Thursdays card

The Cardologists played with waterbrushes this week.  For this technique we used an open flower stamp from Stampin Up's Butterfly Basics.  We stamped the image with Marvy markers onto watercolor paper.  The waterbrushes then pulled the color into the image. 


This technique is so cool because no two ever come out the same.   All depending on the amount of water used, a little color can be pulled in or lines can almost disappear.

I couldn't decide which die I wanted to use - Lola's Memory Box circle dies or Jules' Spellbinder's ovals - so I did a card with both.

This first card went to a new worker in our office who has a birthday Monday.  Notice the stitching that the inside circle die has.   A Cuttlebug lattice folder and a Stampin Up butter fly and sentiment finished the card.

 




This second card had less of a watercolor look since I left more lines and white areas.   The background is a Darice basketweave folder   I used a (new to me) Ranger black archival ink to stamp on vellum and was pleased that it dried quickly.

 Hope my friends on the East coast, buried in snow, are safe and warm.  So happy we did not get any this time! 

Thanks for visiting.  Love to hear from you. 

  

December

Two posts in one weekend - are you amazed?  I have to catch up.

December was a blur as I had to get the Christmas cards in the mail.  Luckily I had a few done at Stamp Camp and on our Thurday nights but I still had many to finish.

I found my inspiration for my last minute cards on Heather Telford's blog.

This is my Christmas version of her card.

I used a double-stick paper diecut in the shape of a Memory Box star as a mask and watercolored the sky with my Peerless water colors.  I planned to made it a darker sky but I used all my Cobalt blue just to do the first layer on the twenty cards I made. Note to self, order more.

I then used the evergreen tree from Stampin Up's Lovely as a Tree set. I stamped several trees in Forest Foliage and then a few more in the foreground in black.  I used a wet paintbrush  to spread the ink out making them look less defined.

When the paper dried I removed the cover from the double stick paper and added ultra fine glitter to the star. Unfortunately you can't see the glitter in the photo. I layered the image on a Bashful Blue and Forest Foliage paper, both retired colors.  The sentiment 'Joy' is a Stampin Up die.

Belatedly, I wish all my readers a Joy-filled New Year.

November

Probably you are wondering if I dropped out of blog land I was gone so long.  After my last post in October, my aunt decided she was moving into a nursing home full time.  It was left to my sister and I to clean out her apartment.  It is hard to sort through all of someone's belongings, wondering if each item is, if not necessary or valuable, something that been saved because it has meaning.  My aunt was more okay leaving everything behind than we were.  I am happy to report she is thriving in the nursing home.

In the midst of that chaos I managed to make my Thanksgiving cards and a birthday card for a dear friend.  My Thanksgiving card had to be simple because of time constraints, as in 'last minute'.  I have seen this technique using glossy paper in several places, but always with clear or white embossing as a resist.  To emphasize the fall colors I used a Claret embossing powder from Rub a Dub Dub and am very happy with the way it came out.

The stamps are 'real leaves' set of four from Hero Arts that I have had for ages. The colors used for the leaves and sponging are More Mustard, Fired Brick and Rusty Hinge distress inks.  There might be some Orange Marmalade in there too but it really wasn't showing well with the darker colors.  I added a sentiment from Inkadinkadoo, a gingham ribbon, and a leaf embellishment from my stash. The layer was added to a Bravo Burgundy card.

My friend with the November birthday is a wine lover so I knew I had to use this 'wine shop' stamp set from Purple Onion.  I colored the wine barrel with Peerless water colors and made a tag with one of the sayings from the set. The Old Olive paper from Stampin' Up along with the black paper from my scrap bin made the card and layers.  I embossed a copper shimmer paper with musical notes because I thought it went well with the rustic image.  I only wish, looking at it now, I had distressed the paper a little.

Thanks for stopping by.