The woman who helped usher the interior design industry into full flower in the United States was prolific in putting out ideas that will help freshen up today's interior design business. Look at our latest Designer Monthly, Interior Design: Look Forward by Looking Back to Dorothy Draper.
Did you ever have a problem designing small spaces? Take a look at how top interior designers solved this common problem in our latest Designer Monthly, How to Design Small Spaces at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House.
Jay Johnson Saturday, March 30, 2013 at 6:00AM 
We usually don't blog on the weekends, but we wanted to wish you and your family Happy Spring, Happy Passover, and Happy Easter - and quickly share with you 6 Vibrant Easter Ideas for Springtime Events. These are great party ideas to celebrate the season.
Jay Johnson Friday, March 29, 2013 at 9:01AM 
What I love about working in the creative arts is that we're constantly surrounded by inspiration! Everywhere you look, there are beautiful interiors, phenomenal jewelry pieces, clever feng shui room arrangements, and gorgeous weddings. And if they're not in real life, then they're in the pages of magazines or online.
As someone who is creative, I'd like to give you a suggestion. Yes, you, dear reader! You're here on our site because you're either a student taking one of our creative adult distance learning courses, or you have a passion for one or more of the creative arts.
Now that I have your attention, I'd like to suggest that you make an Aspire List ... or an Aspire File... or both.
The foundation for all creative pursuits is to be an excellent looker. You must observe all things in life through the critical perspective of your creative interests. If you aspire (there's that word!) to be an interior designer or to design your own interiors, then you must get in the habit of noticing every interior you encounter. If you aspire to be a jewelry designer or to design your own jewelry, then you must get in the habit of noticing every jewelry item you encounter. And so on.
And as you're actively looking, you need to be "working" (see Pablo Picasso's quote on inspiration, above). Take photos, make a sketch, or take notes - but look at what inspires you, record it, and begin to analyze it. That's the work you need to begin doing to help invite inspiration to come to you.
The Aspire List and the Aspire File is part of this process. But rather than merely responding to things you encounter during your daily movements, like walking down the street or eating at a restaurant, you're actively seeking out great things to look at that will help provide you with the seeds for future creative inspiration. Here's how to proceed.
Example: You love Ms. A's interior design work. Start making a list entitled What I Love, then begin to make a numbered list. Ms. A's love of abstract art. Her use of exotic woods in her wall treatments and furniture choices. The way she ignores minimalism and packs her interiors with tons of visual details. And so on. To make this list, of course, requires that you haunt Ms. A's website and blog, you do online searches for her work, and you seek out her work in interior design magazines.
Your Aspire List for each inspirational person should get you thinking creatively and critically of the elements you love/like/aspire to. But it could also contain some critical thoughts in the vein of, "I love the way Ms. A uses color, but instead of going bold primary colors in most of her rooms, I prefer combinations of startling complementary colors, with one color popping against the other." Or "I'm not a fan of the bed in this bedroom that Ms. A designed. I'd go with a four poster, made of metal, with an overall Paul Evans sculpted steel to go with the industrial edge of the rest of the room."
Observe the work of the people on your Aspire List, but think critically and insert your own observations. What if you were fascinated by jewelry design, and you had Canadian designer Ezra Satok-Wolman on your list. You made note of his stunning Mandarin ring (below). What would you do the same? What would you change? How would you improve it overall? What twists of your own would you like to make?
Practice looking at the work of professionals, combined with critical thinking and your own creative reactions, can help you approach your own work from a fresh perspective. Go back to your Aspire List often, and seek out your chosen pros and their work on a regular basis - and maybe add others you can follow to the list. You'll find yourself being inspired, brimming with creative ideas, and developing a stronger sense of discernment.
And what's an Aspire File? It's like an Aspire List, only it's with items you find in magazine articles, in color ads, in brochures, in catalogs, and other resources you can clip and file away for future reference. Attach a large sticky note with your observations of each item in your file, including what you love, what you might do differently, and even what you don't like.
Have fun looking. Have fun creating. And have fun being critical and thoughtful about the creative work of others!
Sheffield School began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.
creative process, inspiration in General Posts Guest Blog Thursday, March 28, 2013 at 9:00AM 
The Carrotbox is a site dedicated to all those wonderful rings made of glass, lucite, resin, plastic, jade, wood, bakelite, metal, and even stone. Alice Matsumoto from Vancouver, BC, Canada has a ring shop and has kindly given us permission to inspire our jewelry lovers at Sheffield with her discoveries. In this post, Alice focuses on rings with twists.
I bet M. Night Shyamalan would love these. Rings, with a twist or two, from Poland's Fruit Bijoux.
Brooklyn's In God We Trust (Shana Tabor) has lots of nice, simple pieces, like this "Twisty" ring available in three shades of gold.
Even more jewelry:
Sheffield School began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.
Guest Blog Wednesday, March 27, 2013 at 9:00AM 
Step 1: Gather materials. If you are using vintage books or sheet music as your paper source, make sure the pages are still flexible enough to curl with your fingers. The wire can be found at the hardware store, and is sometimes called “black wire” or “annealed coil wire.” Be sure you are using low temp hot glue because you’ll be able to feel it right through the paper petals as you work.
Step 2: Cutting. You will need to stockpile at least 5 different sizes of petals ranging from about ¾ inch wide to 3 inches wide. I cut freehand, and avoid templates, so that each petal is a unique and organic shape. Think of the shapes as little church windows or arches. Some can be pointy, and some can be rounded. For each flower you will need at least 4 of each size. Make more than you need.
Step 3: Shaping. I really feel that this is the most important step to create natural and soft looking flowers. Roll the edges of each petal, and pinch the base slightly. Each one can be done a little differently to give the petals character and roundness. I shape all of my petals before I even begin gluing anything.
Haley Mindes Tuesday, March 26, 2013 at 10:00AM 
Mallory Marks bracelet at Twist
When you think of jump rings most people think of connecting a pendant, clasp or two components together. They can be used for many more purposes than just connecting, even being the focal design element. This playful bracelet by Mallory Marks is entirely made from rings embellished with floating gem stones.
Bella Luna Design on Etsy
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When using jump rings as only part of the focal point, design styles can vary. For an example of a simpler look this Bella Luna Bracelet uses three jump rings just slightly enhancing the forged links with out over powering them. The use of chain maille, from this unknown designer, connects the forged links with a bit more flare. You can learn to make braclets like these in unit 4 of Sheffield's jewelry design course.
Bracelet by Nancye Church
Love the way Nancye Church broke up this bracelet by using over sized rings with texture in contrast with the straight bangle bracelet as its focal point.
Earrings by Additions Style
Earrings by Eni Oken
Adding texture to the jump rings will also bring them to the forefront no matter what size. Connecting multiple rings with smaller jump rings or wire wrapping them together always produces a great look. Such as these earrings by Additions Style on Etsy and Eni Oken.
Mallory Marks earrings
These Mallory Marks earrings place the stones where the rings are connected holding them with formal structure. The rings would look spectacular even without the added sparkle of gem stones, but the uniform placement of the stones creates an elegant look for a dressier pair of earrings.
If you're interested in learning more about jewelry design, we encourage you to explore the Sheffield School, New York, NY. Sheffield began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.
Jewelry Design, bracelet, earrings, jump rings, necklace in Jewelry