Sunday, January 30, 2011

flamingo parade :: part uno

my light fitting::



i would love to send this fitting to a new home and replace with some jar lights like these ones featured on design*sponge a while back. unfortunately, i don't have any fabulous old jars lying around, and the working with electricity bit worries me just a little.


so for now, i have myself a blank canvas. i have been throwing around different ideas to make this fitting more interesting, and the obvious solution that springs to mind involves covering in fabric. some problems with that idea::
i already have a lot of pattern and colour in the room
- i change my mind too often to commit to one fabric (!)


then a simple little paper bag sparked another idea::




this paper bag came from my mother bearing wonderful gifts purchased from etsy. being the creative hoarder i am, i kept it and placed a jar with a tealight inside. what a sweet addition to the window ledge!


the inspiration, of course, is the silhouette animal figures. while i adore these little creatures, i feel like the woodlands animals have been exhausted in the craft realm! 


one of the highlights of my travels last year was visiting the san diego zoo. of all the animals i saw there though, it wasn't the giant pandas or the big cats or the polar bears that had me most excited. the creatures that had me swooning the most were the flamingos! 



i have always been a little bit obsessed with waterbirds anyway, and the flamingos stole my heart. the most stunning colour and the most perfect poise! 

so it follows that bland light fitting + silhouette animals ( x flamingos) = fabulous idea!

a quick google image search and i sourced these fab flamingo silhouettes from istockphoto.com.



i picked out a few of my favourite silhouettes, enlarged each one to fill up an a4 sheet, and printed them on to cardstock. i tidied the edges with a sharpie, then carefully cut them out::




here are the flamingos all lined up and ready to go::




the next bit of the project is a bit fiddly as it involves climbing ladders and glue (though hopefully not at once!). i will post the finished product later in the week. for now though, buenas tarvis::


jasmine//sparkle

Monday, January 24, 2011

the year ahead

i am actually quite embarrassed at how uncommitted i have been to the whole craft of blogging. i am a university-qualified professional writer and i love making and creating, yet i struggle with the discipline of blogging.


this year, though, is my year. and the reason i can say so with such confidence is in the past, the busier i make myself, the more disciplined i become. so this year, i will blog more. maybe not every day, but at least every week. i will also study more. i have enrolled for a graduate diploma in psychology (via correspondence). i am taking spanish classes and listening to tapes most days. i am crafting again and loving the potential in fabrics and the process of creating something from nothing. i am learning to stop being obsessed with the crafting environment, and focus on the projects at hand. i will travel, maybe not as much as last year, but i will make concerted efforts to document the travels. i will make concerted efforts to document everything. this, on top of a demanding full-time job and running a household with my sister. 


what am i getting myself in for?


hasta manana::
jasmine//sparkle