? Did you get your mojo back?

[UnderstandBlue]

Oh Marg I have missed you so much!!!!

My greatest joy is putting a card in an envelope and sending it. Have tried grabbing a stack and just writing notes to people you haven't talked to in a while and mailing them off? Or maybe using our RAK list to brighten someone's day?


I'm so sorry for all your troubles. I hope your mojo comes back because I am in awe of your talent and miss you!!!


Sometimes when I feel blocked, I organize and purge - I find that soothing and it helps me be in love with what is left.


Hugs no matter what!

[wavejumper]

First I am glad they worked out your DH's health issue.

Sure. Everyone goes through a dry spell esp if your momentum has been interrupted by life.

Then it becomes the snake and it's tail bc we feel depressed and pressured to make cards and that is not conducive to creativity. You were going pretty fast there for awhile and suddenly pulled up short. It is a little shock.

Back up. Take a deep breath. Relax. Play some music. Do you have a stamp set you have not played with yet? Take it out and make something with it.

Look at pre-designed sketches so you dont have to plan the layout. Getting back in the habit of making may jump start you nicely. CASE cards.

Or dont make cards. Just do techniques. Play with alcohol inks and make BGs or whatever. Watch some vids and do them.

If you have friends who you can play with-do that. Even if you dont make a card, if you just color some stamped images or whatever.

What I am trying to do here is connect "happiness" with making cards because right now, I sense only stress and cards with you. I could be totally wrong. You know what makes you happy best.

ETS: ((hugs)) this will pass.

[fl_beachbum]

You've had so much going on in every area of life... Goodness!

Perhaps you need some no-pressure crafting time to simply relax and enjoy the experience? I say this because after a particularly stressful time last year, I thought my mojo was gone for ever. It turns out that creating on a schedule or with specific parameters in mind was ruining it for me. Still does, to be honest. I need to just let it be my hobby.


Your signature mentions the connection between art and soul; perhaps your soul wants you to slow down, take it easy on yourself and just let the flow return.


Blessings to you and your husband.

[gregzgurl]

Oh, my goodness, I can relate! I'm glad things seem to be a bit more on an even keel, but your mojo going MIA is certainly understandable! I don't have any amazingly wonderful words of wisdom, but I do want to offer you a tiny little encouragement: don't worry about the amount of "stuff" you have or whether or not you'll find the joy of creating again - you will. It might look a bit different than the frenzy of earlier times, and it might take a different path altogether (planners, posters, coloring books, tags - who knows?), but you will find that joy again. Every good farmer knows that you have to let the field lie fallow for a time to produce a better crop on the next go 'round - our spirits need that, too... Love and light to you!

[lazylizard]

I have found that when I make cards to sell, I am always under a bigger burden, and then the fun of just creating is just for the sheer of just being creative. I love just sometimes the process of watching colors mix together or my favorite lately has been the oxide ink smash technique and just watching what happens as I smash different sections of the paper into the ink.

Even if you suffer from a day of no mojo, come on over to SCS and drop a few comments, or chat with a few of your friends over here. I hate to see our numbers dwindling over here. This is my favorite place to see and hear what all my stamping friends are up to.


I hear you with the arthritis....Old Arthur has been hanging around my place too.


Take a break, but please know you will be missed until you get back.

[susie australia]

It's great to hear your DH is doing well, but not so great about all your other news. If it's any consulation I think many of us have been where you are.

I got my mojo back (and keep it) by NOT making completed cards. I make card fronts and then stick them in my journal. Many of my uploads are not proper cards.

I stressed about all the cardstock I was using and wasting because nothing seemed to work. That is when I discovered how fabulous copy paper is to colour on with my Prismacolour pencils and a few Copic highlights.


I have a folder full of stamped images and Digi images on photocopy paper and I just sit and colour with no expectation.



My best advice would be NOT to get rid of anything. I frequently read about girls regretting the stamps and tools they sold or gave away instead of boxing them up for when their mojo returned from a long trip.


Big squishy hugs Marg, we will all be here whenever you are ready. Xx

[sue28]

Marg, I struggled with lack of mojo towards the end of last year, too. A few of life�s challenges got in the way for me, too, and I just didn�t spend time in my craft room. I am back now, though, refreshed after the break, and ready to join in challenges again. Re all the cards in your stash - I get so much joy out of making them and giving them away to my friends and sister. I do hope you are back soon, mojo returned!!

[Sleepymom33]

I have to switch around with all my crafty interests. I switch around when I get stuck, put it aside and move to another. I always end up coming back around to stamping. I just need a variety of creative interests. Stamping, coloring ( with all the different mediums it entails), knitting, sewing, jewelry making, home decor stuff are all on my rotation. I�m glad I don�t get rid of my stuff when I lose interest.

[CreativeCardsea]

Firstly, BIG warm *hugs* to you Marg, as well as some healing vibes and hopes that 2018 is a great year for you.

I've always found it challenging to rely on mojo to be creative. I mean, I would get those creative bursts of "oh, gosh, I've got to create a card with this awesome idea!" moods in the most unreliable of times - like when I'm in the middle of a work meeting with 2 hours to go or when it's 3am and I really need to be asleep. But when it's the weekend and I have no plans, I would just sit there drawing a complete blank and not managing to finish a single thing.

So, instead, I just decided to have 1 hour of "me" time every day - from 8-9pm. I put it on my calendar/planner, told hubby and the kids and I keep it in mind when we make plans for errands etc. Every day at 8pm, I go to my crafty desk and pull out some supplies. I just show up and work. By the time 9pm rolls around, I've usually made a card I'm pretty happy with (on good days, there's more than one) or I've got some ideas I can jot down in my idea notepad.

The longer I keep it up, the easier it is to have motivation and ideas start flowing. In a way, it feels like a creative switch just turns itself on at 8pm every night.

So, maybe that's something you could do too. Just set aside a recurring designated time and show up. No pressure to complete anything, just permission to play.

[stampin stacy]

Hugs to you and DH, glad he is better.

Time to let go of all the stress and give yourself permission to be creative just for the sake of being creative.


When our hobby becomes a "job", it often goes from being a fun fulfilling past time and becomes a stressful, guilt filled requirement instead. You then had additional stress piled on because of your husband's health scare. No wonder your creative muse is in hiding.


I'm also wondering if there is also a little guilt in not being a DTGD member and not wanting to do commissions anymore. It is okay to feel this way and recognizing that you are is the first step towards letting go and not feeling that guilt anymore.




...and why can't you go be creative for a little bit each day? Your husband loves you and wants you to be happy, right? I'll bet your DH would feel differently about it, it's not like you've left the house if he needs anything. Maybe he would enjoy some private me time too.


So go put on some music or your favorite movie, grab a mug of something hot and yummy and have some well deserved creative fun.


You deserve it.

[Rachelrose]

I have been there, Marg, more than once. When I read your post, the first thing that came to mind was how often I have had a dry spell after a period of high creativity. It seems like you are coming off a very productive time, and it may just be that your creative brain needs a fallow period. The "What's the point?" feelings you are having are also familiar. I go through that, too. You mention feeling under pressure during some commissions, and I find that pressure kills my creativity and once I get hit with low mojo, it can kind of be self-perpetuating, you think you've lost it, and then thinking that makes you feel more pressure, which kills creativity. So, it's a cycle.

Then your husband's health scare - something like that is going to make everything else (like making cards) feel trivial in comparison.


And then you had to start dealing with your own health issues. Hard to drum up mojo when you are hurting, and maybe worrying about it. And the fact that it kicked up after your DH's health scare, well, stress will do that to you.


So I think you just had the Perfect Storm of mojo killers.


Everyone has given you great suggestions. I'll tell you what Tim Holtz said when asked during a webinar what he does when he loses his mojo. He said he just stops thinking about projects and goes into his studio every day for at least a few minutes and does something. Maybe stamps an image to color in later, or colors one in and puts it aside. Maybe makes a BG. He says some days that bit of work morphs into an actual project, but some days not and he just doesn't judge himself about it.



I agree with everyone - do not give anything away, or decide that what you feel right now is a predictor of anything. You're having down time. Take some of the great suggestions offered and then give yourself some slack. And stay on the forum. When I am in a low-mojo state I often feel like I don't belong here, but it's staying here that really helps me. I might not be creating, but I can offer advice and stay connected to my community and my friends. So stick around and let everyone benefit from your broad expertise. People like me are grateful for people like you! ;)!

[gregzgurl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rachelrose

I agree with everyone - do not give anything away, or decide that what you feel right now is a predictor of anything. You're having down time. Take some of the great suggestions offered and then give yourself some slack. And stay on the forum. When I am in a low-mojo state I often feel like I don't belong here, but it's staying here that really helps me. I might not be creating, but I can offer advice and stay connected to my community and my friends. So stick around and let everyone benefit from your broad expertise. People like me are grateful for people like you! ;)!

Amen and AMEN!!!

[mamaxsix]

I too went through a long dry spell after my mom passed away and then the store where I had been selling my cards had a relational falling out with a hurtful ending when the owner suddenly kicked out almost all of the vendors with no warning. I didn't see any point in making cards either and frankly going to my stamping area brought up so much hard feeling that I just didn't enjoy it any more. I found joy in switching up from card making to exclusively Bible journaling for a season. My neighbor was throwing away a piece of furniture and I nabbed it and put it in my family room. I filled it with some of my supplies and then did my work upstairs instead of in my stamp cave in the basement. I found so much freedom in doing art just for the sake of art and in my case also as part of my worship. If that doesn't resonate with you, then I wonder if, as Susie suggested, just doing some art in a journal would be good. After a while, I started to do a few challenges again but still just with the journaling. After a while longer, another ministry opportunity that would need cards came up and I was removed enough from the pain to pick it up again and enjoy it.
As far as the supplies go, you have had many wonderful years of enjoyment from your art. I look on it as therapy for me especially as a homeschool mother of six (two still in the nest). I didn't have a lot of opportunity to go out of my home to do things and my crafting time was good for the whole family because it gave me a creative outlet that gave me joy. Even if I never used anything else that I own, I would feel that it was worth it for the years that I was using it and enjoying it. My art made me a better wife and mom for that season of my life. Seasons come and go. Our interests, abilities, and opportunities change with the seasons of life that we're in. I am still not as active as I was previously, but I am able to find happiness in the times that I do get to craft. I pray and hope that you'll find a way to dip your toes back in and find some joy again. Hugs across the miles!

[KSStammper]

Hi Marg - I�m from down under too! Although I�ve lived in the USA the last 25 years. I went and looked at your gallery - WOW!!!! You�re amazing - so many cards, all so different, all so very beautiful! All with detailed descriptions. It seems to me that your life is in transition - like Gail says - our lives have different seasons. So - it�s a difficult time, but also - an interesting time when we�re in transition, because we just don�t know what�s going to happen next. It�s like you�ve hit a hard bump in the road - your health and your husband�s health - that�s thrown you right off course, and scattered all your belongings. You are an especially gifted person - I would also look to doing some relaxation/ meditation type things - to help you �glide� through this bumpy part of your journey, help you find your next �destination� and also ease the pain of arthritis. You may want to spend MORE time with your husband but not ALL your time with him - as Stacy said - so you�ll have to see what�s next for YOU. I wish you all the best, I will be praying for you. Think of that Buddhist metaphor for life of the leaf going down the river. And remember - all will be well! I repeat - you really are amazing, and have done amazing things - I have no doubt that more amazing feats are in your future, you just need some time to work out what they�ll be. All the best Stefany

[wavejumper]

When I am in a low-mojo state I often feel like I don't belong here, but it's staying here that really helps me. I might not be creating, but I can offer advice and stay connected to my community and my friends. So stick around and let everyone benefit from your broad expertise. People like me are grateful for people like you! !

Amen indeed Sue! Well said Robin! And very true! I benefit from you being here all the time. Great idea!

I dont think "belonging here" is based on how many cards you make. It is simply a shared joy in carding and you definitely have a lot to offer in guidance Marg!

You gave us a lot being in the dirt pile and so on. Now let us give back. Like Robin said, just hang out with us. Relax, grab a coffee and hang out. There are no card police!

[jkstieber]

I'm right where you are now. I've been going to college the last couple years and there hasn't been a lot of time to stamp. And then when I do sit down and try to make something, I just end up disappointed. Then I start thinking that I should give it up and look at my stuff and wonder what I would do with it all.

I'm waiting it out. Some of my funk is because I don't feel like I have a purpose for my cards anymore. I do send to the Cards for a Cause here on Splitcoast occasionally, but ever since Operation Write Home ended, I've just lost my enthusiasm.


I really hope I get the desire back, I've had dry periods before, but never for this long.

[cardmaker2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jkstieber

I'm right where you are now. I've been going to college the last couple years and there hasn't been a lot of time to stamp. And then when I do sit down and try to make something, I just end up disappointed. Then I start thinking that I should give it up and look at my stuff and wonder what I would do with it all.

I'm waiting it out. Some of my funk is because I don't feel like I have a purpose for my cards anymore. I do send to the Cards for a Cause here on Splitcoast occasionally, but ever since Operation Write Home ended, I've just lost my enthusiasm.


I really hope I get the desire back, I've had dry periods before, but never for this long.

Hi Julie! Great to see your post! And good on you for going back to school. That is a huge life altering event when one has a family and an adult life I have no doubt that your mojo is on vacation, and it may well return when something comes along that deserves your attention.


All the best to you

[jkstieber]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cardmaker2

Hi Julie! Great to see your post! And good on you for going back to school. That is a huge life altering event when one has a family and an adult life I have no doubt that your mojo is on vacation, and it may well return when something comes along that deserves your attention.


All the best to you

Thanks! It's been a great experience, and I'm looking forward to what's ahead.

[Steaming]

Like everyone here, my mojo it comes and it goes. Sometimes I don't know why and sometimes I do like when I went about two years not being able to do anything after getting ripped off by a craft business owner for several thousands. I just go with it and pretty soon I have the itch again. I don't sell anything because it changes the way I approach creating and doesn't inspire. I have learned to jump back in right away when I feel a strong urge coming on after being away from the craft room awhile. I can also usually jump start myself by indexing new stamps, paints, etc.

[cheermom]

I went through this same thing a few years ago. After stamping for about 12 years, I decided I just wasn't having "fun". We had a lot going on in our family and I stopped for about 3 years and then all of a sudden one day, i decided i had missed it. I had sold a few of my old stamps but kept most of my stash and I am so glad i did! A lot of my stamping friends have stopped stamping altogether and i hate seeing that but I get it. I decided to start participating in different challenges on blogs, etc. Nothing major but I'm having fun again. Plus I continue to send stamped cards to my friends who no longer stamp because they enjoy getting them and they tell me that.

Hugs to you and your family!

[Louisa May]

I've read most, but not all the posts in this thread, so I may repeat a bit. Of course, this lack of interest in art and crafting, loss of mojo, hits me periodically. It hits me often enough to feel familiar. It's a much needed rest. Nobody runs marathons and then gets upset when she's tired and needs to rest for awhile. Rarely does anyone cook a huge family holiday dinner, and then beat herself up for eating leftovers and not wanting to cook another big dinner right away. We can't even get through 15 hours a day without needing a good rest. Things need to settle, gel and revive themselves. Mojo that doesn't ebb and flow isn't mojo --it's habit, a dull niche filled with repetition. I think what you've described is healthy, and I think you should honor the need to rest so new ideas and inspiration can surface You can't whip imagination into shape. It's a gift you can honor in gratitude for the incredible art you've produced. I hope you allow yourself to rest, rejuvenate and spend this time in gratitude for what you've already accomplished. You may try to force mojo back, but it will come whenever it chooses. Meanwhile, don't be hard on yourself. You have a lot of admirers here!

[cardmaker2]

Louisa May, that was very well put, profound and true.

[Louisa May]

Cardmaker 2, Thank you!

[Margscardcrazy]

Louisa your words are very profound and I appreciate what you are saying. I have turned the corner and back to doing what I love best, colouring.
There have been lots of tips and sugestions that I'm going to draw on.
I guess with all the honours SCS heaped on me last year I felt like I was letting the team down when I just felt I couldn't partisipate but with all the support I have recieved I now realise we all do what we can in our busy lives and just enjoy what we do.
I have also realised that sharing concerns often makes them less daunting and I hope this thread has helped others that might be going through what I went through.
Hugs
Marg

[dickiebutts]

I can certainly relate to the lack of enthusiasm. My fingers lock and it pains to straighten them.
I am busy doing the card fronts and placing them in a box that sits out. Their embellishments are in a container that sits on top. My cat loves to join me. I talk to her as she stares out the window. She is a great companion while hubby sleeps later. He, has health issues, and that keeps us mostly at home.
Writing down, in a journal, helps with the stress and depression that tends to hang around. Life could be worse. This group of card makers are the best around. I always look forward to receiving my weekly Split Coaster's newsletter. You all are the best.

[merollin]

This posting has really tapped a creative nerve for me. I've been selling cards and mini albums for quite a while (craft shows and orders). Couldn't do shows due to Covid. Craft shows are coming back, but my enthusiasm to build inventory seems to be on vacation.. I've been lamenting about being in a zero production period for the last 18 months. I've been dealing with some health issues and have had to look realistically at permanent life restrictions. Maybe I'm feeling a bit sorry for myself? Reading all these posts has been encouraging...and I want to thank all who have taken the time to offer words of experience and wisdom. .

[Rebecca Ednie]

If I lack mojo for card making I tend to go outside the craft for a while. I work on another hobby (sew, crochet, cook, bake, read, gardening; watercolour, oil, pastel paint, make jewelry etc), take a class, read blogs, watch videos look at old magazines I saved that I had to keep (I either still love them or purge), I organize and clean, I look in boxes I haven’t opened in a while (gems in there!).

If I really want to paper craft but can’t seem to make anything I like, I make backgrounds, die cut and layer or stamp and die cut sentiments, colour images, cut and score card bases, look through my paper pads and 12x12 scrapbooking kits, sort through my box of bling, clean my water colour palette, stuff like that.

I also make ATCs and mini journal pages in styles quite different from my cards so that is almost like a different craft for me.

I find I make cards without thinking about them as much if I am listening to music or a podcast. I overthink a lot so this helps me get past that.

[lutheran]

From Sept of last year to Jan of this year, all my crafting things were in boxes due to a really complicated move. When I got my new room set up at last I tried to hit the ground running but had little inspiration or purpose to make cards. I had copied quite a few designs from old catalogs when I finally felt the creative spark. I made cards for weeks then dove back into scrapbooking, a bit reluctantly because my photos were not well organized. Now I scrap every day and I will get back to cards when I get new Christmas sets and papers.
Mary Beth

[wavejumper]

I thinking crafting is kind of like habits...like a muscle...and when you don't do it for awhile, you are rusty/weak when you start again, but it comes back like riding a bike. It is just making yourself do it for a few days or a couple of weeks and it will kick in again. Get past the inertia.

I like the idea of the backgrounds etc. Just make a card to do it....not with a goal. Goals can be pressure. If you can't think of anything then look at a challenge...but you don't have to jump in-just take the idea. Or it could be a great time to make a card you pinned but never got around to.

The OP Marg made fantastic cards but she has not posted in a long time now. I hope she is well.

[Kgeans]

What do you do when the mojo is gone?
I realize that this post began 5 years ago, but the issue persists in some form in us all.

For me, the simple fact that I must PRODUCE something is the problem.
I tell myself that I am making NOTHING. No finished card will emerge today.
I will have random bits of experimentation -- that's all.

Then, I let myself play:
--> color in cute squirrels, elephants, giraffes, corgis (all the animals!)
--> heat emboss snowflakes
--> use sprays to create outlandish backgrounds
--> piece scraps together in interesting designs
--> layer stencils with surprising color combinations

Later, when I am feeling more energized, I will turn these experiments into cards.
That is when creativity is required. I have given myself a CHALLENGE.

When we just copy a card we have seen online or in the catalog, there is no challenge.
It's predictable and boring. Art isn't birthed in this manner.

I get the most compliments on these "experiment" cards. People wonder, "How did she come up with that?" The answer is simply, "I didn't. I let it happen."