The Painted Hand

50th Post!

Hello to all of my fabulous readers! I am finally back after a month's hiatus and what a better way to get back in the swing of things by making it my 50th post! My new job has been taking up a bunch of my time (in a good way), but because of it The Painted Hand has been neglected. I have had a bunch of new ideas and been taking lots of pictures during my absence and will start to get them posted. So thank you to all of you who have continued to check in! I will be traveling to Montreal and Toronto this week for work, and will hopefully get some cool pictures from there. So stay tuned for that soon! These photos were taken a few weeks ago at Anthropologie. I loved the kaleidoscope beetle creations, but what really caught my eye was the slight use of watercolor to add a dash of color to the designs. They had a dusty feel to them and I especially liked the smoky tomato red with the teal and golden hue. I have seen a lot of bug/insect imagery in fashion and home design and think this is a refreshing way, especially since it also reminds me of lace . Enjoy!

Africa Calling

My dear friend Jane who is currently a 2nd year metalsmithing grad student at RISD went to Africa last summer to study Maasai beadwork. She came back with the most beautiful photographs that I've been wanting to share because the color is truly stunning! Just take a second to oooohhh and aaaahhh with me and take a quick visual journey to Africa. The patterns of clothes are gorgeous and I love how vibrant it is when they all stand together. After learning more about her travels, this beautiful country is definitely on my radar so I can see the richness of color and pattern in person. And these photos are perfect right now since there is a lot of ethnic inspired products out there, such as pillows and bedding from Anthropologie. However, I would love to find a few beaded bracelets to add to my wardrobe or maybe I will ask Jane to make me some! : )

Naturally White

White monotone nature backdrops are the recipe for success in the current Giving catalogue from Anthropologie. In creating an all white background (a trend used for the holidays that seems to keep evolving) each of the products really popped on the pages to focus on the color more. However, I was also intrigued by the white props used to display the products. A big trend in design has been nature imagery, especially that of wood grain and trees. While I have loved this trend I think that new nature motifs will soon take over such has seashells, gemstones, leaves and feathers. I've only started picking up on a few of these examples as seen above and am curious to see which ones will become most popular down the road.

Tartain Plaids

I realize I haven't been posting as much lately and am trying to post more now...fingers crossed! So, since Fall is in full speed and the Holidays are more than around the corner, I thought a little Tartain Plaid inspiration would be appropriate. I have always had a soft spot in my heart for plaids thanks to my granny and my mom's cupboards full of fantastic little blue, red and green checks and plaids. I am debating about working plaids into my tableclothe pillows....depends if I can get my hands on some. I think what is important about plaids is the use of multicolor in each design due to the weaving and layering of color, which is something that is only continuing to grow in the interior design world. We need to take more risks when designing our homes and the pictures above show how to add plaids in unexpected ways (look at those fabulous plates!). And, not only do I love the color, but I also love the family history that creates each design.

The little swatches are from The Color Association's archival shop. And the interior images are from the latest issue of Domino Magazine. Kind of makes me want to snuggle up with a plaid blanket!

Russian Delight

Hair clips by MattheaMade from Etsy - also loving this color combination of turquoise, pumpkin, red, navy, black and cream

Pillows by Urban Outfitters

I'm loving that these little Russian Nesting Dolls are popping up in design. I had a few of these as a child and loved unveiling each doll to see what color the next one would be. The intricate patterns and primary bold colors from the traditional dolls would make an interesting decorating scheme in a room. Hmmm... perhaps more on that idea later!