An apple a day

When I first got my set of Spectrum Noirs for my birthday in July I really wasn't quite sure what I was going to do with them--fill in a little detail here and there; maybe enhance a pre-colored image; watch them gather dust.  I don't know if times (or I) have changed but, wow, there are so many fun things to color nowadays.

You'll see a few Stampavie images like this sweet "Time for Apple Pie" girl making an appearance here.  Lurv them!  In this case, right after I got the pens I was trying a technique where you stamp the image in a light ink then color in the image so it looks softer, more like a watercolor really.

Things I learned:

• I had to make more shading decisions (a good thing)
• Building up color gradually to create depth makes a huge difference (I'm quite proud of the dimension of her basket and bonnet)
• Don't be afraid to let the image dry and then come back to add more color
• Large areas of plain colors bore me (thus I added polka dots)

Things I wish I had noted:  how on earth did I get the shoes to look like that?  All of my subsequent shoe attempts (on different images) so suck.

The details:  Stampavie "Time for Apple Pie", Spectrum Noir (using the basic sets, none of the 24-packs), Martha Stewart pink glittery paper, PTI cardstock (white), pink cardstock from my old stash, Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder, dark pink rick rack, pink velvet ribbon, Smooch (dandelions at her feet)

I'm entering this in the Designed to Color Challenge #20 sponsored this week by Crafter's Companion.