This first collage, a response to Acey’s Challenge Prompt #10, came together yesterday …

And since I didn’t take any process shots, I’ll let the journal response I wrote this morning speak for its making …

I did a little bit better at catching the making in progress for Prompt #11 …

And after the making …

came the writing …

I’m definitely feeling good about these two-pages spreads. And even though the lightbox caused some unfortunate reflection on the glossy book jacket …

this close-up remedied the situation …

Thanks again to Meg, Meliss, and Dee!

Since I’m a bit behind on Acey’s collage challenge (and I know there’s no rush, but I’m trying not to get any further behind), I decided to forego crayons today and move right into Challenge #9: Be the prompt you want to see.

Having noticed that the previous days’ crayon sketches are “sharing” some pigments with the facing pages (as Don had warned they might), I opted to go to a different kind of spread, using the blank page as a journaling opportunity. Then took this shot from my usual stitching chair studio, which has lighting challenges, especially on grey days …

So I decided to (finally) unbox and set up a Christmas present from my girls: a Puluz portable lightbox for photography …

and give it a try with a bright light setting (more about the Inktense background here) …

and a low light setting …

The biggest plus was getting a squarer shot using the light box overhead view … and look, no shadows!

Editing went much quicker, with just a little cropping needed. Then a little tweak on the exposure to whiten it up a bit .. .

But the setup instructions for the lightbox left a lot to be desired, so now I’m off to find an online video or two to help me take fuller advantage of its potential.

P.S. Thanks to Dee Mallon who put me onto this treasure. More to come soon, for sure!