Textured Friends & Flowers

There were a couple of stamp sets in the Occasions Catalogue that I loved at first sight and thought "I MUST get that" but then, for some reason, I haven't used!  I think, once they were in my hand, I was having trouble visualising how I would use them.

So, I decided that today was the day that I had to overcome this mental block, no matter what!

Timeless Textures combined with a flower from Friends and Flowers.  The leaf is from the Botanical Blooms bundle.

While making this card, I had an interesting experience with colours.  The finished card is Cherry Cobbler and Blushing Bride, however .....  

.... it didn't start out that way!

The inside of the card

I stamped the floral images from Friends and Flowers onto Blushing Bride cardstock with Rich Razzleberry ink! I punched out the petals with the Festive Flower Builder punch and then blended over the stamping with some Blushing Bride ink to soften the look a little.

How it looks propped up on display. Greeting from Wetlands stamp set

A bit too much dimension for the postal system!

Having curled the petals slightly and assembled the flower, I then decided to give it some strength (and I didn't mind about the shine) by painting the flower with some Crystal Effects and then went away to have some coffee while it dried.

When I returned - my Rich Razzleberry flower had transformed into Cherry Cobbler!

From now on I should be able to use Friends and Flowers and Timeless Textures as much as they deserve - because they're both beautiful and versatile sets!

However, I have created another little challenge for myself!

I was so concentrated on the creation that I didn't think about the practicalities!

I think this will have to be a hand-delivered card rather than one that goes through the mail system!

I can't go without acknowledging a very talented lady whose beautiful card gave me inspiration.  Her card is here.  Thank you Marika Rahtu.

'Til next time
Stephanie

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Occasions Catalogue Preview - Grateful Bunch & Number of Years Bundle

The first family birthday of the year is just around the corner!  I wanted to make her something feminine and fitting to celebrate her 16th birthday but not too "twee".

This is what I came up with.

It's hard to see in the photo but the flowers, numbers and butterfly shimmer with Wink of Stella

What I used from the Occasions Catalogue:
Number of Years Bundle: 140811
Grateful Bunch Bundle - 140801
Wink of Stella Clear - 141897
Wink of Stella Gold - 141898

The numbers and some of the flowers are popped up on Dimensionals - a good way to use the edge pieces of the dimensionals!

I painted the gold flowers with Gold Wink of Stella - adding a little extra in places for depth.  I then decided that I'd like a bit of Bermuda Bay in the petals but didn't want to reduce the shimmer.  So I picked up some Bermuda Bay ink with the tip of the Clear Wink of Stella brush.  When I'd finished I simply squiggled the brush on some scrap paper until it was clean again.

I hope you like this card - I welcome any comments you have.

'Til next time
Stephanie

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

85th Birthday Pop Out Window Card

Thank you for joining us on our Crazty Crafters Blog Hop - I do hope you are enjoying the journey.

It's my Mother-in-Law's 85th birthday next week so I thought I would share the card I have made for her.  We're hosting her party here at our house and I decided to use the colours black and silver to go with the party decorations.  They're her favourite colours.

I really enjoyed making this card and I'm sure I'll be making more suspension cards in the future - it's so much fun!  Many thanks to Deb Valder at Stampladee for her excellent instructions.

I should have made the suspension small enough to fit inside the card when the card is closed - but never mind .....envelope punch board to the rescue!!

The flower has an Antique Brad centre and is made from some black and silver netting that I've had in a drawer for quite a few years now!

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Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog