Up to the Challenge

I have been so inspired by The Color Room challenges lately.  I missed a couple of weeks because of vacation, but came back this week and found a challenge made just for me!  This week the challenge is to use  light and dark pink, light and dark brown in a layout. I love pink and brown together (think Neapolitan ice cream!).


I sorted through my stash of papers and embellishments, flowers and inks, put my creative cap on and went to work.


I decided to use a picture of my daughter, when she had her First Communion about 10 years ago.  I love this picture of her, she looks like such an angel in it.  Next I searched my Cricut cartridges for a frame design and found on on my Sentimental cartridge.  I cut the frame out of a pale pink designed paper and the shadow out of a darker pick paper.  I cropped the photo a bit and used the dark pink paper to create a narrow mat for the photo.  I used a Creative Memories corner punch with a simple "nipple" design to crop the corners.


Next I had a white chipboard frame a bit bigger that the frame.  First I misted it with Glimmer Mist "Sand", but it was the wrong tone.  So I then misted with "Vanilla Breeze", but that still wasn't right.  I looked through my tings and found some Shimmerz Pearls in "Ballet Slipper" pink that a friend gave me.  It is a very thick paint and I thought that by itself, it would be too baby pink.  So, I took a little bit and put it in a small container and watered it down, making a pink wash.  I washed it over the "sand" and "vanilla breeze" and it came out perfect!  Next I used some of the chestnut ink to antique the edges of the chipboard frame.


I placed the Cricut frame slightly to the right of center and set the chipboard frame around it.  Then, the fun began!  In my stash I had a K&Co packet that had a piece of vellum with a brown floral garland on it.  I cut 1/4 of it off and place the 3/4 piece under the photo frame and over the chipboard frame to the left, an place the 1/4 piece likewise to the right.


As a base to the floral arrangement I was planning to add, I chose some Maya Road chipboard flourishes I had laying around.   covered them in some dark brown scraps and affixed them to the lower right corner of the now pink chipboard frame.


I had a stem of tiny dark pink silk roses (from the floral department), so I popped off the buds and clipped off the plastic shaft that held them to the stem.  I placed them here and there, sporadically, tapering off to a single bud at each end of the arrangement.  Next I clipped some of the leaves from the rose stem and placed those.  I also had a stem of small pink "cherry blossom" flowers.  I used those to accent the dark pink, centering them with pale pink brads.  It was looking pretty, but not quite complete.


Next I dug out some pink pearl swirls from Basic Grey and embellished here and there until it pleased my eye.  It was still missing something, so I took some antique-looking lace I had and cut bits off and tucked them behind the flowers.


I was going for an antique, opulent look and still hadn't quite achieved it.  I searched my stash again and found some brown hat pins, so I added those.  I decided the layout needed more darker brown, so I selected a small flourish stamp and used it sparingly, but it added to the over all desired affect.  I added pink rhinestones to the base of each flourish too.  To carry on the pink rhinestones, I added them around the chipboard frame too.  I also found a pink/brown chipboard set in my supplies that was mostly used, but had some small paisley pieces, so I used them to further accent the stamped flourishes.


I sat back and looked, but it still needed something else.  Nothing in my stash seemed quite right and then it dawned on me.  Since this is a First Communion layout, a cross would set it off - but a small one so it didn't overpower the layout.  I didn't have anything like that so off to Hobby Lobby I went.  I found a small antique style, bronze cross in the jewelry aisle.  I picked up some pink organdy ribbon while I was there too.  I tied a piece of the ribbon through the part of the cross that was destined to loop it to a necklace.  I placed the cross to the right of the photo, snuggling it in between roses.


I added snips of the pink organdy ribbon amidst the flowers to finish it off, and was quite pleased with the result.  :-)


However, the left side of the layout needed balancing.  I used a dark pink dragonfly from K&Co over the brown vellum flowers, and used some of the pink pearl flourishes to create a trail.


The layout also needed a title...one that fit in the space I had!  That meant it had to be short words!  "Bless Me" seemed appropriate. I used Thicker letters in the "Mirror Mirror" font that I just so happened to have in a Rose color.  Love it when things just work out!


All in all I am very pleased with the result of this challenge!

The final result: Bless Me

Detail of the floral arrangement and cross

Detail, including the title

I encourage anyone who needs a little challenge to inspire their creativity to checkout The Color Room!  I have included their Blinkie to the left to help you navigate your way there.  In the meantime...go crop yourself!