Ladies Who Lunch

Hello Friends,

May has been a very busy month - most of which has been behind the scenes work.  Some of you may have "seen" that I was at also Tim's in May for a production meeting that collided with a Saturday Live about the Tonic Media Mat.  I say,"seen" because I actually stepped in front of the camera a couple times to to "Hi and Bye" to the audience.  It was a fun experience to see what happens behind the scenes when Tim is on Live.  He has a true gift for thinking on his feet and being able to intelligently speak at the same time.  That is not something I was blessed with.

Any-who! this post is on the 9 x 9" Display Panel I created for the Embark release.  This is just so simple that you can see exactly how it is done without me telling you, but I will attempt to at least tell you about the basic things I used to create it.

Gather these products or something similar:

idea-ology Display Panel

Backdrops 4 (the neutral pack)

*wood squares (1-1/2" tall x 1-1/2" wide x 3/16" thick)

Embark Fabric

Collage Medium

*Purchased at craftparts.com (pack of 25 is $4.50)

1.  I covered the front of the Display Panel with a couple sheets of Backdrop paper.  I picked two neutral pieces so the fabric squares would stand out.  I left the sides just plain wood but you could paint or cover with paper.

2. I cut random pieces of 4 different Embark Fabric for the squares.  I cut the fabric larger than the wood piece, then once glued, I trimmed away the excess fabric.  

3. Once the squares were ready, I tried different patterns on the panel before deciding on this simple one. 

Once I made the final decision, I used my Design Ruler to give me a straight line to work from.  I added Collage Medium to the back of the 4 squares on the right, lining them up with the Ruler.  NOTE: when the Collage Medium is put on in a small blob, rather than brushed on, it takes longer to dry.  Giving you time to move the squares into the correct position.

Once the right side was in place, I moved the ruler to the top and added the additional 2 squares to make the top row.  The last six squares were then added to complete the pattern.

While the Collage Medium dried, I colored some Paper Dolls ladies (from the Groups pack) with Distress Crayons.  If you are wondering about the stripes I created on her coat, it was done by removing the Crayon...meaning, color the coat with the crayon of choice, then use a damp Detailer Water Brush to remove the color, thereby creating the stripes.

I added the Paper Dolls to the panel with foam squares, so I could slip the ephemera behind the ladies.  NOTE: the mint green ephemera that the lady is resting her arm on was too short, so I cut it in half and added each piece to the sides (you never see the gap in the center). 

I added the Bouquet Flowers along with leaves from the Layers Organic pack and some vintage lace. Once the flowers were in place, I used a very tiny paintbrush to color the center with Fossilized Amber Distress Paint.  Once the paint was dry, I cut a piece of sturdy wire and used the end to add the dot of black paint in the center.

The Thought Token was nailed right into the square with an idea-ology Tack Nail.

And that is it!  So simple to make and fun to add the texture of the Embark fabrics.  Simon Says Stamp sells an Embark pack of 10 x 10" squares, so if you don't already have yardage, you might think of purchasing it in small pieces.

now carry on,

paula