Here are a few things you may not know about me. 1. I’m a lyrics girl. Some people hear the music; I hear the words. 2. I love karaoke. A lot. 3. I often spend long car rides listening to (and singing along with) all kinds of music to be prepared for any upcoming karaoke opportunities. 4. I have lots of long car rides. 5. Pop music lyrics stick in your head and are, frankly, poetic at times. What does any of this have to do with chalk paint and creative habits? Right. It’s kind of long-winded. (The giveaway info is at the end, promise. updated: giveaway had ended). 
Remember that lovely book I was so impressed by a while ago, Mighty Ugly? Well, I was determined to follow through on every directive in Mighty Ugly and that included incorporating a daily creative habit into my routine.
I have a canvas I covered in two coats of chalk paint and lovely chalk markers and I was all prepared to write a daily message to myself. Yup. Good, solid plan for a creative routine.
I was all set…you know, something important or inspiring!! Something *magical* and profound. Bwahhahaha!! Thing is, this tall order was never getting done. It just seemed so precious and self-important and well…wasn’t working for me. I was totally un-moved to write up the perfect thing. I was essentially rolling my own eyes at myself.
Then, I had a one-hour muzak-filled horrible dehumanizing experience with the soul-crushing robots and automated systems in control of my Apple ID. When I finally got off the phone with everything all sorted out, I thought to myself, “Phew! I really need to shake that off”. And, that is how Taylor Swift entered into my brain and wouldn’t let go. I sang Shake it Off in my head for the rest of the day and decided I might as well doodle it. It was a joke.
But, I couldn’t stop. The next day, I doodled another lyric and on and on. The empty chalk paint canvas was so easy to fill with lyrics. I like hand-lettering and found it funny to draw cutesy and sweet doodles next to the words from not-so-sweet songs. Sometimes my youngest helps me; sometimes he is the one who reminds me to do it (!) but most of the time I do it on my own. (He prefers the red marker so it’s pretty easy to spot when I’ve had a helper.)
Sometimes I like how it turns out and others days I am less than impressed with myself (see just above, uck). Either way, I don’t get hung up on it. It’s nothing precious…just a little doodle and the song in my head.
I decided on a few rules to keep myself from getting finicky and perfectionist about it: 1. It doesn’t have to take a long time but it can if I feel like it, 2. If it isn’t perfect that is too bad, I keep moving. (Unless a mistake or bad design is totally driving me crazy.) 3. Any song I have in my head is game, it doesn’t have to be on the radio or “cool”. 4. I try to do it every day but don’t beat myself up if I don’t. 5. I take a quick picture no matter the state of my desk or studio space, it’s all part of it. 6. I always wipe the canvas clean after a day. No saving these doodles, the act of doodling is what is important not the result.
Now….it’s time for that giveaway!! It’s no secret that I love the book Mighty Ugly and if I had my druthers I would buy everyone a copy! For real. Barring that, the publishers (Sasquatch Books) have offered me one copy to giveaway so we will settle for that until I hit the lottery jackpot.
So help me out…what songs runs through your head? What tune do you hum as you stroll through your day? Leave a comment telling me your tune and offering me some chalk paint inspiration! I will pick a winner at random but you have to name a song to be entered! Additional entries can be acquired by following me on Instagram where I will be posting all future song lyric doodles (leave a comment here telling me you follow me, ok).
Don’t worry about embarrassing yourself, I’ve pretty much covered that base for all of us now, haven’t I. The giveaway ends at midnight EST next Thursday, March 5th. Good luck!!
By the way, do you recognize all these lyrics? Anything got you stumped? In order of appearance: Taylor Swift (of course), Cyndi Lauper, Miley Cyrus, Icona Pop, Decemberists, Tom Petty, Bonnie Tyler, Lady Gaga, Pat Benatar, Pink, Katy Perry, Cat Stevens, The National, The Pixies, Justin Timberlake, Pink, Lady Gaga, Indigo Girls.
Updated: Jenna O. you are the winner! Thanks for your lovely song recommendation, I can’t wait to check it out and I will send you an email soon.
Am I the first to leave a comment? Well I headed right over after I saw your Instagram post (I follow your feed) about the chalkboard lyrics. The song I love too get stuck in my head is 500 Miles by The Proclaimers. I would listen to that over and over when I was a kid. Great song!
Such a good one! That is the sweetest song and a total ‘stick in the head’ type. Thanks for the IG love.
“We found love in a hopeless place…” (hehehe)
How is it I haven’t done that yet! “Chalk” it up to old age. Ha! Ha!
We are really into musicals around here – so how about designing around a song from Wicked or Les Miserables?!
genius!
I have no clue as to why Bon Jovi’s “It’s my life” popped into my head after reading this. It must be a Jersey thing. 😉 Oh, well. ” It’s my life. It’s now or never. I ain’t gonna live forever”. I clearly need that book.
This is a great one!! Yes, Jersey for the win!
Let it go. For some reason, it’s in my mind at least once a week like right now. Great message, but annoying song! I love your cute doodle message board!
Love this post & love your chalkboard project! Maybe a little Velvet Underground?
Oh it’s such a perfect day
I’m glad I spend it with you
I always get stuck with silly songs that my kids have made up… most of them are complete nonsense, yet there I am singing away. Shake It Off makes it in there a lot too, lol. This book looks great! Thanks for the chance to win!
That is so sweet!! I love it.
And BTW, I LOVE your board!!! I think that’s amazing. 🙂
Love this blog post and LOVE your chalkboard project. Thank you for sharing so many of them! It’s like a beautiful little glimpse into your head and heart. How about some Velvet Underground?
Oh it’s such a perfect day
I’m glad I spend it with you
Perfect!
Will the Circle Be Unbroken? I’m thinking about and missing my Mama today. This song was a favorite.
Oh, so sweet. Music has a way of doing that, doesn’t it?
I keep thinking about Queen songs. “Don’t stop me now” sounds great for a doodle. Thanks for this giveaway! 🙂
Queen!! Good call.
bODY OF wORK BY THE mYNABIRDS
is my creative anthem these days.
Freedom is what you do with what…
with what’s been done to you
Oooh, I’m gonna have to find that one!
http://grooveshark.com/#!/s/Body+Of+Work/51kuqh?src=5
Oh lyrics… how I love thee… got a few running through my head constantly. Today though, it’s got to be Natalie Merchant:
I got a shiver in my bones just thinking about the weather.
And to finish off your song:
The less I seek my source for some definitive, closer I am to fine.
Gigi, you are the best.
My husband had been humming Foster the People- Pumped Up Kicks, I think that could look cool, minus the bullets.
Love that song!
I struggle more to get lyrics out of my head, sometimes, especially with catchy tunes. Hence, going to bed with “All about that bass” and various snippets of “Shake it off” resulting from family dance parties. So, in the spirit of moving along from a tune you love, but just need to escape long enough to go to sleep, I sing myself some Rush, which has a wonky time signature and thus doesn’t get too embedded in my brain.
“A modern day warrior
Mean, mean stride
Today’s Tom Sawyer
Mean, mean pride”
That said, it is a pretty good, if old-school, tune!
(btw, I’ve been coveting that book since you posted about it awhile back. Me and my Instaself–shortofzen–have our fingers crossed to be graced by the luck of the randomly choosy gods!)
Yay! thanks for the thoughtful selection and Good Luck!!
Songs that run through my head…hmmm…if all the little raindrops were gumdrops….
HAHAHAH!! Totally! That one is killer!
Overcomer
by Mandisa
Whatever it is you may be going through
I know He’s not gonna let it get the best of you
New follower on instagram @suzanneking234
Thanks for the opportunity.
Thanks for the suggestion!
Aw I love the idea, the soul’s way of getting back to basics. Clever youuuuuuu.
Oh I love and often sing Ella Fitzgerald’s song: “Summertime”, it’s just like (que the high voice) puuwwpp in my head…..and a 1 and a 2……
Summertime (draw out the ‘m’ sound…keep it….keep it – ok and breathe), and the livin’ is easy (draw out the ‘e’ sound…keeeeeppppp itttt and now the ‘y’ sound as ‘eee’ keep it… long sound… nice – okay now go back and start again – just to get into the swing of it)
Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high
Oh, your daddy’s rich and your ma is good-lookin’
So hush little baby, Don’t you cry
One of these mornings you’re gonna rise up singing
And you’ll spread your wings and you’ll take to the sky
But ’til that morning, there ain’t nothin’ can harm you
With Daddy and Mammy standin’ by…..
and hummmmm mmmm mm mm mm mm
yeah, my soul was not going to let me get away with being ‘deep’.
Okay I have it….
‘We will rock you’ by Queen…..
I tell you, you have started something, it goes with me all over the place, your creative idea of recalling the songs that mean something (or nothing) or have a habit of popping in and out of your mind…especially those songs that sneak in when you weren’t even paying attention while shopping for household goodies only to replay themselves while you unpack the shopping…no doubt there would be a moment when each of us ask ourselves…’where did I hear TTTHHHAAATTT song?’
but just for you and your book and the love affair :)…I have found the song which goes hand in hand…
The Monster by Eminem ft Rihanna….
If you were here next to me, I would squeeze you so hard! You totally get it…and me. That’s exactly it! Great tunes, gonna have to re-listen to The Monster. I don’t know that I’ve heard that one recently.
okay soooo….because of your idea and that I am haunted by it in a good way….I have a fabulous song for a creative happy place…..ready to smile?
I like to move it, move it
I like to move it, move it
You like to…?
By Reel 2 Real (Erick Morillo) but best sung by the characters from Madagascar..
whoop whoooop my dance mojo just started…..
People would read this on a board and I tell you, the result would be an automatic replay…..somewhere when they least expect it…
You are killing me! That song is pure evil of the stick-in-your-head-forever-until-you-die variety!
Did you know I had an ex who was obsessed with the many covers of this song?…that song memory hits a little too close to home.
Aw no… Sorry Melissa…I hope that you are able to build new memories to that song…like when you hear little one’s singing…’we will, we will clock you’ he he he coz they heard it wrong….cute when they are young and then when they get to 12 somehow in a place far far far away, before they were born, boys went to a school that just taught them some (que the high old cowboy voice) wwweeeiiirrrrdddd things, and they – at times – behave as if they have no mother at all. Shu and thhhheeeennn the words that they come up with is enough to make a mother’s head explode……then I become…da-da-daaaa – ‘the monster’
HA!! I get the feeling you need a chalk paint board! Yes, I need new ‘summertime’ memories…the old ones are actually kind of funny, it was (after all) a summertime fling. Ha!
Love the post MQ. Makes me want to drive to Micheal’s right now and get me a canvas. Love “the art of doodling is what’s important, not the result” Two empowering (and fun) songs right now: Katy Perry’s “Firework” and Kelly Clarksons’ “Stronger”. Perfect for karaoke too!
yay! great tunes!!
We built a fire by Seabear. Love that song!
Gonna have to look that one up! Thanks.
“You can’t a fire, you can’t start a fire without a spark. This gun is for hire. Even if we’re just dancing in the dark.” Bruce Springsteen
The whole song has been in my head for awhile. Great tune. Both the original and the acoustic cover version.
Oh yes, that is a good song. He’s kind of magic.
oops, missed a word… but you get what song I’m talking about.