Autumn Leaves Garland
Categories: Art, Tutorials | 4 comments
I recently received in the mail a beta box of amazing craft goodies from For the Makers (more on this later). In the box was this beautiful gold metallic thread that I just knew I had to use for this project.
You probably already have the materials for it right in your backyard. If you are like me, you want to bring in the colors and textures of fall into your home, so I created these garlands with colorful dried fall leaves. The beauty of this idea is that you can use all the assorted shapes and colors that nature provides and combine them to create the look you want. The photo above gives you an idea of just some of the looks that you can achieve.
All you need is:
thread (I used metallic gold, which I would highly recommend)
dried leaves (you can dry and press leaves in between the pages of a heavy book – just make sure you leave them in there for at least a week)
needle
circle punch (optional for the circle garland)
The how-to is simple: just gather and arrange your dried leaves and begin “sewing” them onto your thread, leaving a long tail on both ends for hanging. After you thread each leaf, make a knot so it will stay put and not slide along the thread.
For the circle garland, just use a circle punch to punch the shapes out of the leaf. Then thread like above.
As for the fragility of the leaves, they held up very well with all my handling, windy photo conditions, and dropping them multiple times. You will want to handle them with care though if you want them to last longer than just one season.
Note: Our trees are just now beginning to turn, so I wasn’t able to find a whole lot of vivid colors – so I did some Photoshopping to make the colors more lively. :)
Drawing Challenge & Free Download
Categories: Art, Downloads | 13 comments
I’m a full-time mom of two boys, who are now 3 and 1.5. Needless to say, they keep me busy! Yet, I think about art every day. I think about painting every day. I yearn to bust out of bed every morning not to crying kiddos who want to be fed, but to an art easel with a blank canvas just waiting to be filled with the ideas that occupied my dreams.
I know this is just a season. Art is something I’ve learned to incorporate into my very demanding life as a mother – even if it’s just admiring and soaking in the beauty around me. But recently, I’ve just been unable to shake the need to draw. To not just hurriedly doodle an idea or image, but to really sit down and take some time to sketch. So I recently challenged myself after being inspired by a friend to a 30-day drawing challenge. It was just that, a challenge. My house got really messy – chores were neglected – but in those rare moments when a baby was napping or playing peacefully I would get out my sketch book and draw. Some drawings were short and hurried, some I was able to labor over the details. I didn’t make it 30 days straight. I skipped a day or two (or five) in between, but I managed to squeeze out about 20 drawings over a period of a couple months.
I wanted to share some of them with you. One in particular I’m making available as a free download, in case you like it. :) My oldest son does love to paint, and he will sit down with me for a good 20-30 minutes to create art. The colored background in this piece in particular was done with my son’s watercolors, then later that night when the boys were in bed, I quickly sketched the peafowl over it with ink. I like the pop of color. I hope you like it too!
Even more, I hope it inspires you to make time for what’s burning deep inside you – even if it means letting your house go to pot.
Handmade: Minimalist Yarn Ornament
Categories: DIY, Holiday | 3 comments
I’m guest posting today over on CraftSnob.com – Sara is hosting a month long handmade ornament parade to gear up for the holidays and asked me to be a part. My contribution was a minimalist yarn ornament. Simple and pretty. Go take a look!
DIY Dramatic Photo Curtain
Categories: DIY, Photography | 6 comments
We recently held a little party for my son who turned three. It was simple and beautiful, with the centerpiece being 75 of my favorite photos from his life. I wanted to share the idea with you, because it was so easy and inexpensive but added so much meaning.
All you need is a stapler and photos. I used 4×6 photos developed from Walgreens at $0.10 each – which made the grand total of this dramatic photo wall a mere $7.50. I applied the same black and white filter on all of them to achieve a uniform look.
All you do is staple them together length-wise and hang as many as you want. Stapling them holds up really well, surprisingly. I plan on snipping off the top and bottom of the photos and reusing them in his memory book.
Imagine how amazing this idea would be using hundreds and hundreds of photos!
Autumn Giveaway
Categories: Giveaways | 46 comments
Autumn is in full swing now. I’ve packed up my summer clothes and unloaded my big bulky sweaters from hiding. Maybe it was too soon though – we are still experiencing 70-80 degree temps. Everything is lush and green like it’s spring time again. You won’t hear me complaining, I love warm weather. I think a part of me goes into hibernation when it gets cold.
Anyway, I thought it would be fun to have a little giveaway to celebrate the season. Earlier this month I got an email from Helen from Frances + Francis. She designs the perfect elemental Autumnal card to send your greetings. She’s agreed to giveaway some cards to our winner.
You will also receive these simple but beautiful leather bangles in Autumn colors from the Adopt Shoppe.
All you have to do to enter is leave a comment describing what you love most about the fall season. A winner will be randomly selected one week from now, on Tuesday, November 1st.
AND, I promise I will be back soon with some brand new DIY posts. Happy Autumn!
Artist Interview + Free Download
Categories: Art, Downloads, Interviews | 1 comment
I remember seeing these amazing book sculptures by Lisa Occhipinti a while back – they were everywhere in the blogosphere, and I loved them. So I was delighted she emailed me recently to let me know about a new book she authored called, “The Repurposed Library.” In it are 33 projects to transform books into works of art. She is generously offering a project as a free PDF download from her book (located at the end of this post) and she even agreed to answer a few of my questions. I hope you enjoy!
1. What is your background and how did you get started doing book sculpture? I have a degree in fine art and taught college art for many years, while always maintaining studio practices. I am painter first and foremost and have always loved books since I was a child. My book work began with studying traditional handmade binding techniques at the School of the Musuem of Fine Arts, Boston. I started to merge the processes in my painting with the structure of books by making artists books. This in turn led me to where I am now: transforming books. It is essential to me to maintain the integrity of their forms while venerating their attributes. Where others may see a stain on a cover, I see a story.
2. What is one challenge you’ve overcome as an artist? I have learned not to take criticism too seriously. It is a large task, putting your work, which is highly personal, out into the world and accessible to opinion. But if you’re going to commit to art professionally you have to detach and continue to believe in what you do.
3. What does art mean to you? Art is a means of communication. The forms and processes are a physical platform which allow me to convey to the outer world what I think and feel is beautiful and important. As I am working art is the inner dialogue I have with myself, where I explore the things I think about. Whatever I make is a bridge between outer and inner. And when someone sees my work and is moved by it that is success.
Thank you Lisa! It was wonderful hearing from you. Readers, you can Download the free PDF here to make your own sewing box out of a book!
Easy Fabric Flowers
Categories: DIY, Tutorials | 6 comments
I know, there are a million fabric flower tutorials and DIY’s for making fabric flowers. Well, here is a million and one. :) And this one is probably the easiest one out there. If you can cut circles, you can do this project.
Here is what you need: fabric, fabric stiffener, hot glue gun, scissors
Here is what you do.
Step 1: Cut out different size circles out of fabric. I used different objects to trace the different size circles onto the fabric.
Step 2: Coat all your circles with fabric stiffener. Allow to dry.
Step 3: Cut a slit mid-way into your circle. You may also at this point wish to scallop the edges of your circle to create a look more like a petal, or trim away any frayed edges that were created when applying the stiffener.
Step4: Overlap the two cut edges that were created when you cut the slit and dab hot glue in the center to hold in place. This will create a dimensional cone shape.
Step 5: Starting with the largest size and working your way to the center of the flower, layer the different sizes and dab hot glue in the center to build your flower.
Now you can use these for pins, hair accessories, bags, pretty much anything. I used mine for a yarn wreath to hang on my front door. Let me know if you make it, and leave a comment with any questions!
DIY 3-D Letters from Paper
Categories: DIY | 4 comments
Months ago I happened upon this font on dafont.com called Punched Out. It’s a free download for a set of cut-out layouts with which you can build 3-D, pixel style letters.
Just cut along the solid lines, fold along the dotted lines, put some glue on the shaded flaps, stick them together and that’s it.
I printed each letter individually on 8.5 x 11 paper. For the letter “I”, I modified it a bit so it didn’t have the handlebars at the top and bottom of the letter. I also printed out the letters in light grayscale, just enough so you could see the lines, but they wouldn’t stand out once the letter is completed. You could add your own color or pattern to them in Photoshop or Illustrator to customize them.
They make great props, and would be a cheap easy solution for a party or event. Just keep in mind, they are a bit time consuming, so you might not want to tackle a word like, Honorificabilitudinitatibus. :)
Do What You Love: Giveaway!
Categories: Giveaways | 26 comments
At this point in my life, I would give up most anything to do what I am passionate about. It hasn’t always been the case for me as I’ve journeyed through the traps of consumerism, comparison, and a load of insecurities.
I recently met a lady that has embarked on her own journey of giving up what’s comfortable to do what she loves.
Coni is a graphic designer living in Barcelona. After working with diverse designers for many years she started her own journey creating and printing her own designs. Each print is completely handmade and screenprinted herself – it’s the type of work that makes your hands hurt…yet yields alot of joy.
I recently asked Coni to describe in a sentence or two what it means to her to do what you love. Her was her answer:
Doing what you love is not always easy. It’s a lifestyle choice, and as in every election, you must win and lose something, but it’s really satisfying if you finally do it. And there’s always the possibility to “love what you do”… (if you can’t do what you love).
Coni is generously giving away to one lucky reader a copy of her “Do What You Love / Love What You Do” print.
To enter: Just leave a comment below describing what it is you most love to do – and I hope this inspires you a bit to do it (if you aren’t already). A winner will be picked randomly one week from today, September 26th. Good luck!
How to Achieve Bokeh With Photoshop
Categories: Photography, Tutorials | 1 comment
I was recently contacted by Easy Canvas Prints to see if I’d like to try out their wrapped canvases for photos and art. I took them up on the offer and decided to print this photograph I took in my parent’s backyard that I manipulated to achieve the popular and beautiful bokeh effect.
The checkout process was super easy and within days I received my canvas. Unfortunately, I think there was some damage during shipping because my canvas showed up a bit wonky. But, they were great at sending out a replacement – I was very happy with their speedy and polite customer service. The process is really simple:
- Choose a size – they have 10×8, 8×8, 20×16, 24×36 and a custom size option.
- Upload your image
- Select a border – you can choose from a wide spectrum of colored borders, mirror wrap, or image wrap (I picked a black border)
- You can also choose from a black and white or sepia color effect, if you aren’t able to do that on your own
Right now, they are offering 25% off your order and free shipping, so an 11×14 canvas with standard options would cost you a little over $46.
I’m very happy with my canvas, it will make a great gift for my parents. And I’ll keep the messed up one for myself. :) Order one for yourself here!
If you are curious about how I did the photo, I’ll explain what I did to achieve the dramatic blurred effect without using a camera or additional equipment. All you need is Photoshop!
Step 1: Apply a filter to your photo. I love night-fate’s actions for Photoshop. I used the #3 action in this set – it’s available as a free download.
Step 2: Make sure and flatten your image at this point then duplicate your photo layer. Then go to Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur and apply a level of blur that you like.
Step 3: Next select the eraser tool and pick a big brush with the softest edge you can get. In the brush settings, make sure the hardness is set to 0%. Take the brush and erase the parts of the blurred image that you want to give more focus – in the case of my photo, I erased the area of the vines and the door.
That’s it! I love this effect, it adds so much drama and depth to the most drab of photos. I hope you’ll give it a try and if you run into any questions/problems, just ask in the comments below!
