CREATING A BACKGROUND WITH PERFECT PEARLS

In another life, my sister taught French in a university setting.  It was just not French that she loved, but all things French, including history.  During her more than 70 years, she has amassed quite a library of books, and recently decided it was time to pare down her collection.  I am lucky enough now to be the owner of a book more than 50 years old, entitled THE AGE OF IDEAS, dealing from "reaction to revolution" in eighteenth-century France!  So, am I interested in French history?  No, but I am definitely interested in the photos inside this wonderful, only slightly musty, book!

First, let me introduce you to Madame Emilie du Chatelet in a photo of the original work created about 1736.  To me, she appears a beautiful woman, full of femininity, poise, intelligence, and strength...perhaps even power.  I found it interesting to learn that Voltaire, one of her lovers, declared in a letter to his friend King Frederick II of Prussia that du Chatelet was "a great man whose only fault was being a woman."  Ah, but I digress . . .

Following the application of a healthy coat of Gesso to prime my journal page, I chose three colors of Perfect Pearls to create my background, Forever Green, Blue Smoke, and Perfect Copper.  Using the bristles of my brush, I lifted just a small bit of this pigment powder and placed it directly onto my non-stick craft mat.  Using a mini-mister, I sprayed water directly onto the powder and swirled it around with the paint brush until all the power had dissolved.  I then just "painted" each color onto my page, overlapping them so that they blended together as they met.

I hand tore the photo of Madame de Chatelet directly from the page of the book, then cut from the same page both her name and approximate date.  I added a bit of text from the same book, then a butterfly for interest.  I enjoyed working with Emilie, so also gave her some rub-on flowers at the bottom.  What doesn't show in the scan of my page is the pearly luster created by the Perfect Pearls.

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Cheers!