Finding Inspiration | Guest Post by Allison Kreft

There are lots of little things that I do to help keep the creative juices flowing. I thought I would share them with you.

1. Create a "To Do List". This helps to keep me on track with projects that need to get done.

2. Create another "To Do Wish List". I often have more ideas than I have time to do them. This is a running list of ideas to use when I actually get some downtime.

3. Have some books & magazines around that inspire you. It's nice to take a break from the computer and just flip through the pages.

4. Use your phone to keep a photo journal of things that spark an idea. I used to put post-it notes in books or dog ear pages in books for future reference. The snapshots are much easier to reference, plus you always have them with you.

5. Pinterest & Instagram. I dare you to not find something that inspires you on there.

6. Print your photos. Having them printed and in your hands can be enough to jumpstart a project.

7. See what's new and have supplies you love! There's nothing better than having a product you just can't wait to try out and use!

8. Make sure your supplies are easy to get to (and organized if possible). That way you don't have to spend time searching for what you need once you feel inspired.

9. Just start working on it. I find that once I start something, even though I don't have a vision of the final outcome the creative juices start flowing.

10. This is a new one for me. Since I now have 2 kids, It's been challenging to find time for new projects. Now that my oldest is 2, she always wants to do what I am doing. I decided to use this to my advantage. We sew (she has a play sewing machine), stamp, paint and scrapbook together. It's fun to see her mimicking my every move, and I can actually get stuff done!

I'd love to hear if you have anything else to add to the list :)

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Allison Kreft Abad is a designer, photography lover, crafter and mother of 2 girls. She was the creative director & designer behind Hambly Screen Prints until they closed in 2012. Allison moved on to release two collections with Echo Park Papers called "Everyday Eclectic" and "Today's Story" for Photo Freedom. Currently she has four collections with Webster's Pages including the newly released "Recorded" and "It's Christmas".