sketchPLATE Saturday 0008

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Wow! I blinked! and somehow September slipped away before I could find my feet for the sketchPLATE. I’m scoring it up as an “its 2020, just roll with it” month. Still and all, the extra time gifted an opportunity to step back for a moment to reassess where these sketchPLATES are heading. All in all… quite chuffed with how they are unfolding as a creative project that is uniquely mine.

So, to October’s sketchPLATE Saturday AND the all new sketchPLATE Saturday podcasts.

For the folks who prefer listening to podcasts rather than reading blog posts, the sound byte has been included here especially for you. Please click here or scroll to the bottom of the page to listen in.

This project started life as a scrap lift sketch inspired by one of my layouts from a number years ago that I focused on to create the pencil sketch for this month’s template. I LOVED the long frame portrait photos in my original layout and wanted to rework a few ideas that bloomed when I created the page the first time around.

Overall, this page is carefully crafted to be a florist’s dream come true; the finished page positively bubbles and froths with flowers!

Supporting the full show of flowers, the background in this month’s pencil sketch is a little less “busy” than last month’s as there is less border inking / distressing. Nonetheless, the solid background base combined with the paint smear and brushwork adds a lovely dimension of depth to the page.

Interestingly, as I was scrapping this page, I ended up doing away with most of the brushwork originally included in the pencil sketch.

 

No doilies this month either, although I did borrow the naive style heart pattern from them, incorporating it into the decorative Memories coaster disks; a nodding recognition of part of my sons’ family of origin heritage.

The paint smear and ink splatters on this page were given extra special attention during the creation process, and I gotta say in all honesty, working on the techniques for making them realistic was loads of fun. Loving how they turned out and looking forward to creating the next batch of inked and painted goodies.

Apart from the background paper (from the Just Me Petite Collection), everything on this layout is original and unique. The flowers have all been custom created especially for this project and will become available in the Design Shop in due course.

 

So here it is, the page that is reborn:

Stilt Walking

My sons did circus training for kids for several years when we were homeschooling. They had an amazing time and learned so many fun skills, not to mention thoroughly enjoyed the whole process of being involved in circus performances.
There was also a deeper reason for getting them to do circus; both of my sons had issues with tight tendons in their legs and this was a way of incorporating a robust dimension of stretching and bodywork (their teacher was actually a fully qualified OT) to their physical education routine.
The photographs as the main focus of the page, of course, necessitated the use of long yet narrow portrait frames.
Once the photographs were positioned, the page was then lavishly loaded with flowers on and around them as a tribute to the setting where their circus classes were held. Their circus classes were held in a facility surrounded by beautifully landscaped gardens, filled with water features, flowers and fruit trees, thus the layout mirrors that memory.
DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME KIDS.
Logan and Taran were supervised the whole time by a trained spotter; those were professional circus stilts that my sons were strapped into. A fall could have resulted in a serious injury.

 

As an aside: if you are at all interested in circus toys and activities for the children in your life, here are a few simple, safe suggestions for you to explore on Amazon. My sons used the Firetoys brand when they were homeschooling and I can absolutely vouch for their long lasting quality.

Christmas Gift Ideas: Firetoys & Circus Training
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. #ad

Not quite what you are looking for?
See more Firetoys & Circus Training gear on Amazon. #ad

 

The compositional character of this page invokes a cascading visual triangle. The waterfall flow of flowers carries the eye from the strong, trellis-like horizontal brushes along the right hand side of the page, beginning the floral flood in the top corner, then down and across the photographs, finally arriving in the bottom left hand corner before the eye pops back to focus on the photographs.

The two Memories coaster disks add grounding to the page, hinting at the idea of water wheels and the concept of the wheels of life turning. The page makes a strong, albeit feminine statement, supported by the addition of white leaf sprays as a light hearted notion, harmonising and bringing all the embellishments together.

Lastly, the photographs are solidly backed with a simple sheet of notepaper, representing family history documented, thereby concluding this month’s sketchPLATE offering.

 

Rolling out sketchPLATE 0008:

 

As shown in the preview, this sketchPLATE comes with the press tape style word label, the notepaper piece as well as the Memories coaster disks. Also included are custom warped shadows behind the photographs.

The layered .TIF and .PSD template files have basic drop shadows, ready for you to customise, applied to all the flower and leaf layers. Overall the template also includes the ink splats, paint smear and trellis-style brush worked lines.

From the get-go, this page was intended as a delightful expression of family memory keeping; the infusion of the soft, deep and warm colour choices of the layout add a sense of pride and satisfaction as viewed from a mother’s perspective.

Arguably, in today’s world, pink flowers are often not considered very masculine.

However, I am standing by the fact that, during the Victorian era, pink was for boys, recognition of yet another part of my sons’ family of origin heritage … I’m a little old fashioned that way.

 

 

Ok, enough of the back story … FREEbie downloads for this sketchPLATE are now available through the Design Shop. To grab your free copy please use the coupon code GIMMEsP008 during checkout (there’s a screen display glitch, you won’t be charged the GST if you’re not in Australia, keep clicking all the way through), valid until Saturday 24 October 2020.

So, what are you waiting for? Go on. Go get it now!

Aaaaand that‘s all for today. Please credit your post on Facebook or Instgram with the tag @anitarichardsdesigns so that we can see how your layout turned out.

Lastly, and certainly not leastly, thank you! Thank you for participating in today’s sketchPLATE Saturday, part of our ongoing Digital Scrapbooking Projects & Inspiration series. The complete index for previous sketchPLATE Saturday Projects can be found on the sketchPLATE Saturdays home page.

Enjoy!