My dream art studio in the garden

I must confess I have been dreaming about building an art studio in my garden. Actually, I've been quite obsessed with the idea.
I am still hesitating whether to convert and extend our garage or knock the garage down and replace it with a ready made, purpose built, insulated garden room. The options are unlimited, but I am restricted by my limited budget. So let's see....

Option no 1 - low budget

Converting the garage by installing recycled windows in the walls.

Recently I came across a place called The Shed Gallery/Studio in Tunbridge Wells. It looks like their place is a converted garage or a garden shed. My studio could look similar.

Option no 2 - mid budget

I could cover our existing big garage with a new roof, with lots of skylights.

While researching I came across a company called VELUX®. They produce a top range of skylights and compatible VELUX blinds which can be opened with a remote-control, which sounds like an ideal solution for roof windows.

My new roof windows could look something like this (photo from VELUX website):

Option no 3 - the most expensive

To demolish the garage and to build something bigger from scratch. There are many companies out there offering to build insulated garden rooms. Or I could employ an architect and a builder and have my ideal studio built to my specifications. And I could still use VELUX skylights, with better effect.

I haven't decided yet. I am still in the dreaming stage. But they say everything starts from a dream.

This blog post was sponsored by VELUX

My dream art studio in the garden

Home Decor: Blue and Yellow

Last week I finally managed to add some decorating touches to our living room. It started with the blue wall (which I chose because of Feng Shui - it's represents the element of water).
The room felt quite cold, so I decided to add yellow
to balance it.

This yellow painting by my artist friend Lorna Wilson sets the tone for the whole room. I really love it.
The cushions below are from my Hatome shop.

Our sofa bed (from Ikea) is very useful for the guests' sleepovers but it is also very deep. To make it more comfortable for sitting, I made three over-sized cushions using vintage fabric from the 60s and 70s - in blue and yellow of course. You can read about making these cushions here.

I also made a temporary cover for an old armchair, which makes the chair look contemporary and fresh. On top of it you can see small 'Honeybee' cushion, made partly with the same stripy fabric.

This was my little adventure with blue and yellow.

Home Decor: Blue and Yellow

Mebloteka Yellow - design cafe shop in Lodz

I spent Christmas time in Lodz, Poland. It is my home town. It's the third biggest city in Poland. It used to be a textile industry centre, a bit like Manchester in the UK, but now most of the factories are closed. I call Lodz a city of factories and palaces. The palaces used to belong to the owners of the factories and some of them are beautifully preserved and open to the public.

Most of the factories however stood empty for a long time and few of them were in a very bad shape. Until recently, when things started to change. Now Lodz is getting to be a very exciting place to be. More and more factories are being restored. Some became loft style apartments, some offices and some shopping centres.

'OFF Piotrkowska' became the hub of design studios and creative businesses. One of them is Mebloteka Yellow - a gallery, a cafe and a shop selling handmade products with a vintage feel, mostly fashion and homewares.

A friend of mine told me about this place, and as soon as it opened after Christmas, I was there.

The atmosphere of Yellow is amazing. You can feel the creativity buzzing. It is a meeting place for local creatives and more and more people are now discovering it. You can learn more about it here.

OFF Piotrkowska was one of the venues for annual Design Festival in Lodz.

If you come to Lodz, put it on your list of places to visit. I really recommend it.

Mebloteka Yellow - design cafe shop in Lodz

Honeybees Cushions

I must admit a have a little fixation about the honeybees. I have always loved them and have been fascinated by them. I often read about the life of honeybees, about the amazing healing properties of honey and other bees products. I feel very passionate about our little friends. They are responsible for maintaining the majority of our food supply and they are now in serious danger. In Britain more and more people are aware of it and keep the beehives in their gardens, even in the big cities.

Some time ago I designed 2 artists books about the honeybees. Now I am making the cushions with honeybees appliques.

I would keep the beehives in the garden but it is a big commitment for which I am not ready.

Instead I plant Honeybee friendly plants and make sure I do not use the chemicals which are dangerous for them.

You can see more cushions here: www.hatome.co.uk

Honeybees Cushions

Country Living Christmas Fair in London

I recently visited the Country Living Christmas Fair in London. It is a huge crafts fair organized by Country Living Magazine, which is my favorite periodical.

Every month this magazine takes me on a journey into my dreams.
I read about lovely country cottages and gardens, and people who very often are self employed, often working from their studios. They also write a lot about crafts, which is inspiring.

I took some photos of the stands I particularly liked, but not all of the photos came out nicely so I will show just a few.

Here is some lovely crockery by Material Pleasures. I loved the simplicity and elegance of this display.

And handmade toys by Laura Long:

And vibrant prints by Emma Hardicker:

As always, the fair was a treat. It is invigorating to see all the range of people's creativity. Also, it was good research for me, I took mental notes about the way makers organize their stalls and what display ideas could work for my creative business.

Here is the link to Country Living Fair where you can find more information about their future craft fairs.

http://countrylivingfair.com/

Country Living Christmas Fair in London

Hatome Cushions with Mid Century feel

My little Hatome brand is growing!
Here are a few new cushions I have made using Mid Century fabrics which I have been collecting for a long time. I am finally putting them to good use.

This one has a fairytale theme and it would be also suitable for a children's room:

I used some vintage and some new Japanese fabric to sew this one:

The backs of the cushions are made with a contrasting colored thick cotton fabric, with a neatly concealed zipper.

Te cushion covers can be machine washed at the temperature of 30 degrees C.
Here is the link to Hatome shop on Folksy (UK online marketplace for arts and crafts):

www.hatome.co.uk

Hatome Cushions with Mid Century feel

New happy abstract paintings

Here are some of my new paintings, which can be described as Happy Abstract paintings.

There were inspired by Mid Century designs and interiors. I love all about Mid Century period: the architecture, the fabrics, the furniture, the illustrations.

These pictures will look very well in both Modern and Vintage home. I hope they will make you smile.

The colors are bright and energetic, they move the energy around.

To see more, go to my shop www.yolantaprints.etsy.com

Yolanta

New happy abstract paintings

Abstract Art for Children

I recently found myself painting almost abstract pictures for children. Here are some examples:

I guess it is quite important to train a child from early age to appreciate art and expose them to different forms of art. Then later they will make confident choices when it comes to all sorts of designs and esthetics in life.

I still remember vividly the paintings and prints on my parents walls when I was a child. I used to watch them for a long time and get lost in my imagination.

Colors and shapes are inspiring. They feed your soul. They can lift up your mood and make you feel happy for no reason.

To see more go to www.yolantaprints.etsy.com

Abstract Art for Children

Pictures inspired by Crystal Palace

I live in South London, in the area close to Crystal Palace Park. I will write about this special place more in another post, as it really deserves it, but today I wanted to share with you my two new paintings inspired by Crystal Palace.

The first picture is my free take on the iconic Crystal Palace TV Transmitter:

I paint in Ecoline watercolors (by Talens), which are my favorite. The colors have amazing luminosity. Here is the detail of this painting:

There are a lot of dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures in the park (well, only concrete ones...), so my next picture is showing one of the dinosaurs:

The pictures look good together on the Mid Century sideboard in my studio:

You can see more at www.yolantaprints.etsy.com

Pictures inspired by Crystal Palace

Yolanta Prints on Etsy

I am very excited! Yesterday I finally opened my art shop on Etsy, called Yolanta Prints. It contains the first four items to begin with, but I will be listing new items almost on daily basis. This is the first item, the Elephant. It's good to start with an elephant, as it is a magical animal. It is also connected to Shri Ganesha, Indian God of innocence and wisdom, who has the body of a child and the head of an elephant. He removes all obstacles.

In Yolanta Prints shop I am selling limited edition prints of my original watercolor illustrations. The prints are signed and numbered and sold unframed. Here is another print, a little abstraction with a letter 'Y'.

To see more, please visit my shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/YolantaPrints?ref=si_shop

I am having fun with this series. I am focusing on painting, painting, painting and it feels good. 

See you soon
Yolanta

Yolanta Prints on Etsy

How to make a felt heart stuffed with cotton or lavender

I have been making a lot of felt hearts lately. They are easy to make and you can make them in the evenings, while watching TV or listening to the music. I find the process of making them quite meditative.

This is what you need to make the heart: some felt fabric cut into two heart shapes, sequins or other decorative beads, thin thread and thin needle for sawing the beads onto the felt, embroidery thread and needle for sewing two sides of the heart together, and cotton for stuffing the hearts. You can also use dried lavender flowers as heart's filler - then the heart can be used in your wardrobe as moths' repellent.

Begin by sawing the beads onto one heart shape.

This is what the thread can look on the other side:

Put one heart shape on top of another and sew them together using the embroidery thread of contrasting color. Use the blanket stitch, as shown below. Leave the gap of about 3 cm (just over 1 inch) for filling the heart with cotton.

Fill the heart with cotton or dried lavender (I used both) and finish the sewing.

These hearts have a variety of uses. They can be placed in the wardrobe, hung on the Christmas tree or just displayed in a group.

Happy heart making :)

Yolanta

How to make a felt heart stuffed with cotton or lavender

Before and after

I am back. Sorry I have been away for so long. There was a lot of work to do in the house and it took all my energy. Also, I was forever looking for things. Now the renovation is almost finished and we have started to unpack. So I am showing you the first 'before and after' pictures. This is what our living room/library looked like when we moved in:

And this is what it looks like now:

We bought two more bookcases to accommodate all the books we have. And while filling the shelves with them, I also filled three bags of books to go to the charity shops.

I got this wonderful yellow painting from my very good friend and an amazing artist, Lorna Wilson. See her other paintings here.

I have chosen blue for this corner of the room because of Feng Shui. It represents the element of water. Instead of hanging the curtains in the windows, I used self-adhesive film to block the view from the street and let the light in.

On the shelf you can see the sculpture by my aunt, Jadwiga Janus. She began her art career in the sixties and is a well known artist in Poland. I love her work.

This is just the beginning. I hope our home will evolve with time and acquire it's own character naturally.

Yolanta

Before and after

2 lamps upcycled with Japanese fabric

On our trip to Japan in October this year I managed to source some beautiful Japanese fabric. Here are the two lamps that I have upcycled using this fabric.

The first lamp is called Hatome Oriental lamp. I had this vintage wooden lamp base for some time and have been looking for the right fabric to go with it. When I finally saw this wonderful thick cotton fabric in Tokyo I knew it would be perfect for the lampshade. I added some decorative cotton trimming to the edges for an additional visual impact.

 

I love the combination of red and turquoise, don't you? It is so uplifting.

The second lamp is called Hatome Happy Lamp. It has off-white vintage wooden base which originates from the 1970s. I upcycled the lampshade with this colorful cotton fabric which I could not resist when I saw it in Tokyo. It makes me smile every time I look at it.

It seemed appropriate to finish this lamp with red pompoms so that nobody has any doubts about how serious it is ;)

For the details of the lamps click on the Hatome shop link in the top right corner of this blog.

Love
Yolanta

2 lamps upcycled with Japanese fabric