Mom’s Peony

Today we’re bringing you a brand new challenge for the lovely month of May from Power Poppy!  Our equally lovely hostess Kathy has challenged us to Frame It Up!  You can create a frame on your card, frame a creation or decorate a frame.  

Have you seen Marcy’s new digi?  It’s called Tree Peony, and it’s such a beaut!  Later today she’ll be releasing another new digital image that I think you’ll love too.  

I was really looking forward to printing this image up nice and big to get a lot of colouring in there.  It did not disappoint.  Though....it did take me about 2 hours to colour :) I’m not speedy at colouring.  

Last weekend my husband and I made a quick trip to Vancouver, BC.  He had some meetings there for work and I was able to take off from Thursday to Saturday, so we zipped over there.  I love the west coast!  Vancouver is at least a month ahead of us in growing season, so everything is blooming beautifully.  They have such a different climate from the prairies and can grow very different trees and plants and it was glorious!  We even got a couple of days of sun to soak it all in, and just one day of rain.  

One evening we went to Granville Island to walk around the shops and market.  A little flower stand had some gorgeous blooms, including some really pretty peonies. I thought for sure they must be tree peonies because they were so large and full, but apparently they were simply regular peonies - just Vancouver sized :)  I loved the colour of them because they went from a peachy pink outside to a really light inside (below), so that was the inspiration for the colouring. 

I created a frame by using some dies to cut into the big image.  I often do this with larger images because I love how the inset design pairs with the outer frame, having the coloured image on both parts.  

Gorgeous aren’t they?  

This one was fun to colour and good brain work too.  My natural inclination would be to colour the deeper tones of the flower in the centers or inner petals.  This flower however has the darker colour on the outer parts of the petals, and lighter insides, so its opposite of what I’d normally do.   The challenge was how to still create depth in the deeper petals while still staying true to the color of the blooms.  I used a BV00 marker to create shadow in the areas that would be shadowed and I’m happy with the result.  A few clear sequins add some sparkle and the sentiment from our Sweet Memories set makes it perfect for Mother’s Day.  Both of our mom’s love peonies.  

Here’s the Copics I used.  Below I included a few more pictures from the trip.  I thought you might enjoy some of the things that were in bloom.  

Magnolias galore!  That is one tree we would not be able to grow here, so it’s always so delightful to see them there.  Cherry trees were in bloom too, and they’re so spectacular as they cover the street boulevards.  

Some Rhododendrons were starting to bloom, this one was quite stunning as it covered a whole sidewalk near Granville Island.  

Some pretty tulips in Stanley Park were loving the sunshine.  The colouring on these blooms reminds me a lot of the peonies above too, I love that peach to pink tone.  

So, join us in the Frame it Up Challenge!   The big, big BIG news is that this time, instead of being entered to win a Power Poppy set....you’ll be entered to win a $50 Gift Certificate!  Wowee Shopping fun!  

Here’s my creative Bloom Brigade Sisters playing along today....

Allison Cope
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Julie Koerber
Kathy Jones
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker