Monochromatic at Frilly and Funkie

Hello and welcome! Today it's the turn of the Funkie side of the DT at Frilly and Funkie to present their projects for the latest challenge 'Monochromatic'. Here's what our host Cec has to say; "This one is called Monochromatic and I want to see a shabby chic and vintage project that uses basically one colour and its various hues and tones - a little white or cream can be added but unless that is the main colour, it needs to be just an accent. The winner will earn the chance of a Guest DT spot at Frilly and Funkie, and everyone who enters and follows the rules will be entered into the draw to have the chance to win a $25 spending spree at The Funkie Junkie Boutique.

So, there were a number of fabulous projects from the Frilly side of the team featuring shades of blue and, despite the urge to use some of the fabulous teal hues I love to reach for, this time it's shades of brown taking the spotlight (and yes, I've been journalling, again!)...

(click on the image for a closer look)

This two-page spread is basically an exercise in layering. It started with white gesso and some Tissue Wrap to cover the diary pages underneath. Next came offcut strips from die cut Vintage Lace (you know, the bits that are left over when you've popped out the actual designs), some Tissue Tape and Artful Arrows die cuts. Much of this got covered up but if it wasn't there you'd notice the lack of depth and dimension in the end results.

Next it was time to start adding those brown shades. A base layer of Cafe Au Lait Flat Fabio warmed everything up. Then came stencilling - I added Antiqued Bronze Distress Paint and Perfect Bronze Pigment Powder to Translucent Paste to create a rich, glossy medium to spread through the Layering Stencil. With all these grooves and bumps in place I dripped various mists and stains from each edge in turn, drying one before moving on to the next so the colours remained pronounced. I love that from head on the page looks brown/bronze, but when tilted to an angle you get to see other colours and tones coming through (mainly from the Lindy's products).

At this point it still felt too flat but one thing I learned from Marjie Kemper's online class was to keep layering with more detail/media for a more interesting look. Time to get bold - I stamped the World map from Tim's 'Documented' set in Snow Cap pigment ink over both sides - hey presto, detail and contrast! The arrows needed a boost, hence the Remnant Rubs, Small Talk words (edged with a Frayed Burlap Distress Marker) and dots of Rose Gold Liquid Pearls. To finish I had fun with the Vintage Globe die cut; Byzantine Bronze and Cafe Au Lait Embossing Powders on the frame, Chateau Rose Embossing Powder on the land masses and Golden Doubloons Mist on the oceans. To pull all of that together and retain the brown theme I blended Sepia Archival Ink over each part before reassembling it. And don't you just love the little bronze bird charm? It was easy to snip off the loop at the top so she could fly free across the World on her own adventure.

Sticking to one colour family seemed like a challenge initially but actually it provided the opportunity to focus on the texture, design and dimension. See how my Funkie team mates handled the challenge by heading over to the Frilly and Funkie challenge blog - I know I say it a lot but you REALLY are in for a treat! And of course we'd love to see your Monochromatic vintage or shabby chic creations.

Whatever you're up to for the rest of the week, take care of yourselves. Jenny xxx