i have your photograph.

This is a picture frame that was intended as a Christmas gift for someone. Due to a lack of foresight and poor time management skills, it was not finished in time. It is still unfinished at this moment.

It started as a plain frame that I purchased at AC Moore. I then covered it with a layer of gesso. (Gesso is very popular right now. All the artists in Somerset Studio use it, so I thought I should buy some. I’m not entirely sure what exactly one is supposed to do with it, but I feel more sophisticated using it.)

So there’s the layer of gesso, and then I put on two coats of Folk Art Alizarin Crimson. Now I’m covering the entire frame with torn pieces of scrapbook paper. Why did I then bother to paint the frame? I might leave spaces bare here and there, so I wanted to make sure the frame was painted.

I also printed out a bunch of phrases on a piece of vellum, which I would like to incorporate somehow. And of course there are the rhinestones, charms, and ribbon that I would like to add. I don’t want to go crazy, though. A few well-placed embellishments, just to add some interest and texture.

Oh yes, there is a picture too. I am designing this frame to go with a certain picture. I have the picture ready; I played with it a bit in Photoshop and printed it onto white cardstock. I might redo it, though – I think the colors might need a bit more oomph in order to hold their own against the frame. But I will wait until I finish the frame to make that decision.

This is the first time I’ve done anything like this, so I think it looks pretty good so far.