Ideas come from such wide-ranging places! I am reminded of the movie, "Working Girl." Melanie Griffith plays the hardworking underdog whose idea Siguorney Weaver's character steals. In proving that it was her idea, Griffith's character tells how she read something in one place and it reminded her of something someplace else, and it happened to be on the same page of the newspaper as an unrelated article that made her think of a third thing and they mixed together in her brain to form this idea. I think it's a terrific description of the birth of an idea. When asked where they find inspiration, many candidates to the League of NH Craftsmen refer to nature, and let's face it, there is plenty in nature that is inspirational! My own work reflects my interest in the ocean, flowers, seasons; I once made a peyote amulet purse to look like a blue jay feather! Even with the world outside as the source, it may take a while for an idea to percolate and become realized. I have a sketchbook in which I keep my ideas and they often begin with a pencil drawing. That drawing may never see reality, or it may come to life in the same or an altered form months, even years later. Sometimes I am too busy with current projects to focus on a new idea. Other times, the vision in my mind, which may look simple in pencil, is difficult to create using just beads and thread. I have to find new tools, techniques, or even new beads to execute the vision I imagine. Like Griffith's character, the idea forms in the context of my own experience and perspective so that it becomes uniquely my own. At the League, we refer to the "Spirit of the Maker." Looking at a craftsman's body of work, it should be clear that it reflects a unique maker's spirit. For some artists, that is simple and natural, while others have to work to find their own vision amidst everything else around us.