Inspired by...The Challenge of Color

"Color has taken possession of me; no longer do I have to chase after it. I know that it has hold of me forever... Color and I are one."
~Paul Klee, painter

I have been remiss in keeping up with my monthly 'Inspired by...' challenges and since this is the start of a new month, I thought it would be fun to start one up again. You can look at some of the previous 'Inspired by...' challenges by clicking on the links to the right as well as looking at what we have created in the Flickr group that I started.

I did a little post over on the Art Bead Scene blog the other day as a way to get some feedback. Sounds like most everyone is in agreement that a challenge or blog hop or even a contest that is judged really gets the creative juices going.

I also heard that doing these for the challenge itself is often reward enough. That is good to know, but I do hear that having a little something-something to sweeten the pot is a nice incentive. Duly noted.

For me the best part about challenges is that it does just that... it challenges me. I have entered a cornucopia of contests, submitted oodles of ideas for publications, participated in blog hops... all for the same reason. It doesn't matter to me if I win or even place {and often I don't do either}. The most important part is that I show up. Because I can't learn anything new unless I try.

If you are like me, you gravitate toward the same color palette all the time. And there is likely a hue or shade of color that is a challenge to you. This year I set out to design in color. It felt strange to use brights when for so long I would stick to a muted, almost grunge-y and earthy palette. But it was fun. And now I am not afraid to mix brights into my palette. It has been freeing.

I have been known to loiter in the paint section of any hardware store. I love to envision what my rooms would look like if I were to take the plunge and paint the walls russet, or plum, or china blue. I am always picking up paint chips {and one line has these transparent room cards that allow you to put the wall color behind and see what it might look like. Cool!}. I am smitten by the names they come up with... like the soft butter yellow called 'Sophie's Quilt' or the deep denim blue named 'Himalayan Eyes.' {How do you get a job like writing paint chip color names? If your name is Sherwin Williams, I would be very good at that and would love to chat with you. ;-}

I even picked up a Valspar Color Now booklet that cost me a whopping $1.49. It has some great ideas on color theory. These people are paid to come up with great color combinations, why not let them work for me?

So I would like to propose a series of challenges called 'Inspired by...The Challenge of Color.' {If this goes over well, I have other ones in mind...} Who's with me?

Here is how it will work:

1::Choose a color family to work with (i.e., blue, green, brown, etc.). It can be something that you feel safe with... or pick a palette that is challenging for you. ;-)

2::Email your name, address, and color family to enjoytheday{at}tesoritrovati{dot}com with the subject line Paint Chip Challenge. If you have a blog, include that link, too. {Email must be received by Friday, November 5th.}

3::I will mail a paint chip palette chosen just for you. {If you live outside of the US, I would still love to have you play, but I will email you a scanned color palette instead in the interest of time.}

3::You will create jewelry using your paint chip in any percentage of color that you like from the chip. Bonus points if you can use all the colors provided!

4::Select a name from your palette for your piece.

6::Blog Hop on Friday, December 3rd about your color palette and creative process. Be sure to show the paint palette you receive!

I know that not everyone has a blog, but I still want you to play! If you don't have a blog, email me anyway and take advantage of uploading your creation to the Flickr group with full information in the description. From that I will include you in my post for that day. {And if you choose the Flickr option, please have your piece uploaded by November 30th to ensure being included in my post for December 3rd}.

7::Random winner chosen from all entries in the blog hop on Friday, December 3rd. What will you win? Why beads, of course! I have an assortment of colorful beads {including art beads} and fibers that are just dyeing {get it?} to go home with a random winner. {I will post the goodies later this week.} If you are a bead artist and want in on the prize giving, shoot me an email and I will see if that can be arranged!

So, how about some chances to win?

• 1 entry for creating something and sharing it.
• 1 entry for using all the colors in your palette.
• 1 entry for naming your piece from the palette.
• 1 entry for participating in the blog hop and/or uploading to the Flickr site for December 3rd.
• 2 entries for the use of an ART BEAD {art bead is defined as a bead or component created by yourself or another artisan}, be sure to point that out in your description {with a link to the appropriate artisan’s website, shop or blog}.
• 1 entry for encouraging others to play along {be sure to leave me a note on this post so I know what you did!}
  

That's a total of 7 entries!

What are you waiting for? Let's get inspired by color together!

P.S. Looking for other inspiring challenges? Check out the Art Bead Scene monthly challenge, and the new Love My Art Jewelry November Call To Create in a wonderfully cozy winter color palette.

Enjoy the day!

Inspired by...The Challenge of Color

"Color has taken possession of me; no longer do I have to chase after it. I know that it has hold of me forever... Color and I are one."
~Paul Klee, painter

I have been remiss in keeping up with my monthly 'Inspired by...' challenges and since this is the start of a new month, I thought it would be fun to start one up again. You can look at some of the previous 'Inspired by...' challenges by clicking on the links to the right as well as looking at what we have created in the Flickr group that I started.

I did a little post over on the Art Bead Scene blog the other day as a way to get some feedback. Sounds like most everyone is in agreement that a challenge or blog hop or even a contest that is judged really gets the creative juices going.

I also heard that doing these for the challenge itself is often reward enough. That is good to know, but I do hear that having a little something-something to sweeten the pot is a nice incentive. Duly noted.

For me the best part about challenges is that it does just that... it challenges me. I have entered a cornucopia of contests, submitted oodles of ideas for publications, participated in blog hops... all for the same reason. It doesn't matter to me if I win or even place {and often I don't do either}. The most important part is that I show up. Because I can't learn anything new unless I try.

If you are like me, you gravitate toward the same color palette all the time. And there is likely a hue or shade of color that is a challenge to you. This year I set out to design in color. It felt strange to use brights when for so long I would stick to a muted, almost grunge-y and earthy palette. But it was fun. And now I am not afraid to mix brights into my palette. It has been freeing.

I have been known to loiter in the paint section of any hardware store. I love to envision what my rooms would look like if I were to take the plunge and paint the walls russet, or plum, or china blue. I am always picking up paint chips {and one line has these transparent room cards that allow you to put the wall color behind and see what it might look like. Cool!}. I am smitten by the names they come up with... like the soft butter yellow called 'Sophie's Quilt' or the deep denim blue named 'Himalayan Eyes.' {How do you get a job like writing paint chip color names? If your name is Sherwin Williams, I would be very good at that and would love to chat with you. ;-}

I even picked up a Valspar Color Now booklet that cost me a whopping $1.49. It has some great ideas on color theory. These people are paid to come up with great color combinations, why not let them work for me?

So I would like to propose a series of challenges called 'Inspired by...The Challenge of Color.' {If this goes over well, I have other ones in mind...} Who's with me?

Here is how it will work:

1::Choose a color family to work with (i.e., blue, green, brown, etc.). It can be something that you feel safe with... or pick a palette that is challenging for you. ;-)

2::Email your name, address, and color family to enjoytheday{at}tesoritrovati{dot}com with the subject line Paint Chip Challenge. If you have a blog, include that link, too. {Email must be received by Friday, November 5th.}

3::I will mail a paint chip palette chosen just for you. {If you live outside of the US, I would still love to have you play, but I will email you a scanned color palette instead in the interest of time.}

3::You will create jewelry using your paint chip in any percentage of color that you like from the chip. Bonus points if you can use all the colors provided!

4::Select a name from your palette for your piece.

6::Blog Hop on Friday, December 3rd about your color palette and creative process. Be sure to show the paint palette you receive!

I know that not everyone has a blog, but I still want you to play! If you don't have a blog, email me anyway and take advantage of uploading your creation to the Flickr group with full information in the description. From that I will include you in my post for that day. {And if you choose the Flickr option, please have your piece uploaded by November 30th to ensure being included in my post for December 3rd}.

7::Random winner chosen from all entries in the blog hop on Friday, December 3rd. What will you win? Why beads, of course! I have an assortment of colorful beads {including art beads} and fibers that are just dyeing {get it?} to go home with a random winner. {I will post the goodies later this week.} If you are a bead artist and want in on the prize giving, shoot me an email and I will see if that can be arranged!

So, how about some chances to win?

• 1 entry for creating something and sharing it.
• 1 entry for using all the colors in your palette.
• 1 entry for naming your piece from the palette.
• 1 entry for participating in the blog hop and/or uploading to the Flickr site for December 3rd.
• 2 entries for the use of an ART BEAD {art bead is defined as a bead or component created by yourself or another artisan}, be sure to point that out in your description {with a link to the appropriate artisan’s website, shop or blog}.
• 1 entry for encouraging others to play along {be sure to leave me a note on this post so I know what you did!}
  

That's a total of 7 entries!

What are you waiting for? Let's get inspired by color together!

P.S. Looking for other inspiring challenges? Check out the Art Bead Scene monthly challenge, and the new Love My Art Jewelry November Call To Create in a wonderfully cozy winter color palette.

Enjoy the day!

My Many Colored Days

"Some days are red, Some are blue.
On different days, I'm different too.
You'd be surprised how many ways
I change on different colored days..."
~Dr. Suess, from My Many Colored Days


So begins one of my very favorite (and least known) Dr. Suess books.

I knew this one by heart and could recite it at the drop of a hat when my kids were toddlers. Now they are 8 and 11 and I rarely have cause to break into rhyme.

But I often think of that poetic language when I am confronted with colors. The Suessically penned phrases will pop into my head depending on my mood...

"Gray day. Everything is gray. I watch but nothing moves today....
All of a sudden I'm a circus seal. On my orange days, that's how I feel!"


I have been seeking some color to spice up my designs. I have books that are devoted to color theory like The Beader's Color Mixing Directory and others that arrange gemstones by their position on the chakra or zodaical signs. But often I am not sure exactly where to start. So I needed some inspriration.

A trip to the local hardware store offered all that I needed. I was on a quest to get a couple of cans of paint for my friend's new art gallery space. We needed to paint the shelves black. Not Total Eclipse or Abe Lincoln's Hat, just....black. Amazingly I was able to find one paint chip in a thousand that was actually called black.

But as I left the paint department I got to thinking... Why am I worried about combining colors when someone already got paid to do it? And why not raid their racks for the inspiration I need for the perfect color palette?

So I circled back to the paint aisle and started pulling off every single brochure from every single manufacturer. There was an "Enchanted Bedroom" card consisting of Lavender Luck (purple), Royal Liquor (burgundy) and Surfing U.S.A. (blue). And then I moved virtually outside to the "Endless River", the "Whispering Desert", the "Sprawling Meadow" and the "Enchanted Forest" collections. Some brochures attempted to label me based on the colors that I chose...what does your color palette say about you? Does it say...I am romantic? or festive? or casual? or sophisticated? There were yellow-greens and red-oranges and blue-violets all happily co-habitating in such an orderly rainbow parade.

These brochures are brilliant! Not only have the paint manufacturers done a stellar job of combining the best color combinations, but the names are so cool! (How can I get a job like that?) More specifically I discovered the treasure that is Devine Color Paint ("The Wisdom of a Woman in Every Can" -- I love that byline!) available online at http://www.devinecolor.com/. Below are some of the fabulous color combinations that they say "goes on like yogurt and looks like chiffon!" (Note to self: got to get me some of that paint for the next color journey I should really take in my own home. Free shipping, too!)

It is very important to me that each piece I create has a name. I find that often times the story about the piece is almost as important as the components in it. And the name can create a mystique about the piece and a story that someone connects with which makes them ready to buy. And color often plays a role in what a piece is ultimately called.

I don't know about you, but I would rather buy a piece called Night of the Dreamweavers than one that is simply titled, Black Onyx and Coin Pearl necklace. I have seen that in soooooo many publications and websites and blogs...zzzzzzzzZZZZZzzZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzz.




So, to spice things up ("I am {trying to be}...Festive!") I plan to utilize my paint chip library not only for the color inspiration, but for the names they supply...like...
Velvet Morning
Blue Dusk
Golden Cricket
Cinnamon Diamonds
My Inner Sanctum
Leaf Glimmer

What do you think?

• Does the name of a piece of jewelry/handmade object or the story behind it influence you?


• Do you choose your jewelry to match each outfit by color and pattern, or by the uniqueness factor?
  
• Would you rather have accessories that change with the seasons, or keeps up with the latest trends, or do you seek out your style no matter what they say is in vogue?


• What is the role of color in your life?
  
• Do you jazz up everything you touch with color, or do you live in beige? Would you like to break into color but are just not sure how?


• If you could be any color in a box of crayons or any paint chip on the wall, what would it be and why?

Do tell!

Check It Out::(It's a three-fer!)
http://huesdays.tumblr.com/
http://claireteschel.wordpress.com/paint-chips/ http://www.devinecolor.com/colorpeeks/colorpeeks.html

(This lovely palette was created by Claire Teschel of Huesdays.)

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."~William Shakespeare

Enjoy the day!

My Many Colored Days

"Some days are red, Some are blue.
On different days, I'm different too.
You'd be surprised how many ways
I change on different colored days..."
~Dr. Suess, from My Many Colored Days


So begins one of my very favorite (and least known) Dr. Suess books.

I knew this one by heart and could recite it at the drop of a hat when my kids were toddlers. Now they are 8 and 11 and I rarely have cause to break into rhyme.

But I often think of that poetic language when I am confronted with colors. The Suessically penned phrases will pop into my head depending on my mood...

"Gray day. Everything is gray. I watch but nothing moves today....
All of a sudden I'm a circus seal. On my orange days, that's how I feel!"


I have been seeking some color to spice up my designs. I have books that are devoted to color theory like The Beader's Color Mixing Directory and others that arrange gemstones by their position on the chakra or zodaical signs. But often I am not sure exactly where to start. So I needed some inspriration.

A trip to the local hardware store offered all that I needed. I was on a quest to get a couple of cans of paint for my friend's new art gallery space. We needed to paint the shelves black. Not Total Eclipse or Abe Lincoln's Hat, just....black. Amazingly I was able to find one paint chip in a thousand that was actually called black.

But as I left the paint department I got to thinking... Why am I worried about combining colors when someone already got paid to do it? And why not raid their racks for the inspiration I need for the perfect color palette?

So I circled back to the paint aisle and started pulling off every single brochure from every single manufacturer. There was an "Enchanted Bedroom" card consisting of Lavender Luck (purple), Royal Liquor (burgundy) and Surfing U.S.A. (blue). And then I moved virtually outside to the "Endless River", the "Whispering Desert", the "Sprawling Meadow" and the "Enchanted Forest" collections. Some brochures attempted to label me based on the colors that I chose...what does your color palette say about you? Does it say...I am romantic? or festive? or casual? or sophisticated? There were yellow-greens and red-oranges and blue-violets all happily co-habitating in such an orderly rainbow parade.

These brochures are brilliant! Not only have the paint manufacturers done a stellar job of combining the best color combinations, but the names are so cool! (How can I get a job like that?) More specifically I discovered the treasure that is Devine Color Paint ("The Wisdom of a Woman in Every Can" -- I love that byline!) available online at http://www.devinecolor.com/. Below are some of the fabulous color combinations that they say "goes on like yogurt and looks like chiffon!" (Note to self: got to get me some of that paint for the next color journey I should really take in my own home. Free shipping, too!)

It is very important to me that each piece I create has a name. I find that often times the story about the piece is almost as important as the components in it. And the name can create a mystique about the piece and a story that someone connects with which makes them ready to buy. And color often plays a role in what a piece is ultimately called.

I don't know about you, but I would rather buy a piece called Night of the Dreamweavers than one that is simply titled, Black Onyx and Coin Pearl necklace. I have seen that in soooooo many publications and websites and blogs...zzzzzzzzZZZZZzzZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzz.




So, to spice things up ("I am {trying to be}...Festive!") I plan to utilize my paint chip library not only for the color inspiration, but for the names they supply...like...
Velvet Morning
Blue Dusk
Golden Cricket
Cinnamon Diamonds
My Inner Sanctum
Leaf Glimmer

What do you think?

• Does the name of a piece of jewelry/handmade object or the story behind it influence you?


• Do you choose your jewelry to match each outfit by color and pattern, or by the uniqueness factor?
  
• Would you rather have accessories that change with the seasons, or keeps up with the latest trends, or do you seek out your style no matter what they say is in vogue?


• What is the role of color in your life?
  
• Do you jazz up everything you touch with color, or do you live in beige? Would you like to break into color but are just not sure how?


• If you could be any color in a box of crayons or any paint chip on the wall, what would it be and why?

Do tell!

Check It Out::(It's a three-fer!)
http://huesdays.tumblr.com/
http://claireteschel.wordpress.com/paint-chips/ http://www.devinecolor.com/colorpeeks/colorpeeks.html

(This lovely palette was created by Claire Teschel of Huesdays.)

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."~William Shakespeare

Enjoy the day!