Inspiration for the Tired Brain

You know how there are times when your brain is full of ideas and there aren't enough minutes in the day to create the projects that are bouncing around in your head? Then there are the other times. The days when you have time, sit at your desk, and stare blankly at the wall. I'm guessing I'm not the only one who knows what I mean. At that point, where do you turn for inspiration?

I have the usual places that I tend to look: beading magazines, jewelry catalogues, websites... But sometimes, my favorite catalogue pops up in the mail, and flipping through the pages brings me a different kind of inspiration. Anthropologie doesn't {just} sell jewelry. Mostly they sell women's clothing and house wares. They are my favorite store in this universe, and flipping through their catalogue give me visions of color combinations, themes, texture, and mood that I just don't get by looking at necklaces in a beading magazine. Want to see what I mean? Take a look:

Anthropologie is not a store I get to visit that often. There's one in Chicago, which is about a 2 hour drive for me, and another in Indianapolis, which is about 3 hours on the road. Walking through the store is another level of happiness for me that I won't even try to express with words. I'll just let those pictures speak for themselves. For now, I'll just sit back and hope that someone out there {Santa} drops a gift card into my stocking this year! Even if that doesn't happen, it's just a matter of time before I make my semi-annual trip there to treat myself to something special.

Luckily, I get a monthly dose of eye candy in the mail, which tides me over between visits. So the next time I'm feeling like I'm out of ideas, I might find a quirky color combination in a bedspread, or a funky doorknob, or even a wrapper from a piece of soap that will spring me back into creative action! What inspires you?