Fighting Mad!

Hello scrappy friends. I'm here today with some awesome Dusty Attic goodies to share with you.

I believe I'm a fairly calm person and I rarely get angry, but I was VERY angry when I made this layout! I don't think I've ever scrapped before while I've been angry so it was an interesting experience. I must say that I found it very therapeutic.

Soapbox warning here! If you just want to look at the layout, skip this section! In a nutshell, I work part-time on a voluntary basis, trying to get better regulations in place for people living near wind turbines. Most people would be very shocked if they knew how little protection there was for those people. Many wind projects are not compliant with the regulations but nobody polices this which is really bizarre. If a night club was making noise at 2am you could call the police and/or the EPA and they would do something about it straight away. If  a wind turbine is making noise at 2am you can only call the wind company the next day, who may or may not respond at some time in the future. We know of people who lived with a faulty, screeching turbine for over a year before the company did anything about it.

I think wind turbines have their place, but that place is not near people's homes. The reason I was so mad yesterday is that we found out that the approved, but unbuilt, project near us just got another 5 year extension to its permit to build. Plus the company have applied to increase the height of the turbines to over 160 metres. That's higher than a 50-story building. And there are 62 of them. This is a rural landscape, not an industrial one. I hate that someone in Melbourne just ticks a box and decides our future and we get no say in it.

Anyway, that's enough ranting for now! Here's my layout:

As you can see I got very verbal on this one! I just let it all out. I didn't even think about what I was writing - except I did have to stop once to check how to spell 'bureaucrat'!

I love how the gate came up on this one. To decorate the shrubs on the ends, I first applied impasto with my finger in a dabbing motion to create rough texture. You could use texture paste or any similar product. When the impasto was dry, I dipped an old, stiff paintbrush into Forrest paint and dabbed it in an up and down motion onto the rough surface to add even more texture. I then did the same thing with Pesto paint. Dusty paints dry so quickly - I love them!

I inked the gate with a rust-coloured ink then applied three different colours of Beck BT's Tinby Designs Metallic Melts to get that rusty, weathered look. I used the same treatment on the title, only this time I used two colours.

It is possible to stitch chipboard down like I did here. You need to glue alphas and other small pieces in place first though as the foot of the machine tries to push them away. Just take it slow and steady.

The gorgeous house is from the Main Street set. I adore this set. I've finished the page off with some Dusty in Bloom flowers and a beautiful branch.

Thanks for looking today and putting up with my frustrations. Next time life gives you a bum steer, think about venting on paper - it's a great release!

Dusty Attic products used:

Typewriter ABC Set DA0143

Main Street DA0408

Branch #3 DA1094

Farm Fence #2 DA1097

Dusty in Bloom 'Champagne Kisses' and 'Wild Moss'

Dusty in Colour  - Forrest, Pesto, Jungle Green,

Cashmere and Alabaster.

Happy scrappin'!

Heather McMahon