Spotlight Designer - Ramya Anand

Good Morning! 

This month we have Ramya Anand guest designing for us. Ramya's creations are warm & cheerful & she has a knack of using bright colors with ease! 



So over to her now - 

Hi Lulupu team,

Thank you for inviting me as the guest designer of this month!! This is very special to me as this is my first Guest designer post for any blog. 

1. Tell us a little about yourself and your family.

I hail from Coimbatore ( Tamilnadu) and have completed M.tech in electrical and electronics engineering. After marriage I got settled in California (US). My mom also loves to make crafts and jewellery. Both my parents motivated me to do lots of crafts right from my childhood. Now am also lucky to get a husband who respects my work as much as I do and doesn't bother about the house becoming a mess due to crafting.

2. How did you become interested in crafts and what inspired you to start blogging?

I have been a creative person from my childhood. I used to get immense pleasure sending handmade cards to my relatives on special occasions. My mom and me used to make lots of decorations for Navarathri. The feedback and the appreciation that I got for my creations motivated me to keep my crafting alive. After marriage I got settled in US . To overcome my boredom I began to craft regularly. Seeing my interest my husband suggested me to start a blog.

3. What are some of your "go-to" supplies for crafting?

Hmmm ... Distress ink pads, Hot glue gun , flower punches etc

4. What is your favorite crafting technique?

Not one I have three favorite techniques. 

1. Jewelry making: I love to wear the jewelry designed by me matching my outfits.

2. Altered art: The joy of recycling an item and creating something new out of it.

3. Mixed media: ( My recent love).. .I love mixed media for the suspense and the freedom it gives.

5. How would you describe your crafting style?

When I see a challenge theme I frame a basic idea in my mind and start researching about it. I love projects that involves a lot of challenges to me so I will zero down the most difficult project. In the process of making that project I learn a lot of things. Even if it didn't come as I wished I will get the satisfaction that I tried something new.

6. How long have you been crafting?

Serious crafting began 2 years ago.

7. My signature style

Bright and bold colors with lots of flowers describe my signature style. I love to add lots of embellishments and flowers to my craft.

8. Who are some of your influences? Who has been your inspiration?

For jewelry making I would choose colors and designs from Indian sarees. For mixed media i will refer to Shilpa Nagaonkar , Jaya Raghuvanshi and Gabrielle Pollaco. I will also refer to the magazine called Paperhaus for layouts and canvas works. For writing an interesting post and lots of altered art ideas I refer to Rupa's blog. Recently I started following Marjie Kemper for her art journals and Catherine for card making techniques. 

9. When not crafting , what keeps you busy?

Playing badminton with friends, Zumba dance classes, playing piano and reading magazines.On weekends I will go long hikes with my husband. 

10. What are you currently working on?

Am currently learning different art journaling and mixed media techniques. 

Thank you Ramya & now lets head over to the cheerful inspirational tutorial she has for all of us.

For making this project materials needed are:

1. Empty tissue rolls (2)

2. Floral wire thin and thick

3.tissue paper

4. Hot glue gun

5. Paints

6. Crepe paper for making flowers

7. Materials for decoration like lace , pearls etc

Procedure:

Step 1: Cut two circular pieces from tissue paper rolls and wrap it with tissue paper.

Step 2: Twist two floral wires and cut them into small pieces such that it fits inside the circular piece. Wrap it with the tissue paper and glue it to the tyre. 

In a similar way make three tyres.

Step 4 : Take a thick wire and join the two small tyres. Using the same wire make the handle and the front of the cycle ( as shown in the pic above)

Step 5: Glue the front portion of the bicycle to the front wheel. Join the front and back of the cycle using a thick wire.

Basket and flowers:

I made the basket by weaving 4 strips of paper. 

The flowers are hand cut as my punches doesn't support crepe papers. 

Painting and other tips:

Since the bicycle is made of tissue paper use dry brush technique for paining it. I used fevicryl acrylic colors. 

The bicycle cannot withstand weight so do not try to add more embellishments to it. If you want a more sturdy bicycle you can use empty tape rolls. But I felt tissue paper roll is easy to cut and hence I tried making with it.

For stability you can tie floral wire at the joints as shown in the above picture.

So a mini bicycle is ready to decorate your craft table!! Hope you all like my craft!! 

Wow Ramya this is absolutely adorable. Thank you so much for the tutorial!

Remember you still have time to enter the current challenge - BABY - A little bit of heaven.

Cheers,

Tanvi