Post Christmas gift wrap uses

Christmas is over and if you didn't go for some of the recycled gift wrapping ideas you probably have lots of used Christmas wrapping paper ready to throw in the bin. But, here are a few ideas, my favourites for using old Christmas wrapping paper: 

Frist, take all the ribbons and bows off and save for any craft or arty projects.
Make new decorations out of it! Follow New York store Anthropologie's window display and make some decorations ready for next year. Try making these cute Christmas stars with the thicker paper. Or an origami wreath. Or decoupage it onto shapes for next years ornaments.

Pack away your Christmas decorations with it.

Shred it! And use it for filling future gift boxes etc.


Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas

Who would have thought paper quilling could look so cool! This amazing work is by the very talented (and I patient I imagine) Yulia Brodskaya

Album artwork

I came across some beautiful music the other day surfing the net 'Like a Song' by Lenka. Turned out the album artwork and website was just as beautiful. The illustrations are by James Gulliver Hancock.  

Perfume design

This weekend I came across these beautiful perfumes. Skeem is a US based company who produce perfume and candles with some of the most lovely packaging designs I've seen.

nature illustrations

kapitza, a london based design business have produced these great graphics. Love the way they have used photos to fill in their flower illustrations.

More from Paris

Stuck for ideas?

Here is a great little website for when you're in need of some inspiration, 100 ideas

Here are a few: Go for a walk, draw or list the things you find on the sidewalk. Make pencil rubbings of six different surfaces. Make a map of everywhere you went in one day.

Then visit 1000 journals for loads more inspiring ideas.

More Paris pics

Finished another print today ready to sell after Christmas. Another shot of Paris from earlier this year.

Valentines with photoshop

As I've missed out having anything ready to sell for Chirstmas (oh well at least I have a date for our shipment to arrive from the UK finally) I'm going to aim to have something ready for Valentines!
This morning I've altered a photograph of the Eiffel tower in photoshop. I used so many layers and different effects I can't actually remember what I did with it. But it will make a nice print, and maybe the background for some jewelry or valentines cards. 

Jeannie Mills Pewrl meets Monet

There was something about the work of aboriginal artist Jeannie Mills Pewrl that reminded me of a Monet when I first saw it. So carrying on from my experiments last month I've combined the two and put a painting of Monet in the background.

We took some photos last weekend for out friends of their children. Despite falling in the pond before we'd even started - a quick wardrobe change - and we got some nice shots.

I've also been busy this week hunting the net for interesting things.... could these be jellyfish? shells? I like the idea for a painting. Love it when a blog post is colour co-ordinated. :)

Patterned skirts

Love these printed skirts from clothkits. You can buy them ready made or buy a kit to make them yourself.

Im busy getting photos ready to sell on the creative monsoon website, going through the last 4years worth of photos. I came across a nice shot taken in Italy last year but I thought the bike was a little too modern, so I swapped it for an old moped from another image.

Cross-processed photo featured

I forgot to mention we were featured in the Autumn issue of the Uks Digital Camera magazine with this cross processed photo taken in Italy earlier this year.

Prints will be for sale one I get the gallery up and running! Soon I hope. 

Rehabilitated dishware

Rehabilitated Dishware uses unwanted ceramics collected from second hand stores and redesigns and resurfaces them. The dishes are reglazed and refired. Very cool. Prices range from US$34 to $59. WEBSITE

Jacaranda tree

You've got to love a place that has purple trees! We're starting to settle into our new home in Sydney and I've started to get back into some artwork. These are a few tests for a series of work I'd like to do on Jacaranda trees. They are flowering at the moment and Sydney is covered in purple patches.

Scrabble Tile Pendants

These pendants are reclaimed scrabble tiles. A print out is stuck on and then glazed over. A great idea. 

Birthday greeting cards

New design for the eye chart birthday cards

Photoshop painting experiment

I was inspired by Jeannie Mills Pwerls work, so Ive had a little go creating the effect myself. 

I'm still waiting for my paints to arrive so I've done this in Photoshop but it was helpful to see how it works. 

Jeannie Mills Pwerl

Some artwork by Aboriginal artist Jeannie Mills Pwerl, really lovely colours. 

You can buy her work through the Mbantua Gallery.

Italy Wedding photoshop effect

Finally found the photoshop effect we've been looking for to create dramatic, gritty-looking images. The effect is great for close ups but the first few steps of it also work well for wedding images:

Duplicate layer. On background copy layer select high pass about 5 the change layer blending to overlay. Duplicate original layer again and move to the top. Desaturate and select hard light.

(Stop here for most images)

Flatten image, duplicate layer and apply high pass again, change layer blending to overlay.

Flatten again. Create new adjustment layer, curves and lighten the whole image.

Click on the layer mask thumbnail and invert. Set foreground colour to white and using a soft brush paint over the eyes to brighten them.

Create a new layer and select a good eye colour, select the blend mode of this layer to colour and paint over the eyes.

Amanda and Dans Wedding

Shot our first Sydney wedding last weekend. Some shots worked quite well with the cross processed effect but the saturation toned down. 

Gift cards

Found some nice gift cards by lovebird. Think something similar would work well with native Australian and New Zealand birds and plants. They are sold by beaumonde-cards.com

Yosemite Panoramic

Click on image to see larger pic

US TRIP - PART II

Day 4 we left San Francisco and drove to Mariposa just south of Yosemite National Park. We did a few walks in the park, saw some deer and some California Ground Squirrel, but no bears. Day 5 we drove through the park on our way to Vegas. 

San Francisco Panoramic

Click on image to enlarge

San Francisco Artists

Some paintings by San Francisco Artists, the top photo is 'Homage to Tuscany' exhibition. The other pictures are by Varya, oil on canvas.

US TRIP - PART I

We've had a bit of internet trouble so this is a late update. But here is a roundup of our first few days in San Francisco. 

  

My first view of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge wasn't so great so we went for a closer look.

The sea lions at Pier 39. (And apparently the difference between sea lions and seals is that sea lions have ear flaps.)

The famous 'painted ladies' of Alamo Square with a view of San Fran behind them

Day three we went for a drive to the famous wine growing region, Napa Valley, and came across a classic car fair with hundreds of American muscle cars.