Welcome to June ...

And then it was another month ... welcome to winter for us down under and summer for you up north.

This month to get you in the mood for those cold, misty and sometimes wet starts to the day we have this amazing photograph.

  What inspires from this scene, a lonely bench in the middle of a park, the winter shape and look of the trees, the umbrella, a solo figure in the rain, the misty landscape?  Or perhaps you see beyond the main image to someone enjoying a little solitude in a busy day,  a recalled memory of a walk in the rain, a love (or hate) of being rugged up in winter clothing?  Maybe you see the colours of red, black, white and grey - (although you certainly don't have to use this colour combination!) 

Whatever the inspiration, we would love to see your finished creation.

Here is how the Pixels and Paper team was inspired ...

HEIDI

I loved the colours this month, the picture was a really great inspiration for me.

I used lots of die cuts and embellishments to capture the moment of our special day at the park with our boy.

TONE-LILL

The fantastic "Rainy day" inspiration picture with bright red, black and white made me think of  a holiday in Cornwall in June 2012. It was raining everyday the whole week but Tirill still wanted to go surfing... and with her wet suit on it is a colour match to the challenge picture :)


DI
 

What I noticed first was the brilliant post-box red of the park bench, then the subtle tones of colours appearing through the misty rain. A solitary figure .... thinking? waiting? enjoying the peace and quiet?

I chose to use a photograph taken at Caloundra, Qld,  one early morning quite recently. It had been raining and while my son and I were taking photos from the waterfront, light drizzle again came down. As we tried to find a bit of shelter we noticed the double rainbow, so of course photos had to be taken.

I've repeated the rainbow effect in the drips and title.

ALICIA

I think my interpretation of this month's inspiration photo was as literal as possible without having an actual picture of my son in rain. I know I am missing the umbrella and trees, but at this time in our life we lived in the desert so the closest thing my son got to playing in the rain was playing in the splash pads, which we visited on a weekly basis. I used a lot of little techniques to make this page my own. I used traditional and non-traditional prints in my paper layering to add a touch of fun to the page. I doodled in the title mat to bring some black to the already red and white paper, then outlined the red stickers with a thick black marker to help it stand out. My favorite technique was highlighting the water sprays with white glitter. For more detailed info and close up pics you can visit my blog. I don't have any cute photos of my son on a rainy day, but as you can see the inspiration photo can take you in different directions, that's the beauty of this contest. I look forward to seeing what everyone creates for this month's challenge. 

JANE


I was drawn to the misty look of this photograph.  Our winter mornings often look like this where I live and I then remembered a day last year when my husband rang me from work to tell me about the amazing fog they were experiencing in the CBD.  He told me that from out of the windows of the 21st floor of his work building he could see absolutely nothing and that he had ventured up to the top floor to view the office tower islands peeping out of the fog sea.

We also welcome a guest designer this month, Regina Chandler.

Hi,  I’m Regina and I live in Brissie with my wonderful husband and 2 puppies, who are the real bosses of the house! We have 5 fabulous granddaughters, including a set of triplets, so I’m never short of subjects! I’m  a keen photographer and the girls love our ‘photo shoot’ days!

I love layers, textures and attention to detail. I believe a good layout must always start with a great photo.  I enjoy  encouraging others and sharing my ideas.  I have had several projects published in magazines. Luckily most days I get to create, it’s part of my life now as I’ve been scrapping for 10 years.

Here is my page for this challenge ...

To me this month’s inspirational photo shouts retro with its fab nostalgic image, colour blocking, and colour combination of black, red and white.  So that’s where I took my inspiration from. I  made my own ‘chalkboard’ background and used the checks and hexagons pattern from that time, and added a photo of ‘moi’!

I enjoyed creating this one. Looking forward to seeing what everyone else comes up with. Come on and join in the fun with us this month!

Thank you for joining in with us this month Regina.  Lovely to have you aboard.

and now it is YOUR turn ...

Please upload the DIRECT link to your actual entry with the link tool on the LEFT by 11.55pm on June 30th.

You are welcome to submit traditional paper layouts, art journals, divided page protectors, smash books (etc etc).  Digital entries are welcomed and encouraged.  All entries must be new for this challenge and no back-linking is allowed.  I am happy for you to combine with other challenges (maximum of 3) but the essence of the Pixels and Paper inspiration must be clear in your work. Combining with a sketch or colour challenge would be preferred.  International submissions are always welcome.

Please come back later in the week when we will announce our winners for May and our next guest designer.