"Unique" by Sue Plumb

Hi everyone!

Sue Plumb here with my latest design team project for you. Today I have a 12x12" mixed media scrapbook layout to share using very simple techniques that combine for a great result. The products I used on this page include Colour Shimmer Dusts; Colour Paste; Colour Spray and a Colour Shimmer Brush Marker.

I created this page after seeing this photo of my daughter and her friend pop up in my Facebook memories and realised that I hadn't scrapped it yet. The photo of them was really vibrant and featured quite strong colours, so I wanted to create a colourful and fun page to go with it.

This photo actually presented an interesting visual trick. The striped shirt my daughter's friend was wearing was actually blue and red stripes, but when you view the combination of the two colours so close together it actually gives the impression of purple, so I decided to use purple as a feature on the page.

I began with some white cardstock, a small floral stencil and 'Royalty' Colour Paste. I applied the paste through the stencil with a palette knife, repeating the image 3 times in the central area of my page (I usually use the visual rule of threes when I create a page). Once the paste was down, I dried it off with a heat tool and moved onto the next step.

I chose three shades of Colour Shimmer Dust - Lush; Cobalt; and Lollipop and mixed a small amount of each with water. I then used a wide brush to apply a vertical strip of each colour to the page over the top of the dry paste. 

I started with Lush, drying it off before moving onto Cobalt; then repeating the process to finish with Lollipop.

As these are watercolours that reactivate when wet, I knew the colours would blend when I overlapped them so I deliberately chose colours that would blend together. You can see I chose green-blue together; then blue-pink together; knowing that they would blend well and avoiding making "mud" (brown). 

If you are unsure about colour theory when it comes to mixing colours, I would suggest a test run on some scrap paper first. If you would prefer to have something to refer to regularly, you might like to swatch out your colours and make yourself a colour mixing chart. (You can see an example of a chart Selena Stevens created with Colour Artist Inks here)

But what about actually choosing colours that work well together on a page? The three colours I chose to use are called a triadic colour scheme. In a nutshell, it means using three colours that are evenly spaced around the colour wheel. The results of this type of colour scheme are usually vibrant, no matter what colours you select.

Here you can see how the colours I used fit onto a colour wheel...

Once my paint was dry it was time to add some extra layers. A recent dig through my stash had unearthed some VERY old rub-ons. I was curious to see how these would stand up after so many years, so I tested one on some paper and was shocked to find that it transferred pretty well so I added some to my background.

I then cut down my cardstock to measure 11x11" and added sheet of Cocoa Vanilla Studio patterned paper to the back to provide a border for my page.

With the background under control, it was time to add my photo and some embellishments. Another dig through my stash revealed yet another long forgotten item - a sheet of Sassafras Lass (remember them?) foldies. These flowers were designed to be punched out and folded for dimension, but I simply cut out some of the pieces and adhered them onto my page using foam tape. 

I twisted and bent the edges of the flowers up for a little extra dimension, and also added some messy cotton thread among them for texture.

For my page title I used a Cocoa Vanilla Studio chipboard title sticker, and then added my handwritten journalling using a felt pen.

Once my title and embellishments were all in place, I took my Colour Shimmer Brush Marker (I used the Clear one) to add some subtle shimmery detail to both my title and my flowers.

I love how adding the shimmer instantly gave the flowers extra depth!

To finish off my layout, I took my 'Violet' Colour Spray and dipped a small brush into the bottle to add some little splatters around the page.

That's all from me today. I hope I have inspired you to experiment with a little colour theory, or even dust off some long forgotten supplies and see if you can breathe new life into them by mixing them with your Colour Blast products.
Until next time, happy scrapping! 

"Show Us Ya...Paste" by Sue Plumb

Hi everyone! Sue Plumb here to share my latest design team project with you. For today's post I was inspired to create a page that not only featured Colour Blast products, but a photo of some of the Colour Blast team as well. This snap was taken at a scrapbooking retreat last year, when we were posing for photos and decided to have a bit of fun with our Colour Paste stash.

 I decided to do a bit of stash-busting for this page - using up some old Crate Paper papers and stickers I had in my cupboard. It's amazing how you can give old products a new lease on life by simply adding some mediums to them!

I started my page with a patterned paper background, but livened it up by adding some swipes of Black Heavy Gesso to it. This gave me a clearly defined focal area to work with.

Once the gesso had dried, I added a little extra colour using Sunset Colour Spray and Bling Colour Shimmer Spray by splattering them around my page.

Next, it was time to add some papery layers. I cut a few assorted pieces which I layered together and then secured with staples, then adhered it to my page.

Once I had the paper layers in place; I added my photo on top and then some various stickers around it. I still wanted a hint more colour though, so I took some Rainforest Colour Spray and added some extra splatters before I began adding my title and embellishments.

At this point I decided my layout needed a little more contrast, as well as some subtle texture; so I took my Bling Colour Paste and smeared some around the page using a small palette knife. (And I could hardly have a page featuring a photo of Colour Paste without using it on there could I?)

Let's take a closer look at some of the details.

I used the fun when in doubt, whip it out! phrase stamp from Viva Las VegaStamps! to stamp randomly around the page.

I used foam tape under some of the stickers to give a little extra dimension.

I also added some scattered enamel dots around my page for a little extra colour and visual interest.

I love a good mixed font title, so I used a combination of Jillibean Soup alphabet stickers and some script style foam Thickers.

That's all from me today. Why not have a look through your own stash and see if you can be inspired to use up some old supplies by mixing them with Colour Blast products?

I will be back again in a couple of weeks with another project.

Until then, happy scrapping!

"My Fave Stars" layout by Sue Plumb

Hi everyone!

Sue Plumb here today to share another design team project with you. This one was a true "stash-busting" layout for me, in every way. I was recently inspired by a comment made by Krisy Podolak about scrapping "old" photos. (You know the ones that you print, don't scrap right away and then they get put aside in a growing pile?) Well this collage, featuring a shot of my Scrapbooking Memories cover from a couple of years ago; along with photos of my boys seeing themselves on the cover was one from my pile.

I started this layout by creating my background on a sheet of cardstock. I sprayed Saffron Colour Spray through an old stencil from my stash. (Whilst the stencil was wet, I also created a reverse monoprint by laying another sheet of cardstock over the top to soak up the excess spray; which I will use for a future project.)

The next step in my process was to add some contrasting colour and texture; which I did by applying some Envy Colour Paste through star stencil from Flutterby Designs. I also smeared the excess paste from my palette knife directly onto my page.

To add further contrast and interest, I took some Road Base Colour Spray and Lipstick Colour Shimmer Spray and splattered them both around my page. I then set my page aside to dry thoroughly.

Once it was dry, I then continued my stash-busting efforts and began adding the other elements of my page. I took the opportunity to use up some old papers, ephemera and washi stickers to create some layers. I then pulled out my sewing machine to add some stitching, which provided subtle texture.

Once my photo was in place, I added my title using up some older Thickers from my stash. (I had run out of the letter 'S', so I improvised by cutting up a 6 and an 8 instead.) I jazzed up my alphas by adding some faux stitching with a Sharpie pen.

Finally, I added a few stamped phrases and my handwritten journaling and my page was complete.

Thanks for stopping by today so I could share this with you. I hope I have inspired you to grab an old photo or two, some neglected supplies from your stash, and to breathe new life into them by mixing them with Colour Blast products.

Until next time, happy scrapping!