SOS ... any suggestions for my #100DayProject?!??

It is that time of year again!?!? The100DayProject starts its 5th year tomorrow, and even though I am still in the throes of moving I must participate.

And I use the word 'must' for a few reasons. One is that I love participating in creative community challenges. Two, this is a perfect catalyst for me to unpack and find my paints and studio after this chaotic move. And lastly I choose 'must' because this desire comes from deep inside me which is how Elle Luna describes one's passions in her inspiring book:

The Crossroads of 

Should and Must

I first read "the crossroads of should and must ...' in August 2016, after stumbling upon it and I devoured it and it has changed my creative life, or at least gave me a new perspective. 

My 'must' to do this year's 100 day project is so strong that I have numerous lists of possible projects that I'd LOVE to devote the next 100 days doing, such as:

100 days of ...

• Virginiacreates patterns - this would be a continuation of the class, Daily Painting Challenge: 31 Painted Patterns with Lisa Congdon by CreativeBug which I participated in this January and LOVED! For this challenge I could use different materials,  different styles,  and it could be simplified if I am traveling (like when I joined  Francisca Nunes for her #30daysofpatternstudies in February 2016) 

• art blogging - posting here on my art blog, as I really want to get back in the habit of chronicling my creative journey.

• SCRAPs: Seriously Creative Recycled Art Projects* this is my trademarked name I made for my bottle cap jewelry (decades ago) and I was thinking I would resurrect the name for 100 days of collage and working with scraps.  One thing this move showed me was that I LOVE scraps, scraps of paper, of fabric, of labels, of yarn.  This would be similar to my dailydress journal(see below), however or the 100 days of SCRAPs I wouldn't necessarily add a dress?!?! 

(In 2011 I  created a dailydress journal in which each day I created a page from some detritus from the course of the day ~ a receipt, a paper bag, packing material, whatever catches my fancy, then I'd build a collage around that element and eventually I add an origami dress. Sometime the dress is large, sometimes small.   

• dailydresses - it almost feels too obvious, but I would love to create 100 days straight of dresses; ephemeral dresses, embroidered dresses, food dresses, sculptural dresses, painted dresses, collages?!? .... you get the idea.
• visual gratitude - you know how gratitude is the best attitude?! I thought I'd create an image of something I was grateful for each day

'from the land of dragons ...'

• food puns -  I have been considering rendering food quotes/puns, such as 'Olive you' with hand-lettering or using my understanding of the non-traditional material to create some interesting looking phrases.
• 'from the land of dragons ...' since Scruffy past I haven't been walking as much so not wondering through my land of dragons ...
• Virginia's kitchen knowledge - illustrations of helpful food facts, food prep and storage tips, recipes and whatnot.
• my morning coffee - some kind of rendering of my morning cup of coffee 
• 'Karoline Kitty who lives in the city' 100 drawings of the life and times of Karoline Kitty
• Portraiture: I've learned from agent and teacher Lilla Rogers that a strong illustration portfolio shows that an illustrator can do faces!! 

• 100 days toward opening my Etsy shop?!?!
• 100 new designs/posts to my Society6 and Redbubble shops

OMG - the more I write this blog the more ideas I have ....

So I'm not sure how I am going to decide but I need to decide by tomorrow! if you have any thoughts I would LOVE to hear them as I am feeling pulled in many directions!! But one thing I know is that it can not take up too much time!! This project's goal is to be creative on a daily basis. And as much I as would LOVe to do all of this project and spend all day in my studio, I need to unpack! 

thank you & peace, 

va

pattern camp weekly challenge: forest

© virginiafitzgerald 2016

Some of you may remember that this summer I won a scholarship to Jessica Swift's Patterncamp, which was a weekend long 'bootcamp' for pattern design using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.  It was an amazing weekend!!! though the expression, 'drinking from a firehose' really captures the experience.

© virginiafitzgerald 2016

There was A LOT of information shared within the 48 hours, but luckily you have many opportunities to continue to learn and practice.

© virginiafitzgerald 2016

One of these opportunities is every week Jessica offers all campers, past and current, a pattern challenge theme with which to create new patterns which you can then share with the PC community.  I have been able to participate every few weeks, but I love it when my schedule allows, as the weekly challenges helps me to hone my new skills and I can get feedback from fellow campers.  It is one of the many benefits of patterncamp.

original postit pattern

For last week's theme: forest, I created two patterns, in a variety of different color ways .  The pattern of 'just trees' I did in Adobe Illustrator, a program that is very new to me.  The bird pattern was done with Adobe Photoshop, the program with which I am very comfortable.  For this pattern I started with a painting from my #30daysofpatternstudies that I did last February with Francisca Nunes. (click here to read more about my adventures in patterns on post-its.)

© virginiafitzgerald 2016

© virginiafitzgerald 2016

The next bootcamp weekend is in October, some info and links to the class are below.  I highly recommend taking this online course if you are interested in pattern design.

Jessica is a great and patient teacher.  She is a working pattern designer and illustrator so she has real life experiences to share.  The bootcamp is a great survey of many aspects of putting a design into repeat, AND you become part of a wonderful community of like mind pattern obsessed folks!!!

Though beware ... it can be HIGHLY addictive!!!

peace,

The next session of Pattern Camp is October 15-16, 2016.

Registration will open September 15, 2016.

Pattern Camp is a 2-day, intensive, weekend-long virtual, online pattern design workshop created + taught by Jessica Swift. It’s pattern design boot camp! (Except fun, and no one will yell at you, promise.)

patterns on a post-it

photo by Francisca Nunes of some of our posts for her #30daysofpatternstudies 

One of the perks of Instagram, besides finding awesome artists and beautiful art, is discovering interesting projects/challenges.

Last year I contributed to the coloring book 'Breathing to a new Beat, "the Breathing to a New Beat Technicolour Dream Book is a collaborative fundraising colouring book to support the Heart and Lung Transplant Trust Vic (HLTTV)" and the brain child of CurlyPops .  

This month I stumbled upon Francisca Nunes' #30daysofpatternstudies and knew it was perfect for me ... I love pattern and a post-it is the perfect size so that I can't spend all day working on it (need to be on the watch for anything that may be a #productiveprocastination possibility)

pattern 11/30

And it has been a perfect project, post-it are always available, and perfect for when you are on 'hold' on the phone, waiting for a carpool pick-up and lately they have been quite handy while traveling on the train and during the 'lovely, yet repetitive' college informational sessions.  This week Francisca posted about her reasons for starting her #30daysofpatternstudies and has posted some of our patterns (make sure to click on the link at the bottom of this post to be taken to her blog!)  and I figured I would share how this has been such a terrific experience for me on my blog.

pattern 10/30 'lovebirds' for Valentine's Day

First I have really enjoyed getting to 'know' Francisca and her work via Instagram! 

another photo by Francisca Nunes of some of our posts for her #30daysofpatternstudies 

Secondly, any of these daily or monthly projects/challenges are a great way to hone a certain interest or talent. Doing a certain assignment every day for an allotted time takes away the sense of the work being 'precious' or the need for it to be 'perfect', two words that can kill any creativity!! 

one of the rooms at Charleston, Sussex, England

Creating these 3x3 pieces of pattern has reminded me about how much I LOVE to create pattern, how I used to envision living in a home that I covered with pattern.  This explains my obsession with the Bloomsbury Group and the country home of Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant, the Charleston Farmhouse, where the artists decorated the walls, doors and furniture! 

pattern 13/30 

pattern 14/30 

Also this project got me to pull out my gouache paints, an opaque watercolor, which I used to use when I was creating illustrations and art for greeting cards (way back when).  Via these post-it, I am thoroughly enjoying rediscovering the wonders of gouache, which is so timely as I am reestablishing my freelance illustration and design business this year!! 

pattern 12/30 (pen and gouache)

Lastly this has been an awesome project to take on the road ... post-its are perfect for traveling as I taking my daughter on an eastern seaboard college visit via Amtrak.  And it turned out to be a lovely mother/daughter bonding moment!!! Below is my post-it pattern which was inspired by Maya's beautiful mandala!!!

pattern 15/30 

To see all of my post-it patterns you can check out my instagram feed and to see see the work of Francisca Nunes and read her thoughts about her project, #30daysofpatternstudies check out her blog: 

http://heartmakes.blogspot.pt

And lastly, as Francisca noted in her blog, JOIN the FUN!!!

"If you join us post your patterns with the #30daysofpatternstudies and #heartmakespostit, so every patterns will be in the same palace and we all can see the creations of each others!"

pattern 1/30, felt tip marker and gouache
hope to post this on spoon flower as a repeat
©virginiafitzgerald2016

peace