Arts & Crafts: January Monthly Challenge Inspiration from Etsy

Birds, bees, dragonflies and flowers.

I love the Arts & Crafts period. The lush botanicals of William Morris’ wallpapers and fabrics have always intrigued me. I love the rich, earthy color palettes and the hidden treasures in each. They are more like European tapestries with their complexity than a simple repeating wall treatment. I think that is why I love them so. I found a fascinating history of William Morris and his tumultuous life here titled “William Morris: The Soul of Arts and Crafts.”

A company called Pendleton Woodworks in Canada offers reproductions of William Morris’ fabric and wallpapers as well as other Arts & Crafts style textiles. I used their patterns one other time to create a bracelet design. I love looking through them to see the variations in color schemes. I especially love that they show the textiles on the walls and furniture of restored Craftsman houses. I have always thought it would be terribly romantic to live in such a space.


{This room shows the Trellis fabric and wallpaper in an alternate colorway. It looks so lush and tropical.}

 I went searching on Etsy for some inspiration for this month’s challenge. I found some beautiful artbeads and components that will totally have you evoking this quintessential tapestry style of William Morris’ textiles.

‘Arts & Crafts: Inspiration for the January 2012 Art Bead Scene Challenge’ by TesoriTrovati

This month we are inspired by William Morris and his distinctive Arts & Crafts style.

Poppy Earring Bead Pair chestnutridged… $12.00	my heart takes flight – bird… TesoriTrovati $17.00	LEAF BEADS Olive Green Lampw… SerenaSmithLam… $5.00	verdigris bee pendant bethanycooper $7.00
Birdcage Pendant earthenwood $10.00	Orange Poppies 2 from Mystic… mysticmoonbead… $59.00	sparrow bird charm , SWOOPIN… PatinaWorx $6.95	Beauty Berry Flora Clasp in … ORRTEC $12.00
Bird bead. Handmade lampwork… glassdaft $20.00	Lovely Antique Blue Stonewar… potterygal66 $5.00	Orange Crush and Peach Satin… LuckyLadyAppar… $12.00	Hibiscus Petal/Leaf Pendant … humblebeads $12.00
Handcast Pewter Leaf Pendant MamacitaBeadwo… $12.99	Rose in Bloom –Miniature Ar… TuckooandMooCo… $30.00	Bird pendant magpipe hand pi… AnnaSiivonen $36.00	5 Flower Beads In Pumpkin CapturedMoment… $6.25

What image in the Trellis textile is most intriguing to you?

We look forward to seeing what you create with this inspiration. Don’t forget to add your pictures to the Flickr site tagged as JANABS and a link to your exact blog post (please don’t make me search for it!) in either the comments on the challenge post or (preferably) in the description of your Flickr picture.