Inspiration is everywhere - the finer things in life!

How has your week been since my last Inspiratation is everywhere post?

Have you tried to slow down a little and focus on some of the smaller, finer things in our daily rut that is life?

This week I have this gorgeous fella to share with you.

What a beautiful colour palette he creates!

Thinking about the psychology of colour...how do these colours make you feel? Would you feel the same way if this fella was grey?

I took this photo when we visited Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary in December last year.

This sanctuary has been opened since 1947 when the owner began feeding the local rainbow lorikeets to prevent them from ruining his prized flowers! The feeding of the birds daily then attracted the curiosity of the public which then became a popular tourist attraction!

The park still has two daily feeds where you can feed the lorikeets and they will even sit (and poop!!) on your head. The feeding part is fun...the pooping not so fun!

Here's a shot of me at Currumbin a few years ago...clearly concerned about the poop!!!

This photo still makes me giggle!

Remember...
...inspiration is everywhere!

♥

Psychology of colour...

Lately I've been speaking to a few people about the finer things in life and asking them what they find beautiful.

It was interesting to see that a lot of the things that people considered beautiful were full of colour.

It got me thinking as to whether people find colourful things beautiful because of the effect the colour has on their mood, their emotional state.

Generally bright, vibrant colours tend to makes us happy.

Dark colours such as brown and black can make us feel low. 

But have you looked more deeply into the psychological effects certain colours are supposed to have on us?

Let's take a look at a few...with each colour being able to be broken down into
positive and negative qualities.

RED

Positive: Strength, warmth, energy, basic survival, 'fight or flight', masculine, fast!
Negative: Defiance, aggression, visual impact, strain.

Red is known as a strong and powerful colour. Although not technically the most visible of colours, it has the effect of attracting our attention - perhaps why it is used as the universal colour for stop!
Interesting we also associate red with speed, therefore thinking that red cars always go faster!

Red is stimulating, lively and friendly but at the same time it can be seen as angry!

BLUE Positive: Intelligence, communication, trust, efficiency, serenity, duty, logic, coolness, reflection, calm. Negative: Coldness, aloofness, lack of emotion, unfriendliness. Blue is known as "the colour of the mind". Perhaps because it resembles the ocean it is thought to be calming and serene. Many research studies reveal that blue is the world's favourite colour. Although calming it can also be thought of as a cold colour. Baby boys traditionally wear blue however blue is considered to be the least "gender specific" colour having equal appeal to both men and women.
YELLOW Positive: Optimism, confidence, self-esteem, extraversion, emotional strength, friendliness, creativity. Negative: Irrationality, fear, emotional fragility, depression, anxiety, suicide. Yellow is considered to be the strongest colour, psychologically. It is considered to be stimulating and for this reason some classrooms are now painted yellow to stimulate the students! Yellow is the most fatiguing colour to the eye due to the high levels of light that are reflected. When using yellow as a background on paper or a computer monitor it can lead to eye strain. The right shade of yellow can lift our spirits and our self-esteem however too much yellow can cause self-esteem to decreasing increasing levels of fear and anxiety.
GREEN Positive: Harmony, balance, refreshment, universal love, rest, restoration, reassurance, environmental awareness, equilibrium, peace. Negative: Boredom, stagnation, blandness, enervation. Green, related to nature, is considered tranquil and refreshing. Perhaps due to the Irish it is also considered lucky. Being in the centre of the colour spectrum, it is the colour of balance. Green is thought to relieve stress and studies have shown when used in a work environment workers suffer less stomach aches! Green is also often used for it's calming effects when decorating. With this in mind is it interesting to think of television guests waiting in the "green room" to relax
VIOLET Positive: Spiritual awareness, containment, vision, luxury, authenticity, truth, quality. Negative: Introversion, decadence, suppression, inferiority. Purple is considered to take awareness to a higher level of thought and therefore is related to imagination and spirituality. Violet however appears in the visible light spectrum, or rainbow, with purple simply being a mix of blue and red. Violet is thought to provoke harmony of the mind and emotions. It is also thought to encourage creativity,  unique and individual.  It is highly introvertive and encourages deep contemplation, or meditation. It has associations with royalty and usually communicates the finest possible quality. Think rich, violet velvet!
ORANGE Positive: Physical comfort, food, warmth, security, sensuality, passion, abundance, fun. Negative: Deprivation, frustration, frivolity, immaturity. Being a combination of red and yellow, orange is considered to be an energetic colour provoking feelings of excitement, warmth and enthusiasm. It encourages our minds to focus on issues of physical comfort - food and warmth for example as well as sensuality. From a negative perspective, orange can focus on deprivation. This is particularly likely when warm orange is used with black. Interestingly there tends to be strong positive or negative association with the colour orange with true orange resulting in a "love it" or "hate it" response than any other colour.
PINK Positive: Physical tranquillity, nurture, warmth, femininity, love, sexuality, survival of the species. Negative: Inhibition, emotional claustrophobia, emasculation, physical weakness. Pink is essentially a shade of red and therefore represents love and romance.  It represents the feminine principle, is soothing and nurturing. Studies have shown that too much pink can be physically draining and can be somewhat emasculating. When used in prisons, inmates often become even more agitated once they become accustomed to the soothing effects of the colour.
GREY Positive: Psychological neutrality. Negative: Lack of confidence, dampness, depression, hibernation, lack of energy. Pure grey is the only colour that has no direct psychological properties. It is, however, quite suppressive. The colour grey is usually associated with depression. People rarely name grey as their favourite colour - perhaps due to the colour so often being associated with depression. It is generally not considered a "happy" colour. When the sky turns grey our mood tends to turn grey resulting in a desire to hibernate. How does a grey sky make you feel compared to a vibrant blue sky? Unless the precise tone is right, grey has a dampening effect on other colours used with it. Heavy use of grey usually indicates a lack of confidence and fear of exposure.
BLACK Positive: Sophistication, glamour, security, emotional safety, efficiency, substance. Negative: Oppression, coldness, menace, heaviness. Black is all colours, totally absorbed. Black is essentially an absence of light with no wavelengths being reflected. Black can be thought of as dark, mysterious and scary. It is also associated with death, hence people traditionally wearing black to funerals. Black is also considered to be slimming resulting in the colour being a popular choice in clothing.

What's you favourite colour?

Do you think colours can have a huge impact on the way you feel?

Do you consider the effects of colour when choosing colours for your jewellery?

Psychology of colour...something to think about!

♥

Inspiration is everywhere - the finer things in life!

I've decided to make Saturday the day for my new, regular post titled

"Inspiration is Everywhere - the finer things in life" 

Each Saturday I will be sharing a photo I have taken.

The subject will be something very simple, something we may see every day,
something we may never notice.

Along with the photo I will then share an accompanying colour palette.

I think these days we are all so busy with work, family, friends, rushing around not to mention trying to squeeze in a few things we personally enjoy doing.

I think more than often we don't take the time to slow down, to look at the finer things in life, something I know I am extremely guilty of.

Hopefully my weekly post will be a reminder to us all to take a step back, pause for a few minutes and smell the roses and enjoy

the finer things in life.

There's a world of beautiful out there you know!

So without furtherado here is my shot for this week.

~*~*~

A beautiful kite flying amongst a glorious blue sky at Southport on the Gold Coast (Queensland).

I actually took this picture last year but have it stashed in my inspirational folder so felt I had to share.

Isn't the kite glorious not to mention that beautiful blue sky.

Be sure to check out my first post last week which included a few feathered friends as well as some stunning flowers.

Remember...
...inspiration is everywhere!

♥

Inspiration is everywhere - the finer things in life!

With so many talented artists about these days it's always easy to look to other people's work for inspiration.

But what about looking around you...you know...the natural beauty that we take for granted.

As you know we recently took a trip to Sydney which included a visit to Taronga Zoo.

In one of the exhibits we saw some of the most amazing birds.

The colours of their feathers were exquisite and I couldn't help imaging these beautiful colours featured in a beaded piece.

Check out these gorgeous birds and their equally beautiful colour palettes!

Another favourite place of mine to draw inspiration in terms of colour is the garden.

Breathtaking ginger plants

Passion-fruit flower

Sometimes the simplest things in life can be the most beautiful.

What inspires you?

♥

Challenge of Color - My pieces revealed!

When I first signed up for this challenge my ''colours of choice" were browns, bronzes and golds. I was all geared up to create a piece using my favourite colours and even had the beads ready to go.

So imagine my surprise when my colour palette arrived by email to discover not a drop of bronze in sight!

The closest to bronze was Calilfornia Dreams....more like Mustard Dreams!

I was a little stumped!

But isn't that what challenges are all about... making us take that uneasy step outside of our comfort zone?

So with that in mind I found this Eagle Eye Agate cabochon in my stash... 

and realised the cabochon matched my colour palette to a T.

So here is what I created.

A beaded cabochon.

"Simply Sumptuous"

I love the earthy feel this piece has and can see me wearing it many times!

~~~~

Now apart from the wee speckles of blue/grey in the cabochon I felt my first piece didn't do Niabelle Blue any justice so I felt the piece was calling for more blue.

So... I decided to string the piece with these gorgeous Amazonite beads.

"Flourish"

I would never have strung this pendant with these beads in a million years but now that I have I think the colour combination is just divine!

Two necklaces for the price of one!

I actually loved this challenge as yet again I was forced to work with a colour combination I would not normally work with.

I think I might continue to challenge myself further and pick up a few paint palette cards next time I am at the hardware store!

Hop on over and see what everyone else has created with their palettes.

Alice Peterson

Amy Freeland

Beth McCord

Brandi Hussey

Cary Scholes

Catherine Pruitt

Cindy Wimmer

Claire Maunsell

Cory Tompkins

Courtney Breul

Cristi Clothier

Cynthia Riggs

Emanda Johnson

Holly Westfall

Janea McDonald

Jeannie Dukic

Jennifer Cameron

Judy Campbell

Keirsten Giles

Kelly Morgan

Kristie Roeder

Kristin Stevens

Lisa Godfrey

Lisa Tracy

Lori Anderson

Mallory Hoffman

Marie Voyer-Cramp

Mary McGraw

Nicole Keller

Nicole Valentine

Paige Maxim

Patty Gasparino

Rebecca Anderson

Renate Stark-Krammer

Rita Parra

Shannon Chomanczuk

Sheila Summers

Stefanie Teufel

Yelisa Rojas



And don't forget to visit Erin at Treasures Found:Inspiration is Everywhere.

♥

The Challenge of Color

Erin at Treasuries Found:Inspiration is Everywhere is holding the first Challenge of Color.

Erin has selected paint chips (palettes) for each entrant.

We then have to create something using those colours.

Here is my colour palette.

The deadline is 3rd December and I have absolutely no idea what I am going to create yet so I guess I better get a move on!

I have one design in mind involving a donut...the turquoise variety not jam and cream!

Watch this space!

♥

Marcie, Margie and Me - Weis Church Fresco #80

It's hard to believe another 2 weeks has passed since the most recent Margie and Me challenge was set by Marcie at La Bella Joya.

The colour palette for this challenge was 

Colour Palette #80

~~

"Weis Church Fresco"

I used the masterpiece, that is the ceiling as pictured above, as my inspiration. 

I decided not to go with the colour palette created in the colour generator but focused on the pinks, blues and golds that make up this incredibly amazing ceiling.

The focal piece is a glass fused cabochon I made especially for the challenge in my microwave kiln.

After a little trial and error I managed to create a mix of colours  I felt reflected those found in the church's ceiling.

The cabochon was very difficult to photograph due to the glass being extremely shiny and no matter how hard I tried I continued to have a lot of reflection on the glass...until I took a shot of the piece on it's side!

It's hard to tell from the images but the picot edge is so pretty and shimmery. 

The seed beads are a mixture of size 15/0  gavlanised gold seed beads as well as Rainbow Cream Soda beads in size 11/0, producing some really pretty colours in the light.

Delica beads were used in the peyote bezel and the piece was backed with ultrasuede.

 I have to admit that again the color palette isn't something I'd normally go for. 

I don't consider myself the most "girliest of girls" so when I chose the church's ceiling for my inspiration I was a little concerned with the very ''pretty" colours.

  

But yet again this challenge has resulted in me not only using colours together that I normally would not...

....but yet I have again created a piece that I love!

Thanks again Marcie for yet another great palette choice 

and encouraging me to create out of my comfort zone!

♥

Speaking of books

You might have read my recent post about shopping carts and how long we leave items in them.

Well here are a few I've had in my shopping cart at the Book Depository for a few months and as I type the first three are hopefully making their way from the UK to me here in Australia! 

The last one I ended up ordering from the US as a friend was placing an order and with the dollar being so awesomely awesome right now I ordered that too!

I am so excited as I have had my eye on these books for some time now.

So here is what I bought.

This book is a complication of designs from previous issues of Bead & Button magazine. 

I took advantage of the ''Look Inside'' feature and there are some stunning designs, including the peyote links on the front cover, which I can't wait to tackle.

~~~~

I am soooo excited to be ordering this book. A few of my friends own this book and said it ''blew their mind'' when they received it! 

The beads on the front cover alone are enticing enough so I can't wait to flick through the pages of this one.

~~~~

I don't own Laura McCabe's previous book, Creating Crystal Jewelry, as I have never really worked with Swarovski crystals... until recently! 

But as I love beadweaving I thought this one would be right up my alley! 

No doubt I will come away with a lot of new skills from this one!

~~~~

Marcie of La Bella Joya recently invited me to take part in her Margie and Me challenge where she picks a colour palette from Margie Deeb's book and then creates a piece using those colours.

I absolutely cannot wait to take part... what a fantastic concept not to mention a great way to get me to use colour combinations I would not normally dare to use.

Thanks Marcie! My book has hit Australian shores so I should be receiving it on Tuesday!

~~~~

How is your beading book stash? Bought any good books lately?

♥

Beader's Guide or Color Palette

I am in a colour conundrum ...

I am in the process of deciding on a few new beading books to buy and decided I should explore and expand my knowledge of

COLOUR

I have been looking at two books by the Queen of Colour,

Margie Deeb

and am undecided as to which one to buy.

The Beader's Guide to Colour

or

The Beader's Color Palette?

Does anyone own either of these books and if so which one would you recommend, if not both.

I have to admit I have never been one to buy ''theory'' style beading books so this is a big leap for me!

What can I say I love lots of pretty pictures that I can drool over.

Any comments on the above two books would be greatly appreciated! 

Fashion Colorworks Beading Contest

Well after much debate I think I have finally figured out my designs for the

Fashion Colorworks 2010 Beading Contest.

I was originally only going to go for the Dried Herb, Eucalyptus and Aurora (they sound very Australian don't they!) colour combination but I think I might be adventurous and try all three selections...if I have time.

The other colour combinations on offer are Amparo Blue, Turquoise and Pink Champagne as well asTomato Puree, Fusion Coral and Violet.

I ordered all of my gorgeous little seed beads yesterday so hopefully they will arrive tomorrow so I can play over the weekend.

I am also still working on my beaded beads for my Artbeads Design Partner piece which I really need to finish too...

I tell you there are just not enough hours in the day. If this silly thing called '''work'' didn't keep getting in the way I would get a lot more done!