found: Dipped Neon Pots

To say I've been doing a lot of future-home day-dreaming would be quite the understatement. Luckily, those dreams are finally coming true because Sebastian and I move in a month! Although it feels like a lifetime away (as we sit in our far-too-small apartment), I'm hoping that time will just zoom on by and we'll be in our new home in no time.

Thoughts of light, airy spaces, complete with pops of colours, and gorgeous plants are filling my mind. Imagine my excitment when I came across two of those elements in one!

The Proper Pinwheel is a party blog that encompasses all things entertaining. From DIYs to birthdays to tablescapes, party inspiration is abundant! And who doesn't like a little party in their every day lives, am i right? ;)

To get the party started, I'll be sharing how to make your very own neon pots. Perfect for displaying your favourite succulents on your desk while you work, as a centrepiece in the kitchen, or outside to spice up your patio. 

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

A ceramic pot 

Painter’s tape

Neon Pink fluorescent spray paint (or whatever colour suits your fancy!)

HERE'S HOW

Apply the tape around the pot, you can keep it simple, or get a little more creative and make your own design. After you've applied the tape, paint the bottom of the pot with light, short bursts of paint. Hold the can far enough away to avoid paint drips. After about 3 coats, let ‘er dry.

 

VOILA! What an easy way to spruce up your home! I can't wait to give it a go myself!

 

Have you tried any DIYs that you've loved? What are some of your favourite ways to add colour in your home? I'd love it if you shared in the comments! The more inspiration, the better! xx

 

P.S. To see more of my own inspiration boards, follow along on Pinterest!

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Found: Nude Timelapse

Aren't these images incredible? It's been entirely way too long since I've shared some art with you, and these are just too beautiful to keep all to myself.

New York based photographer Shinichi Maruyama created these awe-inspiring images using nearly 10,000 photographs of a nude dancer in motion. Don't they look like paintings? I find myself getting lost in each image, following the elegant, flowing lines, trying to get a glimpse of the body buried in the movement. Here's what he had to say about this series...

I tried to capture the beauty of both the human body’s figure and its motion. The figure in the image, which is formed into something similar to a sculpture, is created by combining 10,000 individual photographs of a dancer. By putting together uninterrupted individual moments, the resulting image as a whole will appear to be something different from what actually exists. With regard to these two viewpoints, a connection can be made to a human being’s perception of presence in life.

Here's a few of my favourites...

More of Shinichi's work can be found on his website.

P.S. More art finds here, here, and here.

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found: No Limits

Bruce had me up to three miles a day, really a good pace. We’d run the three miles in twenty-one or twenty-two minutes. Just under eight minutes a mile. So this morning has said to me “We’re going to go five.” I said, “Bruce, I can’t go five. I’m a helluva lot older than you are, and I can’t do five.” He said, “When we get to three we’ll shift gears and it’s okay two more and you’ll do it.” I said, “Okay, hell, I’ll go for it.” So we get to three, we go into the fourth mile and I’m okay for three or four minutes, and then I really begin to give out.” I’m tired, my heart’s pounding, I can’t go any more and so I say to him, “Bruce if I run any more,” – and we’re still running – “if I run any more I’m liable to have a heart attack and die.” He said, “Then die.”

 

It made me so mad that I went the full five miles. Afterward I went to the shower and then I wanted to talk to him about it. I said, you know, “Why did you say that?” He said, “Because you might as well be dead. Seriously, if you always put limits on what you can do, physical or anything else, it’ll spread over into the rest of your life. It’ll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you might not stay there, you might go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A person must constantly exceed their level.”

 

***

Read this and my heart practically exploded. So, naturally I thought it’d be the perfect thing to share with you. :)

 

Dream on. Dream big. Push past your limits and magic will happen. Make this day and every other day worth remembering.

Quote via

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found: Intimacy... In Your Fridge

When I think of the word intimacy a flood of images rush to my head. A couple sharing a gentle kiss, two friends sharing their deepest darkest secrets late into the night, a hug, a touch, an exchange of words, a sparkling connection between two people.

For New York based photographer Stephanie de Rouge, it all started with a fascination for big cities and the people who live in them. Observing them in their element; how they work, interact, walk, and mourn. The inner workings of what makes people tick.

From there she started out with a series that documented various types of people in one of their most private spaces, the bedroom. Only to find out that "building walls don't talk". It lacked the intimacy she was so desperately yearning for. Until one day when she was shooting a client in their home, opened their refrigerator, and she realized that's where the answers were hiding.

In her words:

My approach was quite simple: make an appointment for a portrait shoot and once the shoot is over, and without my subject being aware of my project, ask them permission to complete the human portrait with a portrait of their refrigerator…. Oddly enough, for the first time in three years of shooting this project, I’ve been refused to access numerous fridges. As if the mayonnaise and the chicken leftovers found in a fridge could be more intimate than a bedroom.
From there, the next question quickly arose: Could the fridge be the mirror of the soul?

Since launching the In Your Fridge series, she's opened more than 45 fridges throughout New York and Paris and captured a different side of the subject's daily life. It's candid, honest, and provides a twist on the idea of portraits. From whole organics, frozen dinners, liquids-only, to dolls, clothes, and love notes.

She hopes to extend the adventure to another 19 megacities in the world, “to complete the map of a playful and poetic universe that murmurs endlessly the secrets of the citizens of the world.”

The full series can be found here on her website.

It just goes to show that a little out-of-the-box thinking can lead you to an entirely new discovery and show you things you've never begun to imagine. (Who knew?!) 

What's in your fridge? What do you think it says about you? (I think I'll go tidy mine now...)

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found: Negative Space

Using negative space in artwork is a technique that either works or it doesn't. What the artist does is focus on using the empty spaces around the main subject to create something unique, engaging, and beautiful.

I've always been drawn to artwork that's thought-provoking and inspiring, while maintaining a sort of simplicity and minimalism. Just take a look at the above piece and take away your own meaning from it. When you dive deep into the meanings behind any work of art, the outcome can be some pretty powerful stuff. Here, the main subject is the man sitting while smoking a pipe, and what's evolved from him - from the negative space above him.

I love thinking about how something inspiring can come from this - from the nothingness new thoughts, ideas, and feelings start to emerge. It's the nothingness from which everything else sprang from.

That same idea that applies to these simple works of art can also be applied to our lives. Except, in life, what's in that negative space isn't directly in front of our faces, we have to search for it.

These pieces were created by graphic designer Tang Yau Hoong, take a look a some of my favourites...

P.S. Get inspired! Click here to see more of his work.

Capturing Moments

 

Sometimes all we need is a little change in perspective, don't you think?

The world really is a beautiful place. No matter where you are in the world, whether you're celebrating a holiday or not this week, we all have something to be thankful for each day.

My suggestion to you for today is to think about those things and get them out on paper. Don't think too hard, just write the first things that pop into your head. It could be something as simple as "hot chocolate on chilly mornings" or "impromptu dance parties in the kitchen". Keep it somewhere safe so you can look back and even add to it, if you'd like. Let those things fuel you, and if nothing else, make you smile.

What will you be writing down today? Feel free to leave a quick message in the comments, I'd love to hear :)

found: Private Moon

How romantic would it be to have your very own private moon?

The "Private Moon" project was started by Russian artist Leonid Tishkov and has since travelled all over the world - Paris, Italy, New Zealand, Taiwan, and more. But what's more than that is the story that goes along with it.

"Writer Chesterton once said that there couldn’t be a personal faith as there couldn’t be a personal sun or a personal moon. In Russia everything is the other way round: we are faced with life one to one, and we are completely lonely in the face of the problem of time, that is, the problem of life and death, the problem of losses and gains, the moon, the sun, and everything in this life. We could, conceivably, turn to someone for support. But we are still lonely… However, that shouldn’t make us grieve or suffer. Loneliness of this sort means that we exist, we are here, we are at the center of the universe and we are comparable to the Moon, to the other celestial bodies.

“Private Moon” is a visual poem telling the story of a man who met the Moon and stayed with her for the rest of his life. In the upper world, in fact in the attic of his own house, he saw the Moon falling off from the sky. Once she was hiding from the Sun in a dark and damp tunnel. But the passing trains frightened her. Now she came to this man’s house. Having wrapped the Moon with warm blankets he treated her with autumn apples, gave her a cup of tea, and when she got well he took her in his boat across the dark river to the high bank overgrown with moon pine-trees. He descended into the lower world dressed in the clothes of his deceased father and then returned from there lighting up his path with his personal Moon. Crossing the borderline between the two worlds across a narrow bridge, immersed in a dream and taking care of this heavenly creature, the man became a mythological being living in a real world as in a fairytale. Each photograph is a poetic tale, a little poem in its own right.

So it turns out that the Moon overcomes our loneliness in the universe uniting many of us around it."

Beautiful. I think this private moon has now stolen my heart.

found: Double Exposure

Don't these prints just make your mouth drop? And just wait for it.... these double exposure prints were created in camera and only slightly edited in photoshop. I think there's another word for that... oh yea! Talent.

There's just something about Dan Mountford's creations that instill a sense of wonder and magic. The way he's changed our perception of these otherwise ordinary objects is like stepping into a new world and seeing it all for the first time.

Have a look for yourself...

To check out more of these portraits, just head on over here.

P.S. A special hello to all my new followers! Don't think I haven't noticed each and every one of you! I've been completely blown away by your support - the incredible comments, e-mails, everything! I appreciate it more than you know. xo

found: Three Dimensional Art

How cool is this?! Artist Riusuke Fukahori became inspired by his pet goldfish and used his creativity and unique style to create these three-dimensional works of art. The fish are painted in extreme detail, layer by layer using acrylic. Each layer is separated by clear resin which is poured into containers, creating their lifelike quality.

I’m absolutely blown away by this extreme optical illusion. For a better understanding of the process used in Fukahori’s work, I highly recommend watching the video, “Goldfish Salvation”.

P.S. You can view more photos here.

found: The Best Creativity App

Have you guys heard of Paper by FiftyThree? It's a drawing/sketching app that's available for the iPad and is one of the most creative apps I've seen to date!
When you launch Paper, you're greeted with a series of beautifully designed notebooks. You can customize each one with different images, and change the names - we have one just for ideas and another for sketches. Then, just tap or pinch open a book and it unfolds in front of you, displaying a blank piece of paper just waiting for your next creation.

Once you open your notebook, you are given one free tool - the drawing ink pen. Which is actually extremely useful and very expressive - depending on how fast you draw determines how thick or thin the lines are. It's like being able to write out calligraphy without the years of practice to perfect the skill.

Although the app itself is free, the additional tools are at an additional cost. But trust me, if this is something that you're interested in - it's worth it. Adding these tools is actually what makes this app so incredible. You have a sketching pencil, a thick outliner, a writing pen and a watercolour brush. You can buy each separately, or the whole lot at a reduced price.

Each tool acts basically how you would expect them to, which in itself is simply remarkable. In no time, you are mastering watercolour techniques, sketching like a pro, and creating your own masterpieces. Even if you make a mistake - not to worry! By holding down two fingers on the screen and moving them in a counterclockwise motion, it reverses the actions you've just done.

And while this may not compare to real paper, where you can see the textures and smell the paint, it's as close as it's gonna get for something electronic. And this way - you can carry it with you where you go! Paper by 53 allows us to capture everyday on the fly - whenever you get an idea, you can easily open this app and write it down or do up a quick sketch.

Just check out some quick drawings that Sebastian created...

Then we named them. Meet Luigi (above) and The Sorcerer (below - this one's my favourite).

And best of all? You can link your drawings to your facebook, twitter, and e-mail and share with your family and friends.

You may not be an artist, but this app will make you believe you are. So get in touch with your creative side, and start creating your own works of art.

(All sketches are made by Sebastian)

found: Realistic Art

It's no secret that I have a passion for art. I could spend hours in a gallery by myself staring into paintings... soaking in the ideas, the skill, the techniques.

I am completely blown away by the work of Pedro Campos, an artist from Madrid.

How many of you scrolled through these images thinking they were photos? They are, in fact, remarkable paintings that can be easily mistaken for photographs. Using oil paints, Campos re-creates seemingly boring subject matter and transforms it into incredibly realistic works of art.

Just imagine the amount of time it would take to perfect this process. Simply stunning.

found: Imagination Coming to Life

Hands down, kids have the most imaginative minds. I remember when I was little... mud pies were decadent cakes, jumping off swings made you feel like you were really flying, and climbing to the very top of the tree was the exact same as sitting on top of the whole world. Something so simple was easily turned into something magical. And the smallest moments were made into the biggest adventures.

They say that the creative adult is the child who survived over time. And I really feel like that's true.

This video really melted my heart. It's a little longer at just over 10 minutes but it's really worth watching until the end. Not gonna lie, I may have even teared up a bit.

Who says we have to grow up?

found: 'Before I Die' Project

It’s all too easy to jump on that proverbial hamster wheel and just keep going and going, sticking with our everyday routines. And it’s been proven that people actually do function better with a regular routine. But sometimes it can feel like my days mesh together, never changing, and then become increasingly difficult to differentiate.

How often do we stop and examine why we do the things we do? We’re all driven by different factors; working to provide for your family, putting in overtime to get that promotion, wanting to become your own boss, saving up for a vacation, the list can go on and on. But it’s all very simple and comes down to this: our hopes and dreams. Don’t you find that sometimes you get so caught up in your life that you actually forget them?

Candy Chang is an artist who turned the side of an abandoned house in her neighborhood in New Orleans into a giant chalkboard where the community can write on the wall and remember what is important to them. This is why I love art. It makes you think. The Before I Die movement is an interactive art project that invites people to share those hopes and dreams that they may have forgotten or brushed to the side.

The wall is painted with chalkboard board and stenciled with “Before I die I want to _________” and the responses have ranged from thoughtful to heartbreaking to downright hilarious. Before I die I want to… write a book, be ok with not understanding, explore this world, understand why I’m here, tell my mother I love her, travel the world, see my daughter graduate, be tried for piracy, save a life, plant a tree, abandon all insecurities, be the exception to the rule…

This project has expanded to cities all over the world including Amsterdam, Portsmouth, Querétaro, Almaty, San Diego, Lisbon, Brooklyn, London, and beyond and is being called one of the most creative projects ever. Even “O”, The Oprah magazine had this to say about the movement “Through a series of large-scale projects that combine installation art with social activism, Chang has encouraged people to engage with public spaces to let their voices be heard.”

Not only does this amazing project give us insight into what really matters to our neighbors and the people around you, but it connects you to them, helping us all realize that a lot of us aren’t so different after all. It forces us to reflect on our own lives, ultimately helping us to live a better life. A more fulfilled life. Encouraging us to chase the dreams that float around in our minds.

What do you want to do before you die?

P.S. Now, you can even transform your own community with the Before I Die toolkit! Or take a little piece with you and remember your dreams at home. (I just might have to order one for myself!)

(Via Candy Chang)

found: Sound Sculptures

Dentsu, an advertising agency based out of Japan, teamed up with biochemist and photographer Linden Gledhill to create these sculptures of paint reacting to sound. This series – which are more like time-lapse paintings - was designed for an ad campaign for Canon’s Pixma brand.

These sculptures are made by wrapping a membrane around a small speaker, then drops of water-based paint are applied to this material. Once the paint is set in place, the speakers are turned on and a high speed camera catches everything in between – shooting at 5400 frames per second. The designer’s experimented with a variety of colours, sound frequencies, and volume to get the perfect images.

So rad! I would love to have a collection of these photos framed and displayed in my home. Don't you think they would be perfect for an office or workspace area? It would be such a lovely source of inspiration.

Check out this video to see what happened behind the scenes:

found: The Brain

How cool is this? (Click to enlarge)
Here's what it says:

Left Brain

I am the left brain.

I am a scientist. A mathematician.

I love the familiar. I categorize. I am accurate. Linear.

Analytical. Strategic. I am practical.

Always in control. A master of words and language.

Realistic. I calculate equations and play with numbers.

I am order. I am logic.

I know exactly who I am.

Right Brain

I am the right brain.

I am creativity. A free spirit. I am passion.

Yearning. Sensuality. I am the sound of roaring laughter.

I am taste. The feeling of sand beneath bare feet.

I am movement. Vivid colours.

I am the urge to paint on an empty canvas.

I am boundless imagination. Art. Poetry. I sense. I feel.

I am everything I wanted to be.

Which side of the brain are you?