For all of high school I wrote in the same teal, college ruled, spiral-bound Mead notebooks. In my early twenties I drew exclusively with F pencils on Strathmore 5x7” drawing pads. Now I make paper cut outs using Marcal transfer paper in red or white and Excel #11 blades (100 pack.)
All of this brand loyalty, to free my brain from having to decide the multiple choice questions and focus on the other kind, like the expression on a face or the width of a line.
I am a little paranoid about the either/or decisions taking over my life, so I treasure routine. Drinking the same brand of coffee from the same mug, listening to the same podcast, makes me feel like I’m starting the day already on track.
Finding joy in the routines of daily life and of the creative process is like scattering little rewards throughout the day. It doesn’t solve any of the big questions, but it creates a neutral space to work from.
