WATERCOLORED FLORAL SYMPATHY CARD

Sadly, a sympathy card was needed, so I reached for a new-to-me stamp set, Sketched Flowers.  I had my eye on this set (at Simon Says Stamp) for weeks before finally treating myself to it last month.  Using the images to make this card and the coordinating envelope was the first time the stamps have tasted ink.  What a joy it was to color the stamped images!  On the card, I used Stampin' Up! ink and Aqua Painter, and a Sponge Dauber and sponges were used to color the envelope.

Do you like to stamp/decorate your envelopes?  I don't always do it, but I believe it makes the mail seem like even more of a special treat.  And then there are times when I do good to just get the envelope in the mailbox!

Without going into any details, I'm sure the family receiving this card would appreciate your prayers that their hearts might feel some comfort.  ❤

WATERCOLORED "WONDERFUL ROMANCE"

Hopefully, you're not tired of seeing Wonderful Romance creations because I have another one to show today.  On this card, I tried to re-create a vintage floral design--and things were going really well until I added the dark sponging around the edges.  You'd probably never know that beneath that darkness there are layers of Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, and Pear Pizzazz.  The Early Espresso covered it all.

The image was stamped onto watercolor paper with Early Espresso ink, and I like how the Aqua Painter picked that up as I was coloring the image.  I used Shaded Spruce and Granny Apple Green to color the leaves, Pacific Point to color the flowers, and a Crushed Curry marker was used to color those tiny leaves with the white dots.  The ribbon picks up the Granny Apple Green color very nicely; however, the photo makes the ribbon appear to be more yellow than green.  🙁  The layer behind the watercolor paper is Coastal Cabana.  While the colors may seem like an odd combination, they really do work so well--if only you could see the card in real life. Finishing touches were the placement of rhinestone jewels to the center of each flower, and the flower petals received some glittery strokes of the Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush.

EASY WREATH-BUILDING WITH "WONDERFUL ROMANCE"

Remember in my previous post that I mentioned making another wreath card?  Well . . . here it is:

I ❤❤❤ the wreath-making ability with these products:

"Wonderful Romance" Bundle - Click here to view/purchase

On Thick Whisper White cardstock, I stamped the large curved stem of leaves and then colored them with Old Olive Stampin' Blends markers before die-cutting them.  A cut-and-emboss die was used to cut the Mossy Meadow leaf stems (see the embossing on them?), and another die was used to cut the dainty Powder Pink stems.  Lastly, the tiny flowers were cut from Fresh Fig cardstock, and don't they look pretty with a tiny pearl in the center?  It's nice that the bundle comes with four of those tiny flower dies.  

My wreath was built on a piece of Floral Romance Specialty DSP.  There are some gorgeous designs in this paper collection, but I chose the simple wood-looking design for my cards to keep the background slightly understated, letting the wreath steal the show.  Decorating the inside of the card, as you can see, was very simple!  A narrow piece of Soft Sea Foam cardstock with the die-cut lattice leaf design adhered to the right side.

Are you ready to bring some Wonderful Romance to your stamp room?  Get it HERE!

WONDERFUL "WONDERFUL ROMANCE"

Let me just go ahead and say that I 💖 Stampin' Up!'s brand new Wonderful Romance stamp set!  Of course, this product is offered as a bundle with coordinating Wonderful Floral framelits, and it's creatively refreshing that some of the stamps and some of the dies can be used independently--with or without the incorporation of their respective partner.  Isn't that like dancing with yourself?  Perhaps, but all that matters is that you're having a good time.  I know the same can be said for a lot of dies, but I just really notice it with this particular product.  A few of those leafy dies emboss and cut, and those teensy flowers . . . soooooo cute!  I just made a couple of cards today and used those flowers, and I'll be sharing a photo soon.

WONDEFUL ROMANCE - Click here to purchase

When I first looked at this bundle (and every single time I looked at it), I thought of making a beautiful wreath with that image on the top right of the stamp case.  Even better is that a wreath can be made using only the stamp or the stamp + its coordinating die.  This is my first stamped wreath project:

I used the Shaded Spruce ink pad to stamp the image that forms the wreath and then used an Aqua Painter to lightly color the leaves.  A lighter leafy image was stamped using the Soft Sea Foam ink pad, but then I thought some silver-embossed dots would be a great addition.  Since it's difficult to see the sparkle that they add, check this out:

Okay . . . yes, it's still kind of difficult to see the silver sparkle, but the light plays with the embossing very nicely in real life.

To add a little bit of depth to the wreath, I used the Early Espresso marker to accentuate the stems and give them more of a vine-like appearance.

Friends, this is truly a gorgeous product bundle.  I haven't yet begun to scrape the surface of its abilities, but I feel that these stamps and dies will be called upon for many card-making occasions.  It is particularly well-suited for weddings and sympathy, although not limited to those events.

REMEMBER:  While the Sale-a-Bration promotion is in full swing, the purchase of this bundle will qualify you for one FREE Sale-a-Bration product.  Can you say, "Awesome!"?

Purchase this bundle from me, and I will send you a handmade "thank you" card that features some of these products!  😊

"COUNTRY ROAD"

My husband had a birthday earlier this month, which gave me a perfect reason to use Stampin' Up!'s Country Road stamp set.  This is one of those sets that really appealed to me in the catalog, but I couldn't really think of any occasions or specific projects to use it.  There was just something about it that I really liked!  For one thing, the images are nice for creating a background, which I tested on this card for my husband:

Don't look too closely at the stitching.  My sewing machine was out, and I thought it would be fun to test some stitches, which I ended up using on the card--imperfections and all.  I really don't know enough about my machine to even use it, but I try every now and then.

Didn't the stamps make a neat background?  I love that star image!!

Other Stampin' Up! products featured on this card include:

Cardstock:  Coastal Cabana, Blueberry Bushel, Whisper White

Ink:  Soft Sea Foam, Blueberry Bushel, Crumb Cake, Old Olive

DON'T FORGET . . . Sale-a-Bration is in full swing!

Click HERE to shop with me.

MORE WATERCOLORED "PETAL PALETTE"

Can you ever get tired of purple watercolored flowers?

The images in the Petal Palette stamp set are so fun to watercolor!  These cards also feature gorgeous butterflies from Stampin' Up!'s Butterfly Gala product bundle.  But . . . if it's possible to tire of purple flowers, maybe these in Calypso Coral will suit your fancy.

This card features the following Stampin' Up! products:

Cardstock:  Grapefruit Grove, Granny Apple Green, Calypso Coral, Thick Whisper White

Accessories:  Watercolor Pencils, Calypso Coral Ombre Ribbon

Sizzix:  Lace embossing folder

Punch:  1-1/4" Circle

"PETAL PALETTE" + WATERCOLOR PENCILS

Being a messy stamper can sometimes be an okay thing.  After using Stampin' Up!'s Petal Palette and Butterfly Gala (for the sentiment) stamp sets, Watercolor Pencils, and Aqua Painter recently, having those products still on my desk came in handy this evening when I wanted to make a quick card.  The purple cardstock is Highland Heather which, in real life, isn't quite as purple as it appears in the photo, but there's just not enough good lighting at 3:00 in the morning.  

Except for the short amount of time required to color the stamped images, this really was a quick card to make.  I think this design has a soft elegance that would make for a nice sympathy or anniversary card.

DID YOU KNOW?  If you order a combination of any of the following products during Sale-a-Bration to make a card similar to mine, you could earn the Organdy Ribbon Combo Pack (#149623) FREE!  The combo pack includes one 5-yard spool of ribbon in the following colors:  Balmy Blue, Daffodil Delight, Grapefruit Grove, Highland Heather, and Lemon Lime Twist.

#145788 - Petal Palette Stamp Set

#143704 - Layered Leaves Embossing Folder

#101659 - Very Vanilla Cardstock

#146986 - Highland Heather Cardstock

#103954 - Aqua Painters

#141709 - Watercolor Pencils

#143715 - Pretty Label Punch

#148580 - Butterfly Gala Stamp Set

#144142 - Clear Faceted Gems

"FALLING FLOWERS" . . . WATERCOLOR PENCILS ON CRUMB CAKE

Happy New Year!  

I can't believe so many days have passed since my last post!  Christmas is always a busy time for everyone but, for some reason, it took me longer than usual to get back in the groove.  I have been stamping, but I can't share my latest projects just yet.  I also have some class swaps to photograph and post, and I hope to get started on that in the next few days.  

The card I'm sharing today is one that features a really fun coloring technique!  I stamped the images from Stampin' Up!'s Falling Flowers stamp set onto Crumb Cake cardstock and then colored the images with the Watercolor Pencils.  How vividly the colors show up never ceases to wow me!  Since this card was made a month or so ago, I can't remember exactly which colors I used, but I definitely used more than one color on the images and then added some highlights with the white pencil.  I love the depth of color that can be achieved with the pencils!  Finishing touches included the addition of some white dots and lined definition with a white gel pen and, of course, distressing the edges of the Crumb Cake layer.

The leaves are my favorite part of this card!

If I can help you with any Stampin' Up! products, please let me know!  Brand new products from the Occasions catalog are now available, and don't forget that Sale-a-Bration is underway!

Shop the awesome new products HERE!!!

See the fun Sale-a-Bration product selections HERE!!!

Ready to join my team and receive the Craft and Carry Tote FREE???  Click HERE!!!