Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts

Thursday 26 October 2023

Creating inexpensive Christmas wonderland décor for your home

Creating an inexpensive Christmas wonderland décor for your home can be a fun and creative project. You don't need to break the bank to make your home look festive and magical. Here are some ideas to help you get started:

DIY Ornaments: Create your own ornaments using simple materials like paper, felt, or even salt dough. You can paint or decorate them in a festive theme, and they'll add a personal touch to your tree.

Natural Decorations: Use elements from nature like pinecones, holly, and evergreen branches to create beautiful centrepieces, wreaths, and garlands. These are often free and can be found in your backyard or a nearby park.

Twinkling Lights: String lights can transform any space into a Christmas wonderland. Look for inexpensive LED string lights to hang around your home, on your tree, and in windows. You can often find these at discount stores.

Charity Shop Finds: Check out charity shops or second-hand shops for affordable Christmas decorations. You can often find unique and vintage items that will add character to your décor.

Paper Snowflakes: Create paper snowflakes to hang from your ceiling or windows. They're easy to make and add a delicate touch to your décor.

Candles: Candles can create a cosy and warm atmosphere. Look for inexpensive, unscented candles in Christmas colours and place them in decorative candle holders or mason jars.

DIY Christmas Stockings: Make your own stockings using old fabric or felt. You can personalise them with names and decorate them with simple embroidery or fabric paint.

Christmas Cards: Display your received Christmas cards on a string or a ribbon. It's a simple and sentimental way to decorate your space.

Christmas Printables: You can find free or low-cost Christmas printables online, including wall art, banners, and labels. Print and frame these to add a festive touch to your walls.

Repurpose and Recycle: Look around your home for items that can be repurposed into Christmas décor. For example, old glass jars can become festive candle holders, and a plain tablecloth can be transformed with some paint or fabric markers.

DIY Wreath: Make your own Christmas wreath using materials like old ornaments, pinecones, and ribbon. You can often find plain wreath forms at craft stores for a reasonable price.

Festive Table Settings: Create a festive table setting with inexpensive tablecloths, placemats, and napkins. You can also use holiday-themed dishes and cutlery.

Homemade Scented Pinecones: Add a wonderful holiday scent to your home by making scented pinecones. Simply dip them in a mixture of water, cinnamon, and a few drops of essential oils, then let them dry.

Budget-Friendly Tree Décor: Opt for a smaller Christmas tree, or use a table top tree. Decorate it with homemade ornaments, popcorn strings, and inexpensive tinsel.

Holiday Music and Movies: Don't forget to set the mood with Christmas music and films. They're a low-cost way to add to the festive atmosphere in your home. You can find many classical Christmas films on YouTube.

Remember that the key to creating an inexpensive Christmas wonderland is to get creative and use what you have. Incorporate your own personal touches to make your home feel warm and inviting during the holiday season.

Friday 15 September 2023

STABILO has your gifting Christmas covered

This Christmas, STABILO has stocking fillers all wrapped up! With STABILO you can gift your loved ones a wide range of STABILO products to help their inspiration and boost their creativity flourish.

Brighten up the festive season by using the STABILO Boss Original Highlighters. These iconic highlighters come in a variety of perfect, eye-catching colours perfect for organising and studying,  making them a perfect gift for professionals and students alike.

The STABILO Woody 3 in 1 is the ultimate artistic tool for imaginative young children and is a Christmas gift that is likely to harness and inspire creativity.  Adding even more arty options, the STABILO Pen 68 Max provides endless opportunities! Its 24 vibrant colours, and a premium fibre-top and chisel top, allows you to bring ideas to life and can be used by everyone from beginners all the way up to expert artists. 

From colouring to organising there’s a STABILO product that's great for everyone. Encourage artistic expression and productivity with thoughtful presents for any age. Make the holiday season brighter, one stroke of vibrant colour at a time!

To find out what STABILO has on offer please visit https://www.stabilo.com/uk

Tuesday 5 September 2023

Get Crafty this Christmas with Thorndown's Christmas craft packs

Learn why Thorndown’s Christmas craft packs are the ultimate in bespoke Christmas décor for 2023.

Arty homeowners who want to create their own bespoke window decorations this Christmas need look no further than Thorndown Paints’ Christmas craft pack.

The pack, available now for just £20, contains four tins of Thorndown’s special Peelable Glass Paint, plus six nifty festive stencils and an art brush.

Together, the pieces can be employed to create some truly stunning festive window scenes, personalised presents and one-of-a-kind decorations.

Caroline Thornborough, who is Thornborough's Design Director, said: “Christmas is a fantastic time to get stuck into crafting. It’s something the whole family can do together to create something really personal to them and the family. Plus, it’s a great way of making sure your festive window displays are really, genuinely and truly unique.”

The craft packs are also fantastic and ideal for those who are looking to create their own Christmas presents and decorations. 

From tealight holders to sweet jars, they'll all add a personal touch wherever they are used.

The Christmas Craft Packs are available now from thorndown.co.uk priced at £20 each.

For ideas and inspiration, visit: https://thorndown.co.uk/project-category/arts-crafts

Saturday 5 November 2011

For this Christmas, say it with words with Art on Tiles


 Art on Tiles – the bespoke hand painted tile company – is offering a chance for homeowners to express their individuality with a service offering hand painted tiles featuring the wording, layout and even the font of the client’s choosing.

Jonathan Waights, principal artist and founder says: “People can come up with whatever they like - it is a chance to be completely individual, witty or romantic, to quote someone else or make something up. Quotes about food and eating are very popular for the tiles above the stove. Quotes for the bathroom tend to be more romantic – or even a bit naughty.’

The Art on Tiles standard hand painted 5 inch tiles with one letter per tile can be ordered for £10 each and blank matching tiles are also available for £1.20 each. The brick shaped tiles shown here are £12 painted and £2.20 plain, with a moulded border available for an additional £4 each.

This range and others can be seen and ordered from www.artontiles.co.uk or readers can contact Jonathan direct on 01243 552346.

Examples of past commissions:

(EDITOR: This will make a Christmas present that will last, in effect, for ever. What a wonderful gift!) 

Friday 14 October 2011

Say it With Art this Christmas. A specially commissioned painting makes the perfect gift

A specially commissioned painting makes a genuinely unique and unforgettable gift …for Christmas, Weddings and all special occasions. And it’s more accessible and achievable than you might think.

Who hasn’t wracked their brains or exhausted their imaginations over that very important gift for someone very special? How many wedding lists or retirement/anniversary gifts offer the chance to contribute to something truly lasting and meaningful? What would a specially commissioned painting full of personal resonance mean to the one you love?

www.gofigurative.com is an art business with a difference, one which makes buying or commissioning art accessible, enjoyable and satisfying. With a diverse community of talented and skilled figurative artists to call upon, GoFigurative.com can match each client to the right artist and oversee the process from start to finish.

Creating a real partnership between painter and portrait subject (or a beloved landscape, or a still life of treasured objects) GoFigurative.com can enable the acquisition of a unique, bespoke and precious possession that is destined for heirloom status.

A picture’s worth a thousand gifts… so put your ‘art-list’ online

…And if this seems like a fantasy of unaffordable luxury, think again – because of their innovative and flexible online business model, GoFigurative costs, and therefore prices are lower than conventional galleries. The website also makes it possible to share and spread the cost – by setting up a ‘gift list’ online through which friends, family members and colleagues can make payments to contribute toward the special commission.

A hub for skill and talent – a brief outline of artists and case studies

GoFigurative is both an innovative online gallery and a vibrant community for figurative artists, including sculptors, portrait, landscape and still life painters. When commissioning a special piece of art, clients can select from the rich portfolio of renowned artists.

Recent special commissions included the ‘Portrait of Steph’ by Hyenk Martinec, arranged as a 40th birthday present by her partner. Martinec, who loves to mix photorealism with abstraction, is the winner of the BP Young Artist Award in 2007 and 2008 and his work is part of private collections in London, Berlin, Vienna, Prague, Miami and New York.

The master of closely observed interior scenes, Andrew McNeile Jones is also among the GoFigurative artists who take special commissions. He specialises in creating a ‘still life’ of the subject’s favourite objects and mementoes. Recently McNeile Jones created a painting of the bride’s wedding dress and groom’s outfit for the marriage of a couple who had no need of the usual ‘wedding list’ suspects and wanted something very different to mark the occasion and treasure instead. GoFigurative set up a ‘gift list’ for this special commission at: www.gofigurative.com/jasonharshika

Mayor Boris Johnson and Dr. Diana Walford, former Principal of Mansfield College, Oxford University were recent portrait subjects of Helen Masacz. Her work was shown at the Royal Society Portrait Painters Exhibition 2011, winning the Art's Club Award. In 2005 along with other noted artists such as Frank Auerbach, Tracey Emin and Marc Quinn, Masacz was asked by the National Portrait Gallery to contribute work for their 150th anniversary.

BP Portrait Award 2011 nominees Alan Coulson and David Eichenberg are also among the renowned names who undertake special portrait commissions through GoFigurative.com

GoFigurative artist Melissa Scott-Miller specialises in portraits with interesting background detail - for instance, a family group with their house in the background, or perhaps the sitter in his or her favourite room, or in a corner of the garden. Melissa also welcomes commissions for houses, gardens or a favourite view.

Price guide:

Special commissions start from £500 – rising to £10,000 for a large oil on canvas portrait.

FACTFILE:
Go Figurative – The Real Art People
GoFigurative is a unique art company providing bespoke art consulting, sourcing and installation services. An easily navigable website makes art easy to find, buy and even try-out for all kinds of collectors - and a wide range of budgets. Go Figurative was founded by Sally Perry and Janine Collins, a pair of professional high-flyers who have now turned their passion for art into a full-time, thriving venture with a distinctive business model.

GoFigurative
1 Liverpool Street, London EC2M 7QD
Tel: +44 (0) 207 956 2819
www.gofigurative.com