Mini Door Wreath

One of the items my grandma put on her wish list this holiday season was a small wreath to hang on her door (indoors). She requested that it be less than 12" in diameter, and said that it didn't have to be a Christmas wreath - just something pretty she could use at different times of year.

So I decided to make her one.

I did this for a few reasons: 1) I like making things, 2) most of the wreaths for sale were Christmas-themed and I wanted to get her one that she could use more often, 3) most of the wreaths I found were much larger than 12" in diameter, and 4) most of them were also pretty expensive. It turned out to be a LOT cheaper to buy my own supplies and make one myself.

I bought an 8" wreath ring made of straw, a spool of red-orange raffia, a spool of sheer teal ribbon, a small sprig of plastic pink craft flowers, and a couple packages of pre-made butterfly embellishments. I already had glue at home - I used Elmer's craft spray glue (which turned out to be very sticky and messy and took several hours to rub off my fingers afterward) and "Zots" - sticky glue dots that I peeled off the paper roll they came on and stuck to the items.

Here is my step-by-step process.

First, I sprayed the wreath with spray glue and wrapped the raffia around it.

Then I wrapped some teal ribbon around it. I made sure to let some of the straw wreath show through as well, because I liked the natural look.

I decided where the top of the wreath would be and tied some ribbon at the top to make a look to hang on my grandma's door. I also used some pieces of raffia tied into bows to embellish this ribbon. I stuck the bows on with Zots.

I cut the sprig of plastic flowers into smaller sprigs, then stuck these onto the wreath with Zots. I put most of them in front, but also some along the sides (which will also be visible when it is hanging on a door).

As I final touch, I added the butterflies I'd purchased. I got two packages of three butterflies each - one that was a pink/red/orange/purple color scheme, and one that was a teal/blue/white color scheme.

I also made a few more raffia bows and glued those to the wreath with Zots as well.

Ta da! The finished wreath.

It was definitely messy, but otherwise quite easy. I've been looking for wreaths I could hang on my own door other times of year (I only have a Christmas wreath), and now that I've seen how easy it is, I think I'll have to make some wreaths for myself! :)

Creative Legacy

I often feel like I'm part of (or trying to be a part of) a long-standing creative legacy. This isn't always a good or easy legacy; there are stereotypes of the "starving artist" and well-known connections between artists and mental health problems, which I'm definitely aware of, often fascinated by, and occasionally worry about (with regards to how such traditions might impact me, how others label me, or the work I create).

But besides the broad legacy of all creative people throughout time and the Western tradition of art and writing, there's also a more personal creative legacy - that of my family.

Like many things, it's hard to tell if it's nature or nurture that might encourage traits like creativity to run in families. Do we like art and writing because of some genetic programing passed down through our families? Or do we like such things because these activities were modeled for us (consciously or not), or because our families encouraged us to read or explore art?

In the case of my family, there isn't a clear person I looked to. None of my relatives have made a living off creating art or writing stories; those who are creative pursued such interests as hobbies rather than their professions. Still, I feel like there are enough people in my family who have such interests that it's worth noting.

My dad currently works as a manager at a print center for DTE Energy in Detroit, but has also held jobs in computer networking. He likes computer hardware and has been known to build computers from scratch. Growing up, he loved photography (this was before the age of digital photography, so we're talking film and darkroom techniques), and did some drawing in his spare time. My grandma tells stories of him holed up in his bedroom listening to The Beatles and practicing drawing portraits. And he also enjoys making videos - photography slide shows and training videos conveying information, both for work and at home.

My mom also had some creative hobbies growing up. She did a lot of sewing and embroidering and has shown me samples of some of the things she made as a teenager.

Perhaps the most obvious example is my grandma (on my dad's side), who over the years has found hobbies in writing poetry, coloring books, sewing, and painting. She has also kept handwritten journals for years (as I do), writing daily.

I also have crafty aunts - one who learned guitar and sings songs and puts on puppet shows for the kids at her church (and who did many craft projects with me and my cousins over the years, including a memorable "Egyptian pharaoh" costume that we created with metallic fabric and painted pistachio shells), and another who is into stamping and paper work, designing and stamping her own Christmas cards every year. These are not blood relatives, but are further examples of how I was encouraged to be creative when I was growing up.

Continuing to look toward relatives not related to me by blood, my husband's family also has some artists. His late great-uncle was a painter (we have a few of his paintings hanging in our house). Even my husband himself is creative - in college, we often spent time writing song parodies, funny Harry Potter-inspired rap lyrics, and exchanging short stories we'd written.

Looking at these examples often does two things for me -

First, it makes me pretty proud that I get to be a part of this creative tradition in my family - and also validates my experience. Theoretically I would be happy acknowledging my artistic or writing inclinations even if no one in my family ever shared similar interests, but because they do I feel like it's okay that I do, too - that indeed I'm meant to like such things, or perhaps have a natural talent for them.

Secondly, it makes me wonder if I'm putting too much significance on my creativity. If it's so common that several of my family members have pursued creative projects as hobbies, then why do I think I'm special? None of them have felt compelled to make their creative interests into a viable career. Am I only kidding myself in thinking that I could actually make money as an artist or a writer? Am I better off keeping my art and writing to myself, as most of my other relatives have done? Or do I just have such doubts because none of my relatives have tried to cultivate their hobbies into careers - and thus have no example to follow, no person to model myself after or pick her or his brain for advice?

I feel like I am often torn between such seemingly contradictory feelings. High self-esteem and low self-esteem. Which one is truer to my real feelings? Am I not so deep or despairing as I think, and only "activate" my low self-esteem so that I feel like I belong with all the artists and writers before me who have suffered with issues in confidence - or because, as a woman, I've been conditioned to downplay success, put others first, and think of certain aspirations as outside of my talents or outside of my reach? Or am I actually more inclined to my anxieties and doubts, and only developed what little (or well-hidden) belief in myself that I do have as a way to compensate for the not-so-great feelings of constantly questioning if I'm "good enough"?

Does it matter which came first? I suspect everyone goes through such fluctuations at different times in their lives - thinking, for example, that they're good enough at art or writing that they might make a career out of it and that such a goal is worth pursuing while also wondering if they're insane for even trying. Perhaps creative people have such fluctuations more often - or anyone else who works in a professional field where so much rides on what critics say and who you can convince to like and purchase your work. Actors. Writers. Musicians. Chefs. Entrepreneurs. There are a lot of unstable jobs out there where you don't always know when your next paycheck is coming - and without that immediate, predictable, and stable monetary validation, it can be hard to balance confidence levels. You have to believe in yourself and your projects - so that you work on them and make it to the next paycheck - but such continual efforts to prove yourself and the worth of your work is also bound to take its toll on self-esteem.

In any case, I am very lucky that I have a family who supports me while I try to figure this creativity thing out. I don't take their support lightly, and am immensely grateful. :) 

Pattern Coloring Mega Pack

As I've been teasing all week with these posts about my mini coloring packs on Etsy (each of which comes with a 6-page PDF with 6 unique designs), I also have a MEGA pack available which has all 44 of my pattern coloring page designs all together in one set. This includes the 42 designs found in each of the 7 mini-packs, as well as 2 bonus designs not found in any of the other packs. I'm asking only $11.99 for the set - which is a few dollars cheaper than buying the mini-packs individually, plus you get those two extra designs you can't get anywhere else. It also averages to about 27 cents a design, which is a pretty great deal!

As soon as you buy them, you will be able to download the PDF (1 PDF with 6 pages, or 1 PDF with 44 pages, in the case of the mega pack), store them on your computer, and print as many copies as you want to have fun and experiment with.

Because the mini-packs range from beginner to expert level, all sorts of designs are included here. You get the simple designs with bold lines, the complex, detailed patterns, the radial symmetry patterns, the outline packs, and the "advanced" designs that have lines which jut out or loop without necessarily closing into shapes, giving you the freedom to experiment with coloring outside the lines, extending the lines (or not), or playing with blending or bleeding multiple colors together in an "ombre" style.

Here is the entire set of 44 designs - "Pattern Coloring Mega Pack" (available for purchase here).

Here are detail photos of the two bonus patterns - Aurelia and Victoria. (For detailed photos of the other 42 designs, check the previous 7 posts on this blog, which feature the mini-packs.)

I also made "digital examples" of how seven of the patterns could be colored:

I originally made these patterns to use in my own artwork - as background details for watercolor paintings, and for small watercolor paintings that feature only patterns. (For more on how I design my patterns, see this post.)

Here are some examples of how I've used these designs in my own watercolors:

Pattern Aurelia in Pink (4"x6" watercolor on paper)
- this is one of the bonus designs only available with this mega pack of 44 patterns!

Pattern Victoria in Yellow-Pink (4"x6" watercolor on paper)
- this is one of the bonus designs only available with this mega pack of 44 patterns!

Pattern Virginia in Blue & Red (5"x7" watercolor on paper)

Pattern Organza in Blue-Violet (4"x6" watercolor on paper)

Pattern Genesis in Blue-Green (4"x6" watercolor on paper)

"When Fear Gets in the Way" (11"x15" watercolor on paper)
- the light yellow-brown pattern in the background is Pattern Darcy

"L'eau de Parfum" (15"x22" watercolor on paper)
- the blue pattern in the background is Pattern Crystal

"Melange Modele" (22"x30" watercolor on paper)
- Pattern Crystal can be found in a few places in this pattern collage painting, as well

If you're interested, "When Fear Gets in the Way" is for sale on Etsy here and "L'eau de Parfum" is for sale here. ("Melange Modele" has already sold, and my 4"x6" and 5"x7" watercolor paintings are currently for sale at the Paint Creek Center for the Arts in downtown Rochester, Michigan. Any that do not sell there will be back available on Etsy when I get them back.)

I love using these patterns (obviously) in my watercolors - and now I'm excited to share them with you as coloring pages!

I designed each of these patterns with Adobe Illustrator, manipulating letters and characters from font families to the point where individual letters are (mostly) unrecognizable - unless you know where to look. Each of these patterns is totally unique - you won't find them anywhere else!

Pattern Coloring Pack #7

We finally made it to the last "mini-pack" of my Pattern Coloring Book Series on Etsy. Today's post is all about Pattern Coloring Pack #7, which has six more unique coloring page designs.

Each six-pack is for sale on Etsy for $1.99. As soon as you buy them, you will be able to download the PDF (1 PDF with 6 pages), store them on your computer, and print as many copies as you want. I also have a mega pack available which has all 44 of my coloring page designs together in one set - the 42 designs found in each of the 7 mini-packs, as well as 2 bonus designs not found in any of the other packs.

Here are the six designs in "Pattern Coloring Pack #7" (available for purchase here).

The patterns used in this set are Jayda, Crinoline, Organza, Zehra, Leander, and Juliet. I grouped these six together because they all have some amount of "dangling lines" - lines that jut out or loop without necessarily closing into shapes, making them great for more "advanced" colorers. Experiment by coloring outside the lines, extending the lines yourself (or not!), using multiple colors blended together or an "ombre" style within a larger white space, or invent your own technique. These designs are intended as a jumping-off point to let your creativity fly. As with all my groups, there is a variety of complexity among the different pages.

I would classify this is as "expert" level - because of these "dangling lines" and the complexity of small detail on some of the pages.

Here are detail photos of the first two patterns - Jayda and Crinoline:

The next two patterns are Organza and Zehra:

And the last two in this set of six are Leander and Juliet:

I also made a "digital example" of how the Pattern Juliet page could be colored:

I've used some of these patterns in my watercolor paintings. Here's a look:

Pattern Organza in Blue-Violet (4"x6" watercolor on paper)

Pattern Juliet in Blue, Green & Yellow (5"x7" watercolor on paper)

(Pattern Juliet has already sold. My other 4"x6" and 5"x7" watercolor paintings are currently for sale at the Paint Creek Center for the Arts in downtown Rochester, Michigan. Any that do not sell there will be back available on Etsy when I get them back.)

I love using my patterns in watercolor paintings - and now I'm sharing those digital designs with you, so you can experiment with them as a coloring page!