Metallics
If you've already visited my new Etsy shop, you will have seen my owl and moon print designs which make use of silver ink and hand-drawn silver pen details. My upcoming print designs will also incorporate metallic details in gold and bronze.
Late winter is an appealing time for using metallics, because they work so well against darker colours. I love silver on a cool colour palette of grey or midnight blue and gold on warm colours like plum or burgundy. The full effect of the way metallic colours shine in the light can only be seen in person. Similarly, with my owl and moon prints, the black ink almost blends into the midnight blue background at certain angles, making only the silver stars, moon, and the owl's eyes visible. When you do see the owl and tree branch at a different angle, it's almost like being in the scene, suddenly spying an owl silhouetted again the night sky.
My obsession with all things metallic started when I was working on wedding stationary. More traditional designs often involve embossed silver or gold calligraphy (which was certainly out of our price range). Our wedding in the U.S. was held in a forest preserve, at a house that had been turned into a nature center. I wanted to reconcile the theme of nature and our DIY approach with the more traditional, elegant elements of the wedding, like my 20's-influenced embellished dress. I loved the idea of taking natural elements like woodgrain and making them more elegant by printing them in a different colour scheme.
One of my initial drafts for the U.S. wedding invitations was a grey and silver faux bois lino print. I ended up using this design for the 'thank you' notes we sent out later. For the invitations, I opted instead for a slightly more polished look and created a grey dotted faux bois design which I printed digitally.
Keep an eye out for my new faux bois and metallic prints, which will be appearing soon on my Etsy shop!
