How to Redecorate your Home - without leaving your desk!

The first module of the ‘Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design’ ended last weekend and I really should be catching up with things I neglected during the five weeks of Module 1.

But . . . I’m afraid I’ve become so addicted to pattern-making that it’s hard to tear myself away from my computer. I kind of justify the time I’m spending by telling myself that I’m practising what I’ve learnt to do in Photoshop. And to some extent that’s true.

I still find Photoshop quite baffling at times but at least nowadays, if it refuses to do what I want it to, I can come up with a few solutions and usually one of them will work. That is definitely progress!

We were kept particularly busy for the last ten days or so of the course, with 'creative exercises' and ‘design briefs’ coming thick and fast. Somewhere amongst all that, it was suggested that we should try putting our designs on walls, curtains and other surfaces – virtually, of course - with minimal instructions about how to do it and the promise of further instruction at a later date.

So, just for fun, here are some of the patterns I’ve designed, applied to the 'surfaces' of my home!

First of all, my bedroom - 

I really haven’t got to grips with how to get the scale of the pattern right for this Photoshopping exercise. At the scale I intended, most of these would appear totally different, more like mini-prints. As they stand, they’re rather too bright and bold for my liking as wallpaper, though some of them could be OK at that size for curtains perhaps.

 I think huge nasturtiums on one wall and sunflowers on another would probably keep me awake at night!

 The landing - above the dado - oh dear!

It gets worse - the roller blind in the little back bedroom!!!

. . . and even worse!

This one is slightly more in keeping with my Edwardian home!

Lastly, my Guest Bedroom -

And of course, I've kept the best for last!

Intended as curtain fabric for a child's bedroom, I don't think my adult guests would appreciate Little Green Froggies peeping over the bedhead at them!

I hope you've enjoyed this little excursion into the realms of silliness! 

But the serious question of identifying my 'Signature Style' remains. 

I'm working through all the pattern ideas I came up with during the course, making coordinating patterns and pinning the finished 'presentation boards' onto a Pinterest Board HERE.

So far I still haven't been able to see a common thread, or even think of a single word that could link the patterns I've created so far. Any ideas will be greatly appreciated!