The Path to Creativity...

This is the time of year that I want to create "new" looks for our home.  The easy way to accomplish this would be to go to a home store and buy something new and fabulous, but the path to creativity isn't always the easy path...  

We have an antique light fixture that hangs in the family room.  It is from the turn of the century, so it is perfect for our four square home.   When I found it at the flea market, it didn't have all of the hanging crystals that were original to the piece, so I just removed the hanging prisms  and used it in its simplier form.  My style is more clean lines and funky, so a light fixture full of crystals isn't really in my wheel house any way.  But as I was looking around our old home and was thinking of ways I can create a "new" look, I landed on this light fixture.  I got out those original prisms and hung them on the light.  It was missing half of them and I thought about ordering some more from an ebay auction to complete the look.  This was the EASY way, however, and creativity does not spring forth from the path of least resistance.  So....I started thinking about what else I could hang from this chandelier.  One thought led to another and I came up with keys.  Yep, I said keys.  In my workshop I have bins of found object pieces that I use to create all the different and crazy art pieces I dream up and as luck would have it, I had a box of old keys.  

So here is the chandelier in its funkier and dare I say, more creative form.  I'm please that without spending any money, I gave a "new" look to an existing piece and it's a change that you may not notice upon first glance.   It's like a "where's Waldo puzzle", you really have to take a moment and look to see that there is something unusual about this traditional chandelier.  So, don't always run to the store when you want to find a new look.  I realize that hanging keys from a light fixture may not be your cup of tea, however, I encourage you to always think of unique ways you can use what you already have.  Do you have an old urn you could use to put kitchen utensils in?  Can you put a plant in an old basket?  Think outside the box and interesting ideas will arise that can really reflect your style and who you are. FUN!