DIY D&G Crown

Of course, like many others, I was blown away with the Dolce&Gabbana fw13/14 collection. The rich colours, the intricate mosaics, and of course; the crowns! Since I had a medieval theme party to go to, when would be more perfect? So I pulled out the glue gun. But first some inspiration, for more go to my pinterest.

                                                           bottom photo: "The Accolade" by Edmund Blair Leighton

Next, shopping! I was looking for something that had filigree, which is delicate twisted metalwork soldered together to suggest lacework. Used since ancient times, say 3,000BC. The D&G crowns use one piece of solid straight edged metal to create the body of the crown, hinged at the back for comfort, dotted with delicate points or crosses to create interest. The dominate colours for the swarovski crystals are red, amber, and green. I used two bangles from New Look, linked is similar (just mount on a headband or clear backing to use separate pieces), to create the main body of the crown, added to that a pair of earrings and a circular piece to the front to create the 'points'. I got the stones at the Bead Works, where I collected glass, and stones to decorate my crown. 

Supplies:

Glue

Needle Nose Pliers

Gold Wire

Gold Edging/Ribbon

Sandpaper

Gold paint/spray paint

Stones

Filigree metal pieces

1. Use sandpaper to roughen the surface of the metal so the paint will adhere. 

2. Glue the pieces together. 

I mainly used hot glue for my crown as it didn't seep through the filigree and had a high viscosity. Be aware, it is very hot. If I did it again I might use UHU instead.

3. Paint the metal surface.

I also used gold paint to even out the colours of the various pieces, but spray paint would work just as well. Test out the colour before covering the whole piece.

4. Glue the beads on the crown, wire can also be used 

  Needle nose pliers and gold wire to attach the rounder beads (secure the back of the wires with glue)

Note: It helps when buying and gluing to plan out where the beads will go.

5. Glue gold edging to bottom of crown/ ribbon to sides

Gold edging and ribbon to cushion the bottom of the crown and to attach it at the back. In the original the ribbons were velvet and the crown extended further back so the back pieces were hinged for comfort and fitting. 

and you're done!

So now you can go out and feel like a queen, without spending $4,000. Yeah, I totally wore this to cook dinner in! I'm thinking of widening the metal (by hand and carefully) cutting it into three pieces and hinging it all together to make a belt, which is much more wearable! But I have to admit, wearing a crown has its points...

all photos unless otherwise stated are by Chloe Cornell

Tuesday Toolbox

Phil: " Oh my God, Frank! What happened to you?"

Frank: "I had a makeover, too much?"

Prop Design- Clear Chaos

I was given the brief of making a remote control that would 'suck out the colour' from the screen in the new series 'Points of You'. The catch was that it would be seen mainly from the back of the remote, with the front facing the actress so it had to be interesting. So, back to the drawing board!

My first thought was of those clear telephones and alarm clocks that used to be popular in the 90s. Then I wanted to add buttons and knobs to give the actress something to work with. The acrylic covers were made from vacuum forming wood blocks cut and shaped to remote-like dimensions.

Technical Drawing of Remote Prop

Sketch of how all the pieces fit together. Below are images of the finished product.

See the prop in the new intro of Points of You! And to see how plastic can be formed into different shapes with a Vacuum Forming Machine!

images by Chloe Cornell and on-set image from Points of You. Drawings by Chloe Cornell

Inside My Sketchbook

This sketchbook was for my project "Vanity" which started out with Dante's "Inferno" and the Seven Deadly Sins. I later moved to making a puppet representing vanity which acts as a parasite on the sinner, creating a negative influence. The design was to reflect the nature of the sin, and vanity focused on the warped perspective of perceived beauty. This project is quite old and if I were to revisit I would like to rework the puppet design as well as focus on other 'sins'. However I thought it might be interesting to revisit old sketchbooks and reveal a bit of the process of my design. These are some inspirational images the first from Dali's imaginings of Dante's work and the second focusing on the colour palette of medieval paintings particularly Bosch's work (Garden of Earthly Delights).

-these are quite old so the image sources are unknown. 

To view the finished project, "Vanity", go here..

Picasso at Work

Picasso is a legendary figure in the art world. His work still groundbreaking and inspiring. This video is a stop motion film of him painting, works which he later destroyed. This is a tantalising glimpse into his breathtaking art in motion. Since the work was destroyed this is a perfect moment in time, suspended through the medium of film where we can view the genius of Picasso and watch him in action.

watch full video

Because these paintings were destroyed upon completion the full Mystery of Picasso was declared a national treasure by the French government. 

see original article

Artists That Inspire: Samantha French

With temperatures rising I am starting to feel the itch to head to the sea.. Well any sort of pool of water will do. It's that time of year to go swimming, sailing, kayaking, and other water activities. My favourite memories are of that first plunge after a hard days work in my grandparent's pond. The cool murky water enveloping me, and finding silent peaceful state. I find that feeling of peace and contentment floating in water, as long as someone isn't cannonballing nearby! The painter Samantha French recreates those feeling for me in her painting of swimmers underwater. She says,

"My current body of work is focused on swimmers underwater and above. Using vague yet consuming memories from my childhood summers spent immersed in the tepid lakes of northern Minnesota, I attempt to recreate the quiet tranquillity of water and nature; of days spent sinking and floating, still and peaceful.  These paintings are a link to my home and continual search for the feeling of the sun on my face and warm summer days at the lake.  They are my escape, a subtle reprieve from the day-to-day.  At the same time, I am drawn to an idealistic time before my own, where swim caps and wool swimsuits were commonplace. This combination of memory, observation and photography (old and new) has allowed me to preserve the transitory qualities of water and remembrance."

                                             Samantha French in her Brooklyn Studio

"Surface Break"

"Breathing at the surface I"

"Twist; let go"

"Twilight"

I find these pieces very peaceful, like the gentle rocking motion you get when you float on the surface of the ocean. These works and others can be found on Samantha French's site here.

"Omelette"

I saw this film and it really was touching. Though in my experience, unrealistic, my dog would wake me up and keep bugging me till I fed him... Nice thought though, a foodie dog taking care of his weary man, with a touch of the secret agent as the dog hides his saucepan-weilding nature. I really enjoyed the character design, there was a little of "my dog tulip" that makes you want to get your own foodie dog.

So here's "Omelette" by Madeline Sharafian, she says:

 "Finally my 2nd Calarts film is completed! It feels really great to make a more personal film this year, now that I know the ropes of filmmaking a bit better. I wanted to make something that focuses on how meaningful it is to make food for someone you love. My family's lives practically revolve around cooking for each other, so it's a theme that I'm deeply attached to. I hope you enjoy it!"

originally posted here.