As the years flutter by...

The Vivalasvegastamps! november challenger inspiration board colours struck me to the heart and core. I wouldn't wear lime green, but for art it is great! I had myself wondering about what to do with the numbers. I didn't want to add numbers just for the sake of having numbers: I wanted the numbers to have a cause... and then I realized that I should face the fact that my birthday is in november, and once again I'm a year older! I am entering this art journal page for the VLVS! November challenge,  the Allsorts: no designer papers challenge and the Simonsays wednesday challenge (anything goes).

I bought this art journal last summer, and haven't really used it for anything else but trying out some inks. I have especially been scared to start the first pages... the "what ifs" of having to look at pages that don't look the way you would like them to! I have seldom been as nervous as when I scraped the first batch of light green on the page with an expired credit card... only to realize it was easier that I thought! The fun thing about papercraft is, that few things are irreversable (you can always add darker colours or gesso to hide the spots that don't yet look the way you wish!) I have used a set of cheap acrylics (only primary colours, had to mix them myself), cosmic shimmer- and dylusions -spray inks, stencils from Crafty Individuals, Crafty Impressions and TCW and of course VLVS! stamps... once again the butterfly specimen, and I'm not getting bored with it yet! Also some plant leaves (I think its the egyptian plant), dandelion seeds and a small sentiment on age... Everything is so shiny its hard to take pictures of these!

I stamped the butterflies first with a mixture of Distress inks and heat embossed with clear embossing powder. The resist effect gives the chance to add complementing colours with and ink blender. I think they look really cool. I ended up dabbing versamark over the coloured butterflies and adding a second layer of clear embossing powder. The embossing makes the wings turn up, so a 3D-effect is created without my having to bend the wings. They flatten so they fit inside the book, and pop up every time the page is opened! This was a nice surprise, that I hadn't expected.

After getting all the stuff out and overcoming my fears,I made the background over the whole first and second openings of my art journal. The page next to this birthday page is waiting for the caterpillar sentiment on the new VLVS! plates: "Your time as a caterpillar has expired. Your wings are ready" and embellishing/journaling that I might do once I get it. And yes, there are 40 butterflies, I triple-checked to be sure :)

The second opening has a lovely text that I ran into during November, as I was planning the first page. I first read only the beginning of the sentence, and was amused to realize how different the meanings are, if those last words are added. I think this will fit so well after that caterpillar-sentiment!

The girl in princess costume has been stamped on tissue paper, to get her to look to the right, and embellished with wings cut from the butterfly specimen. I love the way she is looking kind of shy...
This is going to be one hell of a midlife-crises art journal!