Scrap Around the World May Challenge Epic Event 2015

The Scrap Around the World Challenge site is having an epic event this month! There are lots of wonderful prizes to be won! Also, it is a special celebratory month, as it is another birthday for Scrap Around the World. Previous winners who were featured on the Wall of Fame are being asked to participate to determine the top ten winners of the year. The year runs from May 2014 to April 2015. Also, anyone can enter who has not been featured on the Wall of Fame. There will be 20 featured layouts, and I'm sure it will be an amazing show!

Since I was featured on The Wall of Fame for January 2015, I decided to participate in this month's challenge as a VIP. That is the designation previous winners are being given, VIP. Pretty humbling, as there are so many vastly talented and gifted previous winners. But, I thought, well, why not, might as well give it a try!

Here is this month's challenge and the celebratory Moodboard, composed by the site owner, Helen Tillbury:

As you can see, this board has something to offer everyone!

Because I felt inspired by the celebratory nature of the moodboard, I decided to create something lighthearted and playful! But I was also very much inspired by the basket of roses in the lower right corner, and took my cue from that. I also took inspiration from the softness of the ice cream, and from the crystals around the outer edge of the glass - both images in the upper left. 

Here is what I came up with:

I have titled this layout "A Bed of Roses".

I wanted to create something light, so I stuck with a lighter color palette, but worked in some brown tones along with the pinks and pale orange. Working with some antique silk velvet, I twisted and turned the fabric, trying to emulate the folds and softness of a beautiful rose. I was seeking to emulate the many layers of the rose, so I first of all tore and layered a lot of paper strips, again seeking to emulate the many layered rose. Over this base I put down my velvet fabric pieces. And then I placed a cut out photo of my Mother and her little sister taken in 1929. They look as if they were just having a happy time, carefree, loving life, celebrating the everyday. Behind them I placed a lot of fussy cut images of roses, and then placed bits of lace and crochet, and floral roses. Then I went in with a stencil and molding paste, which was inspired by the little round bumps on the shoes in the moodboard. There is also some stamping and some spritzing of mists, very delicate. And as the final touch, I scattered little glass beads in the upper right and lower left corners of the layout, as inspired by the coating of crystals around the glass on the moodboard, and added some twine.

Here is a close up of the velvet work:

Thanks for looking at my layout, I hope you like it!

Scrap Around The World January 2015

I am playing along this month at Scrap Around The World. The mood board is just so romantically shabby and beautiful!! So I had to give it a try!!

This is the wonderful moodboard, and here is the link to this month's challenge.

I was inspired by the general shabby mood of the board, the bucket of flowers in the upper right photo, the collection of frames and the time elements.

Here is my entry:

The title of my layout is "Holding On to Memories of You"

Six years ago I had to let go of my dear Mother. That is her photograph in the tiny frame on the right. And although I miss her every day, and our times together, I have my memories to hold on to. And I have saved precious items that were a part of her. In the large photo you see roses and peonies that Mom patiently dried in her spacious attic. I like to display them at certain times of the year on various tables throughout my home. They remind me of our happy times together in the garden, and the effort Mom made to save her flowers.

I used various framing elements - some I whitewashed with gesso, other I left alone in their metallic gold state, as they already had a nice, aged patina. I applied molding paste through various stencils. Then I made a "shabby" frame for my larger photo with layers of distressed papers. I applied my frames over a distressed and gessoed piece of corrugated cardboard, applied spray inks and from there built up the elements, using cheesecloth, torn papers, bits of fabric, flowers and fussy cut elements. Lastly I added beads and paint splatters. Then I applied paint to the floral elements and added the little key. Also I used twine to tie the arrangement together.

Some close ups:

For whatever reasons, I had a very difficult time pulling this layout together. I suppose my brain just stopped functioning after the intense holiday work load, and perhaps I needed to let it rest a bit, LOL! Although it was not funny trying to get this page into some kind of order. Anyway, I hope you like my layout, and let's hope my brain cells are more cooperative next time around! Best wishes to all for a great new year!