Because I Care: Lantern Painted on a Scroll Hanging in a Tokonoma

A depiction of Japanese art work.

Journey with me, if you will, to the East to enjoy a Japanese-influenced creation.

The central element of today’s card is a punch art paper lantern.  In Japan as in China, red is a color of congratulations and celebration.  Thus, a lantern such as this might be seen at a temple festival or matsuri.

The bands of stamped River Rock cardstock mimic the silk brocades used to mount Japanese scroll paintings.  The lovely fabric not only enhances the presentation, but protects the delicate paper when being displayed or rolled up for storage.

The black layer suggests a tokonoma, the focal point of a traditional tatami room.  Typically, a tatami room has little if any furniture; what little there may be (cushions and a low table) is easy to put away so a futon may be laid out each night.  As a result, the eye is drawn to whatever is displayed in the niche in the wall, the tokonoma.

And today, this cardstock tokonoma holds a scroll painting of a red paper lantern.

Pause a moment to contemplate what happy event our lantern might represent.  When your mind starts to wander, our brief visit to Japan concludes.

(Click on the image for a separate view.  Then to zoom in, click again.)

The ‘Lantern on a Scroll in a Tokonoma’ card was first presented on the Stampin’ Addicts 2010 New Catalog Blog Hop.

RECIPE – ‘Lantern on a Scroll in a Tokonoma’ Item

• Ink:  River Rock, Basic Black
• Paper:  Cherry Cobbler, River Rock, Shimmery White, Basic Black, Brushed Gold
• Stamps:  Because I Care
• Etc.:  Punches (1 1/4″ Circle, Word Window, Itty Bitty Circle, Two Step Bird, Jewelry Tag), Crop-A-Dile, Sticky Strip, Stampin Dimensionals, paper snips, crimper, shimmer paint (Champagen Mist), sponge dauber
• Techniques: punch art

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