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Chasing the butterflies .....

I'm always looking for places to put my spare rolls of hanji paper so now I have the answer to this problem. 

For years I've had an umbrella stand sitting in my  entranceway and as we don't have any large umbrellas  here in the UAE because it seldom rains and when it does, no one seems to mind getting wet.  Until recently it was filled with all sorts of odds and  ends including squash raquets,  old rolls of wallpaper and shopping bags as well as hats.  I've commandeered it and now it sits nicely in my studio. 

I've been designing another one for my upcoming class  and this time it's going to be for my daughter Laura. It's designed as an umbrella stand or a tall pot but it could have a variety of uses.  This one is more contempory with cats chasing the butterflies over a yellow background.  I've used two layers of paper on the pot, firstly a yellow then a very fine off white paper to give it more texture and to smooth over the edges.  Inside I've used a light, fine paper with small pieces of bark in it.

The cats are cut out of black paper as are the butterflies but I've added a touch of colour underneath the butterflies in shades of blue to lift them a little.  I'm pretty pleased with the result and I hope she can find a use for it in her home.

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