Seven Days of Bling: Day 5

Reader Connie asked what adhesive I use to attach the rhinestones. All the rhinestones I used on these cards come with adhesive backing on a transparency sheet. I just lift a gem off the backing sheet with the tip of a craft knife and place it where I want it. Easy as chips and dip. (Pie isn't easy. I've never understood that cliche.)

I have several containers of loose rhinestones without adhesive, but these are a pain in the butt hard to stick down. I use a sticky pickup tool to dip each rhinestone in a tiny dot of white Scotch tacky glue dabbed onto a scrap of cardstock, and then place it where I want it, holding the tool in place for forever a few minutes while the glue sets. It takes more time than I care to spend on a regular basis to do this. Plus, my fear is that after all this effort and time, these rhinestones won't hold in the mail, so I rarely use them.

Have you seen the t-shirt that says, "I love Jesus, but I cuss a little"? Well, I try not to put myself in situations where I'm tempted to cuss. To cover a large shape with loose rhinestones would stretch the limits of my self-control.

You (not me, mind you, but YOU) could try using sheet adhesive to cover cardstock, punch the shape out, peel off the sheet adhesive backing, and place the loose rhinestones that way. BUT there is enough space between the round shapes that you might run into the problem of having other things (lint, string, bits of paper) sticking in the gaps. Please see previous paragraph.

Probably not what you wanted to hear, Connie, but there you have it.

Today's purple dragonfly used up all my big purple bling...and I don't have a Copic or Sharpie that matches this particularly red-purple shade, so I couldn't make more. (I did try, though.) That meant no purple butterfly with which to create a visual triangle, as on yesterday's card.

With a few design tweaks, I was able to come up with an acceptable card (although I do think yesterday's card has a better design).

With only two purple points, the design worked better as a portrait-oriented card. This gives the design an upward sense of movement appropriate for a winged insect instead of the visual triangle unifying yesterday's design. I also chose a blocky, larger sentiment to anchor the bottom of the card and provide visual balance for that lone dragonfly.

I think it worked.

Note that there are a few large, iridescent rhinestones in the mix. Love those! They have languished in my stash for years, and now they finally have a purpose in life. Don't they look so happy?

I think so.

Obviously, using up your stash creates some awkward shortages of colors or shapes, but a little flexibility and problem-solving, and you can get those gems out of your hoard and onto cards.

So yay!

Mercy, grace, peace, and love,
Susan

Supplies
stamps: Clearly Besotted With a Flourish, Papertrey Keep It Simple Birthday
paper: Papertrey white
ink: Mama Elephant silver fox, Archival purple (can't remember which one...maybe majestic purple?)
accessories: dragonfly punch, assorted rhinestones