Veeery exciting -- we've just added brand new addition to our beautifully unique, hand-crafted Wooden Animal Mask wall art range: A zebra!!
It was a bit of a challenge getting it juuuuussssst right...!
Originally, I thought that the zebra would be very similar to the giraffe. After all, both animals have horse-like features, right...? I started out playing around with pieces of cardboard and wooden bits, borrowed from the giraffe mask, but it just didn't work.
I went back to the drawing board - quite literally! Using a head-on photo of a zebra for inspiration, I made a few rough sketches. Instead of fixating on my initial idea of basing the zebra on the giraffe mask, I used what I actually saw in the photo and broke down the zebra's face into simple geometric shapes. After a lot of trial and error, I was finally happy with the design.
Next, I passed the project over to my carpenter hubby, Alex (The Modest Toolbox), to start crafting our 'prototype zebra', using pallet wood offcuts. From experience, we know that moving from 2D to 3D can be a tricky step in the process, and often the design of the mask has to be adapted again.
Thankfully, we didn't hit any major snags at this stage, and the zebra mask quickly came to life!
I paint each little block of wood individually. I adore painting these masks, as each piece of wood is totally different. Alex hand picks them and cuts and finishes them by hand. I then let the wood guide me when I style them. Each mask takes on a unique personality, as not a single one is painted exactly the same. Certain pieces are also left raw, and this really adds to their individuality!
After the paint has dried, Alex seals all the loose blocks with varnish. Finally, he puts the whole thing together. This is when the magic really happens - one moment, you have a pile of mismatched wooden blocks, and the next... voilà!
We're thrilled with the new addition! As ever, these utterly unique wall art pieces are a labour of love, celebrating South Africa's diverse wildlife. We are also really passionate about sustainable living, and it's fabulous that so much of Alex's offcuts can be used to create something functional and beautiful.
Apart from being able to order one of our gorgeous animal masks in my online shop, they are also available here:
Kirstenbosch Craft & Food Market, Newlands
Meet me here in person on the last Sunday of every month (within season).
Spier Craft Art Market, Stellenbosch
Visit their Facebook or Instagram accounts to see opening times. Although I may not be on duty, my work is always on display.