Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given to you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now, and perhaps without even knowing it, you will live along some distant day into the answers. - Rainer Maria Rilke

Friday, April 29, 2011

Week 11: Trying to get back in the habit

I am definitely not a creature of habit. And, once I get out of a habit...like writing and creating for the blog...it's really hard for me to get back into the habit.  But I am trying.  I have been playing with creating paisleys out of paper, and creating paisley with photoshop brushes....can I just say, I am totally bored with it.  Why is it that something that I like so much, I have no desire to create.  Am I limiting myself, or am I saying I don't need to reinvent the wheel?  Honestly I don't know.  I am just totally not interested in creating any more paisley designs!

I can't believe I just said that.  Oh well, sigh, what to do, what to do.  I will make the commitment to create a card tomorrow, and then I am done with Paisley and it will be on to another inspiration piece!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Week 11: Where in the blog have I been?

Catching up!

Hello friends, I am back.  I've had a busy couple of weeks, then the logic board on my computer died and I had to send it to the factory to get fixed.  I didn't realize how much I "need" my computer to get everything done.  When it's a tool of the trade, it is a little hard to trade without it!

This week I have been working on a postcard for a art show.  It's a Mother & Daughter art show featuring my mom & her friend Sheryl and both of their daughters. I designed the card but chose not to participate in the show due to time constraints and that while my work has artistic qualities, it is really design.  My sister Kathy is participating with my mom.  It was a challenge to combine all of the different styles & mediums into one cohesive design, but I am very happy with the final card!


Front


Back


The show is at the Johnson City Area Arts Council, in Johnson City, Tennessee.  Please stop by if you are in that area!

My sister Kathy and I have also been working on our website and it is now live...we still have a couple of things to work on, but it is up: www.visualtapestrydesign.com.

I'd love to hear what you think about the postcard and the website!

And Now, Back to Blogging!

I am going to pick up on Week 11 where I left off.  Then I will work until I reach 52 weeks to finish a year of blogging. To  recap:

Day 1, Inspiration: Paisley
I loved paisley or I did until I started this project.  Now I would say that I am more intrigued by it.  I do love the patterns and color schemes when I am not creating them.  I love the history of them, middle eastern  in origin, but named for Paisley, Scotland.


Paisley pants from Olympics.


Paisley tapestry


Paisley Stamp -- love the intricate detail!


Paisley ties!


Day 2: Sketches and Doodles
I like some of my art to be very precise and exact and I like to draw freehand. Not only is that a paradox, it makes it hard to draw paisleys! But none the less, I have "doodled" some and looked at different patterns.







Stay tuned for tomorrow's paper paisleys!

Friday, April 8, 2011

Week 11, MIA

Yes I have  been MIA...my blog has suffered while my freelance is flourishing.  It's good and bad.  I miss the time for me, but am working hard.  

A glimpse into the the fruits of my labors:
Client: Greenfield Farms Foods
Scope of Project: Branding/Packaging/Signage
Benefits: Grassfed beef is the the only beef I eat now.  Find out more about why it is better for you!


Stanchion Sign, Case Dividers & Labels


Large and Small Stanchion Signs, Meat Case Dividers
Up next: Paisley!

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Week 11, Day 2: Sketches 'n Doodles

Last night in there were some bad storms...winds up to 90 mph, trees, limbs and power lines down all over the place including one of our major interstates in both directions, so it was just a traffic nightmare today.  Normally it wouldn't bother me, but I had a meeting this morning all the way across town.  After changing my route about 3 times to avoid traffic, I finally made it.  The best part of the day was after the meeting I got treated to lunch...at this awesome biker bar called Mac's!  Best burger I've had in a long time!  I didn't have to even eat the rest of the day.  My daughter K is playing Lacrosse over in that area, so I might be eating there more often.

Anyway, that was the beginning of my crazy day, and I was so tired tonight that I was thinking that I would just skip posting today.  Then my conscience  got the better of me (not to mention not wanting to hear about it from D...just kidding!) and I sat down and started to draw. Although I didn't draw that much, I enjoyed the time I took and found it relaxing.  I'm glad I honored my commitment.

In addition to drawing, I researched "paisley".  These are some interesting facts I came up with -- there are plenty more, but I'm too tired to think too much!

  • Of Indian or Persian origin, dating back to around 200 AD.
  • It has a kidney/twisted teardrop shape
  • Although the motif origins are from 200 AD, the name comes from the town of paisley in Scotland.
My sketches and doodles:















Monday, April 4, 2011

Week 11: Inspiration...

Every week I wonder where this blog will take me and what I will use for my inspiration the next week. Sometimes I'm not even sure what my inspiration will be until I am almost ready to work on the post.  Other weeks I have something on my mind. I have a seed of an idea that festers in my head until it finally takes root and begins to grow.

This is one of those ideas that has been festering in my head.  All week I have been thinking about patterns...strange, I know.  This afternoon when I was at the store, there it was on the lady in front of me...Paisley!

I told K, I love paisley, and she said that most people my age did...Really? Really?  She didn't mean it as an insult, but it seemed like it was.  The more she tried to explain, the deeper she sank...poor K!  Poor me, I'm getting older and have no idea how that happened.  I don't feel like I am getting older.

Even if it is a bit old fashioned, I love paisley. What is a paisley? Why are some so simple, and others are completely complex? Have you ever noticed all the patterns within a paisley? I am fascinated by it. So this week, my inspiration is good old fashioned paisley.

The funny thing is I don't own anything that has a paisley print on it. So I got these images from Wikipedia Commons













Sunday, April 3, 2011

Week 10, Day 7: It's a Wrap

Trauma after posting yesterday:
Yesterday after I posted the freebie card my computer quit working. It went black, wouldn't shut down, wouldn't restart, sounded like it would go on, but never made that beautiful sound a mac makes when it starts.  I was freaking out!  It put me in the depths of despair ...it's not a good feeling.

As a freelance graphic designer, blogger, photo-editor, website builder (trying), email-aholic, fb-aholic and tweeter I felt as if a part of me died.  How was I going to recover?  What if I had to buy a new computer...could I even afford it? What about the projects I'm working on, can I recover them from the Time Capsule? 

It might sound dramatic, but it's my bread and butter and if it doesn't work, I'm in trouble!

After several futile attempts to restart it, I went on my son's computer and booked an appointment at the Apple Genius Bar for late this afternoon. I also did some searching for troubleshooting...I got some info, but got frustrated with the slowness of his computer and gave up and went to bed.

Today after I got home from being out and about, it started back up....never did that startup chime sound so wonderful!!!  Now I did the research to troubleshoot the problem.  Evidently I had to reset my System Management Controller...a very simple process, and now it is working fine.  R E L I E F!

So, now for the Week 10 review:
Every week I marvel at how far I've come from the beginning. Committing to this blog and finding regular time for myself has made a big difference in many ways.  D says I am different.  I guess what I am trying to relate to you is that everyone needs to take some alone time for themselves. It doesn't matter if you are reading, meditating, creating, enjoying nature, exercising, just do something for yourself!

Day 1: Inspiration - Dogwoods in Bloom






Day 2: More Photos and Sketches











Day 3: Going Graphic













Day 4: Adding Color and Patterns













Day 5: (ah haaaa, the missing day!)



Day 6: Freebie Card




















Until tomorrow.....

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Week 10, Day 6: Freebie Card

The week 10 Card is done and I realized that I missed a day this week.  Not sure where or when, I thought I had posted everyday.  I loved the images from yesterday where I manipulated layer filters in Photoshop to create a different look for the black dogwood graphic I created.  I took my favorite image and applied different filters to change only the color.  Depending on which filter I used depended on what part of the image was changed.  Some of the filters used were hue/saturation, channel mixer, levels, curves and selective color.

The Final Image:

The final image,
a collage of different colored blossoms.


The Freebie Card:

The download link.


So what do you think?  I'd love to hear what you think about the blog, get suggestions for future inspiration, how you've used the cards or if you've gotten comments on them.

Week 10, Day 4: Adding Color and Patterns

Since I didn't have as much time today to work with color, I decided to try combining different effects in Photoshop.  I used only layer adjustments of hue saturation, pattern and gradients.


gradient, 2 different patterns, hue/saturation


Gradient & Hue/Saturation



Hue/Saturation & Gradient

Gradient & Pattern Overlay


Gradient Overlay



Pattern, gradient and vivid light


Gradient, Pattern, Luminosity


Gradient, Hue Saturation, Pattern & Vivid Light



3 different Hue/Saturations, Luminosity,
2 different patterns and gradient overlay

Friday, April 1, 2011

Week 10, Day 3: Going Graphic

In trying to do something a little different, I decided on a simple graphic image of a dogwood blossom.  Simple it was not. I started out very simple then seemed to add more detail as I progressed.  It took a long time to do this all in Adobe Illustrator. But I did learn some new tricks as I played around with it, and after all this is a learning and discovery journey, so what if my kids got leftovers for dinner!


After finishing this and then coming back later, I thought about why I like dogwoods -- because they bring light and life to a seemingly lifeless and dead area.  And this image looks so dark, it just doesn't capture my feeling...something to work on later today.....