My Boys ... Always

Hey Everyone! It's a big week over at CSI - firstly, our 100th Case File was opened for investigation on Friday, then today is the Big Reveal of our third Special Case File for Scrap365.

CSI and Scrap365 are two of my favourite sources of inspiration, so to see a collaboration between the two is brilliant.
Here is Case File S365-3 (click on the image to enlarge it so you can read the clues)

CSI mastermind Debbi Tehrani has taken inspiration from this sweet image and used it to create a delicious confection of a Case File for us to investigate.

All you need to do to solve the case is to follow these clues -

• Use all five colours in the Scheme (plus neutrals and up to 10% accent colour if you like)
• Use at least two items/techniques from the Evidence list
• Use at least one journaling prompt from the Testimony list

As you will know if you're a regular visitor to this blog, I don't really "do" pastel palettes very well - although I love what other people do with them, it just never works out very well for me. So, I thought I would grunge it up a bit, lean towards the grey end of the palette and scrap this picture of my handsome boys, Richard and Tom.
13Arts are sponsoring CSI this month, so it seemed like a good time to use some 13Arts papers I'd been saving for special (as you do) - Frosted Life and All is Love.

(Click on the image to enlarge it if you like)

So, have I followed all the clues?

• The Scheme: all five colours are there
• The Evidence: ribbons; vertical strips; texture paste; silver accents; doodling.
• The Testimony: I've added a ribbon to my journaling spot - index card tucked behind the photo.

"My two handsome boys - this picture was taken over twenty years ago and since then you have grown into two men I can be very proud of. You have busy and successful lives and you don't need me any more, but to me you are still my boys and I will always be here for you. Mum xxx"

I had a great time with texture paste, gesso, heat embossing, stamps, coloured pencils and inks - the 13Arts papers are a lovely heavyweight quality and will take any amount of this kind of abuse!

Here are some close-ups for you to scrutinise ...

 Embossing paste from my FrogDog kit was applied through a chicken wire stencil, then I applied silver embossing powder and blasted it with a heat gun. I built up layers of paper strips, doiley scraps and cut-aparts, distressing and inking all the edges. The title alphas got a bit lost, so I doodled around them with a black pen.

The frame was stamped over and gesso was applied to tone down the pink a bit and the key was made with a Tim Holtz die. NB the red paper clip is NOT meant to be there - it must have fallen on to the page before I photographed it and I didn't even notice!

Here, the texture paste was applied through a brickwork stencil and coloured with Distress Inks. You can also see more of the layers behind the photo - some Magic Mesh, Grunge Board, Washi tape, rescued index cards, and a snippet of chicken wire which I die-cut from silver card.

I just kept playing with the background, building up layers until I was happy/got bored! Here I started with a 13Arts paper which has a chicken wire background, added gesso to tone it down a bit, then the dots and bricks and finally the heat embossed chicken wire. Can you tell that I'm a bit keen on the look of chicken wire?!

Well that's it, I think I've waffled on for quite long enough! Check out the gallery over at CSI and of course Scrap35 magazine, to see what everyone else has done with this Case File - and why not have a go yourself?

Thanks for popping in - see you again soon :o)xxx