Episode 109: The Artisan Life – What’s Old is New Again

On one hand, there’s nothing new under the sun.  On the other, we’re created to create.  How can two apparently opposing ideas be true?  On this episode, we’re talking about 3 ways you can create new from something old.

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On This Episode

Tune-up Tip – The Mystery of Flavenoids

Random Riffs – I Might Use This

Feature Segment – Creativity: What’s Old is New Again

Today’s Quote

I continue to be interested in new things that seem old and old things that seem new.  – Jaquelin T. Roberson

Tune-Up Tip – The Mystery of Flavenoids

You’ve probably heard the old expression “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”  It’s been common wisdom for a long time that eating plenty of fruits and vegetables is part of a healthy diet.

What do we do?  Try to distill the essence of what’s nutritious in the apple and give it to people without having them actually eat an apple. Because if an apple is good, concentrating the nutrition from an apple has to be even better, right?

Not.  It turns out that the whole is greater than the component parts.  That’s true for an apple, and it’s true in life too.

It could be the coach, the leader, who makes it that way.  Or it could be the relationship between the members of the team.  And the whole is definitely greater than the sum of the parts.

Eat apples. Drink tea.  Enjoy the food.  And get the full health benefits of flavonoids as you eat real food.  At the same time, work to create a team in your family or organization that’s unbeatable.

Random Riffs – I Might Use This

Have you ever collected stuff thinking, “I might use this someday.”?  Marie Kondo ‘s book “The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up”  and her new Netflix show “Tidying Up” has taken the world by storm. The guiding principle?  If something doesn’t spark joy, get rid of it.

This can be a challenge if you’re in to crafts, or making or repairing anything.  Any one of those activities has stuff that comes with it.  Not to mention the books that teach you how to do the thing you’re into.

There’s a big movement called “upcycling”.  Not simply recycling old stuff, like taking clothes to Goodwill.  This is making something new from the old.  But here’s the thing: to do that you have to have old stuff on hand.

The question is – how much old stuff?  How can you practice life-changing magic of tidying up and also practice making something new from old?  Listen to the episode to hear some solutions to this dilemma.

Feature Segment – Creativity: What’s Old is New Again

An old commercial for Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups is a perfect demonstration of what we’re talking about today:  3 ways to make something new from something old.

1. Twist it. Might be a twist on one old idea, or combine two.  Like candy cane cookies.


2. Embed; Put one inside the other – like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups


3. Combine: Blend 2 to create a whole new flavor – like chocolate + coffee = mocha.

The Bible says, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”

Every idea has already been had.  What makes our ideas creative is the twisting/bundling/combining of ideas to create a new combination.  There can be creative magic there.

• What’s a Kindle?


• How did they modify Hersheys Kisses?


• What’s YouTube?

I saw a great example of twisting at Hancock Shaker Village many years ago.

Then there’s the chocolate-covered potato chip.  Embedding at its best.

Or Baabaazuzu.   Combining in some of the most imaginative ways I’ve seen in a long time.

What’s similar to all these besides making something new from the old?  Play or experimentation.  Loving the process.  For someone like this, the process is the fun part.  The work is the fun part.

A friend’s cousin has a YouTube video about how much he hates Pachelbel’s Canon in D.  On the video, he shares many other songs using the same chord sequence, and sometimes even the same melody.

If feel like you’re not creative, or creative enough, perhaps you’re expecting too much.  Perhaps you’re expecting brand, spanking new.  As in completely new.  From blank sheet of paper new.  Recognize that there’s nothing new under the sun.  Some of most creative people I know admit that.  They say what they do is twist, embed, or combine.  Materials, art forms, ideas.  Real creativity is to make new from old.  Only God created something from nothing.  We are recreating.  Turning old into new.

It takes the pressure off, doesn’t it?  You can even practice.  What can you play with?  Experiment with?  Choose one old thing to make new.  Post a picture of description in the comments or on my Facebook page.  It could be really cool to see what you make.

So twist. Embed. Combine.  Build creativity as you make the old new again.

Creativity is making something old new again.
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Artisan Series

090: Why You Should Be an Artisan at Work

091: The Three C’s of Artisanship

092: Are You a Creator, Consumer, or Critic?

093: Where to Start as an Artisan? With a MAP.

094: What’s Your Signature Scent?

095: The Foundations of Craftsmanship

096: Follow Your Curiosity to Build Craftsmanship

097: Craftsmanship Requires Change

098: Building Craftsmanship – When it Gets Hard

099: Building Craftsmanship – Take Care of Your Tools

101: Building Craftsmanship – Be an Apprentice

102: Building Craftsmanship – Practice

103: 4 Habits That Foster Creativity

104: Time for Wonder

105: Forget the Big Bang Theory

106: Constraints Ignite Creativity

107: Seal Creativity With a KIS

108: Creativity: One Ring to Rule Them All

The post Episode 109: The Artisan Life – What’s Old is New Again first appeared on Kathleen Ann Thompson.