CREATIVE REVIEW

I don't take enough time to write articles in my blog. I posted a bit more on social media but I have to admit I'm not very good at communicating.

As an artist, business owner and teacher, there are inevitably times when you doubt yourself:

Of your ability to renew yourself, to be different. You ask yourself a thousand questions: will my work appeal; will this training proposal be interesting? Is it attractive enough? Is it interesting enough? And then the question that comes up most often for me: what path do I want to take?

I recently needed to look back over the last few months:

After a lot of work on the To go further (which is available online), the last few months have been more about research work. I had the feeling that I was "flitting around":

I started the year by creating some jewelry with wood and resin with glitter or mica. I'm not a glitter girl but eventually I really liked the result.

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Then I spent a lot of time studying metalwork (mainly brass) with training in bocfil cutting (the jeweller's saw), soldering (welding with a torch) and setting. I really enjoyed this exploration.

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I also tried enamels. As I don't have a kiln for enamels I melted them with my torch. I will have to continue my tests because the results I obtained are not very good.

I put aside this learning process to create jewelry in acrylic material, to which I sometimes added resin with glitter or bamboo and maple wood.

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I made some earrings with polymer clay inlays and solid wood. I really like the look of these earrings. Some of them are for sale in my online shop..

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I got my fingers back into the clay to work on a live training project. These earrings are made of polymer clay and are reversible thanks to a simple but clever hooking system.

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In June, I worked in collaboration with Hélène Jean Claude  : we both shared a surface technique in a live video on the Facebook group: Stimulez votre créativité avec Olga et Hélène. Hélène shared a technique to make a very nice faux concrete  ; I shared a way to make plants imprints in polymer clay. Feel free to have a look at all the creations made with these two techniques: there are some wonderful pieces!

I made a more complete video of this tutorial called "vegetable distillation" on my YouTube channel (I dusted off my YouTube space a bit at the same time: I added English subtitles on most of my videos).

As you can see, I have explored many different directions over the last few months. But listing all these detours in this article makes me realize that none of them have been in vain. Each experience has added to a reserve of ideas, knowledge, and skills that may prove valuable in the future.

For now, I still do not know exactly which path I will choose. I hesitate, I explore, I wander from one idea to another. Yet even if my journey is not always straightforward, I am still moving forward in my creative process.

Taking time to reflect on my work every six months feels like a good rhythm for me. It is a way of recognizing my progress, acknowledging how far I have come, and identifying where adjustments might be needed. Most importantly, it helps me focus on the positive and treat myself with a little more kindness.

 And what about you? What do you think? Do you find it helpful to pause and take stock from time to time? Or are you more the type to simply follow your path without asking too many questions?