Now that Mother’s Day is over, I can share some photos from our project this year.  We made extra-special bracelets for our moms.  Back when my schedule was too busy with little kids to paint, I started making and selling jewelry.  I guess you could say I’ve always had the need to create something!  I really enjoy making jewelry and used to sell it at street fairs in and around Seattle.  It was fun to share this with the elementary art students.

And we painted sumi-e ink cards.

Sumi-e is a Japanese word that literally means “Ink Picture.” “Sumi” is the ink.   Adding “e” makes it “ink picture.”

The art of Sumi-e originated in China about 6000 years ago as calligraphy. The art is based on lightness or darkness of stroke and an economy of line – every touch has to be perfect capturing the essence of the scene and not every detail.

Before making our cards, we practiced the different types of strokes.  We painted birds and tulips.

Hope you enjoyed the gifts.  They were made with lots of love!