Like I mentioned, I’ve been creating since childhood. I credit my parents with fostering that creativity by providing the materials, space, and inspiration to create. My mom was always doing crafts with us, and I don’t remember her ever saying no when I wanted to try something new. My dad is a great woodworker and a DIY type, and I remember many hours spent alongside him in his shop making things or watching him. I think it’s so important to provide this for our children, even though I see with my own that it’s not always easy. As a child, I loved to draw, craft, and make little polymer clay figures. I often used my allowance to purchase clay, sketchbooks, and pencils. I have always had a camera since about age 8, when I started with a little point-and-shoot film camera. I made my little sister pose for my photo shoots around the neighborhood.
Eventually, I was making my college roommates my subjects and within my first year of marriage, I was gifted an old DSLR (a Canon 20D). I took online workshops in photography and devoured as many free web resources as I could. I think overall I’ve developed my creativity by staying curious. If something seems interesting to me, I try it out (like the time I took a jewelry and metalsmithing class in college). I’m rarely very good at first, but if I like it enough, I keep practicing.