So…so….very excited about this months project. All the little details are going to be what makes it so {FABULOUS}…..anxious to know what it is and what is inspiring me?

This next ART EVENT project is a custom {SHADOWBOX with HINGED COVER} We will be constructing the shadowbox ourselves. I have a few little hints and techniques for that and you will never look at little boxes the same. Once all the boxes are assembled together  we get to move onto the {FUN} of decorating it.

I am always on the look out for design and I find it in so many places. I can be inspired by projects online, in magazines, a book cover, fabric patterns, packaging, a commercial and more. I will sketch these ideas out, take a photo or use my favorite tool…. Pinterest. 

I think my husband thought I was crazy when I quickly fell in {LOVE} with Pinterest….Pretty sure I even told him it was the best invention of the last 5 years or ever on the internet! I KNEW that it would transform how I would access ideas and information.

I use Pinterest as a tool to catalog what inspires me. I quickly realized what worked for me when I was pinning. Each board has a main topic such as ART or COOKING, then I break those categories up even more. ART has several sub categories such as layouts, sketches, cards etc. So if I am looking for one particular item I can narrow it down even further.

Here is a board I created of things that were inspiring me for the April creative ART EVENT project.

When I start a project I will gather all of my inspiration sources and start looking at the inspiration pieces and breaking them apart and analyzing them. Do I like the color palette, is it the typesetting, maybe it is a cluster of embellishments or the base project itself? I will then start piecing together these snippets & pieces and adding a dash of my own creativity to make a sketch of what I want to do.

If you look closely you will start to see what inspired me. I took snippets & pieces from lots of different squares in the shadowboxes that are on my April project board. But then I added my own little touches. I liked the rows of buttons on a wire, but I plan to step it up by adding some word strips to it. I will be flipping some boxes to create mini canvases for photos and other clusters of art.

You might have noticed in my Pinterest Board/ART EVENT – April that there are 2 items that had hinged portions. I plan to change that up by adding a piece of thick chipboard to create an embellished cover then creating a mini scrapbook page on the inside of it.

Although I take the time to sketch things out….sometimes during the process of creating…the project can take on a form of its own. I believe this happens because the products I choose to work with add their own palette of inspiration into the mix. A shape may come from the patterned paper, or the letters I choose to use will alter a design. But usually the core concepts stay the same. This process of creating has really evolved for me over the years and it has transferred to how I teach now.

Attending a creative ART EVENT with me is a bit different than a typical class you may have attended in the past. My goal is that while you create the selected project you are learning to use and develop your own creativity. During each event we all work to create and construct a core project, but something unique happens when you start adding the patterned papers, your selection of trinkets & treasures and most of all your creativity. No two projects that leave an ART EVENT are the same because you {CREATED} instead of copied the events project.

Stay tuned to see the reveal of April’s final project debut!

and….very very good news I have opened up a 2nd day of classes. You can see the details and {SIGN UP} here to attend one of the spots at this months ART EVENT. Even with an extra day, space is still limited…don’t miss out on securing a spot!  See you there!

enJOY!