Art Nouveau, Enchanted Living Magazine, Alphonse Mucha, Prague, Czech


 

Adorn your long and flowing (or short and pixie-perfect) hair with flowers, one tucked above each ear with a headband or ribbon between, as Mucha often painted.

Pin a brooch to your blouse in the shape of a dragonfly or other winged insect.

Avoid ninety-degree angles in all your décor. Lamps with sinuous lines, frames with curves, and tables with tendrils for legs should be your ideals.

Wear flowing clothes in patterns that pay homage to the undulating contours of nature.

Embrace your own natural curves as well. Art Nouveau loves nature, and nature comes in all shapes.

Buy or pick your own flowers for your home. And don’t just plunk them in a vase and be done with it. Contemplate their beauty. Spend a moment cutting each stem and arranging each bloom at its most appealing angle.

Discover the fragile and alchemical magic of gold leaf: Sweep its delicate tissue-thin papers across an old thrifted wooden frame, tea-light holder, or even a piece of furniture.

A simple toga-inspired dress or lightweight chemise is perfect for hot summer weather.

Whenever possible, choose organic design in every detail: Select shoes with twining embroidery like tulip stems and silverware that twines in interlocking vines. No detail is too small, if it delights.

Learn an art. Take classes in stained glass or explore the sensuous enjoyment of the potter’s wheel. Mosaic a tabletop using broken shards of yard-sale plates.

Know that you can be a powerful muse in your life, and the artist as well. There is no need to choose.

 


Featured Image by: Photo by JR Korpa on Unsplash

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Grace Nuth is a writer, artist, and model living in central Ohio with her husband, black cat, and a garden full of fairies. She also co-wrote The Faerie Handbook, out in November 2017 from Harper Design. To follow her projects, please visit gracenuth.com.