artsy-craftsy

[eregyrn]

So, for my birthday, raqs sent me this cool hemp shoulder-bag (by Ecolution). And I decided that what it needed was some groovy decoration.






I essentially decided that I wanted to jazz up the plain bits with some decoration, and what occurred to me (don't ask me why, I don't know) was designs based on mehndi, traditional henna tattoos. I've always thought those looked neat. Maybe it was something about the hemp material and the henna-like color of those accent straps.

Above shows the work in progress. I decided to start off on the inside pocket, instead on the front flap. I figured, you know, this is a learning process, so if I do some and get better at it, I'd rather have the later, better stuff on the visible-all-the-time part. I did a Google image search for a lot of henna-tattoo examples, and did some picking and choosing amongst elements that I liked.

The medium is brown Sharpie permanent marker. No kidding. I used that on a suede coat, once a long time ago, and it worked quite well, so. I used a light touch with the marker to "sketch" out the design, and then I went back over the linework more heavily to make it more solid and darker. It's kind of fatiguing on the hand, because this is a very rough, burlap-like weave, so you really have to go over it to get good coverage, but it works.

I don't intend to cover the entire thing with this stuff -- as cool as that would undoubtedly look -- just put some accents here and there: on the front flap, on the strap, maybe a little on the side gussets.

Will post finished pics when I get it done.

Comments

[allegedly.livejournal.com]

Wow!! That is incredible! It looks absolutely gorgeous!

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

Thanks. :) The inside now looks a bit simplistic to me... but that's okay, it's the inside!

[drlense.livejournal.com]

VERY nice. The bag is beautiful, and the accents really set it off. Go you.

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

Thanks. :)

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

Wow, that's cool. And yes indeed to Sharpies, they are good for all sorts of things.

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

They really are! Why mess around with fabric paint? It's a pain in the ass. Sharpies are much easier.

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

Plus, they made me really happy when they started making multiple colors. Mmmm....purple and raspberry!

PS. Bought the Blackberry Curve. Am now charging and trying to figure out how to use the frelling thing. Send medication.

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

PS. Bought the Blackberry Curve. Am now charging and trying to figure out how to use the frelling thing. Send medication.

AH HA HA HA! Good luck with that. :D

Just remember that using the web sucks up the battery life. And your airtime minutes. (Of course, I don't know about you, but I never use all of the airtime minutes I have, so I have plenty to burn.)

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

Hmmm...methinks I hear laughter wafting through the airwaves. *veg*

Don't worry, I know whom to call. Hee!

And yup, I never use up my minutes. I also got a flat rate plan for about 30 bucks...er, flat rate internet that is. ;)

[literalman.livejournal.com]

Remember that you can have your normal email forwarded to your BB email account, and that your BB can be configured to have your normal email as the "replyto". At least, you can do so with Verizon.

Good luck!

[jenlev.livejournal.com]

:::waves::: Thank you!

I'm holding off for now due to my technology curse. I may need some additional assitance, as I am trying to get the log on page for my email server to appear on the screen with no luck. Oh well, typical for me. I'll try it again when I've got a better signal. I'm far enough out that there are cell phone black holes hereabouts. Heh.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_minxy_/]

Oooooh, neat.

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

Thanks! :)

[cityofbeige.livejournal.com]

That's great! I'd soooo totally screw that up if I tried it.

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

Well, the nice thing about these designs is they're kind of organic, so I think it looks less obvious if you mess it up. I was also just pretty much straight-up copying elements that I had examples of. I mean, on this one, you can see that the swirly things aren't symmetrical -- the one on the left is bigger. But it's not such a fatal flaw, in this style you can get away with that.

[destina.livejournal.com]

Very pretty! Very crafty. *g*

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

Thanks. :) I get these bouts of actual craftiness.

[raqs.livejournal.com]

EX-cellent! \o/!!

[eregyrn.livejournal.com]

w00t!

Also, I'm so glad that you aren't annoyed that I'm taking your gift and "improving" it. *shifty eyes*