Motherhood and Creativity #18 - Georgia Garnett
Georgia Garnett is a photographer, artist, creative with a special interest in portrait, boudoir and fantasy photography.
Welcome to Motherhood and Creativity, an interview series where I share the words of creative mums who inspire me here on Substack and beyond.
I share words of joy, strength, creativity and community in motherhood.
I feel like when we read the words of mums who speak so honestly about motherhood - the good parts, the hard parts and everything in between - this can really help give us some comfort and feel less alone.
I find so much inspiration from reading about mums who are all weaving their work and creativity around their kids too, as this is the situation I’m currently in. Knowing that there are other mums out there with creative dreams and careers and they are making it work around the edges of motherhood, that is so encouraging.
I hope you enjoy reading the words from these wonderful mums over the next few months, and that you find comfort and inspiration in their words too.
You can read all 17 of the previous Motherhood and Creativity interviews here.
Motherhood and Creativity Interview #17 - Georgia Garnett
Georgia Garnett is a photographer, artist and creative. You can find Georgia mostly on Substack sharing photoshoots, creative writing and musings at Georgia Garnett & writing all about flowers at
How old are your kids?
My son is 3 and my daughter is 1
When your children are older, what do you hope that they remember about the kind of mum that you were?
Oh what a great question! I hope that they know that despite the hard times we have been living through, they were at the forefront of every decision we made.
I hope that they remember how much I absolutely adore them and I hope that simple things like our daily beach walks become core memories alongside the fun and exciting trips we take.
I hope they remember my dedication to our home, nourishing food, beautiful gardens, and the way I try to weave creativity and magic throughout our days.
When you think about the tough parts of your motherhood journey, which of your qualities/strengths have got you through these tough times?
Probably my patience, stubbornness (haha), and unwavering love for my family.
What brings you joy in motherhood?
Everything about these tiny little humans. I always, always wanted to be a mum and I was absolutely desperate by the time I actually became one. Every day that I get to mother my children is a blessing I am so grateful for.
How important is creativity to you?
So important. I am a visual person through and through. I am often consumed by creative ideas. I need creativity to flow through me, it is as much a part of me as anything. I've always identified as an artist, ever since I was a little girl. Now it's in everything I do, from cooking to work. It has morphed since becoming a mother, but it is ever present.
Tell us more about your favourite ways to be creative.
Right now I am finding creative outlets through photography and writing. I have always been around photography, I got my first digital camera at 12, and used disposable cameras prior to that. I did modeling as a teenager and young adult, and taught modeling for a few years too.
After having my son I didn't have the capacity for art the way I knew it before, I needed to pivot, and so I convinced my husband that we needed a decent camera. From there I was hooked. Not only photographing my children, but also turning the camera on myself. If I couldn't create with a brush then I would do it with light. It's been a complete blessing. I have an idea, can execute it with a little amount of time, and it has resulted in not only creative photos of myself, but a beautiful and artistic documentation of my growing babes.
Writing has also come to the forefront of my creativity in the past year. I have always journaled, and loved creative writing when I was younger. But sort of forgot about doing it anymore than that. Through expressing myself on substack, and using poetry to process a traumatic birth with my daughter. I am falling more and more in-love with writing.
Otherwise, I love to be creative in cooking and gardening, and before having kids I was very much a fine artist working with pen and watercolour. I am slowly being called back to that world again now.
Since becoming a mum, have you experienced a creative surge? What did that look like for you?
Yes I certainly did, although it was different for both children. I was very creative, working as an artist during my pregnancy with my son. When he was born that called for me to slow right down, months of rest and finding a new rhythm that was motherhood. I think at around six months postpartum was when I actually started to get creative with photos, by the time he was one I was taking bookings as a photographer.
Life became very unpredictable and unstable not long after that (we have moved a lot, and across 3 states, with the housing crisis here in Australia over the last 2 years), this made my creative practices very wobbly. I haven't had the consistency that I craved.
Although through the third trimester of my daughters birth I became very inspired and it has only increased since she was born. I have endless ideas and motivation to create. It can ebb and flow a little through the month, but overall I have big ideas and am excited by them constantly.
What does honouring your creativity look like for you in this season of your mothering?
I involve my children where I can. They are either participating or at my feet while I create. I can't always be spontaneous, but I often get an idea for a photo and let it simmer. I usually plan for a day that my husband is around for support and that the lighting will be right. Then I shoot!
If it's little sketches or writing, I just weave that into the day with my children. They are both pretty great with independent play and I take this opportunity to write or journal.
Otherwise when my daughter naps, my son loves to draw and colour in with me so it's great to snatch those opportunities too. Other than that, I move creativity through mundane daily activities. I have cultivated gardens wherever I can and spend time to craft nourishing food full of flavour and nutrients. These things constantly inspire me.
What’s been your experience of finding a community in motherhood?
Initially it was fantastic. I had some friends entering motherhood around the same time as me, and met some new friends while pregnant with my son. The community where we were living was fantastic for this - it is really an incredible part of the world.
We had meetups both before and after birth, and group photoshoots, and local community events to attend centred around mothers. There were meal trains and some incredible birth support workers weaving their magic across the mothers in the area. I even had my godsister live with us for 3 or so months as an au pair while I started to take on photography bookings and creative work. It was such a special time.
The more we have moved though, the harder it has gotten. I am fortunate to have strong friendships all over the country, but none in my backyard right now. It made the pregnancy, birth and postpartum of my daughter very lonely and isolating.
I love to visit my parents, back where my community is, and where my son was born. It is always so welcoming and a huge feeling of homecoming. We are in the process of moving back there, hopefully in the next 12 months. I'm looking forward to having my community around me again.
What words of encouragement would you offer to a mum who might be struggling at the moment?
I see you in this, I am struggling too. It can be so hard, so isolating, and so depleting. Find ways to fill your cup. Go to bed with your children and try to get enough sleep. Nourish your body. Having a baby is so depleting, especially if you're also breastfeeding and had a challenging pregnancy. Eat lots of good foods, and walk with your feet on the earth. You need to be ok to look after your children as best you can.
Once you're at a point where you're body is taken care of then add something for you. One thing at a time. It's completely dependent on the individual but keeping a sketchbook on the dining table allows for a quick sketch, phone notes are fantastic for writing at odd times and stolen pockets, plan for a nap time once a week to curl up and read a good fiction book.
There are ways to make things more enjoyable, sometimes you just need to go slow. And remember, this time will pass! It is so all consuming when the children are young, especially when it's your first. But they grow, they become more independent, and they eventually leave the home for school or activities. The first year is the hardest, and then you'll suddenly find you have pockets space again.
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Thank you Georgia for being part of the Motherhood and Creativity interview series.
I loved reading this interview and these parts resonated with me especially:
how Georgia hopes that her kids remember the simple things like daily beach walks, as well as the fun and exciting trips. This really rung true with me, as I often think, do I take my kids to enough places, do we do enough exciting and fun things, but this is a great reminder that it’s the simple things that we do everyday that matter too.
when Georgia explains how important creativity is to her and how it’s changed since she’s become a mum:
“I need creativity to flow through me, it is as much a part of me as anything. I've always identified as an artist, ever since I was a little girl. Now it's in everything I do, from cooking to work. It has morphed since becoming a mother, but it is ever present.”
how Georgia’s love of photography brings her so much joy as well as a record of her lovely family:
“I have an idea, can execute it with a little amount of time, and it has resulted in not only creative photos of myself, but a beautiful and artistic documentation of my growing babes.”
how creativity comes in many forms for Georgia - photography, writing, cooking, gardening and fine art - a reminder that creativity is different for everyone and it can be found in the everyday things that we do, as well as creative projects
when Georgia talks about how she gets an idea for a photo, lets it simmer, then plans the shoot for when her husband is around. I feel like this is the reality of creativity as a mum - getting an idea, but not being able to execute it straight away and instead planning ahead. But I also think it’s quite exciting, having these projects to work on that often evolve and change whilst you are letting them simmer.
the contrast in having such a supportive community around her as a new mum, and then the impact of not having that same community during her pregnancy, birth and postpartum with her second child
Georgia shares so much wisdom in her advice to a mum that is struggling - especially when she talks about ways to do something just for you:
“Once you're at a point where you're body is taken care of then add something for you. One thing at a time. It's completely dependent on the individual but keeping a sketchbook on the dining table allows for a quick sketch, phone notes are fantastic for writing at odd times and stolen pockets, plan for a nap time once a week to curl up and read a good fiction book.”
I hope you enjoyed this interview in the ‘Motherhood and Creativity’ series - I publish these interviews every fortnight, and will continue to for as long as the interviews keep coming through.
You can read all 17 of the previous Motherhood and Creativity interviews here.
I’d love to hear which of Georgia’s words resonated with you - let me know in the comments.
Ways to work with me in November
In November, I have space for 2 mums who’d like to start a 12 week journey of building up tiny moments of daily self-care and swap their overwhelm, mum-guilt and anger for calm and compassion with my 12 week Bespoke Self-Care Plan for Mums.
I also have space for 1 mum who is ready to make positive changes in her life in a gentle and kind way, that fits in with her life as a busy mum right now with Rediscover YOU, my 12 week 1 to 1 coaching experience. Book a virtual cuppa with me to find out more.
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Thank you for having me Jenna! ✨