Beautiful Papers: Tools

These broom brushes are a key element in the marbleizing process. They work hard to help stir the ink and spread it. They are not expensive and they do nothing other then help deliver the paint to the water. They get washed out when not is use and can be intermixed between colors when they are dry. A rubber band and old broom straw makes the best paint tool. Old, recycled, and durable are the best way to describe these tools.

When you put this tool in the hands of different creative people doing the same process, with the same supplies you will get anything but the same things. We spent eh day practicing the five different decorative paper techniques, and all of us created unique and beautiful paper. Some used dye, others used ink. Some used rice paper, others used cotton. Some of us combined techniques and put them on top of each other, while others practiced the traditional methods. It was a day full of organized chaos and a creative goldmine. The tools were flying, the great ideas were executed, and the students were having a blast.

What is your favorite tool in what you create? Is it an old typewriter, or a favorite chair? Maybe you have a certain desk you love or a pen you cannot live without. Maybe your computer is the only thing you need to do what you do best. Have you ever thought about the tools you use everyday and how they help you deliver what you promise?

What would happen if someone took away your favorite tool? And what if a new one was not available? What would you do? Could you upscale something else to do the job? Would you make your own new tool? Or would you find another way to get things done? Too often we take our tools for granted until they are missing, broken, or borrowed and never to be returned. All too often we use our tools without thinking or doing anything differently. We simply use them, and then put them back until we need them again.

Think today about where you would be without your tools. And then think about how you might use them differently than someone else. Try doing something creative with your tools to see what new and inventive things you might come up with. You might be surprised by what you are able to create.