Categories
Art

Using Photoshop to Figure Out Values

As I’ve been developing my drawing and painting skills, it doesn’t matter whether I’m taking a class or watching online tutorials, I’m constantly reminded of the importance of value.  If you’re reading this post, you’ve probably heard a hundred times that values are more important than shapes and proportions (even though they are important too!).  But values are the foundation of a drawing or painting.

Categories
Art Create Home Improvement Woodworking

New Coffee Art Series

I’ve been working on a few new pieces of wall art made from coffee importer bags.  These things are so cool!  I recently picked up a few bags, but wasn’t sure exactly what I would do with them.  The visuals on the bag caught my eye and they just have this cool coffee shop vibe that I wanted to come up with a way to experience.  Then I ran across another piece of decorative wall art printed on burlap, the two ideas collided and here are my first two pieces…

Categories
Art Plans Woodworking

How to Set Up a French Cleat Wall Easel

I’ve been trying to figure out how best to position large canvases for painting since my current easel isn’t all that great and I’d rather spend the limited time I have painting rather than constructing another easel (which I’m sure I’ll do at some point).  One of the challenges I keep running into is how to position my canvases, particularly the bigger ones, vertical instead of at an angle.

Categories
Art Create Plans Woodworking

Build Your Own Float Frame

I think that the Float Frame (or floater or floating frame as I’ve heard them called) is a particularly stylish way to display canvas art from paintings to canvas photo prints (also check out my video on how to stretch your own canvas).  The thing I particularly like about float frames is that they’re easy to build, look great and they’re pretty versatile as far as framing different styles of art.  In addition, if you want to frame non-standard sized paintings or prints, you can save a ton of money doing it yourself!  In this post, I’ll cover building one from start to finish.  And, if you stick with me until the end, I’ll show you another cool float frame project!