When you’ve finished drinking tea, do you throw away the teabag? Ruby Silvious doesn’t. Instead, she uses it to create art.
Silvious is a Philippines-born, United States-based artist. She uses tea bags as canvases to create gorgeous and intricate watercolor paintings.
Silvious’s watercolor paintings are inspired by a variety of world destinations, as well as sights and sounds she experiences in her daily life. Her art subjects vary from the streets of Provence to portraits of characters from the “Star Wars” movies.
No matter what she’s painting, Silvious captures the culture of each location and object she paints in incredible detail. Her watercolors may be done on a small scale, but they pack an impressive punch.
In an interview with CNN Travel, Silvious explained that artists always try to find “unique ways” of expressing themselves. She added that her search for a unique method of expression inspired her to start utilizing discarded materials like teabags.
It was over tea with her sister when she first came up with the idea. From there, she started her experimentation.
When you first take in one of Silvious’s projects and see how intricate they are, it’s easy to assume that it’s always been easy for her to create such picture-perfect paintings. She has made it clear, though, that it took a lot of work for her to get to where she is now.
Silvious added that she still has all of her “failed experiments” and that she tries to recycle (or rather, re-recycle) them.
Those who want to check out Silvious’s paintings can do so through her Instagram page. With over 31,000 followers, it’s safe to say that her work is a hit. She also has a website where fans can purchase her art, as well as individual prints and books.