Change your perspective, change your life. Perspective can be defined as a particular attitude toward something; a point of view. So how do you choose to see things everyday? Are you painting your life with the colors that have been handed to you or are you creating your own rainbow and beauty beyond what is superficial? Have hope and move beyond your struggles; always looking for the reason to be thankful. Shift things in your life and take ownership to what is happening around you. Open your eyes to opportunities and realize that changing your outlook is a part of growing past difficulties in life.
Open your eyes and see God’s wonder in the everyday things.
Hope you enjoy your weekend. Thanks for reading. Cheers… Kat
Having your own space to create is important. Decorating that space to make it inspirational is a bonus. The importance of finding your own place to zen out and focus is crucial to the creative process, in my humble opinion. As a mom of two littles, trying to carve out some creative time and space is tedious but much needed. Shout out to all the overly caffeinated moms out there! Make the most of bland beige walls, add a splash of color or your favorite framed art, get a little messy and unorthodox, it’s your space so embrace it.
We’ve moved twice in the past two years and now that we own our place I can finally do my collage wall that I have been wanting for so long. I just jumped in feet first and started hanging stuff up. And I LOVE it. It’s so colorful and fun.
How have you decorated your creative space? Is it modern, simple and clean, is it ordained with nice classic paintings as you sit on your wing-back chair, is it a paint splattered art studio with concrete floors, is it a giant cork board with all of your current projects, is it a colorful mishmash of things like mine? Any place can become a creative space.
Remember a creative space can be whatever you make of it, just as inspiration can come from anywhere. Whether it’s a closet turned office like Perry Covington author of the wonderful Child of Atlantis series. (Check it out here). I designed his publisher’s logo by the way! #logodesigner Or if you hide away at the local coffee shop like Jerry Rogers author of the supernatural mystery awesomeness The Fallen and The Elect series. (Check it out here). I designed both his website header and his author’s logo… wink wink! #hireme
Share your space and tag me on Instagram @KatLangeDesigns What’s your creative space story??
Thanks for reading… Cheers… Kat
Some of the art pictured was created by me and others by…
Last month was a very special month so to keep up the awareness I would like to acknowledge the elephant in the room. Let’s talk mental health…
Let’s be honest… truth runs deeper than a lie.
So let’s just lay it all out. I have kept no secrets that I am bipolar and I have depression and ADHD. It is so hard at times to deal with this emotional and physical roller coaster but you know what I have discovered… mercy is waiting on the other side… if I am honest. I truly feel that I was given this gift to be transparent and to tell my story. Too often we are hushed like it’s a bad thing. Why?? Why should I hurt in silence when I can voice it?? Since I have been diagnosed I have found that mental issues are so prevalent around me and it isn’t something we should be ashamed of. We aren’t doing anyone any favors by keeping it silent and in the shadows.
When you are up you are up… a manic episode where I feel uber happy and energetic, racing thoughts, super creative, super jittery, super talkative, energy like I can run a marathon. I am the life of the party and the kids think I am really fun. Man, those racing thoughts are allowing me to plow through this write up like I am a racing to the finish line. Listening to music makes me want to dance, the sounds just feel good, I feel every beat, feel every word… heck the inspiration to this write up came from a song by Francesca Battistelli – If We’re Honest
I am listening to the music right now and I don’t think my fingers can type as fast as my mind is moving. It is seriously a surreal feeling. It feels like an awesome high to be honest; one that I don’t want to come down from. But the truth is, I will… I will come down from it and it will be hard. The reality of bipolar depression is that it is a literal emotional and physical roller coaster. Sometime soon (tomorrow or in a few days) my body and mind will switch and I will be in a really depressed state. It will be hard to wake up in the morning, hard to parent, hard to drive, hard to get off the couch, hard to think, hard to move really. It is a physical weight on your heart and on your mind and you have absolutely no reason to explain it away. I become Eeyore and it is a hard reality for me to deal with. I have been asked if I am “sad” but I don’t think I can describe it like that. I don’t think I can describe it as anything but “sigh and a head drop.” You just don’t feel like doing anything, you are tired all the time, it’s hard to process anything because you are in a fog, your body feels weighted, your words don’t seem to come out right, you are easily agitated, none of the normal fun stimuli seems to work and you just want to be left alone but you don’t want to be alone. So you try and figure that one out! It’s confusing and hard and dark and blah and lonely. It’s tearful for no reason, tired with plenty of rest, hard with out an excuse, smiling through the pain, it’s having questions that race in your head, it’s numb, it’s immobilizing, it’s hard and it’s often. That is the truth to it all. That is what so many people and I deal with in silence. So now you know. Share this post, tag your friends, talk about it so mental illness is no longer so stigmatized in our culture. Encourage people, be a real listener, be there, use your words wisely, have hope… always have hope and understand that this is real and it is hard and for some it is their whole reality. No one should suffer in silence, no one should feel alone in this. Everyone has a story to tell… and this is mine.
Also check out this other song by Francesca Battistelli that hits close to home.
I cannot express how important it is to surround yourself with like minded people both in life and in your creative endeavors. As for me, I love my church and have found a group of non-judgemental, sweet, kind-hearted and all around awesome people. I also reach out to creatives in all genres and I love the feedback I get. It is truly a great feeling.
This is a lovely and talented friend of mine who is my go to for business advice. She has a beautiful heart and is so stinkin’ creative. Visit her website and view the awesomeness. Also follow her on Istagram and Facebook – @CarmenNavarroDesigns
The weekend is always awesome. Filled with family time and boundless inspiration while we are out on our adventures. Enjoy this textured filled piece of natural art brought to you by a tree trunk of awesomeness. Isn’t nature amazing?!
I love what I do and I love to share it with the world. Consider me for your next graphic design needs. Spread the love. Visit and follow my Instagram page @KatLangeDesigns
A bit of history on my journey:
Hi my name is Kat Marie Lange and I am a freelance graphic designer, aspiring author, poet and most importantly, a mama. I am married to an amazingly supportive and hard working psychologist. And I can honestly say it saves on a lot of money and couch time when I have my own personal shrink. Haha. My life and my littles keep me busy for sure and it’s awesome. My family is my inspiration, my hearts and my anchor and of course my creative muses. My current creative endeavors besides my freelancing include children’s stories that I can read to my littles and share with the world, because let’s face it, there is no cuter thing than to watch a child’s face light up with excitement and wonder, when you read to them.
Back in the day when I was a wee Kat, I had no clue what I wanted to be when I grew up. In high school I didn’t feel a tug for a certain direction, in college I had a passion for writing poetry and I always felt an urge to be creative. So in retrospect, I do not know why it took me so long to realize that “hey maybe this once I should follow my heart”. My artistic passion started from writing poetry, making collages, playing with colors and even doodling that later turned into creating event invitations. This finally led to “oh there is this thing called graphic design”. Yeah my journey was a lot of those “ah-hah!” moments and there are so many times I wish I would have listened to the little voice in my head… it knows so much. So back to my “ah-hah graphic design” moment… I fell in love with the idea of graphic design. I loved being able to look at something in print and say, “yeah, I created that.” That momentary euphoria when you see your idea fleshed out. There is no greater moment (besides watching my babies grow) than to share your creativity with the world.
My creative journey is a roller coaster filled with personal excitement, searching, doubt, a bit of crazy and a whole lot of thought. It has basically been a love-hate road that led up to the recent completion of my Bachelor’s of Art Degree in Graphic Design. Focusing on the positive I do realize that my life has colored me like a Jackson Pollock painting and I do not resent that. Instead, I let everything inspire me. While I won’t bore you to death with mundane details I will be adamant about the fact that I stayed the course until I reached my goal. 14 years strong and even through all of the excuses, through heartache and hardships, through pure bliss from becoming a mother and the crazy distractions that come with that I completed my degree and I am currently freelancing.
So fast forward 2.5 years and I have grown so much. My business has slowed down because I also play the part of stay at home mom and believe me it is a balancing act for sure. Watch me juggle this ish. It’s trying and hard and tiring and awesome and rewarding and exciting, all rolled into one but honestly, I wouldn’t change it for the world. One of my goals for 2017 is to grow my business. So here on this blog you will read about my trials and my successes as I ride this creative roller coaster. So please place your hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times, because this is going to be one exciting journey.
Thank you Pantone for picking a fresh color for 2017 that brings about vibrancy for something new but at the same time is peaceful and calm. This is a great duality in these trying political and social times. It is a bit of freshness we all are all craving for the New Year. A calm in the storm and a breath of fresh air for the unrest. To some it might be just a color, but this color will pop up everywhere in our society and one hopes bring with it such calming effects. Green symbolizes harmony and safety and is associated with healing, all things we desperately need right now. So Pantone has played an important societal role, in my opinion.
Personally, green is my favorite color so I am over the moon for the Color of the Year. To me, Greenery represents my yearly goals of empowerment and growth. I am empowering myself one step at a time to move forward in the direction of my goals in business and personal growth.
So thank you Pantone for picking the right color at the right time. Kudos.
