Kathy McSeptember 23, 2016 at 5:30 PM
Maria, you nailed several challenges plus reached your 1000 blog posts...all great accomplishments. Love the simplicity and loose arrangement of your card...just my style. So much to be thankful for but at the top of my list after good health are my family, friends and faith.
Now for my cards. I sat down with one stamp set and two cardbases, wanting to play with Shay's Background Building challenge and determined to practice "economies of scale" (yeah, I studied Business) an idea presented wonderfully by this WW Leading Lady.
Same stamp set. Same layout. Two completely different looks. In one short sitting!!!
For my first card I was once again inspired by Heather H.'s Pinspiration challenge.
For my second card I was inspired by blue, green and aqua - Heather P.'s Color Combo challenge.
May I say I'm enamored with this stamp set - Renee's Leaves. It is so perfect. Not too cute. Not too artsy. Just perfect!
I actually made card #2 first, stamping the leaves using the reverse of the stamps, inked with Blueprint Sketch, Shabby Shutters and Cracked Pistachio Distress Inks and spritzed with water before stamping. When it was dry, I came back in with the stamps as they're intended to be used and stamped the outlines with Delicata gold pigment ink. I love this technique with stamps that are nearly symmetric. See the pretty gold on the blue and aqua leaves?
Keeping with the gold theme - I die cut Hello from white and gold and offset the two on my card.
While the colored leaves of card #2 were drying, I stamped the outlines in black for card #1. Then I did some sloppy watercoloring with Squeezed Lemonade and Mustard Seed Distress inks on the leaves with larger open spaces. Left the others white. Gave this card a black Thanks die cut offset on one cut from yellow craft foam and called it a night. Economies of scale, folks ;)
Thanks for looking. If you're not playing yet, you can check out all of the great challenges here.
