DIY Project: Handmade Nursery Art

by evie s. on May 7th, 2008

I made these wall hangings for a friend of mine. Her nursery is being done in a cute elephant theme and her primary colors are brown and blue. You could really use this idea to match any design or decor. Here is how to make these for yourself.

What you need:

• Three 5 x 5 Paper Mache art boards ($2.99 at craft supply stores)
• Ribbon for hanging
• Scissors
• Acrylic paints and paint brushes
• Card stock for printing your design
• Permanent spray adhesive

Steps:

1. Remove rope strands from the boards and discard.
2. Choose a style of ribbon and cut 3 strands the exact same size.
3. Apply your base coat to cover the brown paper mache. Paint everything, including the back side.
4. Start painting! It helped me to sketch out my design on the computer before diving into painting. I used acrylic paints and paint brushes. All three boards were given a different pattern in the background.
5. I drew the elephant in Adobe Illustrator and chose two colors for the elephants. Then I printed them out on card stock and cut them out, leaving a little white border to help them stand out against the painted backgrounds.
6. I tested out the placement before adhering the paper elephants to the boards. Using permanent spray adhesive, I adhered the elephants to the boards. Tie on the ribbon to hang and your done!

To see a full-size photo of the finished product, go here.

LightArt

by evie s. on April 29th, 2008

I love seeing art installations located in everyday places. You shouldn’t have to go to a museum to admire some art…it should be everywhere to enjoy! That’s why I love this “artscape” in Kijkduin, Holland. Between December 2007 and January 2008, the third edition of LightArt Kijkduin created a fairy tale like landscape in the dunes of The Hague’s southern beach resort of Kijkduin. One hundred and forty illuminated globes of different sizes and colors were spread among the dunes, constantly changing their hues in the evening hours.

You can see more photos here and here.

[ Via Gala Darling ]

What to Do With Broken Seashells

by evie s. on April 11th, 2008

Over Thanksgiving one year my family took a vacation to St. John’s in the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was beautiful and memorable to say the least. My husband and I spent every spare moment scouring our private beach for seashells and other treasures. After days of this, we accumulated quite a pile of beautiful shells, some perfectly intact, and lots of broken pieces. While we traveled light on this trip, I think we added about 20-30 lbs to our luggage on our return trip.

Once we were home I looked at all we had collected and thought, “what now?” In my quest to find a seashell DIY project, I found one really good one. So I decided to try out these Glowing Beach Votives, and ended up making one for myself and all the girls in my family.

I love them! It was the perfect way to display all those beautiful broken pieces that I thought would be useless except to pack away and look at on occasion. Here are the instructions.

Materials:

FIMO Soft translucent clay
white or natural colored sand
mini shells, broken shell pieces
round glass votive
craft knife
pasta machine or clay roller
votive candle

Steps:

1. Condition clay (with pasta machine or by hand rolling). Make a sheet of the FIMO roughly as thick as cereal-box cardboard (setting 5 on the pasta machine).
2. Cut one end of the sheet of FIMO with the craft knife to give a straight cut and lay this onto the glass votive. Stretch and press the clay to lie flat on the glass surface. Cut where it overlaps and press to join. Using a smooth, nonporous item (such as a glass), roll over the clay in different directions to remove any air pockets.
3. With the craft knife, trim the extra FIMO from the bottom and top of the votive. Smooth the edges with your fingers to round off.
4. Use more FIMO to make another flat sheet that is the thickest setting of your pasta machine. Trim one side of the sheet with the craft knife for a straight edge. Trim the other side in a wavy line.
5. Align the straight edge of this clay sheet with the top of the votive and lay the wavy sheet over the first layer. Trim where the sheet overlaps and press to remove any seam. (You may need to trim the wavy piece to join together.) Press this layer of the FIMO onto the previous covering to remove any bumps or air bubbles.
6. Begin embedding small pieces of sea glass and shells into the top, thicker area of the FIMO. Press the polymer around the edges of the shells and glass to secure them.
7. Pour sand in a pan or plastic bag. Roll the votive in the sand, pressing the sand into the FIMO to secure.
8. Bake per the clay manufacturer’s guidelines. Allow to cool. Add a candle and enjoy your glowing beach votive!

For more photos, go here.

[ Via HGTV ]

Calligraphy: A Forgotten Art

by evie s. on April 7th, 2008

I’ve always appreciated the art of beautiful calligraphy. I’ve tried my hand at it many times, but I’m no expert by any means.

From left to right:

Postcard [ Via Typophile ] // 1800s Lettering Sketchbook:Journal 14 [ Via Smashing Magazine ]

For some modern calligraphers, check out B Creative and Anne Robin.

Starbucks and Beautiful Art Go Together

by evie s. on April 3rd, 2008

Whether you like them or not, Starbucks is an empire, and they have some of the best graphics and artwork representing their brand. I came across their new website, Starbucks Coffee at Home and was struck by the beautiful chalk-like illustrations of each product.

The main purpose of the site is to introduce Starbuck’s trademark flavors to coffee drinkers at home and to explore all their coffee blends. It is a fun site to wander through and you can even take a 5 question quiz to determine your perfect coffee (mine was the Costa Rica Tarrazu).

Inside the Artists’ Moleskines

by evie s. on March 27th, 2008

I thought it would be interesting to post a variety of beautiful art found in Moleskine notebooks around the world. It’s amazing the quality of art that can be found in these small sketch books. Enjoy!

From left to right:

Voa! by sebográficos // Moonlight over Oxford by JodyDigger // Exercise in drawing fonts by Ann-D // Pan’s Labyrinth by Ann-D

Carpe Moleskine by Nathanael.Archer // Various Sketch by Sarah King // Pen, Marker, and Pencil by I can’t live without a Poni

To see inside more artists’ sketchbooks, visit this link.

Stunning Watercolors and Papercuts from Stina Persson

by evie s. on March 17th, 2008

Stina Persson is a Stockholm-based illustrator popular for her vibrant and ethereal watercolors. She has done work for brand giants like Coca Cola, Sony Music, and Godiva, just to name a few.

Want a Stina of your own? To purchase Giclee archival prints please visit the high-end, British online gallery Cosh. For unique framed originals go to Gallery Hanahou.

Artist Highlight: Robert Ryan

by evie s. on March 13th, 2008

Robert Ryan is based in London, England and creates beautiful paper cuts. From that original starting point he applies his emotive and moving art to a variety of applications: screenprints, textiles, ceramics, and laser-cutting. You can purchase his prints online, visit his blog, or learn more on his website.

From right to left: Bird Lady screenprint // Book cover design

Artist Highlight: Kristina Collantes

by evie s. on March 7th, 2008

Kristina Collantes’ work is just beautiful to look at. She is a talented young artist currently living in San Diego, California. Some of her illustration work has been used for CD covers, posters, and textiles. Her online store features some of her products: t-shirts, buttons and original drawings.

Lovely Book Covers

by evie s. on March 5th, 2008

I adore these book covers with perfect spring colors, playful typography and contrasting black artwork. These lovely designs are illustrated by the talented Christopher Neal Silas. You can see more work on his website that features editorial work as well as prints he has for sale.

[ Via typophile ]