HONEY TREE_ Fine Art, Vintage Inspired and Nature Photography Decor

Sonoma County, California .

It is mostly rural, lots of fields with Oak trees and vineyards and the Pacific ocean just down the road. 

Life is at a pretty slow pace here, it is quite amazing right now with all the flowers of spring blooming.

Lupen Grainne, founder and photographer for Honey Tree, lives here.

Nature is her main source of inspiration, from all the little tiny changes of the seasons to the wide open spaces . 

After traveling in Europe a couple years ago, now she's living near San Francisco, also getting more inspired by the beauty and details in urban setting too.

She just likes revealing the beauty and magic in everyday things and places.

She wanted a name with honey in it, since it has a nice sweet comforting feeling.

And she seems to be drawn to taking lots of pictures of trees, a theme sort of for me, so it just came together.

All really starts with "I wonder what I can go out and find today" with some parameters, like going to the fields when the mustard is blooming, or going out on a foggy morning. 

Having a day or half a day to go out shooting is pure joy for HER.

What is creativity inside you?

"It is pursuing the pull I feel inside me to pursue beauty and things that speak to me".

www.lupengrainne.com

LUNA SOLIS CLOTHING_ Bohemian/gypsy/vintage style limited edition & one-off handmade clothing and accessories

Australia. Zyanya Walker, founder and designer for Luna Solis Clothing, lives  about one hour drive north of Sydney in a place called the Central Coast.

She has her own house which she bought recently with her boyfriend. They love it here. There is a nature reserve behind them, so there is always a lot of beautiful birds singing all day. Also they are very close to the beach.

Her biggest source of inspiration is anything vintage. 

Zyanya loves the 1920s, 30s and 40s so much. She said "I wish I could have lived in those decades."

Everything seemed so much more refined back then, the houses, the cars, the jewelery, the clothing were so beautiful.

People put a lot of thought into what they created. 

She is also very inspired by the gypsy life, living as a nomadic free spirit. 

She tries to incorporate these things into what she creates. 

But also the sacred geometry, trees, water, nature in general, 1930s freak shows, old fashioned circus life, fortune tellers, the subconsciousness, eloping, memory, time travel, magic, things that are sacred and treasured, sleeping and dreaming, the unknown.

All garments and accessories are handmade. 

Where possible, she uses recycled fabrics, buttons, lace, zippers etc. 

This keeps the garments affordable and is kind to our beautiful earth. 

If their fabrics are not recycled or vintage, they come from places that are selling liquidated stock. Everything she creates is extremely unique and limited. She thinks it is nice for people to own special accessories and clothing that no one else owns.

Her creative process is still being discovered. She's still so new at creating a range of clothing and accessories that she is learning what best works for her. 

Generally she keeps her eyes open all the time for inspiration through blogs, magazines and people on the street. 

She sketches her ideas and go from there. There is always a lot of change happening with her ideas, always an ongoing ever moving process.

"Creativity to me is my life force". 

Without it she thinks she would shrivell up and dry out! 

Everyone needs it, and everyone has it, just not everyone realizes it which is a shame. 

Zyanya loves to be able to teach people that creativity is inside all of us, it just comes in many different forms. 

Life is about creating our own perfect existence. 

Being creative makes happy, whenever she is feeling down. 

Creativity isn't just about art or craft or cooking. 

It's about inventing new ways of doing things, constantly improving ourselves.

Zyanya Walker is also a photographer: when she likes how light falls on something, she photographs it, right away. Thoughts, Creations and inspiration. Follow her blog!

MY AVONLEA_ Handmade & Vintage Loveliness letter from Alison

Alison Elane LoBasso, founder & indie designer for MyAvonlea.

"I am currently living in East TX with my darling husband and two precious children. He and I were born and raised along the salty coast of Florida and have know one another since middle school. We're saltwater fishers so while hubby catches fish I'm off collecting bait with my cast net. We make a beautiful team. We plan to return there soon now that we have two little extra sets of hands for carrying fishing equipment hee hee.

An artist has been birthing in me over the years. I was never considered the artistic one growing up except for my photography and after having my daughter Alaina Grace, we were painting together and I noticed I could paint. This entire world of creativity opened to me and I realized I can do anything I set my mind to. Since then I have dozens of ideas constantly streaming through my mind. From my daughters locks to the lullabies of raindrops to an abandoned house rotting away I see something so differently beautiful in each.

My inspiration for founding MyAvonlea was that financially I was going to have to start working and with my children still being toddlers my heart was so broken at the thought of someone else caring for them. I take the role of being a wife and mother as life's greatest honor. My family teaches me so much about God's heart and His merciful dealings with us everyday and I am so humbled to have such precious treasures in my life. I began praying for an alternative. With my photography plus the vintage clothing which I had began collecting both made a wonderful combination. I am still just starting off but am so grateful to work close to them.

My message is that there is so much wisdom in buying used, up-cylced, eco-friendly, and handmade items. We have a struggling economy and we are renowned for waste. Therefore buying used helps financially and eliminates waste. For instance I remove the shoulder pads of a dress and make fabric button earrings to match so I don't have to throw them away. There's so many little ways to turn trash into treasure. We are a thrifting and yard sale family and wear used proudly. I get nervous when buying new because of how many sweat shops exist for American apparel. The thought of that saddens me. Independent selling is so wonderful and such a blessing to me. I encourage any and everyone I can to challenge themselves to discover what interests them and what they can get involved in making or reselling on Etsy.

My message on vintage clothing is that American culture has become a horrible example for the young men and woman of our generation. Modesty and purity have been forgotten. There's nothing classy about the modern way to dress. There's way to much skin exposed and its dehumanizing. I appreciate how vintage clothing may offer some shapeliness but modest and covered shapeliness. Vintage helps restore that classy and refined beauty that we rarely see. Vintage to me is an art. Each piece that I find I take so seriously especially during the photo-shoots and descriptions that I may give it a true identity through vintage purity.

My day consists of waking and having long cuddles with my sweet peas, enjoying them through the day, passing down values and manners, guiding them through life lessons and around nap time I check my shop, edit my photo-shoots, and search for the perfect lyrics or poems to fit each dress for my description. Every time I am driving my mind is in photography mode where every spot is a possible location for my next photo-shoot. I have never lived in amazing places so I've learned to make the most no matter where I am and create something out of nothing. At night I do my listings and convos once they're asleep and my hubby and I have spent time together. Once my life slows down I hope to sell handmade soaps, open my own clothing line, grow in my art and photography, make my own shoes, learn Italian and 3 instruments, and have priceless knowledge and wisdom to pass down to my darlings. They already assist me in daily chores, cooking, and creating; they're almost two and four and they always want to be a part. I love it.

Creativity to me is about perspective. I don't see the glass half empty or half full but that in-between line where life is full of joys and sorrows and whats important for me is the attitude of my heart in either circumstance since they both will inevitably come. For instance, when I am making jewelry, if I mess up I don't throw it away and start over, I focus on how to recreate it into something else. Seeing everything from that light gives me so much room to always focus on the solution rather than the problem. Its such a great perspective for helping my children view life and very effective if I dare say. I create with my whole heart so when I say made with Love I deeply mean it so thank you for loving and supporting MyAvonlea.

I can be contacted at http://www.etsy.com/shop/myAvonlea from Etsy.com  

Email:  21Etsy@gmail.com 

Facebook @ MyAvonlea or Alison Elane Shook LoBasso."

PENNY MASQUERADE_ A story of vintage inspired creativity

The Marie Antoinette Necklace

The Bella Necklace

The Deco Delight Hair Comb

The Harlequin Ring

The I Spy Telescope Necklace

The Take Some Tea Alice Necklace

The Absinthe Necklace

Sometimes, to write down feeling and thoughts help us to give voice to the unknown.

This is the story of Sarah Bratley,  indie designer for Penny Masquerade.

Sarah describes herself as a smiler, a geek, an historicist, an avid reader, a lover of everything antique and vintage and a drinker of tea. Incongruity and sunshine make me smile. 

This is her story of creativity.

"I live in a tiny village in the county of Yorkshire in England. 

The county is a wonderful mix of the industrial and the quaint and there are both rural and urban areas within it. 

The village I live in is very quaint and I look out of my window everyday when I'm creating my pieces and see cows in the fields below. It's a beautiful and serene environment in which to work and I love it. 

 I'm inspired by all sorts of things, but my jewelry is primarily inspired by the past. 

I love to imbue my designs with vintage and retro style. 

I'm also inspired by fairytales, Alice in Wonderland, the sea, afternoon tea, pirates, nature, romance and writing. They are all things that are dear to me and I love to see the things I love popping up in my pieces. 

Whimsy, romance and nostalgia. This is what I try to communicate with my jewelry designs. I prize these things very highly and it makes me very happy to be able to transfer these things to the wearer. 

I love to recycle and re-use pieces and I often source a lot of vintage filigrees, chain and pendants. 

I love the charm of vintage pieces. 

It's lovely to hold things in your hand and think about the other people who've done the same in the past, they really get the imagination going. 

Alongside these recycled vintage pieces I use as the vintage jewelry component market can be limited. So, my pieces are a mixture of old and new.  

I have a special set of tiny drawers and on the front of each drawer I stick one of the jewelry components that sit within it. 

When I sit down at my desk and look at these drawers, I see all the charms and chain and beads and filigrees and cameos and pins and lockets I have. 

This allows me to quickly scan and look for pieces that would compliment each other well. 

I mess around for quite a while with different combinations before I happen upon something that just works. 

I look at a lot of vintage designs from the 20's and 50's specifically and I love to scan magazines for color combinations that work really well together. Sometimes the desire to create comes from seeing something on TV, or in a film or a book. 

I  love to try and capture the mood of something I really like in a piece of jewelry. 

For example, Sofia Coppola's film Marie Antoinette was the inspiration behind my "Let Them Eat Cake Necklace": 

I love this piece because it uses a similar color palette to Coppola's film and also reflects the allusions to frivolity and carefree excess seen in the first half. At the moment I'm a little obsessed with magicians and the circus, so watch this space for designs relating to those! 

Creativity to me is satisfying and exciting.

What's more, creating something unusual and visually pleasing out of different components in turn initiates a lovely feeling - a commingling of pride and self-confidence which leads on to self-worth. I have suffered from low self-esteem in the past and it's wonderful to have found something which makes me feel so much happier. I urge anyone to be creative if they can!".

CRISTINA PIRES_ Creativity from All around the world

Cristina Pires is australian, canadian & portuguese indie-designer, currently based in Stockholm.

All work for Cristina Pires is designed, handmade & photographed by her. 

Follow also her blog!

_Who is Cristina Pires?

I studied Fashion in Brisbane, Australia.

I live in downtown Stockholm, which is an island actually, with my partner & have a home-studio that I work from. 

We both really like Södermalm & think it's the best place to live in Stockholm. 

However, when my partner finishes his PhD we will move back to Berlin & I'm really excited about it. Berlin is my most favorite city I've ever lived in.

_Inspired by?

Colors, nature, science, music, travel & all the places i've lived in, daydreaming, my friends/family & my 'sherries'.

My designs are pretty all over the place, I have very eclectic taste & my inspirations vary.  

Sometimes I get inspired by people I admire,  other times by places & themes. Most of all though, my inspiration comes from the materials I have in front of me & thinking "what should I  do with that?".

Everything I make is meant to be very wearable & also durable - I use cotton a lot, because it is easily washable & holds it's color & shape.

But also vintage cotton & silks are used or whatever I can find that is good quality.  

I would like to start using cotton blends & hemp materials in future. Most of the new cotton I use is organic.

I love to use bright colors, for example.

Optimism, positive thinking, having fun & being yourself.

_What is creativity inside you?

I believe that creativity is inside everyone & cannot be taught, just drawn out. 

I think a person's background & personality shows in their work.                          

Everyone is an artist, everyone is creative, we all leave an imprint on the world, whether we know it or not.


*credit
Photography: Daniel K. Johansson www.dkj.se

AND WHAT ELSE IS THERE_ Creative Thailand

Interview with Ami and Vivien for AndWhatElseIsThere.

"Ami and I (Vivien) were new college graduates of Economics, which was not even close to the fashion design or photography scope, from Bangkok, Thailand. 

For us, it's hard to define Bangkok in one particular word or phrase as the city is a great mixture of cultural diversity among the result of growing globalisation. Technology moves along to a stance where Thai people still hold great intensity of faith and social values.

It all started two years ago. One day, we discussed to each other that we wanted to start something fun and inspirational as a small project for international audience to observe what young minds like us have to offer from this country. We noticed that there was no proper blog from Thailand that could relate at an international stage that creativity is booming in our hometown. 

We started a blog, collecting inspirational images and presenting independent fashion design from both our country and other places, and eventually selling our own vintage and custom-made clothes to our customers throughout the world. We view our blog and shop as a spiritual space where we can release our thoughts beyond our corporate lives in the financial industry, where creativity is obviously limited, through our personal photography of places in Thailand and ready-to-wear clothing. 

Pretty much, the path to productivity is mainly driven from an abstract mind to break through our boring salary routines. We align our inspiration in doing the clothes to the surroundings we are living in. Thailand is the place we know best, and we represent our lifestyle through clothing at affordable prices. We use various materials like cotton mixed with polyester for tailoring our geometric shape of modern pants. Chiffon, lace, and crepes are also our tasty extras.

Lucky us to have a circle of friends who do their own fashion lines like genuine leather bags, clothing, jewelries, t-shirts, and menswear, so we have a future idea to make our website a space to gather beautiful things from our city in which we are working on right now. 

So stay tuned for a little renovation!"

42 THINGS_ Eco Friendly Paper Goodies

Sherwood Park, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Jo Ferris, designer of 42 Things, lives in a  very small community near a lake.  

Everyone seems to know everyone.  They are the people who are always trying something new, saving too much junk and doing something different!  
Here, the interview.
 

_Inspired by?

My children, books, shapes in nature, my husband...

_What do you want to communicate the world with your creations?

I would like everyone to start looking at the things that they are used to recycling or throwing away with new eyes.  Can it be reused somehow?  Can someone else use it?  

I don't mind if people try my ideas, as long as they are extending the life of otherwise expendable materials.

_Recycle or Re-used? Vintage or eco-friendly material? What is your choice?  

I love to reuse anything that I find.  Vintage sheets, paper, books.  I just use what comes my way and let it inspire me.  

_ What's the path to produce your creativity?

In the short term:  Sometimes I have to MAKE myself sit down and make stuff.  But other times it'll just come to me and I can't wait to try.  
 In the long term:  I knew I needed a creative outlet.  I am a homeschooling mom and stay at home wife and I started to worry that I wouldn't know what to do with myself once my kids didn't need me anymore.  

I was losing confidence in my creative nature.  

One day my husband told me to just make something and start an etsy shop!  It has boosted my confidence so much to have this creative outlet.

_What Is CREATIVITY INSIDE You?  

I'm the kind of person that loves to try new things.  Recipes, projects... Anything that is really back to basics, soap making, pasta from raw ingredients.

The creativity inside me comes from my love of simplicity.  Of trying to protect this gift of nature that God has given us.  To not take for granted the time we have here.  

My heart breaks to see people running around so busy but never slowing enough to enjoy the gift of food, of nature, of simplicity.  

Nothing tastes better than a home cooked meal from whole ingredients.  Nothing feels better than sitting in front of a wood stove and playing games with your family.  That is where my drive and creativity comes from.  The quest for a simple life.