How to Take a Creative Online Class the Right Way (So You Actually Learn Something!)

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In a recent blog post, I confessed that I have had been experiencing creative burnout. It touched on the worries, fears, and the lack of confidence I had been feeling. (Thank God I finally feel like that “fever” has broken!)

I also shared how I have been getting my “creative mojo” back, and part of it I attribute to this amazing chair that I just made using scrap plywood that had been collecting dust in my garage for at least 7 years. I spoke about this newfound creative excitement that this project elicited, in Episode #153 of The Thrift Diving Podcast.

Here’s how the Danish Modern-inspired chair turned out!

AFTER!

 

What thrilled me about this project was that I didn’t have to use any nails, glue, or screws. It was a project from a class on Skillshare. I had teamed up with Skillshare to promote their platform for creative classes, and one of the classes I found was Design and Build Your Own Chair Using a CNC Machine.

Initially, I was discouraged by the mention of the CNC machine router (CNC stands for “Computer Numerical Control”) since I didn’t have a large CNC router like they have in the online class. I’m new to CNC machines, so I don’t know much about them (…yet!! I have one in my “she-shed”that I’m about to unpack, so stay tuned for that!).

But once I started watching the lessons in the class, I realized that this Danish-inspired chair could easily (albeit much more time-consuming) be made with a jigsaw, at the very minimum.

 I’ve got a Festool track saw, so I knew it could make some quick, clean cuts for the 4 chair parts; however, I would need the jigsaw for cutting the slots of the chair—the slots that would allow the chair to be assembled without glue, screws, or nails.

This is what the chair looked like when I modeled it with SketchUp, the free version of the 2D and 3D modeling software.

This class, though, isn’t the first online creative class I have ever taken. In fact, for years, this is how I have been able to learn a lot of skills, from how to edit videos using Adobe Premiere Pro, to learning 2D and 3D modeling in SketchUp, and more. 

 In fact, it was because I took a class on how to use SketchUp, that I was able to later model my entire custom walk-in closet! I drafted everything in SketchUp, and then I was able to build it, based on my model. It took a long time to model, but you know what?? It turned out! I still use SketchUp to this day, for modeling furniture that I build, including the Danish-modern chair from the Skillshare class!

 10 Lessons for Taking an Online Creative Class

 But since I have an affinity for online classes, I thought this would be a great way to share my most important lessons and tips for taking creative online classes. Let’s jump into it! 

LESSON #1 – Check Your Local Library FIRST!

You might be thinking, “Okay….but I don’t have a lot of money to take creative online classes. And by the way, I can just learn what I need to learn on YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok.“

 But did you know that many local libraries actually offer access to these creative classes with your library card?? Seriously!

I’m in Montgomery County, Maryland, and my county library offers Creative Bug, Linkedin Learning, and I think Udemy, for free! The only thing is that I have to link to these sites from my local library and then enter my library card number.

You can check out my county’s library page for all the sites they offer free, including sites like Rosetta Stone, The Washington Post, Kanopy, and other cool free resources! If my library offers them for free, yours may offer them for free, as well! Here are my favorite creative sites, some of which are included on that list:

• Creative Bug – This creative platform is available with many library cards! Perfect for learning how to paint, knit, crochet, sew, etc.
• LinkedIn Learning – This is my favorite platform that’s available through most libraries! Use your library card to access it. This isn’t so much for crafty classes, but if you want to learn a new skill or software (e.g Photoshop, or SketchUp, or how to edit videos), or things like how to set up online, how to improve your marketing skills, etc, they have it all).
• Craftsy – Great for creative classes similar to Creative Bug, but this isn’t available with library access.
• Skillshare – Not available through the library, but the fees are low, and you can try it for a month and see if you like it, using my code. 
• Udemy – Another learning platform. I don’t know much about this one, but it IS available for many library card holders through your county! 🙂

 Of course you can still keep watching YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok to learn things, but I still think that creative learning platforms are worth checking out. Plus they have instructors that are highly professional in their fields, so you’re learning from the best. 🙂

LESSON #2 – Make Sure You Have All the Tools and Materials

From my experience with taking online classes, you want to make sure you have everything you need to even take the class and follow along. For example, if you’re learning how to use SketchUp, but you haven’t even downloaded SketchUp, it doesn’t make sense. 

If you want to take a “Sewing For Beginners” class, but you’re missing a seam ripper or a good pair of scissors, or needles to pin your fabric as you follow along, you’re not going to get the best results.

Sometimes you can make substitutions; like in the case of watching the Skillshare class, Design and Build Your Own Chair, I didn’t have a large CNC like she used. But I knew I had a track saw and a jigsaw and I could figure out how to make it based on the instructors instructions and visuals.

LESSON #3 – Don’t Jump Right In…Watch ‘Till the End

I absolutely love learning. That’s something I learned about myself in my 40’s. If it involves a new skill, or even honing a skill that I already have, my dopamine starts flowing as if someone (as I like to joke) opened a levee in my brain.

If you’re like me, once the dopamine starts to flow, you can’t wait to get started! You pause the video, run to get your materials, and start working on the project immediately!

And that’s kiiiiinda what I did when watching this Design and Build Your Own Chair class. LOL. 

After I was nearly done the chair, I finished watching the rest of the video lessons, and I was surprised to find that Ana Marcu, the instructor (who’s also a licensed architect), was sharing her own “lessons learned” and things she would do differently next time for the project.

She shared what worked….what didn’t….where she got stuck…and things she did to correct for the problems she had.

One of the issues she ran into was the paint scratching on the chair parts when assembling the chair and pulling the chair apart. I noticed the same issue!

Knowing this information ahead of time, maybe I would have made a different decision in painting my chair, too. However, I didn’t think about this until later when I heard that she’d run into that problem. 

Going forward, I will be sure to watch a class all the way through, tamping down my dopamine that’s screaming to “Just get started NOW!”

LESSON #4 – Don’t Try to Watch Everything in ONE DAY

When I was learning how to use SketchUp on Linkedin Learning (and the same for learning how to edit videos with Adobe Premiere Pro), I set limits for how much learning I would do each day.

It was either something like 30 minutes a day, or I would set a goal of doing 3 video lessons in each class per day.

These were 5 hour training sessions, from start to finish! There was a lot of material to learn!
But by setting goals and limits it allowed me to learn a little bit each day, without being overwhelmed. 

In Lesson 3, when I suggested “watch till the end,” this is easier to do with classes that are about an hour or less–something that can be done in a day. When you’re breaking longer classes into shorter sessions, the guideline still applies: Watch the 5-minute video lesson of a module all the way through so that you’re familiar with the entire lesson, and then move on to lesson 5: take notes on it properly. 

LESSON #5 – Don’t Just Take Notes…

Taking an online class is just like being in a classroom, in the comfort of your own home. But it should be treated just like being in a classroom—and you need to take notes. 

There’s a right way to take notes that will help you to learn. 

You see, when I was in college, my method of studying was:

• Take notes in class on Monday,
• Type up (or re-write) notes on Tuesday.
• Put final notes in a 3-ring binder and review notes before class on Wednesday.

When I started studying with this 3-simple step, I went from a “B/C” student to an “A” student.

Taking online classes, even creative classes on Skillshare, whether it’s designing and building your own chair, or learning how to sew curtains, this is still considered learning, and it’s learning that you want to retain so that it helps you with your projects.

(Not to mention, it keeps your brain active and engaged as you age!).

If you’re someone like me who loves writing, re-write your chicken-scratch notes into a pretty notebook labeled “Creative Journal” so that you’re not only reviewing your notes as you re-write them, but you’re also preserving them into something you’ll enjoy looking back over years down the road.

If you don’t care for writing, re-type your notes (even if they’re already typed) as a review, and organize them in a neat, organized digital folder.

Bonus points for printing them out and putting them in a 3-ring “Creative Projects” binder. 🙂 For now, mine are in this spiral-bound notebook, with drawings in pencil.

LESSON #6 – Don’t Forget the Class Resources & Downloads

Most online classes have resources and downloadable materials that go with the class. These can be things like project files, transcripts, worksheets, etc. These are resources you don’t want to skip over! 

When I was taking the Design and Build Your Own Chair class, the instructor already had created all the files I needed to simply import them into SketchUp, which is a free design and modeling software. I took a class years ago on how to use SketchUp, but I’m always interested in using SketchUp, so I followed along in the class and modeled my own chair from scratch, just to refresh my own skills.

However, saving her files to my computer allowed me to access them later, if I want to work from her chair plans instead of my own.

Once you access a class, those files are yours to keep, even if you later cancel your membership. This is true for any class you take, on any platform. 

So be sure to download all the files and resources for any online class you take, so you have them for years to come!

Here’s a look at the resources that I was able to download for my Design and Build Your Own Chair class:

LESSON #7 – Hone a Skill You Already Have

I’ve built several things I am proud of over the course of my DIY career: I made my own bathroom vanity (which didn’t fall apart, which I was worried about!); I designed and built my own walk-in closet (OMG, I still can’t believe I did that); and I’ve made other things here and there.

But I had never built a chair before!

My interest was so peaked when I watched a snippet of the Design and Build Your Own class! Making furniture wasn’t something I have leaned into, but why the heck not?? I’ve got the skills, I’ve got all the tools I would need; I just needed the “know how.”

After taking this class, I feel like I’ve unlocked a new layer of DIY that I hadn’t quite leaned into enough: making furniture. And I’m excited to hone my woodworking skills to include furniture.

LESSON #8 – Pick a Class That’s Outside of Anything You’ve Ever Done

It’s fun to hone a skill you already have, yes. Building this chair was exciting and it took my DIY skills to a whole new level of creativity. But I’m curious to try something completely new. 

Here are some classes on Skillshare that are completely outside of what I’ve ever done that I would like to try:

• 3D printing – Most excited about this class! I just got one for my “she shed” and I am about to unpack it! This would be a great time to take a class and learn what I can make!
• Candle making – The candles I have used were toxic. I would learn to make candles that are non-toxic and natural.
• Watercolors – I’d taken an oil-painting class years ago in my early 20s, but I have never really tried watercolors. I have always been fascinated with how whimsical watercolors are. They’re dreamy, especially painting florals!

This is the 3D printing class I’ll be taking on Skillshare next! Imagine being able to print up anything you can imagine! 🙂

LESSON #9 – Make ONE THING Different and Unique

When you’re taking your class, it’s easy to want to follow the class instructor to an exact “T” of their project. But I would challenge you to make at least one thing different: Maybe you change the color…or add stenciling…or change the shape slightly. 

In my case, I made cushions and a pillow. This is where creativity really shines through—when you take someone else’s instructions and then add your own flavor.

Adding your own unique touch is what makes art, art. Maybe the first time you make something, you do it exactly the same so that you understand the basics. But don’t be afraid to try it again, and then change one thing that reflects who you are and what you bring to the project. 

For this chair I made, I actually had the modern fabric on hand already. Who knows how many years I had that fabric…But it was the perfect fabric for such a modern chair. And the red for the pillow—just the pop of color I needed!—and I didn’t even need to purchase it–this was already in my stash, too! 🙂

LESSON #10 – Celebrate Your Accomplishment!

I think we all know this, but the key to keeping your brain young is to feed it new information. Learn something new everyday that challenges you to create new neural pathways. 

I don’t think I have mentioned this, but for almost the past year, I have been learning Korean using Duolingo. I was inspired by watching Squid Game on Netflix with my kids, and the sound of it and the written language fascinated me. It was so foreign to anything I had ever learned before (and I can read and speak Spanish, not fluently, but enough to survive if I were dropped off in Costa Rica with a back-pack and a “Good Luck!” slap on the back). HA!

The more Korean lessons I have completed, the more confident I feel to try using it in public. I’ll celebrate by taking myself to my newly discovered favorite vegan Korean spot. Or I’ll take a trip to H Mart (the Korean grocery store) to discover new foods and spices.

As you take online creative classes and complete projects, learn new skills, don’t forget to celebrate your wins! Buy yourself a fabric you really want to use for an upcoming sewing pattern. Bake a special cake from the baking classes you took. The opportunities to celebrate and honor your successes are endless!

I’d love to know which classes you’ve been wanting to take! Leave a comment below and let me know what you’re planning to take for your next creative venture!

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