I started doing things more and more intentionally for myself and connecting with people online about it, and then in some fun twist of fate, I began to actually find and connect with creative people in real life.

- Katryna Yasinski

When I originally reached out to Katryna to make a guest post on her creative story it was back in July. Now, three months later feels like three years later. Back then, as a society, we were still finding out how live our lives with COVID19 (and in many ways we continue with that struggle). What will the return to school be like in the fall? How can I continue to see my friends and family if we can’t socially distance outdoors? Will there be a second wave?

We won’t know the answer to a lot of these questions until we face those situations. In challenging times, it helps to look inwards at who we are and what we can do. And one answer that will always be present to all of our problems, big or small, is our creativity. Creativity is the fuel of our lives. We apply creativity in art, business, problem solving, communication, and really, almost every aspect of our lives. As Chase Jarvis put’s it in his book Creative Calling:

“Turning an idea in your head into a tangible reality is one of life’s great satisfactions, whether the end result is a story, a photography, a meal, or a business. We’re born with a reservoir for doing this, a dense little chunk of creative plutonium. This reactor contains more than enough fuel to power our creativity for a lifetime. In fact, the more you use its power, the more of it is available to you.”

(Chase Jarvis, Creative Calling, p. 29)

Not only are our actions creative, but our situations are as well. As you pursue your interests, you have to embrace that there is no straight path. Many of us believe that there is a correct way to live. That if you take X course in school, or have X job, it will all work out. I’ve interviewed hundreds of people and I can tell you that for most people the answer is quite the opposite. We are all on a bumpy winding journey with our lives, and the best thing we can do is use our intuition as a compass to point us in the “right” direction. Our situations require our creativity as we continue to try new things, check with ourselves how it fits, and re-orient on in the best direction for us.

And so with that I want to introduce one of my good friends, Katryna Yasinski. Katryna is multi-talented seamstress, photographer, illustrator, and blogger based out of #YEG. As you can see from her many disciplines, she embodies this creative spirit in so many areas of her life. Like many people, Katryna was let go from her job due to the pandemic. It’s a tough situation for anyone, but Katryna has used this tough situation to re-orient, and chase her new passion: graphic design. She is listening to her interests, adapting to the situation, and I know that she’ll come out on top in the end.

So for anyone on their journey hopefully Katryna’s words will help you out along the way.

Share with us a little bit about your journey as a creator and where it's taken you.

Oh man, where do I begin? I've always sort of considered myself as a professional dabbler. I'm fairly open to jumping around to the latest interest. My list of sports I've tried is very long, and the list of ones I was in for more than a season is very short. So I've always been ready to pick up something new.

I found I always enjoyed art and crafts, and I was the kid who always got craft kits for her birthday. One summer my grandma taught me how to sew. First, we made a terrible blanket. It was supposed to be a cat design but it honestly ended up as a bit of nightmare fuel. After she let me choose one of her clothing sewing patterns to make. I picked this very 70’s peasant dress and decided I was going to make it to wear to the first day of jr. high. It ended up looking more like a backup costume for Little House on the Prairie and I didn't wear it that day, but it did start me down the path of making my own clothes. I enjoyed fashion history and the concepts of fashion design and I ended up following that thread all the way to a Human Ecology degree in University. The goal was never to make sewing my job, it was something just for me to keep me accountable to my creativity. And honestly I was just following the thread of my creative interests. However it did lead me to the online sewing community, and in a greater sense, blogging. I followed that interest and started honing my skills in writing and photography, and paired with my interests of people, fashion, and communities, turned that into my career for the last 8 years.

You always strike me as a person who is surrounded by some kind of creative energy, be that work of friends or colleagues, or your own! Can you explain for us a little bit about finding other artists and the value of being part of a creative community?

Absolutely. I don't think I would be nearly as productive or inspired to make things without a network of other creatives to take guidance from or to share with. Like I mentioned earlier, it was really the creative internet that got me hooked. Living in suburbia I often felt like the creative world was somewhere else and I wasn't allowed to take part in it unless I packed up for some grand adventure to New York or something like the movies make you believe. But once I started reading blogs, and eventually writing my own, it became immediately apparent that you can be creative wherever you are. I started doing things more and more intentionally for myself and connecting with people online about it, and then in some fun twist of fate, I began to actually find and connect with creative people in real life. Some of that came from simply sharing what I was doing and discovering that it resonated with the people I already knew and they in turn shared their passions with me, and other times it came from putting myself out there and seeking out the communities what were available in my city.

In being part of a community there's always someone to share your struggles with or bounce ideas off of. Someone who can introduce you to a new style, technique, or fun craft that you'd have never heard of before. It opens doors to collaborations (hey! ) and potential careers and it just keeps you going when you feel like there's nothing else good you can make.

In the fall you'll be heading back to school to re-train to be a graphic designer.  What inspired that decision, and how are you managing the transition from one creative field to another?

It's actually a funny question because I never really had that 'a-ha' moment per se. It just sort of rolled into being the next logical step for me. At the start of my career in marketing, I worked for smaller companies that needed me to wear lots of hats. I would write product descriptions, take photos, help customers, unpack products, run social media, and any other task that needed hands on it. Some of that work included basic graphic design, and I loved it. But as time went on and my overall experience grew, I didn't necessarily have the design skills to do more and leaned on the content marketing and social media to go up the ladder. I found I didn't enjoy it as much. When it got to the point where I was working with graphic designers we were contracting for projects I started to be like "hey - I want your job instead!".

COVID has obviously been a challenging time, but you and your partner Rory have been keeping busy.  What have you been up to, and how are your creative spirits helping to overcome the challenge of the pandemic?

Well, at the beginning of the lockdown, I was laid off from my job. It coincided with the release of Animal Crossing, so after distracting myself with that to cope for a few weeks, I got all high and mighty and wrote out a whole list of projects I had always intended on getting done. I was going to conquer this list because "I have the gift of ALL THIS FREE TIME!". And it worked for about a week and then just felt like a wall. I started resenting that list and feeling bad about what I hadn't done. So I backed down. I let myself rest. I read books and planted a garden. Rory suggested we start a juggling club with a few friends. I bought a book about watercolor painting from an artist I admire and just started doing that. At first, it felt like I was just trying to fill the time until I could make something again, but then I was like 'whoa, wait a minute. I'm creating things. Like a LOT of things!". And now I'm tackling some more projects on that list with joy and not dread. Instead of forcing my creativity to do what *I* want it to do, I'm letting it roll and flow into what it feels like doing at any given time. I think the end product is the better for it, and I get to build all these new skills along the way.

For someone just dipping their toes into their creative journey, what advice would you share with them

Just start doing something. I know that's cliche, but really, just follow that desire to do it, and just go for it. And there is absolutely ZERO shame at the beginning to simply copy the thing that someone else did that you liked. I'm serious. So many of the things I made at first was because I saw someone else had made it and wanted one too. That's why I love the watercolor book at the moment, I get to just follow along for now. It's SO HARD to come up with an idea on your own (mostly because we put so much pressure on ourselves), so just following someone else's lead to get you started works wonders. Then as you build the momentum of simply "doing the thing" you can start playing around with "doing your own thing". Also, don't box yourself into doing just one thing. You can be the painting person AND the baking person AND the sock puppet person if you want to be. And actually, you'll be surprised to find that a lot of those skills transfer to one another and beyond.

Summary:

• In the beginning, don’t overthink it.  Just follow the creativity you enjoy. Play!

• Creativity is everywhere.  Be brave and try to connect with other creatives.  They might be closer then you think.

• You can’t charge full steam into every problem.  Rest, play, and community are equally important to a healthy mind.

• Try to find a way for your art to be a pull, not a push. Try to find the head space that allows “I want to make X” thoughts instead of “I have to make X” thoughts.

• Creativity is like whitewater rafting. You can’t control it, but you can’t let it run wild. Jump in and figure it out along the way!

If you’d like to keep hanging out with us, check out Katryna’s work at the links below. We would love to hear and inspirations or thoughts from you in the comments or on social. Both Katryna and I would be happy to send you some positive vibes ;)

Blog

Instagram

Collage Instagram

Now go get that bread! 🍞