Seriously, he owes me.
But for a number of reasons, I've resisted the siren song of die-cut machines and all those dies I would buy if I had a machine to use them on.
Recently, I realized that I have a large stash of punches that are going unloved and unused. So be prepared for plenty of cards with punched shapes in the coming weeks. REMEMBER: Even if you don't do punches, you can use any of the techniques I show with your dies. I keep it simple, after all.
Today's card started with my playing around with an old, old, old Hero Arts shadow stamp and Kaleidacolor ink pads.
After inking the stamp, I spritzed it with water and stamped it. The soft, artfully blotchy and blended results were very inspiring! So what do I do with all this gorgeous, colorful goodness?
The two images on the left showcase bright and cheery colors, but the one on the right seems serious and a bit dark and muddy. As I explored my stamp drawers, the Martha Stewart hydrangea punches called out to me. Here's the result:
PTI's Everyday Blessings set gave me a sentiment that fit the mood of the darker colors, and the layering of the hydrangea punch and a touch of bling combine to create a strong, powerful, interesting focal point.
Note that the hydrangea placement evokes the cross of the crucifixion. That's on purpose.
The first card I made with a hydrangea from this color scheme didn't quite work. The layout wasn't right, but also, the combo of Memento Luxe tuxedo black with the soft, dark colors didn't work. This card uses Memento Luxe espresso truffle, which is a really dark, warm gray shade. It's not as harsh as tuxedo black and makes the perfect neutral to combine with the olive and purple flower.
Even if you've got a die-cut machine, pull some punches out and play around with them. They deserve some love, too!
Supplies
stamps: Papertrey Everyday Blessings
ink: Memento Luxe espresso truffle, Kaleidacolor vineyard
paper: Papertrey white
accessories: Martha Stewart hydrangea punches, glue pen, rhinestone, craft foam, glue
Wow I am amazed how beautiful that flower looks. To see the colours after stamping I think I would have discarded the darker colours piece as it just looked too dark to me, yet you saw the potential there. I love how you explain about using a different colour for the sentiment to soften slightly the written sentiment. It really works perfectly giving you a perfect end result.
ReplyDeleteAileen, I also felt rather disappointed in how muddy the Vineyard pad turned out, but as soon as I saw the hydrangea punch in my drawer, I knew it would work great! Even "meh" colors can turn out great sometimes!
DeleteI love using punches, too. Great idea to use them with the watercolor effect you created on paper. What type of white cardstock did you use, when you stamped the kaleidoscope ink? I am wondering how thick it is, since your flower looks so nice and delicate.
ReplyDeletePapertrey Ink white, which is very heavy and doesn't warp much when you spritz stamps like this. The flower looks delicate but it isn't at all. It's quite sturdy!
DeleteBeautiful card. I like that pink color mix.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Karen. I LOVE how the pink card turned out. Will share that on Thursday.
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