Recipes and Art
I recently worked on this invitation for a black-tie party. I came across this tutorial a while ago, and since then have been looking for the perfect opportunity to try it. Then, while trying to think of ideas for this invitation, Ryan came across the manipulation of Admiral Ackbar below.
I immediately wanted to turn it into an old-timey illustration. If you follow this blog, you probably know that I have a bit of an aesthetic obsession with fancy mustaches and octopi. While Admiral Ackbar is not an octopus, he seems to be the next logical choice, and appeals to my nerdiness.
I sketched several thumbnails of Admiral Ackbar based on screen captures and other artists’ interpretations, then came up with a sketch I was satisfied with. I scanned it in and inked it in Manga studio, then exported to Photoshop and used the faux-letterpress technique described in the tutorial linked above. If I’d intended it for print, I probably wouldn’t have used the technique, so a web-based invitation was the perfect vehicle for it. I’m very happy with the end result.
Admiral Ackbar (c) Lucasfilm.
When we moved into our house, we decided to make one of the bathrooms mustache-and-Victorian themed. It’s been slow going dressing it appropriately until recently, when a lot of Victorian-inspired accessories began making their way onto the shelves. The accessory that was lacking, however, was the lightswitch plate. The double-wide switch doesn’t have a wide array of switchplates available, so I grabbed an acrylic one to cover with polymer clay for a mustache-inspired plate. I made one for the outlet as well as one for the lightswitches. I used beige Sculpey and a texture stamp for the base. After the Sculpey was baked, I painted it first with shimmer Mod Podge and then with a platinum metal powder mixed into glossy finish Mod Podge. And now our lightswitches match the rest of the room!
I’ve discovered the fun of playing with scanned fabrics recently and decided to use some scanned lace to this invitation to our semi-annual fancy party. Because really, what’s fancier than an octopus in a top hat and an old-timey mustache? The design has also been added to my cafepress store, www.cafepress.ca/crowlands
