pencils

After visiting the david hockney retrospective i came away inspired and fully motivated to create something. One thing is clear, colour rocks and so does david hockney! For those able to visit this amazing exhibition i hope you will try and go, you won’t regret it!

Here is a little project i thought you might like and maybe even try and make yourself. It is simple and doesn’t need many materials or skills. It’s fun, inexpensive and makes for a great gift when invited for dinner or when in need of a birthday present. Alternatively, why not spoil yourself?

All you need is a bic pen, some hand dyed feathers (I buy them at the knitting and stitching show at alexandra palace) and a few different mt tapes. Play around with different feather colours and sizes. There is no rule. See what inspires you. My colour inspiration today came from the david hockney paintings.

As i didn’t have more bic pens at home i decided to use pencils instead. You can use and sharpen the pencil until it needs exchanging. It’s simple to lift off the feathers held together by the tape and place it on another pen or pencil.

There is something rather satisfying about taking an ordinary everyday object and transforming it into something more extraordinary. I also like the length and weight of the bic pen and pencil once the feathers have been attached. It gives it a different feel, better ergonomics? I think so, but you decide.

You can make a few and give them instead of a bouquet of flowers?

Why not get the bic pens in red, blue, green and black? You could have a different feather colour scheme for each or keep it all the same. Everything goes and there are no limitations. Try a monochrome one or one made out of entirely the same colour. You might be inspired by an interior scheme you have seen or something in a magazine that caught your eye.

Finally, you can keep them in a little vase or any holder you have lying around ready for the next time you desperately need something to write with. Barclays pens, eat your heart out.