7 Things Lighting Up My Creative Life: A Small Collection Of Everyday Inspiration
After a few years of feeling creatively distant, something in me has started to wake up again.
Not all at once. Not in a big, cinematic way. Just slowly — through tiny nudges, passing thoughts, and a quiet pull to create.
It has been so refreshing to reconnect with that part of myself — not with pressure to create something big or meaningful, but simply to create at all. To play again. To remember that I do not have to be “on” or productive to be present with my art.
This is not a list of essentials or a roundup of polished inspiration.
It is simply a gathering — a few of the things that have been quietly fueling my creativity lately.
Maybe some of them will resonate with you. Or maybe they will just invite you to notice what has been quietly stirring in you, too.
What Is Inspiring Me
1. Soft Desert Tones
I am always drawn to the colors of the wild, untamed desert — sun-warmed earth, soft blue skies, muted greens, and the dusty pinks that linger just before sunset. They feel both gentle and alive. There is something about this palette that brings me back to myself. It shows up in my work without trying. It simply belongs there.
All photos © Courtney Swaim and Salvaged Delight.
2. Listening To Music Without Lyrics
Instrumental playlists — mainly piano and ambient soundscapes — help me slip into that wordless space where art begins. It feels like setting the tone for something sacred. Here is a channel I have been loving lately on YouTube.
3. The Spring Season
There is so much beauty unfolding outside right now. The trees are stretching open again, the grassy ground is scattered with dandelions, and the birds are composing little symphonies of their own. Sitting in my backyard, just being with it — that has become a quiet ritual I genuinely look forward to.
4. Watercolor (Again)
I have spent a lot of time exploring other mediums, but recently I have returned to watercolor — and it feels like coming home after a long trip. There is something familiar and grounding about it. This time around, I feel more present with it. More willing to stay in the process and grow with it.
All photos © Courtney Swaim and Salvaged Delight.
5. Making My House Feel Like Home
We are still settling in after our big move, and recently I have started adding small, personal touches — pieces that make the space feel like ours. A lot of it is my own artwork, and I cannot tell you how uplifting it is to see it around me. Every cozy nook I have created feels like a love letter to the version of me who is still figuring it all out, but choosing to delight anyway.
6. Sunsets
They get me every time. There is something so sacred in their silence — in the way they arrive slowly, then fade quickly, never quite the same. If I do not pause, I miss them. But when I do… it feels like a moment made just for me. They remind me to witness, not just rush. To feel, not just produce.
7. This Blog
Starting this blog has been a deep well of inspiration for me. I have wanted this for years — and now that it is here, I feel more connected to myself than I have in a long time. Each version I have tried before has led me here, and this one feels like something truly mine. I find myself pouring into it during every spare moment, not out of obligation, but because it brings me immense joy.
A Gentle Invitation
What has been quietly lighting you up lately?
It might not be loud or urgent. It might not even look like inspiration at first. But if you pause, you might notice something — a color you keep reaching for, a moment in the day you want to linger in, a story that keeps circling back to you.
You do not need to turn it into something.
You do not need to make it “useful.”
You only need to notice. To listen. To follow the thread, if it feels good to do so.
Before You Go…
Thank you for spending a little time here with me. I hope these words offered you a soft place to land — or at least a small breath of recognition in the midst of your day.
If you would like to linger a little longer, you are always welcome to explore other posts here:
And if today’s post stirred something in you, I would love to leave you with a few gentle prompts — to journal through, hold in your heart, or share in the comments if you feel called.
What small detail have I noticed recently that made me pause?
If I followed what delights me — without needing a reason — where might it lead?
What colors, textures, or sounds feel like home to me right now?
When was the last time I felt joy while creating, and what sparked it?
