Last week I finished an assignment to create a design for fabric with a “water” theme. It is intended as a bed cover for a special bed for people with a severe handicap, to be used on a holiday week with a tropical theme.
I wanted the design to give people who are lying on the bed the feeling as though you are floating on the surface of the water. Looking down on the fabric you will find sea creatures swimming beneath you. These creatures all have lots of details to explore.
I started out by designing the water. What gives you the feeling of water? Drawing waves is very tempting, but also make for rough seas. I wanted the design to have a relaxing, dreamy feel.
Water and light make such interesting shapes on the bottom of the ocean and I started playing with the circle-like shapes of ripples in the water surface. The water underneath the surface was created using lots of different blob-shaped brushes.
Once the water was to my liking I started on the animals. I absolutely loved doing that. From the inquisitive octopus to the dreamy jellyfish, I sketched them out, traced them in pen and then added colour in photoshop.
The size of the finished bedspread is 150 cm wide and 240 cm long. The design is off to the printers today, so in two weeks time the result will be back. Can’t wait!
