She Leaves a Little Sparkle

Sophia loved the Mardi Gras mask that I bought for her while on vacation - all girly pink with feathers and a gem in the center. My DIL took a few pictures of her modeling it before putting it on a high shelf in her room, hopefully beyond the reach of her brothers.

This layout is based on the October sketch by Beggahuna that was included in the Rose Garden Kit from Swirlydoos, featuring Prima's gorgeous Rossibelle collection. I've taken advantage of the varied pinks in my papers, using the B side of Wildflower as the background and the B side of Notes and Scribbles for the circle layers.

I decided that it was time to dig into my collection of chippies and found several packages from Creative Embellishments that were perfect: Girl Word Set, Flourish 15 and Feathers. I selected "Lovely" from the word set and one of the flourishes (from a package of 2) and inked them heavily with Ranger's Distress Ink in Black Soot, then applied some Wink of Stella to make them sparkle. I wanted to give my feathers some dimension, so I gave them a good soaking with my mister and then pried the edges apart. I doused them with Prima's Color Bloom in Peony, but the effect was more gold than pink, so I gave them a coat of Finn's Metallique acrylic paint in Vintage Rose, being sure to hit the layers with a bit and the results were perfect.

Next, I selected some of the Studio Calico wood hearts from the kit and colored them with Picked Raspberry Distress Ink and more of the Wink of Stella.

The flourish was large enough to cut in half and use on both sides. I've used flowers from the Main Kit and the Flower Add-On as well as one from my stash around the photos and a few pieces from the Ephemera package as further embellishments. . As a matter of fact, the title of my page comes from the top sentiment - "She leaves a little sparkle wherever she goes".

Calle D Chartres

New Orleans' French Quarter is a photographer's dream - no matter that last June, I was simply a tourist with an I Phone. My fellow Swirly Campers and I spent our morning there walking to the Cafe Du Monde for a breakfast of beignets and taking advantage of the wonderful architecture and shop displays.

I love this image of a street sign that recalls the city's history; even more, I love the wall that it sits on with the worn stucco showing the brick underneath.

The Rose Garden kit from Swirlydoos, full of Prima's Rossibelle papers and embellishments, is perfect for several of my New Orleans photos.

I've chosen the B side of the Lucky Charm sheet for my base; the pattern goes so well with my image. I've done some stamping around the photo and on the edge using a couple of old Prima clear acrylic stamps.

The B side of the Notes & Scribbles sheet is full of images that I cut apart and assembled as matting. Once they were put in place, I tucked bits from the Ephemera package here and there to fill in the gaps.

I have to confess to stocking up on Rossibelle flowers on my own and the ones that I used here are all from my stash.

Those pretty vines were cut from plain white cardstock, using the Leafy Vines die by Cottage Cutz, and colored with Distress Ink in Hickory Smoke. I used the same ink to cut the wood hearts (Studio Calico, also from the Swirly kit) that are tucked around the flowers.

One more item from my Rose Garden package - the Prima Druzy Stones that I applied before using a fan brush to splatter on some watered-down black gesso.

Thanks so much for stopping by; I really appreciate your visits.

Happiness Is... These Faces

Cheryl is hosting the SGC Challenge for October and she's given us a wonderful theme: Happiness Is...

I was trying to decide which photos of my grandchildren to use when my daughter-in-law posted these images on Facebook with a one word comment - "Happiness" - and I had my "aha" moment.

                                                    

I had been hold off using the 12 x 12 plywood sheet that came with the September kit, not sure what to do with it and wondering if moisture from various mediums would warp it. Swirly Designers Jan Penny and Kim Heard answered my question, telling me that acrylic paint and Distress Stain worked fine.

I started experimenting on the back of the sheet and had a bit of a happy accident. First, I spread on some Distress Walnut Stain and the results surprised me. I've had this bottle for a couple of years and so maybe it's the age, but it dried brown with an olive greenish tinge.  Next, I applied some Folk Art Chalk Acrylic in White Adirondack that I've probably owed for just as long. Some of the paint landed on the stain and as it dried, it picked up the green, giving it an almost mint hue and I knew exactly what I wanted to do.

As I went over the dried stain, I was careful to spread my paint in one direction, using heavier and lighter strokes here and there to give my background some texture.

Before putting the paint away, I lightly dabbed some with a paper towel on bit of corrugated packaging that I roughly tore down the sides; this is what I used for the matting.

The title was cut with my Cameo from KaiserCard Coffee Bean cardstock, using the Cotton Candy font.

The Mark Richards cluster bling and the Darice Peach Sequin Trim are from the kit; the flowers and twine are from my stash.

Bellissima

This is my entry for this month's All That Flutters Challenge at Swirlydoos.

I do believe the title says it all - "Bellissima" perfectly describes my granddaughter. Her mom caught her on the way to the car with a bottle of water in her hand and a pair of sunglasses perched atop her head.

                                                    

The latest kit from Swirlydoos - Creamsicle, featuring Bo Bunny's Bella Rosa collection - is full of end-of-summer colors and fun elements - perfect for scrapping the photos taken during the past few months.

I decided to use the Anna Griffin die cut included in the kit to tone down the busyness of my base paper; as pretty as it is, I needed something a bit more solid behind my photo.

I colored my chipboard piece (Wavy Cut Filmstrip by Creative Embellishments) with Ranger's Vintaj Patina in Coral.

While that was drying, I selected several dies and cut out some embellishments using scraps from my previous layouts. The photo "frame" and the piece  under the title were made with Spellbinder's Card Creator A2 Valiant Honor die. Several Memory Box dies were used to create the butterflies (Butterfly Swarm) and the vines (Grape Vine).

The Prima Vintage Emporium flowers are from my Swirly kit; the other blooms are from my stash.

Also from the kit are the butterfly centers, cut from the Darice Bling on a Roll and the faux gems on the edges of the die cut.

A bit more bling can be found around the edges of my die cut - faux rhinestones made with Tonic Studios' Nuvo Crystal Drops in Aquatic Mist.

In the Park

The title for this layout comes from Mr. V., who assured me that this photo of my growing up grandchildren was taken "at the park". (Thanks and kudos to my wonderful daughter-in-law whose photography skills keep me well supplied with these wonderful images.)

                                                   

The latest kit from Swirlydoos - Creamsicle, featuring Bo Bunny's Bella Rosa collection - is full of end-of-summer colors and fun elements - perfect for scrapping the photos taken during the past few months.

I love the reverse side of the Damask paper, with the grey/brown wood grain and the pretty design of doily hearts and flowers on the side.

I formed the base of the center with a couple of doilies from M's, then I started placing all sorts of banners in varied sizes, colors and patterns where my photo would go. Next, I cut a few pieces of the Darice Sequin Ribbon (did I mention that this kit was full of fun elements?) and placed on the plainer pieces. Two of the Doodlebug mini doilies were used to fill the gaps on the top right and bottom left. Once they were adhered, I applied a small amount of Glossy Accents and poured on the Darice seed beads.

The Prima Vintage Emporium flower is from the kit; the others are from my stash. If you look closely, you'll see three mother-of-pearl "petals" in my cluster; they are part of my Buddha and Beads haul that I mentioned in my last post.