I am a "lifelong learner" as they say and cannot get enough information, inspiration and ideas from all over the place.  So, one of my favorite places to get amazing inspiration recently is through podcasts.  I often listen to them while I paint at the studio, but also love them at home while my little one does homework or while we hang out in the evenings.  It's an easy way to engage my brain without total visual distraction.  So, here is a list of my favorites! 

photo by Amy Frances Photo.  

Best podcast for kids: 

Wow in the World. This podcast is GENIUS.  It explores fun scientific concepts and is super silly and fun.  My 1st grader is OBSESSED and we have learned some awesome new trivia and science facts from just listening to it together on weekend mornings or in the evening as a "bedtime story".  Mindy and Guy Raz (of How I Built This Podcast on NPR...another absolute favorite!) are hilarious for both adults and kids, so I highly recommend you give it a listen! 

Best podcast for female run businesses: 

Second Life by My Domaine and Hillary Kerr.  I LOVE this podcast and am so thankful that I discovered it recently for my long drives for work events.  I found the questions and inspiration of women who own businesses after pivoting from other areas of expertise and other jobs so interesting.  The host, Hillary Kerr, does a great job asking probing, important questions to the guests and I just can't wait for the next episode to air!  

Best podcast for artists and inspiration:

I could go on and on about my favorite art podcast and most of you have probably heard or seen me gushing about it on instagram, but that won't stop me from sharing it again.  Listen to Danielle Krysa on The Jealous Curator's Podcast called Art for Your Ear.  I love hearing the stories of artists who have chosen to follow their passion, what they were like as little artists and how they got to where they are today.  It's so intriguing and really a great way to stay inspired in the studio as I paint.  

Best ridiculous and funny podcast: 

My Favorite Murder is a new one that I have gotten hooked to. You definitely have to be in the right mood to listen to it, but the satire and general ridiculousness of it all is so fun and funny.  Try it out if you like making fun of the news, people in general or if you need a good snort-laugh.  

Some of my future podcasts are within these curated lists, so take a look at these lists! 

Levo League's 10 best Podcasts for Women

 Buzz Feed's 13 Podcasts by Women you should know about

Inspiration for future paintings - photo by Amy Frances Photo

A question that comes up a lot in the creative world is that of inspiration.

Where do you get inspiration?  How do you stay inspired?  What inspires you to paint?  What do you look at for inspiration?  What happens if you run out of ideas?  How do you deal with creative block?

Well, today let's just tackle the idea of inspiration for an artist.  I love painting and I have the problem of "too many ideas".  I suffer from total inspiration overload.  It's amazing because I have a treasure trove of ideas to paint from at all times (especially in the spring and summer, because those are my favorite colors and subject matters - petals and oceans!).  However, I have learned to channel and organize my inspiration a little bit through social media and on Pinterest. 

I have recently been using Planoly to help manage my Instagram posts and it has helped me immensely with controlling my enthusiasm for all things visual.  USE PLANOLY if you need help with curating your feed, studying your brand colors, channeling your energy and sharing images that truly reflect your business.  It also saves a TON of time.  

For other visual inspiration, I would love to state here that I use all of my own travel photos, but that's just not the case.  I wish I traveled the world for a living and collected beautiful moments myself, but maybe someday?!  For now, I use Pinterest.  It has been an amazing tool to collect inspiration.  My boards are grouped by my biggest interests: Color, Travel, Nature, Cities I love, and Interior Design and Decor.  

Feel free to fall down the rabbit hole of Pinterest with me, will you!?  It's so fun!