Valesca van Waveren’s colorful compositions put us at ease. Meant to capture the wonders of nature and find beauty in the imperfection of our day to day lives, they set the mood for slow, mindful living. Based in Amsterdam where she shares a home with her husband, son, and cat, van Waveren illustrates and designs prints and ceramics, which can be bought through her Etsy shop.
Her watercolor paintings and drawings have also been used for magazines, books, wallpapers, stationery, fabric, and packaging. “Sometimes I work in watercolor and pencil, other times I make line drawings with ink, or I work with clay,” she further relayed in a piece she shared with the Flow blog. “While I can work out my designs in all kinds of different ways, the main ingredients are always time, love and attention. I love the imperfections that are inherent to handmade work. It shows a kind of vulnerability so that it is easier to make contact with the object when you look at it.”
Whatever she does, nature plays a huge part in it, providing her with endless inspiration. “Whenever I travel, I always love to go to the botanical gardens of the city I am visiting,” shared van Waveren. “These places, which in most cases were designed and built a long time ago, are wonderfully peaceful refuges within a bustling metropolis. But more than anything, it is the diversity of the plants that impresses me most.”
Her Instagram might provide you the same peaceful refuge in times of need.
