Getting Etsy-ed Out!

It's official: I now have two store fronts on Etsy.com. One is for my wearable art (right now, that just means felted hats), and the other shop is for my fine art (paintings).
Since it takes me ages to upload pictures and add virtual merchandise to my shop, it might take me a while before I can say I'm in full-swing business, but let's just see. Wish me luck!

Play With Color

Does your portfolio boast color? If color is the favorite part of your designer day, you will enjoy playing with color combos at kuler (get it? ... kuler... color...), one of Adobe's online toys for creative folks like myself. If you want to base your colors on a photo, you may do so by uploading it. The tool automatically suggests a color theme, but you can edit that, as you see fit. You need to log in, if you actually want to save any of your color sets.

Color Scheme Tool

Are you one of those people who just doesn't have a natural eye for color? If so, check out this color tool, which provides you with "Color Wheel", "Color Harmonies", and "Suggested Colors". It's ColorSchemer Studio, and you can try the freebie online version of the tool, right here. The paid version (about $50) also includes a "Color Blindness Simulator" and "Convert to nearest WebSafe or WebSmart color". More color tools to come.

ABCs of PMS (that's Pantone Matching System)

I've often been asked what Pantone colours are, and why I use them. This 4-minute Pantone "commercial" explains what a colour matching system is, and how to use Pantone's chips as color guides--an excellent piece of basic graphic design knowledge, if you don't already know it. The latest piece of exciting color news is about GoeGuide, which integrates Adobe CS' digital library.

What Color is That Anyhow?

As a designer, I spend my days dreaming up fabulous color combinations. I'm intrigued by the way colors play with one another, when placed next to each other. Opposite colors have a sort of "electric" effect, while those in the same hue but of different tones can have a calming effect. Of all the possible elements of design, color is my very favorite.

Now, imagine not being able to see color the way you do... if you were color blind. I confess, I'd not given that much thought to it, beyond basic accessibility issues... until I found this web site: Vischeck.

Check individual images, or feed a URL into their form, and see what it comes up with. I tried it on StudioClaire.com (my portfolio site), and was surprised by what I saw!

I guess that until the day when someone recovers from color blindness and is able to compare before and after versions, we will never know exactly how differently we each view the same colors, tones and hues, but this online tool might give us a sneak peek at visual impairment!

Contemporary Character Design and Art

"Enter the playground" ... these words beckon at Pictoplasma's friendly, colorful and interactive "Colour Me! Playground", where one can scribble and doodle the day away (after signing up).

Once you get past all the "Enter" screens, the friendly CMYK colors greet you with their uber-modern cheer, and sound effects make the drawing experience all the more... well, colorful.

Color Your World (Cool Tool)

For those who need a little extra inspiration to start your creative day, check out this Daily Color Scheme beta. If every programmer who ever designed a web site took a look at this first, then perhaps the world wide web might be a prettier place.

Bookmark the schemes, download them (in multiple formats, including Illustrator, Photoshop, cascading style sheets, and HTML files), or simply copy the RGB/HSB/hex values, saving hours of precious gaming time. Available, are schemes such as "Propaganda USSR", "Grunge School", "Facing Automation", "Cable Services", and oh so many more!

Blue Cake and other Homemade Delectables

I am now officially counting down the days until the Carp Farmers' Market opens its gates once again, to the culinary (read: baking) challenged... those of us making the pilgrimage are hoping to fill our long-emptied pantries with delectable homemade goodies and home. That blessed day is now less than a month away. I've marked it off in my calender, with a 3-day reminder, just in case.

Among my many favorites, is an artful cake maker who aptly calls herself, "The Girl with the Most Cake". Her works are eye-catching, colourful and exotic creations, showcased in an old-fashioned glass case, set up on top of a table. There are usually crowds around her stall as people line up to see her unusual designs. They are quite fantastic, indeed, and of course, they are quite delicious.

Let Your Eyes Play Tricks

We've all seen those optical illusion books. In fact, many of the "quivering-edged" dots (that aren't really quivering at all) and other such trickster imagery have found their way online. But--have you seen the interactive version yet? If not, be sure to view Arthur Shapiro's crazy collection of psychadelic, mind-altering visuals. Here's the linky link.

The Language of Color

"The Color Purple", "out of the blue", "caught red-handed", "Orange Crush", "yellow-bellied"... colour is important to us humans, so much so, that we incorporate it into our everyday dialogue, without so much as giving it half a thought. The Sensational Color web site takes color and color concepts to a deeper level: they have documented all sorts of "color-isms". In particular, I like their section, "Color Meaning & Symbolism"... a great cheat sheet, for when you have to 'splain away concepts and use of color, etc. It's all there, in black & white.