August is the month where everything feels flat. The work is either slowing down or ramping up and we're sapped, all just holding out for the next holiday.

Do you ever dream of doing nothing, yet when the time comes, it just turns into restlessness? We keep moving, scrolling, producing. But what if the point isn’t to produce more—what if the point is to notice more?

This quote jumps out at you in the first page of The Art of Noticing by Rob Walker. It's a book about rekindling childlike wonder in every day life. Full of easy-to-hard noticing exercises. I ordered this book during the two-year mandated home time and fell in love with noticing.

Or should I say, fell back in love.

In Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert reminds us that inspiration is already around us. We don’t have to force it out—it comes when we let it in. All we have to do is notice it.

That idea changed the way I viewed inspiration. When I started noticing the small details—the curl of bark, a crumpled receipt, the way light hits the pavement, two Nonna's arguing in their driveway—things changed. My energy shifted and the pressure dropped. I didn’t need an outcome. I just needed to be open to receive it.

It's amazing what beautiful things exist on our way to work. Instead of dreading a rainy commute, try noticing something new. How people behave in wet weather. The puddle reflections of buildings. Squinting to see how bright lights blur together.

This is how artists view the world. Maybe that was you once, but the grind got grindy. I promise you, that rock is more interesting than that post.

Two weeks from now, I want to guide you into that reset. Not by forcing things out, but by letting in the goodness and seeing what comes out.

👀 🔎 🐞 Your challenge

Between now and then, collect 3 interesting objects that catch your eye. Bring them to the workshop and I’ll show you how to turn them into art. Become a world-class noticer.

Creative Reset Workshop 🌿 Make Art From Nature

Over 90 minutes, we’ll pause the grind, collect inspiration from the little things we usually walk past, and make art from them. No pressure, no rules—just a curious mind and two wiggly hands.

📆 Sunday 7 September | 4:30–6:00pm AEST
🎟️ Tickets $35 / Free for members
📍 Online
🙌🏻 Skill level required: two hands

Free for Create Freely members.

Stay weird,
❤️ Christie B

P.S. Does your team need a reset? Give them a break with a Create Freely Workshop—quick creative play that makes the stress fade away. Available online or in-person during lunch hours. Book here or learn more.

P.P.S Here are little details I love to notice 👇🏻

​createfreely.com.au​

​​​