Creativity is something you learn...

I never used to have any creative ideas. I had an intense career and I didn't think of myself as a creative person until I started to learn cake decorating. This flipped some kind of switch and I started trying every craft I could - some stuck (sugarcraft, knitting and crochet) while some fell by the wayside (hello, scrapbooking).

Even though I was being more creative, I felt like a fraud because I never had my own ideas. However, once I quit my job and started to run my own business, that changed - recently I started getting floods of ideas, so many I don't know where to start. It's proved to me that creativity isn't something you have or you don't - you just need to be in the right mindset.

Last year I took a course in fascinator making - although it was with a great milliner, the course itself wasn't brilliant... Too many people, not enough help, that kind of thing (as I teach my own cupcake classes, I'm a bit picky I guess!).

Still, we made one sinamay fascinator and one felt one - and I especially loved the felt one.

For ages I've been wanting to make more, then I found this picture via Google (sorry, I can't find where it came from - if this is your photo please contact me so I can credit you):

It's made me desperate to make some cloches. I've been having a very detailed discussion with the knowledgeable Owen at Guy Morse-Brown who make the most amazing hat blocks (www.hatblocks.co.uk). He's been super helpful and now I think I've decided on what items I need - it will probably cost around £200 to get all the bits but I'm really excited about it!

It's also got me thinking about fascinators again and I have some ideas to get started on - but I need to buy sinamay bases, velvet, elastic, a glue gun, a zip... Lots of stuff, basically.

Between the hat blocks and the amazing products I found last week for making printed fabric and furniture etc, it's going to be an expensive pursuit trying to action all the things I want to do. I still need to get my sewing machine fixed but fortunately it's still under warranty.

Tomorrow when I've finished my border, I'm going to carry on with my big summer clean (I'm enforcing a rule that I can't start any other big projects until I've sorted out the kitchen, lounge and bathroom!), then I can get on with all the creative ideas stewing in my brain. I'll keep you posted.