Too Much Permanent Marker Is Not Good For You

Finally! I have figured out what to do with the oh so giant space above my TV *happy dance....BAP BAP BAP* Yes, I'm just a little bit happy to have this one done. For the last year I have been trying to figure out what to do. I have thrown around several ideas. A giant picture, a giant painting, lots of small pictures, shelving, shelving and pictures, a wall sculpture/installation....you name it, I've thought about it. However, nothing has seemed quite right. All of my ideas thus far have either looked out of place or like they were competing with the rest of the room. Then one day I was looking through my daily HGTV newsletter and came across what looked like a black and white wall print. It was made up of 8 circles, all in different black and white designs. I looked at it for awhile, and thought it would look really cool in the office. I looked online but couldn't seem to find it, so instead I did what I do best, and made one of my very own.

So first things first was design. I measured the size of the wall and then sketched a general outline of the piece so I could figure out the placement and size of each circle.

I originally was just going to take a large piece of paper or mat board and draw the circles right on it, but then I decided I wanted to create a little dimension. So instead I decided to do the circles individually on poster board and attach them to a large piece of paper. I found this 4ft x12ft wide roll of white paper at Michaels. 

Next I measured the radius of each circle. I went for a combination of big and small. For the smaller ones I used my protractor, but the larger ones exceeded the size that my protractor would go. Typically I would have just tied a string to an anchor and a pencil, but I decided to elevate my tools this go round. I decided to make a large protractor that I could use for really large circles. So I grabbed 2 rulers, a mechanical pencil, BBQ skewers and a big screw and nut. I taped the pencil to one of the rulers and the skewers to the other. Then I put the 2 rulers together and put the screw through the hole at the top and tightened it from the other side with the nut...and Voila! A new protractor. 

Using poster board I cut out 8 circles, 4 big and 4 smaller.

For my design I stuck to black and white. I bought a pack of fine and ultra fine black permanent markers. I debated using acrylic paint, but that could be a lot more time consuming and limiting, especially when it came to detail work. So I went with marker. I grabbed the first circle and just free handed a design. I really didn't have a plan or an idea of what it was going to look like. I started in the middle of the circle, and just did whatever came to mind. I continued drawing outward using varying size circles and designs until I reached the edge.

1st circle

Isn't it pretty. You know as much as I think and go for simple, the outcome is always beyond what I imagined. Originally I was thinking I would draw a few lines, some circles, and get fancy by throwing in a diamond or 2. Clearly that didn't happen. After the first one was done I moved on to the next one. Same thought process as before. Start from the middle and just design outwards with whatever came to mind. 

2nd Circle

Each circle took on average about a few days to complete. Sometimes because it was a lot of detail, other times I just didn't know what to do. Seeing as how there was no real plan on the design, it was real easy to get Artist's block. So sometimes I would just stop, hang it up, and let it sit until something came to me. 

3rd Circle

At this point I realized how toxic permanent markers can be. I don't think I've ever worked with so much permanent marker at one time. The 3rd circle had a lot of black in it, and I was just leaning over the desk inhaling every bit of fumes. Man, talk about getting light headed. I had to actually open the door and take it out to the garage so it could air out. I was not trying to pass out!

4th Circle

Now I originally thought this project would take me months. Each circle especially the larger ones were quite time consuming. I also didn't want to rush and do a sloppy job. I estimated about 1 per week when I first started.  However I seemed to somehow get a wave of inspiration and energy over the last week, and just started cranking them out. 

5th Circle

I finished the last 3 in a week

7th Circle

8th Circle

So in case you didn't notice I am missing the 6th circle. Somehow in the madness I missed photographing it when I was done, and unfortunately it is already taped to the wall at the time I am writing this post. Sorry. #BlogstarFAIL! As I designed each one, I laid them next to each other to make sure they were all somewhat cohesive. I didn't want them to be the same, but I didn't want them to all be so different that they clashed and looked odd together. 

With all 8 done I laid them on the floor and played around with placement. I arranged them around in various combinations to figure out which one worked best. I settled on this one.  

I wanted the piece to be in the middle of the wall. Hard to do when there are no distinct corners. So I measured the highest, lowest, and furthest points on both sides to get the basic size. I came up with 74" across and 48" down. To adhere the pieces to the wall I used Scotch photo tape. I used a couple of pieces per circle just to make sure they were secure. 

I marked the lowest mid point of the wall using Painter's tape so I could use that to place the first piece. Then I found the lowest midpoint of the circles and matched that up with the piece of tape. 

While they were on the floor I measured where the second piece would hang in conjunction to the first. So once the first one was placed, I placed the second one right next to it.

 After that the rest of the circles were easy. One by one I adhered the remainder of the circles to the wall until I had a completed piece. My new collage of circles we'll call it.

What do you think?! I'm actually digging it. It does wonders for how the room looks. Oh and let me just take a moment to reiterate how excited I am to finally have this done. After a year of not knowing what to do it's nice to have this checked off the list. One thing that I am still contemplating is color. Originally I was going to use my colored permanent markers and highlight each circle, but now I'm not sure. What do you all think? Color or no color? I'm hesitant to do anything because once I touch it, it's a done deal. There's no going back and changing my mind. So for right now I'm going to hold off until I'm sure. I have a few ideas of other options, but we'll just see how it all plays out. Until then it's on to the next project....And one step closer to my oh so MAGICAL office!

Purses - TAKE 2

I had high hopes when I started the return of TM-Originals. I was definitely excited to get back into wearable design. The earrings I wear all the time, and the booties I can't wait to wear when the weather gets cooler. The purse...well...let's talk about that. The key to painting anything that you plan on selling is durability. I painted the purse and it looked really nice. However, the paint never cured. Meaning it's still to this day, tacky to the touch. I did some investigation and found that all types of leather are not created equal, and the type that I used does not take the special leather paint as well. It was a disaster *Insert sad face*. I still want to make purses though. So, here is round 2.

I happened to be in Hobby Lobby picking out fabric with a friend for her project when I saw some canvas that caught my eye. It was a nice white/off white color. Not leather, but I liked it and I wanted to be versatile so I picked it up. Canvas is an easily manipulated fabric so I knew I could paint on it. I used the canvas and another printed fabric I found that day.

 

I made a template using poster board so I could get the exact measurements when cutting everything.

I ironed all of the pieces to remove wrinkles, and sewed them together. Somewhere along the line I decided that I would sew this one from the inside and flip it inside out. It actually looked pretty cool with the pattern on the outside. So I may be doing some inside out purses at some point. For the fastener I used an invisible magnetic closure that I attached to the inside of the fabric in both places.

Now it was time to get creative and paint the outside. Unlike a piece of art canvas you can't just use regular Acrylic paint. It will dry really hard and stiff. You must use something formulated for fabric specifically. They do sell that type of paint, but I didn't feel like buying new paint. I ended up just using fabric medium. You mix part paint and part medium to create a new softer formula. 

I wanted to go for the same color scheme as the last purse. I know summer is winding down, but I'm still holding on. I free styled a design on the outside using pastel yellow, green, and blue.

 

 

One thing I did learn is that I cut the purse to be sewn together from the outside. When I changed my mind and did it from the inside it took away some of the space and made the inside structure a little smushed. Not a disaster, but definitely something good to know for next time. I'm going to use this as a tester and see how it holds up.

 

Now, when I was in Hobby Lobby that day I got inspired not by just the canvas but by much of their fabric selection. I was there to help a friend and ended up with more in the cart than she did. I knew then 1 purse just didn't seem like enough. SO....

Purse #2 - After the first debacle, I did a lot of test swatches to see which type of leather would hold the paint. It actually turns out that I got material made for water use, so it's not meant to absorb liquid but rather repel it. Go figure. One of the swatches that was a success ended up being something I already had in my fabric bin. I used a piece of black leather, and paired it with some leftover home décor fabric.

A couple of hours later I turned some fabric remnants into a new clutch. For the fastener I used a magnetic closure adhered to the outside. I also decided to try out fabric glue to close the flap piece instead of sewing. I know, I talked so badly about fabric glue in the last post, but I want to try out some different techniques. Also I have a whole bottle of the stuff and feel like I should use it.

 

I was really digging the black on black and the mix of materials.

For some extra pizazz I decided to add a little bit of color and texture. I cut out some extra pieces and painted them in different shades of blue, green, and gray.  

I cut the big pieces into smaller pieces, and used my E6000 glue to set them on to the back of the purse.

I didn't have any real plan, just did more of a free form placing. Once all of the piece were placed I had to go back with some more powerful glue and add it to the corners of the individual pieces to keep them secure. The ones right on the fold were itching to curl up everytime I tried to close it. The finished product....

Purse #3 - For the last purse I used one of the fabrics I purchased from Hobby Lobby. Honestly at first sight I was thinking pencil skirt. (I actually have extra fabric left over so this may easily still happen. Who am I kidding, it will happen. So stay tuned for that post.) For the inside of this one I decided to go with a bold red. Black or white would have been too obvious and boring. I also had several yards of it from some pillows that never happened.

 

I made another template. This one had the same dimensions as the last, but had a full rectangular flap.

I decided to do something a little different for the closure on this one. I added the snap to the back of the purse, and added a strap to the inside that wrapped around the back to close.

I thought the purse needed a little something extra. I found a decorative piece in my craft stash, painted it gold to match the polka dots, and added it to the front.

I also decided to add a chain. I am definitely loving a cross-body bag situation these days. I don't know how often I would use it on a clutch, but it will be a nice added touch to have the option. To make the chain opening, I cut a hole in the corner of the purse and added 2 grommets on either side.

 

Then I strung a large gold ring through the grommets and added a thick gold chain.

Once the chain was added I had a finished product

 

This is probably my favorite of the 3. I love the material, and I'm actually loving the chain option.

 

 Purse #4 - ? HA, I didn't go that far. I thought about it though. 3 seems like enough for now. Definitely enough for my "research" purposes. So what do you think of my week of purse making? Like I said these are all testers. The goal is to see how good they are and how well the different techniques hold up in real life. I have been carrying them lately so I'll give you an update in a later post. Hopefully I can come to a consensus soon. I want to try and have my first collection out by the holidays. My very own COLLECTION. I like that word. It sounds so legit and cool. Until then .....It's on to the next project.