Giving something new to something old.

Today's D.I.Y. recycling is super simple. All you need is Deco Markers and the old item you want to decorate and there's just one step: DECORATE!:).
Here's an example, my mother came home with an old lamp she picked up at a garage sale and asked me to give it color and here is what I did.

Mexican Color!

Today's book from my library to yours is: MEXICAN COLOR!
A book of a series of photographs by Amanda Holmes  accompanied by an essay by Elena Poniatowska . They show how Mexico uses strong colors to represent its vivid culture. As a kid I never really understood why so many foreigners were in love with my hometown, It took for me to leave my hometown Oaxaca and come back years later to finally see what most foreigners were in love with it. Despite what we see on the news about teacher's revolt, politic turmoils and the scarcity of hot water and education, Oaxaca has beautiful architecture, best cuisine, fascinating traditions, art is in the people, it's ecosystem is truly national geographic good and I could go on. And I  have seen more of Oaxaca as a tourist than for the 12 years I lived there. Anyway this book is about Mexico in general in terms of colors:

This week Ecollustration: Illustrations on wood part 2

Here is another wood illustration of another Home Sweet Home:

Ecollustration of the past week: Illustrations on Wood

If you remember my previous posting, where I said that an old wooden toy would be transformed into a piece of art, Well here is the result. Using a burning pen I sketched on the wood, and later added a small touch of color with Gouache.

Pom Pom for Your Pencil

Ever seen those pencils with pom pom but decided against it when you saw the price? well  with plastic bags, a pencil of yours, thread and a hot glue gun, you got it for free. Just follow these simple steps.
1: First cut strips from plastic bags, I only used 5 strips of 3"x 13" and it was a good enough amount to create the pom pom.

2: Prepare your thread and needle.

3: Then you fold your plastic strip in two, and sew across it ( don't sew on the open side)

4:Now whenever your done with a strip, you  will push it to the beginning to get this scrunch effect.

5: Now do the rest and when done tie a knot and cut the rest of the thread off.

6: Bring your pencil, and your hot glue gun and glue the beginning of the pom pom where there used to be an eraser, that will anchor it and it will make gluing the rest easier. As you are wrapping, do the gluing as well.

7: Tease it and  Ta-da! your pencil is all pom Pom pou-y ja ja. Have fun with it!

A little world for you

I'm enamored with Helen Musselwhite, an ecollustrator from the U.K. So she creates beautiful cut outs with a british accent to it(lovely). It's not just the cutouts, but that these cutouts have all this patterns within themselves, she picks the right harmony of colors, and has a great eye for composition as well as her character design. I got to give to her, she has quite a steady hand and the patience of an angel(I bet I could end up with uneven cut outs and paper cuts on every curve of my hands!) Here is what she says about her work "By the use of bold colour, strong graphic line and familiar images I create highly individual and visually appealing pieces of art that make an instant impact. My work has a distinctive hand crafted quality that pays respect to all forms of mid century design, folk and ethnic art, as well as current and future trends.". I'm a big fan of work  influenced by folk and ethnic art so no wonder I love her. Anyway here is a peek of some of her work borrowed form her site. You'll see I'm not just all talk, she's the real thing.

My favorite are the glass domes of course

Go see more of her amazing work at her website www.helenmusselwhite.com  

Faeries for Real!

Today's week of from my library to yours I'm showing a favorite of mine. It was given to me in a box of used books. It has been an important addition to my library. Here it is:

Faeries by Brian Freud and Alan lee.

Here are some pictures from the inside of he book

Both Brian Froud and Alan Lee are two illustrators I drool anytime i see their work. I love how they work with their watercolors and pencils. Alan lee is the artist behind the concept work of the trilogy of The Lord of the Rings( no wonder I loved those movies) and Brian freud is behind the concept work of the classic cult films "Labyrinth" and "The Dark Crystal". The way this book is organized, is as if they were to explore and sketches the life of magical creatures in a journal and they published such journal. I llove how in certain areas of the book, the type used is the artists handwriting.

First Quotes

I hope everyone had a good weekend, I spent it fighting a cold and sore throat, and I'm thankful today I woke up 85% better. Tomorrow I will be 100% myself.So tomorrow I will work on last week's ecollustration, but I will post it with this week ecollustration. Now a few months ago, I started a reading journal,where I write down quotes I get from books I read, I would like to share some of them:
"The reason  as to why we differ from the animal kingdom is self-awareness, it drives our ongoing efforts to understand our very nature"-Human by the Smithsonian Institute
"I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life's a bitch. You've got to go out and kick ass" Maya Angelou on Getting in touch with your inner bitch
"For many people the religion in which they are raised is religion, and they take no deep interest in other religions, even those to whom their religion means a great deal rarely know much about its history"
"Religions need to be seen as a whole, as living bodies that develop in relation to each others"-From Religion in four dimensions
"The search for truth will continue as long as there are human beings with curiosity...This is due to the attitudes and working processes of those whose mission it is to define truth: philosophers, artists and scientists"- John Langdon in Wordplay
"Astronomy compels the soul to look upwards and lead us from this world to another" Plato in Wordplay
"History doesn't repeat itself, but it rhymes"-Wordplay
"What we call the beginning is often the end and to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from" T.S Elliot in Wordplay"
One of the reasons I love to read is because I love quotes. They are the sentences that I feel carry wisdom that make you stop and reflect or bring out a reaction from you.

Sneak Peek

As I said last week this week, the ecollustration would be unique. This time I'm not using any paint, but instead I would burn wood using a burning pen. Here is a peek:

This is a wooden toy I rescued,  but I'm not interested in playing with it. Instead I broke it apart and sketched the illustration I will burn on the wood.

I have a sore throat, but I know by tomorrow I will be better. I don't want to risk making it worse. I will be working on this piece over the weekend. 

Do Not Disturb

If you are someone who works from home while at the same time living with family, you will need one of this, so you brother does not walks in while you are on the phone with a client or mom is wondering if you are craving some cookies. As much as I love them, is hard sometimes for them to remember you are working. Some ways to help is to let them know your business hours and to respect your time (it does work) but a little visual never hurts, so here it is. A door hanger made from a cereal box. Super Easy
1: Cut the size you desire.

2: Then cut a circle at the top, I used a circle cutter (they are so much fun and good to have.)

3: If you have a corner cutter, it will be a nice touch to add to the hanger.

4:Now flip it, draw your note,and ink it. Then put a layer of matte medium so is ready to paint.

5: Paint it and it's ready!