Mauve, Magenta and Deep Purple
Hello Friends! It's me, Leslie and it's time for Color Me Pretty again. Are you ready to see what I've come up with this time around? Today I am using different shades of mauve, magenta and deep purple combined with lots of aged paper for a more nostalgic feel. What do you think? I also wanted to paint some Anni Albers (German textile artist and printmaker, read more here) inspired patterns in watercolor to bring geometric elements to the mix as I always like it when different styles converge, don't you? Some of the dahlias I photographed also inspired me to paint a few which brings a softness to some crafts I made for you. I really hope you enjoy this little investigation.
Decorating ideas: As you know vintage papers of any kind can provide an interesting texture to your home decor. Old books with worn spines on a shelf, maps of cities you love or images from bygone eras can help to create more flavor to any room. I have noticed that vintage post cards are widely available at my local flea market and they can be an instant way to add color and a little bit of history to your walls. It is also fun to turn them over and show the old handwriting and stamps on the back. I could imagine some tacked in a group or clipped to a string hung on a wall, some showing the images and some showing the back. The postcards I picked up were fifty cents to a dollar with some dating back to 1910.
DIY Ideas: Garlands (above) are featured everywhere these days but they are also nostalgic and so sweet, I just had to try making one for you in this color scheme! After scanning in some of my watercolors I then printed them out on textured paper, cut the triangles, and then quickly glued them to a ribbon. I hope you like it and I will try to sew one next time!
Another DIY idea -- Lastly, I scanned in some old German text book pages to use as a background texture for some of the photographs and for some little gift tags that I made. I just didn't feel right about cutting up the book for my crafts! Are you the same way when it comes to cutting up books? It's hard, isn't it?
I really look forward to seeing you back here in a couple weeks!- xo, Leslie
(images: leslie shewring)