WT181 Sharpen Up Card Challenge

Today's challenge was to use my Colored Pencils anyway I wanted in the design of my card. I began with a brand new image from Eastern Influences, a new set from the new Fall and Winter 2008 Idea Book & Catalog. I had splurged last spring on a set of 120 Prisma Colored Pencils, and not having done much more than look at them and sharpen a few, today was definately the day to use them! I began by stamping the rose in Stazon Brown on Vanilla Card Stock and then colored in the image with just the yellow on the rose on the darkened areas, and 2 shades of greens on the leaves. Then I pulled out some stumps (think chipboard in the shape of pencils) which I dampened in ordorless Mineral Spirits to use to blend the colors together. The yellow seemed to all go to one color...maybe I didn't use enough contrast, or blended too long, but looked okay. The 2 greens blended nicely, and I was just getting into it, and it was done. I used a tan and a grey pencil to do the twig portion of the rose, and blended that too. (I just realized that you can see a close up if you click on the card picture!) The flower finished, I then tried to shade around behind it, and outlined the flower with a lavendar color (no idea why I chose it) and a blushy-colored thick sketching kind of thing past the lavendar. I blended them witht he Mineral Spirits too. Not sure if there was existing color left on the stumps before I blended the shading, but it passes for my first attempt. I chose Old Olive for the card base, to pick up from the leaves. Not being able to decide on a pattern paper or a background stamp, I used a Scor-Pal tool to make a dry-embossed lattice pattern over the entire card front. I used Choclate Chip card stock for the oval backs and some brown organdy ribbon, with the knot on the inside for an added touch of detail. The rose was cut out with a Scallop Oval Giga Punch with a Coluzzle Oval behind, and a large SU Oval for the phrase (from the new SU ''Best Yet" set). I backed the oval phrase with a scrap of brown that I cut around the oval with scalloped ProvoCraft scissors, to them in together. And there you have it!