Got Friends?

Aunt Butch (or Butch)--that's what everyone called her. It was the nickname given to her by my Dad. She's the one on the right and her real name was Olive Lee.

The photo was taken in my Grandmother's backyard and because of the hats, I suspect it might have been her birthday. I don't know why she looked so sour with that "it's my party and I'll cry if I want to" expression but in truth, it was her nature to never smile that much.

But I digress. This post isn't meant to be a sharing of family history, rather, it's a chance to talk about a photo tinting theory that played out rather well.

In a previous post, I mentioned using clear gesso over black paper to create a chalkboard effect using pastel pencils and that made me wonder, would this technique work for tinting black and white photos?

The answer is yes and rather well, I might add.

After stamping and tinting the background and pasting on the girls, I covered the tag with a layer of clear gesso then used pastel pencils to tint their clothing and put a little color in their cheeks. The trick is not to apply too much since pastels are generally not very transparent and you could lose some of the photo's detail if you did.

Would I use this technique again? Definitely.

I chose this photo and made this tag so I could link to Simon's Monday blog challenge where this week's theme is Best Friend.

Stamp credit: Tim Holtz Dots & Florals

Grateful and Happy

Grateful and Happy, the names given to the last two projects I completed for CHA 2016, describe perfectly just how I felt about being asked to contribute. They were assembled on the new Idea-ology Mini Clipboards which are a great size and so much fun to decorate.

The first one features a Watch Cameo that comes with it's own glossy epoxy sticker cover for mounting an image (I used a Found Relative). Other new elements include Plain Tissue Wrap, Mirrored Hearts and Gilded Accents Remnant Rubs along with some old favorites like Chit Chat stickers, Crinkle Ribbon, a Nature Adornment and paper from the Wallflower stash.

I used tiny drops of Liquid Pearls (Ranger) around the edge of the clipboard for some extra bling.

The second clipboard was made by covering it with Wallflower paper (the clip has screws that allow for easy removal) and then attaching a new Vignette Panel on top which served as a support for my assemblage.

The panel is made from wood so I used some whiting to distress and lighten it then sanded it down to expose the grain.

A Flash Card, an image from the Photobooth collection, a Nature Adornment, some Remnant Rubs and paper from the Wallflower stash all went together so easily to complete it.

I hope I've inspired you with my projects, I sure had fun making them! If you missed my other CHA 2016 posts and would like to see them, here's a link.

Forever Young

Using the lid from a vintage cigar box this piece, made for Tim's Idea-ology booth at CHA this year, features:

a Curio Knob, Vignette Boxes, Letterpress, Big Chat, Thrift Shop Ephemera, Apothecary and Corked Vials, an Ornate Plate, Hex Fasteners, Alpha Dice, Box Corners and the new Dapper paper.

And it all started with an idea to cut-up a group photo and put people inside bottles.

I used an Occasions Found Relative for this one that featured children dressed-up in their Easter best. You can also see the Dapper cigar box strips that worked perfectly to cover the front edge of the Vignette Box.

I'd also like to point out the apothecary labels that come with the new brown vials--they make the bottles look so authentic.

To place the children inside, I removed the backing from the photo, cut-out the individuals then curled them slightly so they would fit through the neck of the bottle. To anchor them in place I used a bit of Glossy Accents and the end of a long toothpick as an applicator.

The Alpha Dice makes it easy to spell-out a variety of words as there are multiples of the most common letters in each set.

But for me, the single-most important element in this piece was the blue background paper from Dapper. I had experimented with a variety of papers before choosing this one and the moment I placed it in the background the assemblage was instantly transformed. It's really a terrific collection and I can't wait to see how others might use it.

If you're interested, here's a link to all the projects I made for this year's event.