Last week I told you about the great special to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of Val Erde’s blog, Colouring the Past.
I was so blessed to get one of her free colorizations!
She chose my paternal grandmother, Marie Klein, as a very young woman. This is the photo:
And this is the gorgeous colorization that Val created:
Now I feel like I could touch my grandmother’s hair and her blouse! Val did an amazing job, as she always does. I think her skin tones are very accurate, and that has got to be one of the most difficult things to get right.
This photo shows me that my grandmother’s love of pearls started young. She always wore pearls and collected a bit more pearl jewelry over the years. She gave my aunt a string of pearls for her wedding, and eventually my aunt gave them to me (she only had sons). You can check that out at this post, if you like: Vintage Jewelry.
Val will be able to answer any questions about the colorization process, if you leave a comment here for her. And I will respond as usual, although I don’t know anything about colorizing!
This is so dear!
Thanks, Joy! Val is amazing with old photos!
Wow! Val does such an amazing job. Your grandmother was absolutely beautiful.
Val is so spot on every time. I love her blog, as well as the other colorizing she has done for me. Gorgeous work. Thank you about my grandmother!
Thanks, Karen. I had a gorgeous photo to work on. 🙂
That turned out so perfect!
I agree, Eilene!
Thanks, Eilene.
This is so beautifully done! Congratulations, Luanne on getting this free colourisation and congratulations, Val on a lovely piece of work!
Thanks, Clare. 🙂
My pleasure, Val 🙂
I was so lucky! Amazing work!
I love them both – the B&W and the colour. What a gorgeous photo of your grandmother.
Thank you, Linda! I’m so thrilled with Val’s work!
Once again, she did such a gorgeous job. It’s amazing how colorization really changes how we see our ancestors. So happy you got picked. I did go and read the directions but somehow got pulled off task from following through 😦 Sharon
Oh, I’m sorry. If I’d known and you’d got in there quickly, I’m sure I could have done one for you. Glad you like it, though.
Oh darn! So sorry you missed out!
OMG, the colors do offer a different feel, but nothing alters your grandmother’s beauty in color or not. Just Gorgeous!
Luanne’s grandmother’s a stunner, isn’t she? I loved colouring this.
She definitely is a stunner, and your colouring was remarkable! What a talent you have.
Thank you!
Thank you, Sheila!
Wonderful! She’s really beautiful. ❤️
Thank you so much!
Wonderful result. Your grandmother was beautiful 😀
Thank you!
Luanne, thanks for letting me colour this. I remember thinking how beautiful she was when you first posted the photo. Glad it’s helped bring her (and her pearls!) to life for you. 🙂
Thank you thank you thank you.
She did an awesome one for me also. I will be posting it in a week and half. 🙂
I can’t wait to see it!
A typically marvellous piece of work by Val
Exactly!
An art in itself with so much to get right, such as the shading.
I completely agree! I can’t imagine doing it!
[…] out. I have NOT used this service and am not recommending it, just suggesting it as a possibility: A Huge Thank You to Val Erde at Colouring the Past! by Luanne on The Family […]
Great job she did on the coloring!!
I so agree, Jeanne. So grateful to Val!
The picture is beautiful. Val did a wonderful job of coloring the photo.
Thanks, Sheryl.
How fantastic that you have this photograph of your grandmother! Val’s colorization makes so many of the details stand out, like the pearl earrings and stitching on her blouse. Val colored one of the cabinet card photos from my collection and I’ll be sharing it soon! Her work is just amazing!
Thanks, Sherri. And I look forward to seeing yours ‘in situ’. 🙂
What a beautiful and sensitive portrait! Val did a great job. Sometimes the colorization can be overdone, but Val had just the right touch!
Thank you! I do try to avoid the artifice of some colouring styles.
Try and succeed, Val.
I agree. I love her light touch and think her skin tones are the best I’ve ever seen.
Definitely.
What a beautiful young woman both in colour and black and white!
Anne, thank you so much. You are so kind!
Amazing job of colorizing. I’ve never seen anything better. Marie Klein was my grandmother’s sister.
Bill Stade
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Thanks, Bill. Val is so amazing. I love her light touch. I’d love to do a little time travel and see our grandmother’s at this age! Oh, you should have Val colorize Elizabeth’s photo! She was SUCH a beauty!
Whenst did I miss this beauty?
I concur with the comments of your other readers. What strikes me about the colorized version is that it brings out just a hint of a smile playing at the corners of her lips.
I agree with you–and I think that smile is more prominent in her eyes in the colorized version, too!