I've Added 'Fine Art Reproductions for Interior Decorating' to |Fine Art & Illustration|

If you scroll under my original portraiture and illustration in the Fine Art gallery, you can now see some pieces I've created for the purpose of interior decorating. These are painstakingly faithful reproductions of Japanese fine art pieces from Edo period Japan (re imagined as tapestries) that I've made to add an air of verisimilitude to a Japanese inspired interior. Authentic Japanese antiques are faaaar out of my price range (and The Old Plum is in the MET!), so this was a pretty good compromise for the Japanese art freak on a budget. They were an epic ordeal to make, being gigantic, so here they are- since no one but me and friends would see them otherwise.

The reproductions were created using fabric paint and gold glazed cotton, which was then sewn to a heavy satin border, bag lined and hung. You can see some 'making of' photos in my Fabric Painting 101 tutorial. Counter-intuitively, these mere reproductions were intensely difficult to create- harder than my originals!

Hand Painted Reproduction of Kano Sansetsu's 'The Old Plum' 142cm x 63cm

Reproduction painting before wall mounting.

Reproduction painting after mounting on wall.

Hand Painted Reproduction of 'Early Spring' by Miyata Shizan 30cm x 115cm

Reproduction hanging before mounting on wall (left), and shown on wall with tapestry hanger (right).

I learned a lot by having to so intensely examine the work of these masters, and for such long periods of time. I can completely see why fine art students for hundreds of years were once trained via the method of reproducing masterworks. If you're not a formally trained artist (I hate the word amateur), you could try this technique to hone your skills and have some direct interaction with a Master you admire. I went to art school, but this method of learning seems to have largely been abandoned, and I don't personally know anyone who learned this way. Shame really, not only does it improve your skill and give you a deep appreciation for artists who came before, it's kind of humbling to be hands-on confronted with how badass they were.

Russian Cossack Hat: Free Culver Design Pattern for Download

Download it HERE.
You can also find this pattern on the Culver Design Patterns page permanently.

Finished Russian Cossack Hat

This pattern comes with complete instructions! 'Medium' size; finished hat opening: 22.5” (57cm), and allows for wearing ease.

A free pattern I drafted in anticipation of Autumn- a warm Russian style Cossack hat! I originally designed this to go with my own Russian Princess coat, but I've decided to share it with you for free after having converted the design to a digital version. It doesn't even take a yard of fabric (though faux fur is very expensive, admittedly), and the construction is fairly basic stuff. You could actually make it from scraps if you have them. The draft for this is based on engravings of the Cossacks, but my version has been adapted for contemporary wear and a more feminine style. The cap portion is rounded and close to the head, and the size of the brim band has been reduced to a more streamline profile.

The version in the photo is made of cotton corduroy and medium pile acrylic faux fur.

DIY: Free Sewing Pattern for Marshall DSL40C Padded Amp Cover

It's finished! Available to download free of charge.

There will be a permalink for this pattern found in the menu under "Culver Design Patterns".

Amp Cover Sewing Pattern

Amp Cover Assembly Instructions

Amp Cover Pattern Printing Instructions

Finished Amp Cover Photo

Link to Entire Amp Cover Drive Folder (Includes additional photos)

It was a genuine pain in the ass, but it's done! You can now sew your own custom padded cover for the Marshall DSL40C Valve Amp, for just the cost of supplies (and your time). I've created a downloadable pattern .pdf, along with sewing and printing instructions for the enterprising guitarist. This project would be suitable for a novice with some basic sewing experience, or you can hire a seamstress to create it for you (or ask a generous friend). I created this with my fellow cash-strapped guitarists in mind, so I hope it helps someone.

The one shown here is pretty plain, though you could easily make it personal through fabric choice, piping, or fabric painting. It's up to you. This pattern includes a handle opening, so the amp can be moved while still covered. It has ease in back to permit power and adapters to remain in their jacks with the cover on.

Note: Cover Sewing Pattern is about .5" longer than my prototype version here, so it almost touches table surface and hides the feet.

Here's the printing instruction copy:

To print full sized pattern using a .pdf file:

-Download copy of file onto your computer (don't print directly from Google Drive)

-Open in Acrobat/.pdf viewer

-select "Print"

-Very Important! Under "Page Sizing and Handling", select "ACTUAL SIZE" (no scaling)

-Under "Page Sizing and Handling", select "POSTER"

-Make sure you have a good amount of paper loaded into printer.

-Before proceeding, print the page with the 1" test square alone on to ensure it will print the correct size.

-Now select "PRINT"

To Assemble Printed Pattern

*You will need: Scotch tape, scissors

-Line up pages one by one, tape them until you have a row. Work one row at a time, being careful to line up pattern's outlines.

-Tape your rows together one at a time until a complete pattern is created.

-Cut out your pattern and pin to fabric. You're now ready to cut out your fabric.

If you get stuck, you have the option to send me questions via twitter @Culver_Design. Wish I could leave comments open but the amount of spam is absurd.

The Legal stuff:

Free to share with credit given to original author. Restricted to personal use.

Not for commercial use or commercial fabrication.

Culver Design patterns are copyright of Jeanette Culver and have Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike Creative Commons License. For definition of this license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/

Maddy hairin' up my gear.

DIY: Free Sewing Pattern for Marshall DSL40C Padded Amp Cover

It's finished! It's now available for free here: Culver Design Patterns

This is super niche, honestly I'm not sure how many people would be interested. I designed this padded amp cover for my Marshall DSL40C when I found that A: padded amp covers are very expensive, and B: The affordable covers were not very durable and were quite thin. My cat's favorite thing is laying on top of this amp, so I wanted something that cat hair wouldn't stick to and be somewhat resistant their their pointy little claws. The cover is made using cotton canvas, it also has a soft fluffy batting inner layer, a cotton lining, and opening for access to the top handle. It's a fairly simple design, but does have some slightly involved steps including binding the inside edge of a rectangular opening. But anyone with some sewing experience should be able to manage.

I'm working on the downloadable pattern right at the moment. Hopefully it can help some musician out there. My version is incredibly simple looking, but it could easily be customized using different fabrics, paint, or art applique. But I had this particular cotton canvas on-hand and and it only cost me my time.

I'm Now Available on ASK.FM To Answer Your Sewing Questions

If you're stuck on a sewing problem, have questions about specific techniques, want book recommendations, or are unsure how to proceed after a mishap- you name it- I'm available to answer your questions on ask.fm. 

Ask Jeanette Culver a sewing question

Painting a Portrait with Corel Painter, an Animated .GIF of Stages

Corel Painter is a program you can use to create 2D art that imitates analog mediums like oils, watercolor, charcoal, etc. The brushes, mixing palette, paints, and tools imitate the physical feel and qualities of their analog counterparts. I used a self portrait for this example, this painting was an experiment and I had no model. This is pretty much the reason why painters paint so many self-portraits!

It's been a convenient tool for when I want to play around with a new technique and can't make a monetary investment in too-expensive supplies. The ease and immediacy of digital painting has helped encourage a more spontaneous output for me, and willingness to take risks I wouldn't have with physical paints. It's an upfront investment, but it has paid for itself in a very short while. I'm using version 11. The program currently goes for roughly $400/ £300/ €400 new, though it's readily available for much, much cheaper on ebay.

This is an animated gif: watch to see transitions.

Different stages in painting a portrait.

The finished portrait.

As an art student during the very early 2000's, digital painting was just starting to be A Thing. It was predictably controversial among older artists, but it was readily adopted by the young students who had a more pragmatic view of technology. I don't know that digital painting is anywhere near getting the level of respect granted to traditional mediums in the fine art world (could it?), but it's absolutely pervasive in popular art. It has upsides and downsides. But, so does traditional media. Like paint and canvas's prohibitive cost, for example!

When you first start using Corel Painter, you will likely find it a bit overwhelming. So many tools and brushes and functions. But you can get to painting pretty quick, actually. Mastering all of it's tools takes time, like anything else. One thing that does drive me crazy, though: the hotkey commands are all just sliiiightly different from the Adobe Suite. It's maddening going back and forth between those programs unless you change the key mapping.

Good luck to you!

I now have a 'Pieces For Sale' section!

I occasionally have original pieces available for sale- now I've made them available through this site for online clientele. I will be updating this category whenever new pieces are made available.

Find the sale page on the menu under the site's header any time, or you can click this link.

Cream Russian Fairytale Coat- available for sale.

I now have a category for projects sewn from commercial patterns!

In this gallery you can see a collection of projects I've sewn from commercial patterns that are from my own personal wardrobe. If you yourself sew and you see something you like in this category, you can make your own version! The projects in this category are all sewn from patterns of high quality that met my standards.

You can find the commercial pattern gallery on the menu bar (just under the header) or you can click this link.

McCalls 6800

Updates

A new review!

I've added a minor piece to the couture fashion gallery! I still have several more pieces waiting in the wings that need to be photographed which I will be adding later.

I have also created a page dedicated to showcasing my portraiture and illustration. The newest piece is a moody portrait with a 1920s film vibe.

I've added my CV (resume), translated into English. I'll have the French translation and possibly a Norwegian translation available soon.

Pattern Review: Butterick 6105, a Pattern By Gertie

Completed Wrap Jacket

Product page for Butterick 6105

I give this pattern a 5/5

[Questions? Tweet @Culver_Design ]

Materials: black wool crepe, Japanese rayon chirimin crepe, metallic cross weave rayon satin in an orchid color (for lining).

Summary
I picked this retro styled wrap jacket pattern (designed by Gertie of Gertie's Blog for Better Sewing) at one of those fabric store pattern sales. My hoard of patterns is almost entirely composed of sale impulse buys. I don't sew from commercial patterns that often, which is... eh, I clearly have an impulse control problem. But, I'm glad I got this one. It is a beautifully crafted pattern in my opinion. My own result has a le smoking look to it due to my choice of fabrics, but I suppose I don't mind that. It's composed entirely of large fabric scraps from my stash, so my fabric choices were limited.