Welcome back to Lessons in Inspiration! I hope you have been keeping up with your notebook and have begun to find inspiration in tracking your own unique lives. Not only does my own notebook help me keep track of important things I need to remember, it reminds me of just what it is in this world that inspires me.

This week it’s back to print. In our previous lesson we focused on keeping our own physical inspiration journal. Now we’ll explore the art of enjoying published works.

My current print crush is the genius magazine, Kinfolk. I own every issue and have spent countless hours pouring over the rich images and thoughtful text. The magazine is a guide for small gatherings but it has also become a manifesto for my own life. Kinfolk reminds me that all gatherings are not about the place settings or the location or the specific food. Gatherings are rooted in the idea of community and that the creation of intimate connections between people is really what matters most. What’s more inspiring than that?

Your assignment: Grab some print [any print, as long as you can hold it in your hands] and pour over it. Enjoy a cup of your favorite beverage [mine: hazelnut french pressed coffee], turn your cell phone on silent and savor the act of reading, observing, thinking and dreaming. Don’t overanalyze. Just be. Then write what you want [if you want.]

See? Low stress. Just read and enjoy.

Until next time. Class is dismissed!

- Ashley

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photography by Ashley for CREATE LIKE CRAZY

design elements by CREATE LIKE CRAZY design studio