Remembering a Paris Romance

Instead of your traditional Valentine's Day card, I'm opting for something a little different to celebrate all things heart and love.   I started to think about how interesting it might be to buy an old book at a flea market and find someone's pressed memories of a long-ago romance.  That's the inspiration for this piece.

I started the project by taking a piece of Tim Holtz Distress Core'Dinations CardStock in pink and embossed it with Tim Holtz's Eiffel Tower Texture Fade by Sizzix.  I used a Seedless Preserves Distress Marker and a water brush to add a darker "purple" color in the recesses.  Then I took a thin black pen and added some shading.  It didn't give me deep enough "shadows", so I went back and added some thicker shading with the Seedless Preserves Distress Marker.  I lightly sanded the raised surfaces and distressed the edges.  I went over those edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink using a blending tool. The embossed cardstock was adhered to a piece of printed paper with music on it. 

Now to add all of the fun memories.  There's a necklace charm, hung lovingly on an open heart (that has been distressed with sandpaper and Vintage Photo Distress Ink).

We have a vintage description of the Eiffel Tower (also distressed with sandpaper and Vintage Photo Distress Ink) paper clipped with an old paper clip.

A piece of rosette trim from a very special dress (from Tim Holtz trim colored with Victorian Velvet and Old Paper Distress ink) was added to the top of the cardstock.  The top and bottom of the music printed paper was trimmed with some velvet ribbon that I distressed with sandpaper to make it look like it has been taken out and handled several times.  At the top, a metal medallion was added to the velvet ribbon. 

 At the bottom of the music printed paper, we have more velvet ribbon.  It's topped with a chipboard embellishment that I painted with Antique Linen Distress Paint and spritzed with water to give the element a sort of white-washed look.  I sanded the raised elements and edges.  Then I stamped center with "amour" in Coffee archival ink.  I gave the entire thing a light coat of Walnut Stain Distress Ink using a blending tool.

I stamped Paris with the same coffee ink on some printed paper that I distressed and some tassels that I distressed by pulling some strings (as if the tassels had been caught on something during the many times the piece was handled).

Then there is the letter that has been folded and unfolded and some pressed pansies from underneath the Eiffel Tower.  All of these pieces are backed by floral vintage paper to showcase all of the memories.  With all of this distressing, I'm entering this into the Artistic Stamper "use Distress" Challenge.

And that is how I saw this very special Paris romance remembered.  I hope you have some special Valentine memories this week to chronicle and save for years to come!  -- Mary Elizabeth