Etsy Love: RiverLuna

Hello! It’s been a while since I’ve brought you some gorgeous, art inspiration so here’s a healthy dose of beauty from the amazing Etsy shop: RiverLuna. Artist, Marisa Redondo creates these magical, nature inspired illustrations, full of intricate pattern and rich hues. I’m a huge fan! Now to decide which one to order…hmm.

Here are some of my favorites…

   etsy * blog * twitter * facebook

After much debate, I just couldn’t resist these sweet owls for my Gracie. Can’t wait to hang it up in her room!

Go explore her wonderful collection of work – her blog is a delight too! Such talent!

xo,

Ivy

 

 

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Winter Art

Hello!

Okay so…seriously if it’s gonna be this cold it should SNOW! In my area, we only got a tiny dusting – not too exciting! Oh well. Anyway, since I’m craving snowflakes, I thought I would share with you some chilly artwork from some fabulous artists on Society 6. Enjoy and Happy Friday!

{by Sandra Dieckmann}

{by Free4m}{by Marta Bielsa}

{by Elle Moss}

{by David Fleck}

{by Ariana Perez}

{by Paula Belle Flores}

{by Laura Evans}

Have a wonderful weekend.

xo,

Ivy

Art to Adore: Catrin Welz-Stein

Hi friends!

It’s been a while since I featured an artist that inspires me but I’ve been pinning away and collecting a lot of amazing images from artists all over the world. Go here to see my Art Pinterest board. Today, I bring you the fantastical work of Catrin Welz-Stein. Her digital artwork absolutely blows me away and I adore the fairytale like quality of her compositions. Enjoy a few of my favorites…

Aren’t these magical? For more of her work head to her blog.

Enjoy your Friday!

xo,

Ivy

Queen of Flowers II – A mixed media collage

Hi everyone! Happy Friday! This week flew by and I am just now getting the chance to sit down and visit with you. How has life been treating you?

I wanted to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for the sweet and encouraging comments left after my last post. It’s always a bit scary to share my artwork – so please know that I greatly appreciate the support! Art is such a core part of me. When I actually take time to do it, I am amazed at how it fills me with happiness and peace. I was so pleased with the last collage that I did a second one. I snapped pics of my progress with my phone to document the evolution of the piece.

Similar to the last project – I started by collaging bits of vintage ephemera to the inside of an old book cover.

Enter my muse (another Anthropologie model) who I painted over, inked her face and hair and added scrapbook papers for her dress. You can also see in the upper right hand corner I added some pink acrylic paint to start balancing the color composition.

The last details were added to complete her, including a sweet antique Australian stamp (a little shout-out to my homeland!), a jeweled crown and of course a bird. Gotta have a bird.

I stamped the cover of the book with this chickadee stamp and added the word “fly”.

So there you have it, another little collage project that I was able to complete in a couple of days during Claire’s naptime. So much more fun than folding laundry!

I have just listed prints of this collage and the last one in my Society 6 shop too!

Have a beautiful weekend!

xo,

Ivy

 

Creatively Made: Mixed Media Portrait

Hi all! Been super busy with life and trying to fit in time to create too! A tricky balance, that frequently required late night sessions making a healthy mess of paint, paper, and glue in my studio. I have finally completed another project from the Creatively Made  e-course and I’m pretty pleased with the outcome. I have to admit, I am very, very rusty with my acrylic paints. Several times, I had to put down this piece and walk away frustrated. I would hang the unfinished canvas on the wall next to my desk and periodically gaze at it…looking for answers. They came…but it took time.

This project started the same as the others but this time, incorporating more color. Using a mix of vintage papers and scrapbook paper, I created the background, unifying it with layers of paint.

It was funny painting late into the night, listening to music and feeling my little baby kick inside me, almost encouraging me to keep going. I have started calling her my “Art Baby”. I haven’t painted in over ten years and somehow, I feel like she has filled me with the courage to pick up my brush again. It’s a good feeling.

I really love adding 3-D details like the lace, gems and pearls. I can’t believe I never blended collage and painting in art school! I was missing out!

Next, we have to do a self-portrait! Yikes! I’m excited to try though. We will also be making Santos dolls, which looks like a fabulous project! I will keep you posted.

Creatively Made : Second Journal Project

Hi everyone! Well, I’ve been busy creating and loving every minute of it! Our second project in the Creatively Made course was to make an altered journal. That is, buy a store-bought sketchbook and create a mixed media piece for the cover. Jeanne showed us so many wonderful techniques and I’m pretty happy with how mine came out…here are the pics…

Prepped the cover with a collage patchwork of vintage papers…

Did an image transfer using a ink-jet color copy of a magazine page. This left a ghost of an image so I could go in and draw in the details and create the hair. I had to re-create most of the face but the transfer left decent enough forms to follow.

Continued to add details, including a “dress” for my girl from some pretty wedding invitation paper. Used colored pencils and washes of acrylic paint to add color and detail.

Here’s a little tip that works great for me – pick a color palette before you begin your piece. It helps me stay focused and reassures me that my color selection is harmonious. I love using Design Seeds color books. You can get them here.  I used her “Figs” palette…

The metal key and corners can be found at Michaels in the scrapbook section (buyer beware – you may end up walking out with a whole lot of lovely bits and pieces – I do, everytime!), as can the die cut butterfly and pearls. I love adding these pretty 3D elements.

Now I just have to fill it up with more art!

Hope you are all having a beautiful week!

xo,