artmachine: RAGING ORANGE

artmachine: RAGING ORANGE: Now that winter is officially over and spring is gently stepping in; I think we could all get into the mood for some serious spring cleanin...

RAGING ORANGE

Now that winter is officially over and spring is gently stepping in; I think we could all get into the mood for some serious spring cleaning and a makeover for the interiors to turn our homes trendy and stylish for the summer and then on.

To begin with, let me introduce you straight to the colour theme of the year. Believe it or not, the dominating colour for 2012 in fashion and interiors alike, as declared by International colour authorities Pantone is Tangerine Tango. A reddish deep orange which is already dotting the display windows of the clothes and accessories showrooms around town. It is only a matter of weeks before you notice the colour on cushions, throws, home linen and crockery in the up-market interior décor store like Goodearth. But that is another matter.

What interests me (and I have done a bit of looking all over to see what could work best with such a firey colour) is how can one work with a shade already so vibrant that one could easily slip into the risky zone of over-doing things. So my advice to all trendy décor enthusiasts like me is to keep it minimal. Use orange against neutrals and natural fabric and textures. Beige and browns compliment orange very well. Let me illustrate a bit further, suppose you have a dinner planned for a couple of people and you wish to make the table layout look fabulously ‘IN’, then use neutral shade mats, orange napkin holders, some orange table décor like fruits or flowers. Less should be more for this shade and prevent it from being overwhelming.

In your drawing room, simply bring in a flaming orange rug and some table décor in the shade, this colour can go very far as accents and not really a dominant tint.

For the bedroom, orange can be too energetic to prevent a leisurely sleep, so keep it minimal here as well; but you can surely get some fun orange cushions for the bed. 

According to colour therapists, Orange can aid in unleashing latent creative energies. In terms of spiritual healing, Orange is the colour of the Sacral chakra which helps us in realizing ourselves by enhancing our self-worth. Poised between red and yellow, orange is the colour for warmth and friendly cheer.

Hope it brings good things all around in 2012!

artmachine: Why Buy, When You Can Make?

artmachine: Why Buy, When You Can Make?: In the middle of a life full of high-stress jobs and tight-packed, busy schedules, blackberrys, status updates and tweets that most of you o...

Why Buy, When You Can Make?

In the middle of a life full of high-stress jobs and tight-packed, busy schedules, blackberrys, status updates and tweets that most of you out there may be leading, I am about to make a wild suggestion. If you follow a gifting tradition during Christmas and New Year- why not take a little time out of your bsy days and make some nice little gifts for your loved ones instead of buying things off the racks from some gift shop? Its old fashioned, yet so charming.

It doesn’t take much really…a bit of enthusiasm, mixed with some inspiration and one lazy, easy afternoon. And if you have all of that, then here’s a little idea to get you started. It is winter and may be just the right time to make a silk scarf for your friend or sister or colleague?

I just made this one:

And here’s how I did it.

I got pure satin silk from the store, and some complementing acrylic colour. I drew a pattern all over and filled in the pattern with gentle rush strokes. Once the painting was done, I got some matching border from the store and got that stitched to all four sides of the scarf. A gorgeous silk scarf was ready…all handmade and luxurious.

You can do it too. What joy it would bring to someone who you gift something like this. In the age of Archies Galleries and glitzy malls, something thing like this could sound like from the Grannies times…but hey, some things never lose their charm- like a handmade gift, made for someone with love...and coming straight from the heart. So go ahead, try making one and send me pictures, And if you love the idea, want a hand-painted scarf or stole and yet too lazy to make it…let me know, I will do it for you.
http://www.sharmilabhowmick.com/

artmachine: It’s That RED Time Of The Year Again

artmachine: It’s That RED Time Of The Year Again: If you are a nesting type like me, you must have already made your home cushioned and comfortable for this winter; your carpets are vacuum...

It’s That RED Time Of The Year Again

If you are a nesting type like me, you must have already made your home cushioned and comfortable for this winter; your carpets are vacuumed and quilts and pillows dry-cleaned and fluffy, and the house winter-proofed with all the nooks and crannies made air tight and dust free. Now if you have any energy left, then here's a little inspiration to turn your already neat home to a cheerful den full of high spirits and all set for the Christmas season and the year-end. And how do you plan to do it? Well what you need indeed is a splash of colour and small little changes to glam up your comfy home to a splendid indoors hideout.

I have a trick up my sleeve for this time of the year, I bring out my gorgeous red silk curtains, and splash the upholstery with bits of red here and there…it acts like an immediate pick p for my black and white and dark brown décor. Combined with some red wall art like Everywoman from my gallery http://www.sharmilabhowmick.com/gallery.html , some red candles on the table…a few red cushions in various shapes and colours…and the simple black-white décor is instantly transformed by a couple of notches worth of glam.

Try it yourself, it’s not back breaking to achieve and the best part is that while including red in your décor with wall paper or wall paint could be a challenge to live with when your love for the colour wears off in springtime or summer, with upholstery or knick knacks, all it takes is just to bring them down, wrap fold and pack away.

But for now, live up to the Christmas spirit…and splash away with happy RED.

If you have some great RED ideas, do share with me at art.machine.india@gmail.com.

http://www.sharmilabhowmick.com/

Make Your Own Art

This really defeats my purpose.


Believe me, I want to sell my paintings from my art site(http://www.sharmilabhowmick.com/) and get loads of orders to paint more and more…but at the same time, I do think that that there are many interesting ways in which you can make your own personalized art to do up your house, and buying a pieve of art for your home is not the only way you could bring in an aesthetic touch to your living space. (if you are a serious collector, you will have to excuse me on this suggestion though). To make your own art, all you need is time, inspiration and some jolly good ideas.

Here, let me help you light that spark, so that this weekend, instead of crawling to the nearest mall and spending your afternoon you bring out your scissors, buy a batch of colours, get some glue and sit down to make your own art project for your house and awaken your inner artist.

Personalised art is so much fun, especially if you have kids around (my one and half year old toddler has her own sense of creating art…she goes about scribbling on the walls with her crayons). So here’s what you will need to get started:

The first thing that one would need before creating anything of course is a subject. Decide on a nice subject for your art project. If it’s a family thing, you could bring out old letters, cards, family pictures, mementos…all together and then start with it. Make small notes about these mementos, and in a scrap book style, paste them on a board or a stretched canvas. Now add some colour to the remaining white parts…so that the material that you have put on the scrap book and the paintings gel in.

Bring some other craft material to jazz up this little piece of art: buttons, spangles, tiny décor everything works. Now finally let it all dry and set…and in just a couple of house you have your art project ready. Now get it framed and hang on a wall. This will always be special…your own family art project.

And yes, if you do attempt it, don’t forget to send pictures…to art.machine.india@gmail.com. I will post them this blog which also features on my art site (http://www.sharmilabhowmick.com/).