Gathering Supplies

There are many art shops that will provide you with beads, glitter, stickers, fancy paper... I do realise that they have amazing stuff there but it's all very expensive. I have always been collecting my supplies from very weird sources...

Charity shops offer a wide range of 'stuff' that is just waiting to be discovered! They sell jewellery, glass, clothes (some are made out of interesting fabrics), buttons (my favourite), pictures, books ect. There is really a lot in there, plus you would be helping those in need. Something I had to get used to was going there over and over again because I never found what I was looking for on the day of the visit and I found that continuously visiting the shop allowed me to discover a lot more interesting things. One day I saw a box with hundreds of buttons in it, I have this obsession about buttons...anyways they were on a shelf and when I got closer they were covered in dark residue and dust and most if not all were plastic. I picked my favourite, there was a couple of them. I went to buy them and guess what? I got them for free. It must have been the fact that I used to go there every couple of days and they treated me like a loyal customer.

I sometimes find interesting things on the ground :) This doesn't sound too appealing but it's fun. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? I once found a charm with a heart, but of course I pick leaves, flowers, branches, anything I know I could use later. Hay is a good one too. I used it for a decoration among dried lemon, orange and rose petals. Moss has a beautiful colour and texture (remember to consider that it could be a habitat to many organisms) These are also great for giftcards! Nature is a great inspiration and has plenty of natural materials available for you.

Newspapers. They are great to use as a base. You could also use an article that you like or cut out a sentence or even a word. This is a cheap choice. Some images from magazines are suprisingly good quality and you could use them too. Some flyers are made of a very good quality paper and it can be useful when making a giftcard, bookmark, colage, or a scrapbook page. You can change, cut, tear, draw or paint on it, you take it from here and let your creativity take you on a journey :)


Textured paper is great.. It can add elegance and sophistication if you go for the plain sparkly type or an old antique feel if you go for the 'worn out' vintage designs. Manipulate it to suit whatever you are making. It's a useful media to use in cardmaking as well as scrapbooking etc. It can be quite costly and I usually use pages from old books which leaves me looking with longing at the art store. In the previous house of mine I there was a little bit of burnt wallpaper under the stairs. It was creamy and golden and it looked really old. There were small flowers on it. I had to tear it out. Especially that the little space was really abandoned and the landlord used it for paint storage. I was so proud of this find...I also tend to keep the wrapping paper from Christmas :)

Fabrics. I do not tend to throw things out. I also use old clothes, ribbons, socks, scarfs, shirts and so on and so on... My friend used to do sowing so she had a lot of nice scraps like lace or red dotted fabric. Wool can be good to use when you know how to knit. Again, It can be used in jewellery, gift cards, soft toys, small gifts, scrapbooking or colage, but who am I to limit the creativity of others.

Damaged jewellery is a good one too. You can make an entirely new piece or use it anywhere else. A charm can be used for so many things, i.e. a bookmark with a loop at the back and a nice charm hanging of it. Small things tend to get misplaced  or lost. It can be upsetting to have only one of your favourite earrings but it would be a shame to throw them out. Broken or unwanted watches can be taken apart and used as individual parts. Glass jewels are fabulous and work exceptionally well on scrapbook pages because they add so much glamour to the sheet.

Anything has the potential for a second life. Recycling or reusing is a very efficient and an eco-friendly lifestyle. These materials add personality and history to art. It is really up to you what you find appealing or inspiring. I hope this helps and creates a few ideas :)

Calligraphy

I started exploring the world of calligraphy as part of personal development for Gaisce the Presidents Award. If you have never heard of this thing do not worry. It is an Irish programme created to encourage young people to develop their personalities and challenge themselves (I got the award!). There are three parts of it, personal, physical and community involvment. It takes 13 weeks each and additional 13 weeks on any of them, when the whole process is confirmed it is then signed by the president. I was taught or supervised by my art teacher. He gave me books and I had to practice at least an hour per week. I have to admit that I didn't know where to start, my letters were all varying sizes and shapes. I had no experience but soon I started enjoying making backgrounds for poems or quotes. It takes a lot of time to become familiar with the pen and do it well. I will show you some of my first work later on :) .

My favourite style of writing was Flourished Italic because it looks really neat and decorative. It is also a good font for beginners and a good hand practice.

Another interesting font is Gothic, it looks really powerful. It is hard to do but with practice it becomes easier. There is a lot of fancy pens you can use, when I started I used pencil, then ordinary pen, roller tip pen, fountain pen and paint brush.

Here you go, one of my first works

I used watercolour paints and wax crayon for the background and a fountain pen for the writing

For this one I used watercolour for the background and a roller tip pen for the writing

What is Art....

Oxford dictionary definition: "The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power"

Art holds great value and has the potential to capture the essence of a human-being and the associated emotions. "Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known"- Oscar Wilde

My experience with art started when I was very young. As a child I was lets not say appreciated but noticed when it came to art. I would draw the scenario that happened to appear in my head at that moment, just like any other child, I would draw the unrealistic looking figures on the sheet, with the sky usually being portrayed as a blue line at the top of the sheet (I always thought that the conviction of having to paint the whole sky was absurd. I mean why would you have to waste your crayon if people will know what the blue line stands for?). My mom had always told me, if it doesn't come from your imagination then it's not worth the attention, because anyone can copy an idea or an image. That perspective on art, to me as a child, sparked off some fear. I would look at the blank white page, starring at it blankly. 'Am I supposed to see something while I look at it?' I'd think to myself.

It's important that we don't become too influenced by our surroundings. We should stay true to our feelings and while we should strive to gain skills, we should also believe in ourselves. Expressing yourself by painting, drawing or sculpting offers a great insight into the creator. Some may not think it's worthy of the name art, others may be able to relate and will find that it evokes a memory or a sensation from the great depths of the mind. It's inevitable. Let's not forget what the true meaning of art is, and it is unique to each and every one of us, so do not feel ashamed or scared to express yourself!

Thomas Merton, No Man Is An Island: "Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time"

Hello there :)

ART

A quick introduction to what I plan to write about. I decided to start this blog to develop my skills as well as to broaden my understanding of the use of social media to spread inspiration and ideas related to art. I will write about art of all kinds, paintings, art journalling (also known as scrapbooking), making jewellery, calligraphy and anything else that I come across. Those are the ones I am mostly interested in, so I hope You enjoy reading my blog and that you wont be too judgemental.