Sunset Sky

This was one of the first pages I began with Scraptastic's The Story Begins kit, and I started it without really knowing where I was going. I had pulled the picture, I had created the banner, and I had cut a strip of that awesome cloud paper, but I was without ideas of how to tie it all together. I tried a white background. I tried a blue background. I tried layering some of the other patterned papers. Nothing seemed to work, so I put it aside while I completed three more pages with the kit.

Meanwhile, I happened upon a little e-magazine, and there it was...just the idea I needed to give my "cloud" page a nudge! Robin Fung's "Creating A Cloudy Background" article in Crafting Ireland's Issue 11 sure looked cool, but could it be adapted for my sunset photos? I decided to try it on a piece of cardstock from the kit, using Studio Calico's Mr. Huey white mist in place of ink. I didn't have white ink and was anxious to try this out, so I forged ahead. In hindsight, I probably should have practiced a bit on a scrap sheet of paper, but after adding a tad of pink smudged ink for shading, it really began to resemble my clouds...if in an abstract sort of way!

The shading idea was carried over to my title letters, cut from white cardstock, and the printed strips which held my quote. Using a little distress ink with my Tim Holtz blending tool, I was able to do that "ombre" thing that is becoming so popular right now. Have you seen all the celebrities dying their hair to get this look? Well...I digress. I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to try this with my hair, but I do like the look it gives to my lettering on this page. I am so happy that this page has finally come together.

What do you think? Was this technique successful? Can you see the clouds on my background?