Hues to Use honors... Mr. Tibbs!

Hello sweet peeps! Are you ready for a super cute, fuzzy, and sometimes comical bit of inspiration for this week's Hues to Use? Well, I sure am! It's been a while since we've put this little guy in the spotlight and so, we thought it would be fun to have not only a guest hostess today but a debonair man at the center of it all! Are you scratching your head, confused as to what the heck I am talking about? Well, check it out, will you? 

IT'S MR TIBBS! Can you even stand how incredibly cute he is? Oh, my. Don't you wish you could just sit on a giant pillow all day and stretch like this? Yep. Pretty much! So, to play along this week, all you need to do is grab this color combo above -- Navy, Denim and Tan -- and create! Just that simple folks! 

And guess what? We have, like I mentioned above, an absolutely fabulous guest hostess to show off these color cues for us all! Are you ready to meet her? Say "Hello" to this fine lady as we hear her share a little bit about herself and her gorgeous creation! 

"Hello, I'm Tress Smyth. I'm currently retired and living in SW Florida with my adorable and craft-spending forgiving husband, Greg (He's says I am more of a collector of craft supplies than a user, LOL -- each month I eagerly await Marcella's new digi offering). We celebrated our 10th anniversary this month. I have two grown children, a married daughter and a son who is in the Army. In addition to my family, crafting and travel are passions of mine. We are headed to Paris in June (first time overseas for my husband). I have not been there for nearly 40 years and I am looking forward to rediscovering the city! When we are not traveling, we enjoy spending our days hanging out in our pool with family and friends, hosting parties, golfing, and crafting.

My crafty hobbies include coloring digi stamps.  I actually detest physical stamps and I am so VERY happy Marcella is creating beautiful images for us digi gals. I love scrapbooking, and making Christmas ornaments and wreaths (stitched felt, ribbon, cross stitch, decorated pinecones). I just invested in some watercolor pencils and am eager to give them a try. My workspace is a total wreck when I craft. The piles grow until I cannot stand it and have to clean before starting the next project. I'll begin with a large area to work in and by the time I finish my project I'm down to about a 6 x 12 space and that is only because I move my keyboard out of the way, lol.

My creative process for Hues to Use is a tad different from my usual approach to card making. Typically I search my digi library/stash for an image that suits a specific project or just because I think it would be enjoyable to color (Marcella’s being my favorite for sheer indulgence). The next step is picking colors to work with. Playing in a Hues to Use challenge makes me switch up the order of picking a stamp and picking colors. Hues to Use pushes me to consider colors first, then choose an image that works with those colors. With a prominent butterfly, a Clusiana Tulip (I took a bit of liberty with color here), and a wild Anemone, a cropped version of Sunset Sway seemed the best candidate.

For this particular challenge, the colors appeared to me as camel, grayed turquoise, and indigo. The Copic markers that best matched were E31, BG18, and B99. The highlight and shading colors were built around this foundation. This color combo is outside my comfort zone (I gravitate to the bright spring hues), but it was fun to work with a more subdued palate.

After coloring the image with Copics and adding a touch of colored pencils, I chalked the background. I use chalk rather than Copics or other inks as the chalks are more subtle and more forgiving. The color or blend can be changed if the first try doesn’t look quite right.

Then it’s on to picking papers. Hmmmm….both a pleasure and a pain. If the process comes together quickly, it’s a joy. When I search my hundreds (yes, I sheepishly admit to hundreds) of 6x6 paper pads and still cannot find the “right” paper for the “right” look, the process is a total frustration. Thankfully by looking at a few of my unloved boy themed paper pads I was able to find a pleasing combination!

Embellishments are minimal on most of my cards. A fishtail banner and three enamel dots complete this card.

Thank you for asking me to be a part of this Hues to Use Challenge! It was a privilege, and I cannot wait to see how others will use this palate for their creations!"

Thanks, Tress! I absolutely love your card and the serene elegance you whipped up here! And to think that you reached for some "unloved" boy-themed paper packs to get the job done! LOL! I have to say that I am with you. I have a few of those myself and you've inspired me to dig through them and pick a few papers that I wouldn't otherwise use! :-)

Do you want to play along with us this week? Pick up these three colors, create, and then, link up your card using the linky below! We'd not only love to see what you create, you might just be like Tress in the future and be the hostess with the mostess here for an upcoming Hues to Use! 

Thanks for stopping by & thanks again Tress for hosting!

Julie 

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