"She's Crafty!" "Who?"

"Who?" Paper doll cut outs!

I love making small paper crafts, (always have), and I probably always will. I cut these fun critters out of a tissue box and made them into stand up paper dolls, maybe for Halloween decorations, but for now, I love them perched on top of a bookcase, cheerfully peering down.

Ditto for coloring. Dover makes a series of adult coloring books that are mind blowing good: Buddhist mandalas and Rosette stained glass windows, hardly kiddie fare. (see some of them here: http://store.doverpublications.com/0486497925.html). 

Recent studies have shown what I knew to be true during my school years, many of which were dull and repetitive: doodling while listening actually helps our brains absorb information better. For more fascinating facts, read about it here: http://content.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1882127,00.html.

I've adapted it as a useful tool for business meetings, too, with the same excellent results; brilliant, accurate recall by a background part of my brain that's for processing unimportant data, while I concentrate on a much more important task at hand: making beautiful art (or not), or creating designs, or maybe some scribbled type or concepts for layouts. It doesn't matter, because it all comes from the same great place: creativity meeting intelligence.  

Have fun with it, and see where it takes you.

Are you crafty, and that's just your type? Check out these crafts and enjoy:http://pinterest.com/mariedoucette/crafts/.