Start with a plan and be ready to change it often,
When working in any craft it is wise to start with some type of plan. You don’t have to draw out complex schematics, but it does help to have a general idea of what you want to do. If you have a lump of clay, or leather in my case, you should at least know what you want it to look like when you are done sculpting it so that you can prepare your work plan appropriately. Once you have accomplished that then you need to prepare yourself for the flurry of changes that can, and will, take place throughout the course of the project.
Even as I write this I can hear myself saying “but I don’t want to have a plan when I create something! I just want the process to be organic and natural so that it touches my soul blah blah blah. Yes yes. I get it. There is a beauty to the creative process when it happens naturally and organically but take a minute to think about the anger and frustration that is often felt when you rush headlong into something without thinking about all, or at least one or two, of the details. All I am suggesting is get a picture in your head, at the very least, and work to achieve that image.
Once you have your general idea then get to it. Gather the materials you need to meet your goal. Set up your work environment and make it comfortable and do whatever you need to get the creative juices flowing and then dive in. Once you are settled in to do some good work get ready for the phone to ring, the dog is barking at the cat outside, your two-year old child tried to drink your bottle of oil-based stain and your wife needs help bringing the groceries in. Then, after you painstakingly measure and cut your panels for the project you get a call from your client telling you they want to go in a different direction, rendering three hours of work completely useless. Later, after you restarted your project and decided to switch to a different water-based stain of a different color to finish the re-designed panels you look at it with appreciation. Maybe you didn’t plan for these new variables but once they come together as part of the whole they fit better, look better, and increase the overall beauty of the piece.
Don’t get frustrated. Plans are very fluid. There are a million known and unknown variables acting upon you every day and if you are even a semi-conscious individual you will be affected by them at one or more point throughout the day. Sometimes you may have to adjust your plan a bit to accommodate the change and other times you might be required to start over completely. If you allow change to surprise you then you are going to have a bad day. If you expect change and learn to roll with the punches you may just wind up with a result that is far more pleasing than you could ever have planned.
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