Sunday Sample Spotlight: "The Stone Age"

This stone-inspired stationery set is great for weddings along pebbled beaches, or any occasion to celebrate local geology!

"The Stone Age" Invitation Duo (invite & reply card) and Save-the-Date

The invitation is printed on white paper and mounted to a recycled brown envelope with small silver brads. I decorated the side right flap and left pocket with scrapbook paper featuring a fun photographic stone print. I scanned the scrapbook paper into my computer to incorporate into the printed invitation, reply card, and save-the-date (though I lightened the picture a little so it wouldn't completely blend into the darker scrapbook paper).

For the text, I used a fun font that looks like letters scratched onto stone or wood. Less important information was written in a smaller typewriter inspired font.

The save-the-date and reply card also both have matching brown recycled envelopes.

Next week's Sunday Sample Spotlight: "Dressed to Impress"


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Floral Quilted Wall Hangings

This past holiday season I hand-sewed three different "wall hangings" to give out as gifts to my mother, mother-in-law, and grandmother. 

Buy these floral fabrics here: http://www.spoonflower.com/profiles/ideasbyandrea

All of the fabric swatches (except for the solid light green around the edges) were printed at Spoonflower - a website that allows you to upload your own designs to be printed on fabric! The images you see are photographs of flowers that I've taken in the last several years (including pictures of roses and bouquets purchased at supermarkets, the flora around my grandmother's house, and professionally-designed gardens and landscapes in Barcelona, Paris, Southern Italy, Croatia, and Upstate New York). Many of the photographs were slightly altered/desaturated in Photoshop to give them a slightly vintage/aged/faded look. 

All of the photographs have a similar color scheme (shades of light greens, pinks, yellows, whites, purples, and oranges), and are intended to work together as a collection, making them great fabric choices for patchwork projects like these quilt-inspired wall hangings! 

There's no shortage of photographs of the finished project, so keep scrolling down!! :)
 
 

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Photo Inspiration: The Colors of the Sea

I hope you've enjoyed this month's photo inspiration color schemes! Today's picture was taken on the Greek coast in 2011. I loved the different blues, greens, and neutral browns that were churned up from the sunlit water rippling over the rocks just offshore!

Why these colors go together: Blue and green are analogous on the color wheel; here they're both not quite the bright, saturated colors we're used to. The blue is darker and grayer, while the green is a little lighter and grayer. Add in two shades of light tan for a great beach-inspired set of neutrals and near-neutrals.

How to use this color scheme: The emphasis on neutrals and ocean colors make this a great color scheme for beach house interiors - or any interior space that you want to give that relaxing beach feeling (bedrooms and bathrooms in particular).

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Photo Inspiration: Purple & Yellow

Today's photo was taken in Positano, Italy - a little town along the Amalfi cost - in 2010. Though I featured a purple and yellow color scheme just last week, this one is different enough in tone to merit a new post. :)

Why these colors go together: This blue-purple is much happier than last week's, which had some grayish undertones. The purple, pale yellow, and pale blue are all fairly pure (color + white, instead of color + gray), giving them that peaceful feeling that all pastel colors share. For the neutral color, I pulled out a green so dark that it's almost black, to give this otherwise pasty color scheme sophistication and depth.

How to use this color scheme: What couldn't you use this color scheme for? The pastels are all classic wedding colors for any time of year (especially the winter, spring, or summer), and here those  traditional colors are given a modern twist with a bit of dark black-green. Use this color scheme for a relaxing living room or bedroom inside your house, a nautical/beach themed room or a nursery.

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Photo Inspiration: A Hint of Neon

Today we continue the look at photograph-inspired color schemes that we started last week. This picture was taken in Barcelona's Parc de la Ciutadella in 2010.

Why these colors go together: These tints of blue-violet obviously go together, since they all have the same base color. I particularly love the blueish icy feel of the lightest tint! Then, for a touch of excitement, I pulled out the neon acid-yellow that was created from the sun shining through the background foliage. This acid-yellow goes with the blue-violet shades because yellow is purple's complement on the color wheel - and because it has the same icy feeling as the lighter purple shades.

How to use this color scheme: This funky modern color scheme would be great in a living space decorated with contemporary Ikea-esque furniture, a nursery/child's bedroom (who needs stereotypical pink and blue when you can have blue-violet and acid-yellow??), or a fun, unique event. The icy undertones lend itself obviously to winter weddings, but I think this color scheme could work just as well in any season - the neon yellow is perfect for spring or summer, and the richness of the darkest blue-violet pairs perfectly with the yellow for an autumn wedding, as well.

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Photo Inspiration: Four Bright Colors

For the month of January, I have planned a series of blog posts featuring color schemes pulled from different photographs I've taken. These color schemes could be incorporated into a room of your house, an art project, or event decorations (for birthdays, weddings, you name it!).

Today's photo is one of the many floral pictures of taken of gardens. I just loved the bright, highly saturated colors!

Why these colors go together: The most dominant color in the photograph is that gorgeous kelly green color, and each of the other three picks relate specifically to that green. Yellow is next to green on the color wheel, pink (as a shade of red) is green's complement, and orange is a secondary color (a color created by combining two of the three primary colors of red, yellow and blue) - just like green. Since each of those colors work nicely with green, they also work well with each other!
How to use this color scheme: These bright colors would be great for spring or summer weddings, outdoor events, kid's birthday parties, sunny kitchens or living rooms, and children's bedrooms or playrooms.

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Sunday Sample Spotlight: "Friends Forevergreen"

Nothing feels more like winter than forest green pine trees paired with the crisp color of pure white snow!

"Friends Forevergreen" Invitation Duo (invite & info insert)

In this stationery set, the text is decorated with photographic evergreen scrapbook paper, transparent green ribbons, and warm metallic copper brads. I used a recycled ivory "Himalaya" fold envelope, and pasted scrapbook paper to the left flap and right side pocket.

I also scanned in the scrapbook paper to incorporate the design at the tops and bottoms of each printed sheet, helping the invitation and information card relate both to each other and the evergreen-decorated envelope!

Next week's Sunday Sample Spotlight: "The Purple Petal"


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Shameless Plug Time: Love this invitation (or others featured on this blog)? Want something similar (or something completely custom) designed for your event? Visit Invites by Andrea to view more samples, download a catalogue pdf, or fill out a design request form. Or shoot me an email to ask me your questions or learn more information.

Thanksgiving Color Combo #1

Getting ready for Thanksgiving and looking for decor ideas and color schemes? Then you're in luck, because today and tomorrow I'm showing off two color combos, each based on a different photograph I've taken.

Today's color combo: Mackinac Island Sunset!

This color combo is perfect for autumn in general - and Thanksgiving in particular - since it so closely resembles the color of the leaves on the trees and much of the food you'll be serving on the table. Red, orange, and yellow is a great analogous color scheme and instantly brings to mind pumpkins, squash, stuffing, and a deliciously browned turkey - but don't feel limited to just the traditional foods! Add some red or yellow peppers to your stuffing, or make an amazing appetizer quiche (wrapped in bacon!) to further play up the bright colors of sunset.

For decor, the options are pretty much limitless. Use food (orange and lemon slices, pumpkins and gourds), nature (bright-colored flowers, tree branches, acorns, pinecones), candles, and fabric to add more punches of color throughout your table.

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"Splattered Dahlias" Watercolor

Yesterday I showed you a painting of waterlilies inspired by a photograph from one of my summer road trips. Today's post is all about the other painting I worked on last month, which was (interestingly enough) inspired by photographs of dahlias taken on my other summer road trip, where my husband and I drove through part of Ontario, Canada to get from Michigan to his cousin's wedding in Rochester, New York.

"Splattered Dahlias" - Watercolor & Colored Pencil, Oct. 2012, 11"x15"

In Rochester, NY, we visited two gardens, both of which had dahlias. I used a few different photographs to create this composition, and floated the stemless blooms in a background of another one of my patterns.

I splattered paint at several different times as I built up the layers of this watercolor to give it a vintage, aged look. There are hints of metallic shine in some of the splatter, as I had remnants of metallic red and blue paint on my palette from earlier watercolors. :)

And, just like the other painting, I used colored pencil to add a bit of detail, and heighten the contrast by darkening the darkest parts of the dahlia flowers.

Here are a couple detail shots:

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"Waterlilies" Watercolor

I haven't posted any recent watercolor paintings because for the longest time I wasn't painting any! 

At the beginning of the year, I was busy getting ready for the Brides-to-Be show, and designing stationery and table decor for a Bat Mitzvah. In the spring, my husband and I spent much of our free time househunting, and over the summer, we moved into (and painted & decorated!) our new house, went on a road trip with some of our friends in the western U.S., and took another shorter road trip to Rochester, New York. I've also been busy designing wedding stationery (like these "lakeshore" and "love letter" designs) and working on my novel.

But finally, last month, I managed to find time to paint two small watercolor paintings. Here's a look at the first one (you'll see the other in blog post tomorrow)!

"Waterlilies" - Watercolor & Colored Pencil, Oct. 2012, 11"x15"

This watercolor was based on a photograph I took in Michigan's Upper Penninsula (where we spent a few days at the end of our "out-west" road trip in July). Because the green lily pads already seemed so flat compared to the shading and three-dimensionality of the lilies and reflective water, I made them feel even more two-dimensional by placing one of my patterns on top of all the lily pads. 

I used colored pencil to add details (like the red stems in the water and shading on the white waterlilies). I used "rough" watercolor paper (which has an even more pronounced texture than "cold press"), and the colored pencil really plays up that texture in an interesting way.

I actually didn't have high hopes for this painting - I wasn't sure how well it would turn out - but I love it!

Here are some details:

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Interior Design: Blue, Gray & Black Woodsy Bedroom

First, if you haven't watched any episodes of ABC's "Once Upon a Time" television series, you're really missing out. I watch quite a bit of (probably too much) television, and Once Upon a Time was easily my favorite show last year. In fact, I would even say that the first season was the absolutely best season of TV I have ever seen.

Besides the intriguing rewrites of familiar fairy tales, there was superb acting, beautiful costumes, and absolutely breathtaking scenery (CGI, of course). But one of my favorite backgrounds of the show was the interior design of the mayor's office. Mayor Regina Mills (trying desperately to hide her true identity as the evil queen and stepmother of Snow White) has an absolutely gorgeous black-and-white office that features, among other things, a really interesting tree-lined wallpaper.

I wanted to incorporate that wallpaper (or something similar) in the master bedroom of my new house, on a single accent wall behind the bed. First, I looked at wallpaper, and was amazed that I was able to find the exact same wallpaper used for the Once Upon a Time set on Anthropologie. Of course I wanted the exact wallpaper, but it would end up being much more expensive than I'd ever planned to spend decorating my bedroom (even for just one wall), and on top of the expense, the instructions for installing the wallpaper seemed way too complicated to do myself (and the reviews of the product agreed with my assessment, encouraging the hiring of a professional to install it).

I decided it would be easier to paint a mural of similar looking trees on the accent wall, and I'm so glad I did. I paid about $10 for the black paint, $10 for a handy paint bucket to pour it in, used an old brush from my art studio, and maybe $5 worth of painter's tape - significantly less than if I'd purchased the wallpaper, which would have been more than $400 for supplies, not including the cost of hiring a professional. Yes, it took a lot of time (I spent several hours on it over the course of five days), but it turned out even better than I expected, and I would spend all that time to do it all over again in a heartbeat.

Okay, enough talk. Here are the pictures I know you're dying to see. :)

First, we painted the other three walls a slightly blue-tinted medium gray, and the accent wall, ceiling, and trim around the whole room a very light gray that looks almost white. Then I measured where I wanted the main tree trunks on the wall and marked them off with painter's tape.

I drew freehand where I wanted all of the branches to go but didn't bother taping off the smaller branches because I knew it would 1) take forever if I did, and 2) waste a lot of tape. I knew I'd be careful painting the smaller branches anyway, and I wanted it to look a little gestural. Plus, I had plenty of extra light gray paint to go over any mistakes at the end (even after we used the same color to paint the staircase to our basement).

And then I painted! I got a (free!) sample of the actual Once Upon a Time wallpaper from Anthropologie and looked to it for guidance on how to add the details to the trees so that they'd look surprisingly realistic from a distance but obviously painted and really interesting up close.

Here's the final result!

 

I painted the shading on the tree trunks and branches on the right because the window (which faces east) was to their left, and I wanted it to seem like the sunlight streaming in the window was hitting the left sides of the trees. :)

Finally, when all the paint was dry, we moved our furniture back into place. Then we picked out a dark blue curtain to match our bedspread (and help block some of that early morning sunshine!) and replaced the old ceiling light/fan (though I took this picture before that last change was made). Voila! A super unique room with an awesome wintery tree mural I'm really proud of that pays homage to a television show my husband and I absolutely adore. What could be better?? :)

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Shameless Plug Time: Love this mural, color combination and my decor ideas? I also paint watercolors (and occasionally acrylics)! Interested in purchasing one? Email me for more information!

Looking for custom stationery made to match these colors (or whatever other color combinations you're using for your event)? Visit Invites by Andrea to view stationery samples, download a catalogue pdf, or fill out a design request form. Or shoot me an email to ask me your questions or learn more information.