The Wonders of Creating Pictures using Paper

Caribbean Bus

 

Turban Lady

Bead Lady

Angel '9 Women'- See the other ladies HERE

Cat Mirror

Lion Water Fountain (Spilli, Crete, Greece)

Waterspout (Spilli, Crete, Greece)

Decorative Bowl

Chameleon Box

Website:©️ Alison Day Designs

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9 Women - A Series of Nine Portraits, Created Entirely from 'Trash'

 

Angel - Beautiful, Empathetic 9 Women was a personal project, highlighting womankind, recycling and the number 9. I refer to these artworks as 'papiermache-mosaics', which refers to the materials and process of their creation. Made from papiermache, the pictures are in relief and are decorated in a repetitive fashion, rather like mosaics, with recycled 'trash.      My choice of women as the central theme, stems from my interest in the adaptability of womankind.  In my opinion, unequalled in their creativity, multi-faceted and possessing an inherent chameleon-like diversity.  Why 9? The number 9 has magical, meditative and religious qualiities and is seen as a symbol of harmony, inspiration and perfection. In many cultures it is considered sacred, with a reference to eternity. 9 Women was exhibited at The Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, in the Netherlands, 01/05/11 - 31/07/11 Beatrice - Adaptable, Versatile  Candice - Crazy, Loving Lulu - Creative, Role-model Hannah - Nurturer, Supporter Medusa - Formidable, Wild Cleo - Diverse, Multi-tasker Scarlet - Colourful, Stylish Josephine - Adventurous, Funny Website: ©️Alison Day Designs Instagram

Nature's Cordial

A little later than last year, but it's that time again... 

Time to make elderflower cordial. A simple and satisfying process, from picking the blooms to bottling and makes a lovely gift for sharing.

INGREDIENTS 

1 kg white sugar, either granulated or caster

1 lemon

13 fresh elderflower heads trimmed

42g (10 tsp) citric acid

800 ml water 

Put the sugar and 800 ml water into a large saucepan. Gently heat, without boiling, until the sugar has dissolved, stirring occasionally. Pare the zest from the lemon using a potato peeler, then slice the lemon into rounds.

Once the sugar has dissolved, bring the pan of syrup to the boil, then turn off the heat. 

In a bowl of cold water, swish the flowers around to loosen any dirt or bugs. Gently shake off excess water before transferring to the syrup, along with the lemon slices zest and citric acid, then stir well. 

Cover the pan and infuse for 24 hrs.

Strain through a tea towel over a large bowl or pan. Discard the bits left in the towel. Use a funnel and a ladle to fill sterilised bottles that have been rinsed and dried in a low oven. 

The cordial is ready to drink straight away and will keep in the fridge for up to 6 weeks. 

Recipe makes 1400ml, approx 2 x 75cl bottles.

Website: Alison Day Designs

   

Stepping in to an Adventure

 

A quote by the Cheshire Cat, from Alice in Wonderland, added to an illustrative floral border of fuchsias, sourced from my garden 🌸

An assignment from Immersion, a Surface Pattern Design Course I’m taking. 

The quote was hand written, then stylised and digitised in Adobe Illustrator and the final colour choice reached by using playing with the recolour tool in Illustrator. 

Alice and the Cheshire Cat

Alice in Wonderland by John Tenniel

Website: Alison Day Designs

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Fuchsia Frolic

First pattern: Fuchsia Frolic - using the flower of a favourite garden plant for inspiration and one that I grow each year in my garden. 

Created as a result of following a 5-day pattern challenge, using Adobe Illustrator.

Quite a learning curve and it still needs tweaking, but that's all part of the fun. 

I love a challenge - the start of many more! 🌸

Website: Alison Day Designs 

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Harnessing Autumnal Hues: Creating Vision Boards

 

Creating Vision Boards

February 2024, I took part in Immersion, a 12 week dive into surface pattern design given by Bonnie Christine. An eye opening course, that taught me the basics of designing patterns, added to my knowledge of Adobe Illustrator and provided inspiration for making new colour palettes and vision boards. 

My intention was to create a spring-themed vision board, but the result had an autumnal vibe. Featuring citrus slices from potpourri, dried Cosmos and Lisianthus blooms, Red Baron leaves and honesty seeds. The papery moult from the silver birch tree, at the end of the garden and a mini mosaic of a Blue Tit, my homage to these tiny birds, who appear all year round in the garden.

I also love the sea and am interested in marine life, shown by the addition of shells and fish. 🐚

Visit my website: Alison Day Designs

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Immersion: Diving into the World of Surface Pattern Design

My collection of dried, pressed flowers and leaves, grown last summer and picked from my garden or collected en route somewhere are a great source for sketching. I’ve even created floral sheets for inspiration.

Below is first attempt pattern: Fuchsia Frolic - using a favourite plant that I grow each year in my garden for inspiration. This was created after taking part in free a 5-day pattern challenge, generously offered by Bonnie Christine.

Although I’ve used Adobe Illustrator before for publications, it was a learning curve on what else Illustrator can be used for. The pattern still needs a little tweaking, but was a lot of fun to make - I love a challenge!

The prospect of what learning surface pattern design could add to a my business long term, in terms of creativity and passive income is exciting. So, I’ve signed up for Immersion, an 8-week course (offered by Bonnie), to add this skill to my repertoire. 

And , the stunning course book and goodies have already arrived in time for the start on Monday !

Website: Alison Day Designs 🌸

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