Who am I? With my husband, Robert Ballard, I own and run a little shop and gallery called R.H. Ballard Art, Rug and Home. Robert founded the business in 1997. We work together, 24 hours a day, seven days a week .... No, really. And we actually love it. Who knew?

We are located on Main Street in a sweet village called Little Washington. I’ve been doing this since 2002, after leaving behind two careers: performing voice-overs for radio and television, and teaching drama at the Lab School of Washington, in Washington, D.C.

What on earth could all these careers have in common? Well, in a nutshell, lots of drama, creativity and mostly inspiration. I love designing, creating, discovering, searching and using my innate abilities to bring beautiful and inspiring things to people. It gives me the greatest joy.

My “blogging plan” is just to begin where I am right now: on the constant search for what inspires me. Let’s start with the word inspiration. Inspiration is the key to my life, it’s the engine I run on, the beginning of everything I do, and inspiring others is what I hope to bring to Virginia Living magazine readers. This may/will include blog posts about books, food, travel, music, home design, new shops, unique finds, art galleries, museums, film, theatre, people, family and, well, basically my life.

For me, inspiration is everywhere. Every day, my mind wanders to color, light, shape, touch, smells, sounds ... to the point where I can sometimes get "inspiration overload.” But mostly, I just get very happy when I find something that really surprises me.

There is a wonderful book by a well-known British designer, Tricia Guild, titled Inspiration (what a convenient title!). I highly recommend this book to everyone. It’s the book I wish I had written. In it, Guild describes all of her inspirations and speaks about the sources of her creativity. This book is the epitome of what my life is about—finding inspiration in everyday occurrences, objects, art, simple moments, travel, color, animals … you get the idea. These moments of inspiration can make your heart flutter, your eyes light up, your senses come alive. You then take these moments into your daily activities and find yourself suddenly singing to a song while driving, laughing with a stranger, helping someone in the grocery line or patiently answering a child’s question. It really can affect you this way.

For me, when inspiration strikes, I sometimes start drawing ideas into my notebook, or I will get to the shop and immediately change a display to reflect a new idea. Often, it comes through a lifetime of experiences, both past and present impressions. Art has a strong influence on me, as I grew up in a family of artists and musicians and was happily bombarded with creativity on a daily basis from three brothers, a sister and a father who was a writer and poet. My mom, a radio producer for NPR's National Town Meeting for several years in the '70s, also strongly encouraged the creative drive in all of us from an early age. My brother, Tom Mullany, is an accomplished artist. He and his family live 10 minutes from Robert and me in Rappahannock County, and we represent his work in our gallery. Many years ago, Tom created an amazing landmark mural in the Clarendon neighborhood of Arlington, called Wake Up and Smell The Roses (click the tab above to s).

Very Magritte, very Tom. There is no doubt that Tom’s artwork has inspired me throughout the years and continues to inspire me. I have since used this inspiration in numerous shop displays, as you can see above. Art can be amazing—I love the magic of these connections.

If you don’t think you possess the creative “gene,” take a peek inside Tricia Guild’s beautiful book, or take a walk through a local gallery or museum. Be transported, and drink in the inspiration. You may find new and amazing connections to use in your own life.

1/15/10 5:15 PM