Here we are in week two of the Summer of Color challenge and this week’s palette equation was to add up one pink of our choice, another pink of our choice, and an orange and see what we’d come up with.
I’ve chosen to make small little weekly journals, using materials on hand and at least one piece of handmade paper. I’m delighted with this week’s result:
The eye-popping palette is an instant cheer-me-up in a week that’s been filled with little sun and record-breaking rain fall. I was happy to uncover a little paper flower that is a perfect fit color-wise, and since last week I also used a flower cabochon, perhaps these SOC journals will turn out to be a garden series. The darker pink is the handmade paper. But what I love most about this journal is the deliberate use of wrinkled/folded papers.
I had a fascinating conversation with a friend this week about aging and wrinkles and wondering why don’t both our eyes and our societies adjust to seeing beauty in aging. This is such an interesting and important topic to me and something that I’ve really been thinking lots about. All year I’ve carried with me as a guiding star the poem by Jena Schwartz (formerly Strong) entitled Unfolded. You can read my blog post about it, along with the poem, here.
Additionally, earlier this year it was my great joy to support the Kickstarter project to help fund, I Am What’s Underneath, a feature-length documentary “that strips us down to open us up, empowering people worldwide to accept and express their true selves.” This led me to the website of the film’s creators, a mother and daughter team at Style Like U. There’s a lot of fabulousity being celebrated there so check it out.
In one of those delightful synchronicites I received my reward today in the mail for backing the Kickstarter project.
All of those things were the reasons I chose to use beautiful wrinkled and folded paper in my journal this week.
Pink is one of my favorite colors and I’m delighted to report my newly planted rose tree just popped its first pink bloom. If it weren’t raining so hard I’d run out and take a photo. It’ll have to wait for another time. But in the meantime I’ll share a photo of orange-y flowers. These are paper poppies and it was an accidental photo, clearly taken while I was moving the camera. Frankly I love “flow” photos.
What about you? What colors are showing up for you this week? Feeling in the flow? Ready to celebrate your own unique style? Willing to love yourself no matter what age? Do tell, you know I love to hear.
Well your work certainly cheered me up. Love your style. Yes I love that flow in the second photo. Great job!
Nothing like some bright summer colors to bring on the cheer is there? Thanks for stopping by and wishing you a another fabulous SOC week.
Beautiful paper flowers! Great colors.
Thanks for stopping by Lori and happy SOC.
I love it! And your idea with the flowers sounds fantastic!
Thanks! Wishing you a wonderful color-filled week.
Beautiful colors and you are so right…..a great pick-me-up on yet another gloomy day. As to the aging process, funny how it is so easy to see the beauty in my mother’s face and yet so difficult to see it in mine. I’m determined though…to learn to love this new…aging me. After all, I’m still in there, as young and full of life as I choose to be…it is just the outside packaging that showing signs of wear and tear!
I’m utterly fascinated by this topic. There seem to be some many layers, and I keep wondering if there’s a secret to why we often feel we don’t change internally, although clearly we’ve made huge shifts; and yet the shifts that happen outside are seen so clearly.
I love the colors you chose! They made me feel cheerful as soon as I saw them. What a fun project! I look forward to seeing more of what you do!
Nothing like an invitation to play with color to delight me. Summer is such a color-dense time of fabulousity isn’t it?
isn’t this such a great palette? Beautiful journal and photo!
Thanks Linda. I agree it’s a wonderful palette and this is such a fun way to play with color. Wishing you a colorful week.
Stunning work! I adore flowers, you got it!
Thanks Peggy. Here’s to boundless colorful flowers filling our hearts.
Wonderful colours! Valerie
I’m certainly loving the palette parameters of this SOC challenge. Thanks for visiting Valerie.
Lovely bold colours. x
Thanks for stopping by and saying hi Sue.
It is so beautiful when you have the colours this way, and a weekly journal – what a great idea. Thank you ever so much for sharing, Deborah 😀
Kind regards
Mariane
Thanks Mariane, and I appreciate you stopping by. Have a wonderful creatively colorful week.
I love your gorgeous journal and how you used these happy summer colors! also, I read the “unfolded” poem you shared and I absolutely LOVE it! I am in my 50’s and totally feel every wrinkle! LOL!!! This poem and your blog post really spoke to me! I also checked out “Style Like U” and want to thank you for sharing it with all of us! HUGS!!!!
So glad the poem and website resonated with you Sharon. They’re brilliant attitude shifters aren’t they? Wishing you a fabulous colorful week.
Very striking love it. Anita #29 itsamistry Design Studio
Thanks Anita, and happy SOC!
My colors lately have been blue and green – today, and many days, it’s a teal. Maybe a compromise? I love flow photos like yours, and I feel the flow, even if it gets choppy at times! I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready to celebrate my style, but I’m awfully good at tolerating it.
I’m okay to love myself at any age, too. To me, I feel the same as I was when I was 7.
LOL – seven is a fabulous age to remain Eli! So full of curiosity and ready for adventure. And given that I can so understand why you love flow. Hopefully there’s more smooth than choppy though. Thanks for stopping by and wishing you a wonderful week.
You are so right —those certainly are cheery colors. They are not what I would have chosen, but I enjoyed using them. Thanks for viewing my SOC wk. 2.
It’s a delight isn’t it to see what each of us has chosen as our palettes and what we’ve created? That’s one of the biggest joys of the challenge for me.
I make my own handmade paper, too, but mine never turns out as lovely as yours did. I like the layering and of course, the composition. This is a truly lovely journal cover anyone would love to own.
Papermaking is fabulous fun isn’t it? I’m very lucky in that we have a nationally-known book and paper arts center affiliated with a college here where I’m at. So over the years I’ve had access to some wonderful professional equipment which makes a lot of difference. Wishing you a wonderful week Elizabeth and thanks for stopping by.
Happy… bright… and beautiful…. I love your journal Deborah…
Thanks Jenny. I’m so glad you stopped by. Wishing you a happy SOC.
Thank you for sharing! xo
Thanks for stopping by Kristin. You’re bringing a lot of joy to a lot of people.
a beautiful book and I love what you are saying about ageing and how that prompted you to use wrinkled paper
Thanks! Here to our knowing we’re all beautiful, always, no matter what our state of smoothness or wrinkliness.
the flower is a great touch and really finishes off the piece nicely 🙂
I tend to think everything is better with flowers. Thanks for stopping by Jennifer.
Love those sherbetty colors. Yum!
Nice call Lorraine – they are sherbetty indeed aren’t they?! Wishing you a wonderful colorful week!