decoro creativity

Monday, February 7, 2011

colourful monday

No Monday blues here - today I start a more in-depth journey into colour.

From all around the world, from the start to the end of the day, above or below water, there are plenty of cheerful reds and oranges to be seen.

my front garden © decoro creativity 2011

dust storm descends, my back garden © decoro creativity 2011

brain coral, fiji © decoro creativity 2011

notting hill carnival © decoro creativity 2011

new year fireworks, sydney © decoro creativity 2011

sunset, tobago © decoro creativity 2011

what colour has caught your eye today?

Friday, February 4, 2011

when to stop?

Last night there was some time without distractions. That is the benefit of being in someone elses house and babysitting a beautiful girl that quickly and easily goes to sleep at bedtime.

A recent addition to my collection is the rather lovely book by Orla Kiely called Pattern - I have yet to read many of the words, as there are plenty of pictures of her patterns that are a feast to the eye for a gal that loves colour and surface design.

Orla Kiely Pattern: Conran Octopus Ltd

I still did not succeed in reading many of her words: instead the cover gave me inspiration to do a little drawing. The repetitions of the flower shape and its' roundness gave me a starting point.

Orla Kiely Pattern: Conran Octopus Ltd

I added my detailing to the petals and played around with ways to fill the areas with shapes and different pen strokes. The flower was a bit lost floating in the middle of the page, so the stem grew down into a skirt of a long flowing gown (whilst also considering proportions). It still did not feel complete, and the squiggles and stars I feel helps the composition, drawing the eye back round and up to the flower.

Should I leave it there, should I add more? It can be hard knowing what to add, but harder to know when to stop.

You tell me, did I stop at the right point?

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

a week of new things and extremes

Shiny new shoes have been worn this week as schools return after the summer holidays.

When the sun comes out, hats and suncream go on.

and when the temperature is getting up to 40°C, then the pool is a must.

The heat is continuing until Sunday and might just break some local records.

In the last few months many places around Australia and the World have been bearing the extremes that mother nature can bring. The heat maybe uncomfortable, but preferable to the vast flooding in Queensland (which will take many months, if not years to recover from) or the major snow storms continuing to hit large areas of the US.

Tonight Queensland is bracing itself for category 5 Cyclone Yasi.

Stay safe, and spare a thought for those whose homes are not providing the security and reassurances that we normally take for granted.

Monday, January 24, 2011

rediscovering sydney

When we first moved to Sydney it was easy to notice the differences - the light was different, wildlife noises at dusk or dawn, the smell of the flowers, sound of rain on a tin roof, fruit that were once a treat are available in abundance, 'pinching chops off the BBQ' kookaburras, the big spiders ...

As time goes by, what was new becomes familiar and those differences become less noticed.

Yet if you stop, look up or down you can see new things, take a different way home or walk down a little side street you normal bypass, you can make new discoveries. Soon, you too can uncover something new and enjoy that buzz you get when see something beautiful for the first time.

Sydney may have come last in Australias most livable capital cities (The Australian), but despite her faults there is much to love. Here are some discoveries around Sydney. What have you recently discovered in your home town?

Sydney Harbour Bridge
© decoro creativity 2011

The Hornby Lighthouse
© decoro creativity 2011

Rose Seidler House
© decoro creativity 2011

In my front garden
© decoro creativity 2011

Queen Victoria Building
© decoro creativity 2011

Royal Botanical Gardens
© decoro creativity 2011

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

an evening with kevin

Last night the husband was away, the children were in bed asleep giving me a chance to spend some quality time with Kevin.

He could not make it in person, nearly as good is his latest book to explore. I am referring to Kevin McCloud's 43 Principles of Home, Enjoying Life in the 21st Century, a Christmas present from the husband (thank you darling).

Kevin McCloud's 43 Principles of Home (HarperCollinsPublisher)

Unsurprisingly (given my blog name!) I share his appreciation for creativity and craftsmanship, relating especially to Principle 27 which includes one of my favourite quotes. McCloud writes about how most items we buy are never bought from the people who actually make them, and how this dis-association can leave us lacking an appreciation for the item's substance.

Kevin McCloud's 43 Principles of Home (HarperCollinsPublisher)

He has as always, presents his thoughts in an informative and entertaining way, with in an easy to dip in and out of style with great illustrations and photos - A book well worth checking out.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

time to relax

It is the weekend and what better time to relax, dream and ponder?

When you don't have a care, when there is no judgement, you can bannish the "why not"s and unleash the "what if"s.....

Maybe you will see things in a new way this weekend, and you will find creativity in new places.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

What would you like to achieve in 2011?

At the start of 2010 I did not think I could draw or paint.

Yet during the year this side of my creativity was starting to be developed. The birthday fairy was born, some presents were created and inspiration was found in my back yard.

There were plenty more creative moments in 2010. I will get around to showing some of them along with further inspirations to be discovered in 2011 and their beautiful developments. I also plan to learn a lot more about colour, and a few other things that I will let you know about very soon....

What about you? What would you like to achieve in 2011?