Microphotography etc.as Inspiration

OK.  This might be a little out of line with my other posts; nevertheless, I think it's interesting enough to share.

I can't remember how, or when, I first hit upon this idea, but I regularly look for unusual sources of inspiration to bring to my crafting - whether that be art, embroidery - whatever.

Here are a couple of examples of microphotography which had a real impact - they just 'sing' to me.

I've also been known to rewind and pause the tv when I see something I think is really beautiful so I can  take a photograph of it for future inspiration.  This is, perhaps, my very favourite from that source...

Tomorrow...another idea like these for inspiration.

Colour Combination

How to develop a

colour scheme:

whether that be for

the interior

decoration of a

whole room; or for a

single project.

Find an object - rug, picture, ornament, piece of

clothing etc. - which you find really appealing.

2. Have a really, really good look at its colours.

3. Analyse the colour scheme of the object by

noting down which colours appear in terms of

percentage eg 40% light blue, 25% deep blue,

15% red, 15% green, 5% white. (You don’t need

to be that exact, just a rough idea will do.)

4. From a selection of all your craft materials,

collect those which match your colours.

5. Create on cardstock a square, 3” and then divide

this into 9 equal 1” squares.

6. From your various materials - paint, papers,

fabrics etc., cut 9 x 1” squares.

7. You don’t need to stick to the exact ratio of your

original object. Try different combinations of

placing your small squares on the grid until

you’re happy with the combination.

8. You can embellish the squares as you wish, with

stamps, sequins, threads etc. If you decide to

embroider any of them, it should be done at this

point.

9. Glue the squares onto the grid firmly. If you

have any cardstock showing through gaps, then

simply fill in with coloured pencils or pens.  Use to embellish cards, on the lids of boxes etc.

Of course, you can vary the size of both the inner

and outer squares. You could also try joining and/

or expanding some of them.

You can see here 2 sets of decorated 'inchies' in colours taken from the original image above. 

Using the same principles, and thinking on a broader scale, you could, for instance, decorate a whole room with your colours.  Remember - if you loved the original and follow the steps, you can't fail to be satisfied with the results.

Decorated Trinket Box

Papier-mâché products are so very inexpensive and come in a huge variety of shapes and sizes.  This is a tiny oval box, decorated for my grand-daughter, who loves teeny-weeny things.

After base-coating it, I drew the fairy in outline, then decorated her with different kinds of paints, using a translucent finish on the wings and a stick-on star for the wand.

If you're stuck for inspiration, or aren't too confident with your drawing skills, you can always trace an image.

Pinterest

I've recently joined the Pinterest site and am already addicted.  (If you'd like to follow me on there, just click the button on the top right of this blog's home page.)

I've already discovered some amazing and inspirational things there.  To the point where my head is buzzing.

However, I'm still learning the mechanics and protocol of it all, so when I came across this beautiful image, I forgot to jot down its source.  So if the original 'owner' ever reads this - profound apologies.  It won't happen again.

I'll be expanding this blog's horizons, then, using Pinterest as a really useful source for inspiration, which I will share here.  I will most definitely be experimenting with this little bird and putting my own twist on it.

Mixed Media Wall Art

This was another technique I picked up at The Crafts House.

The idea (I think!), is to divide up your chosen piece into equal portions - in this case squares and 'treat' each individually.  Here, I'v'e gone a step further and incorporated rectangles, comprising 2 or 3 of the squares.
The materials I used range from wallpaper, through to plush velvet. I've also included a small piece of blackwork and the embellishment uses embroidery, scraps of thread and pumpkin seeds painted gold.  The 'punctum' is a brass ring covered in blanket stitch.

The world's your lobster with this, as it costs virtually nothing to produce and it can be made any size at all to suit your needs.

Mine sits happily on the porch wall.  I'm seriously considering doing something similar but on a grander scale, to go above my bed.

The Art Journal

This time last year, I had no idea at all of the art journal process.

When I was at school, I somehow got the impression that I was rubbish at art and so for many years I accepted that and stayed as far away from it as possible.  I've heard many people say the same sort of thing about maths, for instance.  Maybe it's down to uninspired teaching - I don't know.

So it was purely by chance that I discovered The Crafts House and the lovely Sandra, some years ago.  I was so blown away by the wonderful stuff on display that, with Sandra's patient encouragement,  I determined that I was going to face my fears and get stuck in.  I really do wish I had more time to concentrate on art.

This is a journal I began last year.  I particularly like this kind of technique because I'm an 'itsy-bitsy' kind of crafter: I really enjoy working small-scale.

I started with an A4 spiral bound artist's book, then lay down a background treatment on the paper, with two pages for each month.  For June, I used blues and silvers, and 'shadow stamped' squares over it.  Each of the days is represented by a square piece of card, numbered for the date wherever possible, and is decorated and embellished individually.

Of course, my life isn't so exciting that I could think of dramatic happenings for each of the days, so some of them are 'empty' of content.

Since then, other things have overtaken my life, so that I haven't had anything like the time I'd love to devote to developing my art.  Oh, for 72 hours (at least) in the day!  So, I'm making myself a promise to devote several hours each week to the art journal, and practise and experiment with how I can transfer this kind of technique to other projects.  

Wallart

I devised this technique some years ago, while 'playing'.   Ideas for wallart are limitless.  This technique is fun: you don't quite know what you're going to end up with.  In this case, I've composed a selection of 'inchies' ie inch square card prints, and then embellished each individually.

Of course, the actual composition can be customised - size/colours of pieces and embellishment techniques, and the whole could be framed in many different ways.

I think this sort of thing would make a wonderful, personalised gift - designed specifically to commemorate an occasion, perhaps.  Though this one, unusually, is definitely staying at home.

Wallart is wonderful!