One thing I love to do using my papercraft style is fashion design. Going through the whole process of creating pieces that I’d love to wear is so much fun and gives me ideas for pieces I’d want to wear in the future, or what I think would look good on other people.
From the design to the colours, and then creating the final piece, I love seeing how they turn out. Paper layering is a great way to design and make your own clothes out of paper and see how they come to life. I often add vinyl to my final pieces to add shiny areas to help them stand out. I’m slowly building up my own fashion portfolio of different fashion designs depending on the different seasons!
What is fashion design?
Fashion design is the creation of design concepts with mediums such as paper, pen, pencil, ink, and more. Once a design has been created and finalised, these designs can then be made into physical garments for a range of occasions, styles, and seasons.
If you’re interested, you should definitely give it a go! You don’t have to be an expert to try and enjoy new things.
I created this beautiful clay tea light holder inspired by the famous blue China Willow plate that tells a story of love and woe.
After seeing the stunning blue willow plate, I decided to create a tea light holder inspired by the plate. I made the holder in four sections that can be used as a centre piece or split into 4 sections.
I went back and forth on the design for the tea light holder for a while, wanting to ensure each section would be just right. After trying a few different ideas, I finally decided on a final design and created a detailed drawing of how I wanted it to look when I made it with clay.
Once I had the final design, I began creating each section out of clay, getting the initial four sections created. I then created the 3D pieces that would sit on top of each section to match the Willow plate design. Then I carefully painted each piece white and blue, to match the traditional colours and the whole thing came together.
I, of course, had to put tea lights in and light them to see the full effect. I absolutely love the way they turned out and how they look both together and spread out across a table.
I recently created a biscuit packaging design for cookies. The packaging is for Dodo Bites and their range of different sweet treats!
I started off by sketching a few different design ideas to see what I thought looked best, and then took these ideas and made them into three final designs, one for ginger biscuits, one for chocolate chip cookies and one for raisin biscuits.
After I had the designs complete and I was happy with how they looked, I began playing with the different colour combinations I thought would look good, this lets me get a rough idea of how the final, colour product will look. At this stage, I also changed the designs to be a range of chocolate chip cookie packaging, to keep consistency in the product. I then chose the colour combination I liked best to be my final packaging design.
Once I was happy with the designs and the colours. I began to create the final piece. I used my paper cutting style and began cutting and layering pieces of paper on top of each other to create the 3D paper design style I use for a lot of my art. This process takes a while but is so worth it for the final result!
Doing this project for my Dodo Bites Biscuits was a great way to test my skills, and shows that this unique paper cutting style can even work for packaging purposes!
Would you try Dodo Bites if you saw them on a shelf?
I love DIY and using nature in my art whenever I can, so I came up with the idea to create a paper mache rabbit as a new feature for my garden! I used bark that I already had to cover up the paper mache and layered it over to give the effect of fur on the rabbit. This helped bring the rabbit to life and meant I could re-use something I already had to create this feature.
After I stuck all of the bark onto the rabbit, I found some stones that were the right shape and size to make eyes and a nose, as well as small sticks for the whiskers and plants for the tail. I then glued them on over the bark and waited for them to dry before sealing my new DIY creation and adding him to my garden as a new feature.
There are so many things you can do to create art using nature and things in your garden or on local walks! I love thinking of new ideas and creating art using things I’ve found. Have you made a DIY garden feature, or would you give something like this a try? I’d love to hear if you’ve done something similar!
I’ve created this bright and colourful open-up flower bug book to help highlight the UKs top insects. The book is called Mini Beasties of Flight, and each petal of the flower features a different one of our top insects with a little bit of information about each of these creatures. This book was created to highlight that although some of these insects may be a bit gross or scary looking to some, they all have an important role to play in our ecosystem, and they all help nature and the world around us to flourish! I created this art book with paper cuts, and added extra fine details using fine liner pens to show their beauty when looking at them closer!
Some fun facts about the insects featured in Mini Beasties of Flight:
Bees:
The reason bees are so noisy is because they beat their wings 11,400 times every minute.
Bees have 5 eyes.
Bees typically fly at around 20 miles per hour.
The bee has existed for around 30 million years.
Bees carry pollen in their hind legs in a pollen basket.
Flies:
Flies can taste with their feet.
Some fly species can pollinate plants.
House flies live on a liquid diet.
House flies can walk upside down.
Flies are able to see behind them.
Ladybirds:
The number of spots on a ladybird indicates what species it is.
Ladybirds aren’t always red and black, they can also be yellow, brown, and orange.
Ladybirds hibernate from October to February.
Adult ladybirds can live between 1 to 3 years.
Ladybirds are considered useful insects and help farmers and gardeners by keeping pest numbers down.
Green Shield Bugs:
You will commonly find the green shield bug in gardens in the UK, especially in the south of England.
Green shield bugs feed on a variety of plants.
You’re most likely to see green shield bugs between May and November.
Green shield bugs hibernate over winter and re-emerge in spring.
The green shield bug will change colour after hibernation.
Dragonflies:
The dragonfly is one of the oldest insects and has been around for 300 million years.
There are over 5000 species of dragonfly.
Most of a dragonfly’s head is its eye, giving them excellent vision.
Dragonflies eat insects and are great for controlling the population of ‘pests’.
Dragonflies can live for up to two years underwater after hatching.
Moths:
Most moths are nocturnal, however, you will still see quite a lot during the day too.
Some moth species do not have mouths.
Moths are attracted to light, bananas, and even beer.
Moths are important pollinators.
Male moths can smell female moths from over 7 miles away.
Did you know any of these interesting insect facts? We hope you learned something from this bug book, and don’t find these critters as scary the next time you see them!
I recently created this piece of art using bright colours and my unique paper craft. There’s a common saying: ‘birds of a feather flock together’, and it inspired me to create this piece and I love how it turned out!
I documented the process of creating this piece so that you can see how I begin my work, and how it all comes together at the end!
Step 1:
Choosing the colours
I create a couple of different concepts that I then add colour to so I can find which colours I feel are the best fit for the piece of art I am creating. Here you can see my numbered sketches with the colour options to help me decide which colours to choose.
Step 2:
Finalising the design
Once I’ve chosen the colours, I need to choose my final design to work with. I’ll look at the designs I’ve created and choose the one I think fits best. Then I’ll create my final sketch which will be used in my final piece.
Step 3:
Cutting Out
Once I’ve decided on my colours and design, it’s time to get my paper ready, add any designs I need, and cut out each individual piece of paper to make the piece come to life.
Step 4:
Putting it all together
After I’ve finished cutting out my paper and adding any details in pencil, I then begin layering and sticking my paper down, slowly layering the pieces to make the art 3D, and by the end, I have my final illustration.
What did you think of the process? Did you expect it to take more or less steps to create?
One of my favourite things to draw is birds, I love their bright colours and the huge variety you can see within the species. I did a pastel sketch of a stunning Cassowary Bird I saw at Chester Zoo not too long ago, and I was amazed by the stunning colours.
When it comes to using pastels in my art, I have a range of reasons I love to use them. Primarily the blending techniques I can use, and the way I can work with the colours until I get it just right.
I’ve put together some of my favourite pastel facts:
Pastels have actually been used since the Renaissance period, gaining popularity in the 18th
Pastels consist of pure powdered pigment and a binding ingredient.
There is a Pastel Society which was founded in 1898 and promotes awareness and appreciation for pastels.
Pastels are one of the most permanent forms of art available, lasting hundreds of years without cracking or fading.
I’ve also put together some of my favourite facts about the Cassowary Bird:
There are three species of Cassowary: the Northern Cassowary, Southern Cassowary and Dwarf Cassowary
All three of these species are found in New Guinea, and the Southern Cassowary is also found in Australia
The only bird heavier than the Southern Cassowary is the Ostrich
Cassowaries actually help to spread seeds through their droppings
What is your favourite fact that not many people know? Have you been lucky enough to see a Cassowary in person?
To celebrate bees and help raise awareness of their current threat level, I have created this bee using my papercraft technique, layering coloured paper to create this 3D bee.
Bees are one of the most important creatures in our ecosystem, and without them, the world could not survive. As one of the world’s best pollinators, bees are essential for the survival of our ecosystem – with nearly 90% of the world’s wildflowers depending on animal pollination, alongside over 75% of the world’s food crops and 35% of the world’s agricultural land. However, as vital as they are for the world, they are under threat and there is a massive decline in numbers due to human activities.
There are things we can do to help keep bees alive and help improve their current threat level. Some of the things you can do in your garden and day to day life include:
Planting a diverse range of native plants that flower at different times of the year, providing constant plants for the bees
Avoid all pesticides, fungicides and herbicides in your garden to prevent harming the bees
Make a bee water fountain by leaving a bowl of water in your garden
Buy raw honey from local farmers to help keep their businesses thriving
Buy products from sustainable sources where possible
Have you taken any steps to help keep our bees safe this summer? If so, I’d love to hear what you’ve been getting up to!
The Making of Our Children’s Book – Architect of Dreams
I am so excited to announce that I illustrated this wonderful children’s book, Architect of Dreams! This beautiful book was illustrated by me, using my unique paper art style to illustrate every page – including the cover! Written by the wonderful author, Renea Bartlett, Architect of Dreams is a book about children learning how to be confident in their dreams, and how working together with like-minded people can help to achieve them. Each beautiful illustration throughout the book has depth thanks to the use of intricate paper cut-outs. With added details using mediums including paint, pens, and colouring pencils.
Architect of Dreams was carefully and intricately illustrated using paper layering techniques. A total of 480 sheets of paper were used to make the illustrations. This endeavour took me 4 months to complete all of the illustrations, with each page being created by hand for print.
Since its release, Architect of Dreams has gone viral, and became a number one best seller in the United States. It has also been awarded International Best Seller in the United Kingdom, which is a huge achievement for both myself and Renea! Over the coming weeks, I’ll be attending interviews about the book in local schools such as Elston Hall Primary School, as well as Wolverhampton Library!
I had such a great time working with Reana Bartlett and carefully creating the unique illustrations throughout this incredible book. I’m already looking forward to creating illustrations using my unique paper art style for future books in the pipeline!
You can get your hands on Architect of Dreams for £12.98 on Amazon.
My beautiful rabbit, Bonnie, sadly passed away recently. She was only 18 months old and it was quite a shock to lose her so suddenly. Bonnie, got a condition called GI Stasis which can often be fatal in rabbits, and in Bonnie’s case, it was.
It’s so important to know the signs of GI Stasis. The earlier it’s caught, the more likely rabbits are to hopefully survive this horrible illness. Rabbits will quickly become lethargic, and exhibit signs of pain, such as teeth grinding and a hunched posture. As the illness progresses, they may also begin to produce excessive gas, as well as soft poos or diarrhoea. If not caught in time, GI Stasis is often fatal for rabbits, as it takes over their body.
After the sudden and unexpected loss of Bonnie, I found it very difficult to know what to do or how to cope with the grief as I never expected to lose her so young. The Pet Bereavement and Pet Loss Program really helped me through the death of Bonnie. This incredible program is completely free to use and allows you to talk about the loss of your beloved fur baby. You can call, email or chat with a trained volunteer, and having someone to talk to can be extremely helpful, especially in the first couple of weeks. It also has lots of amazing information and resources to help you continue to process your grief and the loss of your pet.
I’ll leave you with some photos of my special fur baby, Bonnie, to remember her and keep her memory alive.
