So, what to write about today? One of the things I’ve learned recently from all the reading I’ve been doing in various magazines (lots of Somerset ones plus a few others) is the basic concept of beginning with a color palette in mind. I didn’t know that was how real artists thought! But I understand why, and I can see how it will help the various elements flow together coherently in a piece. I just find it so hard to take the time to make those decisions before beginning the hands-on part—the planning is so hard! I want to stamp, and cut, and emboss, and have it just work!
Maybe one thing I will try while on my month-long visit to my in-laws is to design one piece a day in my notebook. I won’t be able to do it, since all my stuff will be at home, but it would be good to force my mind to think this way, to make these decisions. I could easily see it coming up with three different variations, which would be great. The hard thing, though, is that many times it really does happen on the fly—I see that something is needed, so I go through my scrap box and happen across just the right paper, with just the right texture—I couldn’t have planned that, because I didn’t know it would be just right until I saw it. Hmmm. How to strike a balance here is the question. And of course I need to recognize that the more I begin things with a color palette in mind, the easier it will become. Right now this is just an education process of familiarizing myself with the color wheel and what approach to take to achieve a certain mood.
