"The Season for Singing Has Come"
Flowers, a page with floral elements, was the assignment, our theme for the May Challenge and it was a tall order in a cold, snowy, late and wet spring. When it finally arrived, some of the storms had done too much damage to some of the favorites, while others burst forth in brilliant color.
Emerson said “The earth laughs in flowers” and it may well be true, but I chose a verse from the Song of Solomon “Flowers appear on the Earth, the season for singing has come.” For this spring when it finally arrived made our hearts sing! It's been a bit of a roller coaster ride with the weather but I hope it will eventually even out!! I have printed the verse on a piece of the treated paper for a focal point on page one.
My layout is presented on 2-12”x 12” sheets of Mosaic Moments Grid Paper in Palm Leaf. I have added all three suggested elements for the challenge: ink, wrinkled paper, and metal accents. I also used a Paper Tile in Deep Spring Green to mount the verse. I trimmed it just a bit to allow only an 1/8" border.
I have used both ink and wrinkled paper to create a leather-like sheet of paper to use as background pieces.
For the photos, I was out in the rain, out after the rain, at dusk and out in the occasional sunny day to try for different angles and shots of the flowers in my garden and a few at my Mum’s. I was pleased to see the water lying on the leaves and petals from the rain turn out so much in focus! It was however a challenge to get the finer flowers, like the Forget-Me-Nots, in focus, so I gathered a handful of the various blooms to arrange inside for a better shot. I made several arrangements, chose several prints and cropped to include a little bit of each here. I varied the sizes of the prints and views to include close ups and some further away.
To include the elements I embossed strips of copper and used copper brads as accents. The copper brads anchor the verse block. I took a sheet of copper and with an embossing tool scored a 1” strip and used a regular pair of scissors to cut. Then using an Anna Griffin embossing border (Blossom Dance) to get a nice crisp image on the copper I had a strip that could be cut to fit the sections on both pages.
The paper process was one I found on Pinterest to create a faux leather journal. It really looked interesting and was hoping to try sometime and this seemed like a perfect time to try it out. When you are finished you will have paper that has the look and feel of leather.
I began with a small spray bottle, distilled water and Glycerin.
I worked on my Teflon sheet as it’s easy to clean and dry and when I used the embossing heat gun it doesn't hurt the mat.
I used 6 parts water to 1 part glycerin mix. You can see the glycerin at the bottom of the water bottle, be sure to shake well to mix together.
The cardstock was just a regular piece that I began by spraying down and rubbing it into the paper. The glycerin conditions the paper and breaks it down making it more pliable.
Spray both sides of the paper and allow to dry most of the way.
Then crumble the piece and straighter it out again.
The texture is beginning to change.
I used Tim Holtz Distress Inks in Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Walnut stain, one color at a time, direct to surface catching all the ridges of the folds. Spray and work in the ink as you can. Allow to dry and repeat the process with the next ink color. Colors will dry slightly lighter than they appear while wet.
Each time that you crunch the paper you will create new lines to work another layer of ink into. Working the water mixture into the paper will begin to change the texture of the paper. You can use a heat gun to speed the process, be careful not to burn.
It’s a long process, but the results are worth it. In the end your finished product will be very flexible. I used a rotary cutter and my mat to cut the paper like a piece of fabric.
So, there you have it, my colorful spring bouquet! So much to sing and to laugh about!! Come and share yours too!!
thanks for stopping in for a peek...
andrea
