Troubling Images....

Do you ever buy stamps with an idea (or several) in mind, only to find that when you take delivery nothing you had planned seems to actually come together? Lucky for me, this doesn't happen incredibly often, but it does happen -- and this tractor image is one of those troubling ones. I've had this one since oh....I think last summer (yikes!) and have not yet created anything with it that I'm happy with. I bought it because my in-laws live on a farm, and my 7-year old son is absolutely fascinated by all things farming and I liked it because it wasn't juvenile-looking as most other tractors I had seen. It was very real. I figured for sure that I could use the image for cards & in scrapbooks -- but for some reason I am just stumped every time I pull it out. So since my father-in-laws birthday is coming up, and I needed to make a card anyway -- I figured I would give it one last try before I put it in the sell pile. This is also my answer to Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge at Fresh & Fun. You'll notice that I rotated and mirrored the sketch in order to make it work for my image. I tried a few different patterned paper options for the blue panel - before settling on the stamped/sanded cardstock that you see here - and did consider a buckle/ribbon combo instead of the knot. In fact, about the only 2 things that didn't change several times throughout the design process was the image itself (since I was forcing myself to use it), and the crimped band. As for the final result, I'm undecided --- I'm satisfied enough that I'm not likely to change things yet again, but certainly not satisfied enough to duplicate it. Thanks again Beate for giving us another wonderful sketch! I do think that I might try it again with some other stamps and brighter colours.