Big Nap Decorative Dishes

Color Inspired By Artists on My “Big Nap” Decorative Dishes

Big Nap Decorative Dishes

Big Nap Decorative Dishes

Jelly Bean’s roundness is a little exaggerated but it really was a big nap. Another one of the feline shapes I love.

“Big Nap” decorative dishes are based on one of my brush pen sketches which I enlarged and use to cut the clay around the outline of the sketch for each dish, soften the edges, then place it inside a bowl to give it a little lift around the edges. I initially designed them in white clay with black brush pen detailing, the same pen I used for the sketch. But then I could also see them in colors and chose combinations reflecting my influences from Japanese brush pen art, Theophile Steinlen, and Andy Warhol. I have more detail on the design and creation of the dishes below.

What the dish looks like from the side.

Each dish is handmade, hand painted and unique. They can be used for decoration on a tabletop or hanging on the wall with a plate hanger, or they come in handy to catch things like jewelry, change, little notes, candies, or even as a soapdish, but no unwrapped food or liquids.

The Big Nap Decorative Dish is 6.5″ wide x 5″ high, and about 1/2″ deep, made of polymer clay and painted with a variety of paints and finishes.

When I made my initial trinket dishes in 2016 I developed a ton of ideas after working with both polymer and air-dry clay, many involving my brush pen sketches integrated in several ways.

How I make the “Big Nap” dishes

The “Big Nap” dishes represent one of those styles, a little larger than the original 4″ trinket dishes, and using the outline of a sketch to shape the finished dish.

Designing

The round-ish shape of “The Big Nap” fit well to this idea. I knew I’d use the big round section of his back around to his front paw, and while I loved cutting out all Bean’s legs and thought that would make a really neat design I also felt it would be too fragile. I added a little to his shape, like a cushion underneath him, to fill in around his legs, and was gratified that I actually liked that better. It was an opportunity to use more colors, for one thing. Also, I want the dishes to be useful as well as decorative, and the cutouts for the legs would reduce the uses because it just couldn’t hold as many different things.

Cutting, forming and baking

Because the clay is baked and it works best if the object is held to the final shape while baking the size ended up being determined by the one dish I could use to form the gentle curve I wanted that could also be baked in the oven along with the clay. So I sized the sketch according to the dish, and then place that outline on rolled out clay and cut around it with a knife. I place it on the ceramic dish I chose to give it the gentle lift around the edges and bake it with no design on it at all.

Finishing and embellishing

After it’s baked, I sand here and there if I have rough edges, then start painting.

Where to purchase a dish, or read on

Find these with Trinket and Decorative Dishes in my Handmade Gifts Gallery.

Japanese brush pen

Sometimes just a single interesting line is most expressive. For the plain white dish, I use the same brush pen to draw the sketch onto the clay that I used for the original sketch.

Original natural with black, “The Big Nap” decorative dish.


After Theophile Steinlen

For the Steinlen design I paint in the red and black, then when that’s dry I use a lettering brush and gold metallic alcohol ink. The red and black with gold is an homage to Theophile Steinlen’s style when illustration black cats with an accent color. He has been an inspiration since before I can remember, and while the black and white design was what inspired this particular dish, this design was the color version I envisioned before I knew I even wanted a color version.

Black and red with gold, “The Big Nap” decorative dish.


After Andy Warhol

For the Warhol design I paint in the orange and blue, then when that’s dry I draw the sketch in that same brush pen. The orange and blue combination with the black outline is inspired by Andy Warhol. Years ago when I began filling my black ink and brush pen sketches with bright colors readers compared them to Warhol’s cats. Being from my hometown I had grown up with that as an influence and didn’t even realize it.

Orange and blue with black, “The Big Nap” decorative dish.

Where to purchase a dish

Find these with Trinket and Decorative Dishes in my Handmade Gifts Gallery.


More like this

Find more Trinket and Decorative Dishes in my Handmade Gifts Gallery.

Mr. Sunshine wants to know why I didn’t use him as the model for my dish.

Mr. Sunshine wonders why I didn't use him as a model, since he is purrfect.

Mr. Sunshine wonders why I didn’t use him as a model, since he is purrfect.

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