I’ve been obsessed lately with Monet, especially his waterlily paintings from Giverny which have given me inspiration from some of my embroidery projects. But the more I looked at my favourite paintings, the more I found myself being influenced by the colour palettes. Recently, I realized that I was (subconsciously?) seeking ways to recreate those colour stories in my outfits.

Pulling ideas for colour combinations from existing patterns is one of my favourite (and easiest) styling tricks. Someone has already done the legwork for you, figuring out what goes together. It’s an especially helpful trick for finding less common combinations, especially if you don’t feel confident enough to make the decision — do these two or three or four colours go together?? — on your own. Doing the same thing with a piece of art is, well, kind of a no brainer.

Here are some examples I’ve been working with recently.

[Note: we all see colours differently (especially when viewed through a screen) so this isn’t going to be an exact science. My two cents would be: trust your eye to be your guide.]

Per last week’s post, here’s my current obsession. There are a few colour stories I’ve pulled from it, including these two 3-colour palettes.

There are more colours and combinations that could be pulled just from this one painting, including 2-colour, 3-colour, 4-colour (and more!) palettes.

Here is an example of a recent outfit based on a 3-colour palette drawn from this Monet painting:

Here is another Monet painting and a possible colour palette:

And here is an outfit based around it:

Never fear, you don’t need to stick to Monet only. Here are some ideas based on Van Gogh’s irises (another favourite of mine):

And here is an outfit which incorporates a 2-colour palette:

Klimt is another favourite of mine:

Here is an outfit built around a similar colour story (with multiple colours):

Norval Morrisseau was an Indigenous artist, whose work is wonderfully vibrant. Here are a couple of palettes based on his Man Changing into Thunderbird triptych (one panel only) which speak to my closet:

And here is an outfit based around a similar palette (but picking up the royal blue instead):

I hope these are helpful illustrations to get you thinking about how you might draw inspiration from art. As a general tip, I would suggest looking at paintings/drawings whose colours are similar to what’s in your closet, not necessarily just your favourite artists. To discover new (classical or modern) art with which you might not already be familiar and which might provide inspiration, I recommend following art accounts on Instagram such as @dailyart_official, which post a broad range of artworks on a regular basis, or borrowing art books from the library which cover different eras/movements in art.

Why, yes, this is still supposed to be a fashion blog. So, umm, let’s fashion.

I’ve decided to take a slightly different approach to these posts going forward, and I may tweak them again as I go (possibly break them up into smaller posts?). With Instagram becoming increasingly unfriendly to content creators, I want to start using this space again more extensively. Rather than focus on choosing my favourite looks of the week, I’ll post all or most of them along with sourcing information. I’ll cut back on the commentary — y’all don’t need to hear my thoughts on everything I wear — unless there is something relevant or useful like fit information and so on. Let me know what you think about this format.

Details: Lida Baday dress, BCBG belt, Everly skirt, Stuart Weitzman shoes (all thrifted); Rafael Alfandary necklace (via eBay)

Details: J. Crew camisole, Tabi vest, Zara blazer, Chelsea Crew shoes (all thrifted), Everlane jeans (swap)

Details: Topshop top, Wilfred sweater, Lena Bernard necklace (all thrifted); Frank & Oak pants (swap), Prada shoes (retail, old)

Details: DVF dress, Debew poncho (both thrifted); Lena Bernard necklace (via ebay); turquoise pendant (via Poshmark); J Crew shoes (retail, old)

Details: blanket coat (thrifted and upcycled); Oak & Fort top, Sarah Pacini pants, Manolo Blahnik shoes, Stella & Dot necklaces (all thrifted)

Details: Wilfred sweater (retail, old), Wilfred pants (via Poshmark); Manolo Blahnik shoes (thrifted); selfmade earrings

Details: COS sweater, Zara skirt, no name necklace, DVF shoes (all thrifted)

Details: Motions top (thrifted), Frank & Oak pants (swap), Floreat wrap (via Poshmark), J. Crew shoes (retail, old); Rafael Alfandary necklaces (via eBay)

One of the best things I did last year was make the decision to switch role and go part-time at work. On a professional front, I have the opportunity to explore a different area of law, as well as a different side of my company. On a personal front, working part time allows me to prioritize my mental (and physical) health, spending time with my family, and space for creative endeavours. Over the last couple of years, I’ve realized that the latter is enormously important to me, not only in terms of personal fulfillment but also in terms of health. My creative hobbies played a key role in keeping me (relatively) sane during the pandemic. They also helped me to re-discover meaning in my life after the trauma of 2021.

What was especially transformative for me (and possible only thanks to many hours of therapy) was that fact that I made the decision to cut back my work hours without planning to take up any compensatory side hustles. I am simply trading money for time. Free time. Free time to do as I choose, to make my life healthier, more balanced, and more meaningful. I can never discount how fortunate and privileged I am to be able to make that decision. It has made my life infinitely better already.

I feel like I needed (and wanted) to address that because you may see an uptick in posts about my art; I always get asked questions about how I manage to find time for art and other hobbies, and I hope this will partially answer that. As a sidenote, I am sad every time I am asked those questions, because it makes me think that other people are having to forego things that are personally meaningful to them because of other priorities. A healthy work-life balance is what I would wish for everyone … but at the risk of veering into broader discussions not fit for a frivolous blog, I better stop there.

Anyway, what’s been happening on the art front?

A lot of embroidery and beading, that’s what.

I haven’t felt called to make stone jewelry lately, so I listened to that and focused my energies on other things. I am exploring a few different themes (and have plans for some additional ones) including the Demeter design for earrings, and my waterlilies series of embroideries. I’m trying to be better about keeping records of my designs for future reference (I used to draw them on pieces of paper and toss them as soon as the design was transferred onto my canvas or felt), so that I can continue to evolve the designs.

I made a few new Demeter-style earrings for people who loved the original ones (they were sold at my art fair this summer).

It’s important to me that no two pairs are exactly the same, so it’s always fun to think of new combinations and permutations.

I also discovered the fun of working with feathers.

This was a prototype pair (the Persephone design) which I made for myself. I love it so much, and I am waiting for another suitable pair of feather earrings so I can make another one in this series.

This was a special pair called “Nishiime” (“my little sister”) which I made for my best friend who is Ojibwe/Anishiinabe. She helped me translate the name; I wanted to choose something that I felt reflected our relationship.

I made some one-offs too.

I also ended up upcycling a couple of necklaces, but this time using embroidery/beaded pieces with a floral inspiration:

Embroidery-wise, I made a couple more waterlily hoops:

The fun is coming up with different interpretations and embroidery techniques each time. I have another one (which will be number 4 in the series) which will be different again.

I made another cactus hoop (second in what is now a series I guess), improving upon an earlier design with more intricate detailing (and some new tricks):

I also made a pansy hoop, inspired by a vintage embroidery pattern I spotted on Instagram:

I chose to deviate from waterlilies with this because I just loved the riot of colours. Working on this hoop, though, really helped me perfect my satin stitch technique. It’s given me some new ideas for developing and implementing other designs that rely on this stitch. In fact, I’m working on a birds of paradise hoop at the moment, which is putting those lessons into practice.

That’s it for now … tell me, what personal projects have you been working on lately? Doesn’t have to be crafty — could be home design, DYI, cooking, reading, anything.