Thinking of You

You’re in my Thoughts & Prayers

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

This is day three of seven projects re-purposing leftover workshop kits.  The only thing this card has in common with the first sample is color and a floral motif.  Wow, I love how it turned out.  When I made this I thought it was lovely, but didn’t have a special someone to give it to. Sad to say that now I do.  I do love having somewhere to express sincere thoughts and feelings. This will be perfect.

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The card front was stamped with the huge image from Rose Wonder.  The small flower image is also from the same set and I used it plenty all around.  I then sponged color lightly over all of the images.  I wanted soft color not exact or even water coloring.  The color almost glows. Then I ran it through the big shot with the elegant dots embossing folder.  The look was stunning.  I nearly left the rest of the decoration off.  It was lovely enough to be a one layer card.  But I kept on and dressed it up some more.

The doily was sponged with sweet sugarplum to match perfectly, love that option.  I crumpled it up some to offer more texture.  I was surprised on how many flowers I got out of that little piece of glimmer paper in the kit.  Careful use of specialty paper sure does make it last.  I staged the doily and sentiment tag before putting down all of those flowers.  There was a nice spot for everything if I do say so myself, and I do.

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Everything was sponged and sponged some more.  It put everything in a soft focus look which lends itself to a card like this.  I didn’t want any harsh lines.  I don’t always re-create a project, but I can see myself making this one again.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Hello Glimmer!

~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

Glimmer paper, floral stamps and dies, water coloring, beautiful ribbon, these are several of my favorite things.  Seeing them all together really does make me happy. I needed a special thank you card and this has more than accomplished that.

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I hadn’t had the detailed floral thinlits out for a bit, so that was reason enough.  The sweet sugarplum glimmer paper is where it all started though.  It is such a fun paper pack.  Four 6×6 sheets in three colors, sweet sugarplum, bermuda bay and mint macaron, and the set is free with a $50 purchase.  If you are going to enjoy great product, why not get a bonus at the same time, right?  Since sale-a-bration ends this month, I will have to make sure I get another pack.  So pretty.

The background had a light patterned water color wash in the same ink color and then lightly stamped as well.  I glued the edges of the detailed cut outs to secure them easily. This allowed my ribbon to be tied easily and not look like it was pulling on the paper.  I stamped lightly on the inside as well to coordinate it.

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The thanks sentiment was cut out four times from inexpensive white cardstock and then glued together one piece at a time. A bit sticky, but worth it. I then added the glimmer paper one to the top and used my trusty tombo glue to place it on the front at a slight angle.  I was temped to add more, but made myself stop.  Details are great, but not if they distract from the simple beauty you started with. My club ladies would love this card, but I think a large group would be too messy, so I will just share the sample for ideas.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Tasty Trucks

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Let’s taco ’bout how awesome you are!  What a great sentiment to use, right?  This adorable stamp set has many little food options to decorate with, hot dogs, cup cakes, ice cream cones, and pancakes.  They all fit in with this little food truck that can be decorated all kinds of ways.  And no, that is not designer paper, I stamped all those little tacos and gave them some color too.  It didn’t take long, but they are super fun.

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The truck made me giggle a bit, even more than the tacos.  My oldest daughter is all about the puns and today she needed a pick me up.  This is it.  Life isn’t always fun, but cards sure can be.  This one especially.

I stamped everything, followed that up with coloring in water color pencils and blended everything in super quick with an aqua painter.  How fun and easy!  Coloring the truck took longer just because I had some color choices to make, not much else though.  Simple and silly is the theme for today and I couldn’t be more pleased.  I think I will spend some more time at my desk making silly cards.  What a great way to spend the afternoon.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

We Might as Well Dance

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When things get crazy it always helps me to have a creative outlet. I think the theme of my projects this last weeks speaks volumes.  Good thing I have a way to share that really brings me joy as well as peace.  Just yummy.

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This is my kind of card.  Lots of layers, a bit of interest, a touch of water color and a lovely sentiment.  Not to mention wonderful designer series paper as a background. This one has to be a workshop project for sure.  So great!

The layers were simple and all of the corners rounded. I even found tag framelits that would also carry the rounded corner.  The card base was cut normally measuring 4 1/4 x 11″, scored at 5 1/2″.  There is an additional score to fold the front back on itself perfectly in half.  That half folded front became the base for the decorative front to be place.  A little different, but not too much.

The water color pencils don’t come in all of the classic ink colors just yet, but the colors I chose match really well.  I used bermuda bay, daffodil delight, pacific point and calypso coral.  It worked out fantastic.  Light coloring and even lighter water coloring with the aqua painter.

To complete it I wrapped some of this years Sale-a-bration free ribbon.  Metallic ribbon often is a bit stiff and not fun to work with.  Not this, I love how soft and pliable it is. I would love it if this became a regular product carried in the annual catalog.  Fingers crossed!

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Truly a wonderful project today.  I couldn’t be more pleased, hope you enjoyed and better yet, try one out for yourself!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Everything Will Be OK

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Where did yesterday go?  Well, just about everywhere, and it was a good kind of crazy.  I did create this little duo for yesterday, but really didn’t have time to sit down and share it. Oh well, it will work for today as well.

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I had begun with a totally different card in mind, totally.  It wasn’t working, so here we are. The designer series paper was the only original idea that stayed put, so that became my focus.  The urban underground set is so cool.  I used one side for the card and the other to decorate the matching bag.

The stamp duo is from a free Sale-a-bration set called Designer Tee.  It actually has ten stamps, cool!  The problem came when I decided on the stamps actually.  They were too small to be by themselves and the paper wouldn’t lend my go to floral options.  It took longer for me to get it together.  But it got there!

I love embossing folders, but sometimes I forget myself.  When embossing velum card stock I use a lower tab on my big shot base, but forgot.  It embossed so deep there were some actual tears along part of the pattern.  They got put to work in making the tag look a bit more creative. I will have to remember that.

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I also do love to use one half of a sentiment on the card while placing the other on a gift bag. It really makes for a nice gift.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Special Reason

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Opening new product is so much fun.  This is a stamp and framelit bundle I bought from the spring Stampin’Up! catalog, and I love it.  I had a tag sitting on my work station trying to inspire me, and I went to this set.  Fresh eyes are hard to come by sometimes.  The tag had some colors that I would not have put together myself, or I thought, because I had made that tag!  Silly me.

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Either way, this is what I came up with.  I stamped my background paper using the two floral images from the Special Reason set and then sponged with sweet sugarplum to fill in the spaces some.  The flowers were stamped off once before hitting the background to soften the colors.

I made a die cut from each of the ink colors in coordinating card stock to become the background for my sentiment.  How lovely.  Instead of wrapping ribbon around the card, which is what I love to do, I only made a sweet little bow from ruched ribbon and attached it with a glue dot.  I wanted the ribbon, but not the distraction it would have caused with too much of it.  A very nice balance.

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The inside got a little stamping, as always, to finish it off.  I like this project so much, I think it will become the second project for my class on Saturday.  The ladies love to make their own background paper.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Wishing You Brighter Days to Come

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Life isn’t always fun, often more discouraging.  Those around us need a pick me up now and again.  A special someone needs this, along with a red umbrella I think.

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So many people have been stamping and coloring on craft paper giving a really unique look. I wanted to try a different tone.  Chocolate chip cardstock seemed like a challenge enough. And it was, for sure.  Silver encore ink really helped bring some diversity to the layers though. The background piece was embossed with the falling petals folder and hi-lighted with silver ink.  At first I started with just a sponge dauber but wanted more ink to show. The aqua painter did the trick.  I just sponged the ink pad onto the top of the ink lid and used that for the pallet.  Quick brushstrokes along the petals gave plenty of dimension.

I stamped the woman in black stazon then colored her with water color pencils.  I made sure I liked the look of the colors on this dark paper.  The red pencil looked more orange on the paper, so I went with melon mambo.  It definitely looked more red that way.  Her dress was done in white and yellow and brushed again with wink of stella.  That made her dress really pop.  I went back over with the black pencil to define the contour lines better, they got lost in the white.

Plenty of sponging with silver to give the clouded rain look.  I love how it turned out.  The ribbon is actually tip top taupe striped, but it looked great next to the chocolate chip and definitely took on a darker tone.  Wonderful!

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I think my card ladies would enjoy trying this card out.  This coming Saturday is workshop, this could end up being the first project.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Every Heart Needs

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Gift sets are so great! A bit better than this paper series, but not by much.  I usually am not the kind of person that wants realistic photo paper prints, but this set has my attention. The way the lace is folded really looks dimensional here, even if my photos don’t capture it well.  It is lovely.

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I used one 12 x 12 sheet for this set.  The first cut was to give me a sheet 4 x 12, then a second cut at 5 1/4″ for the card front.  I used the remaining piece to trim out the decorative layers.  The larger section left, measuring at 8 x 12, was scored to create the matching bag. Put that pretty paper to work, otherwise you are left with a bunch of paper that you love and cannot bear to part with.  I know it is hard, but how pretty is this set?

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The doilies are so lovely.  They are very vanilla on one side and whisper white on the other. So versatile, and made from paper that can be worked with a bit.  As you can tell, I sponged these two and gave them a proper crinkle.  A doily doesn’t lay flat after all.

The sentiments came from two different sets and I went against my usual on this one.  I stamped and fussy cut.  I really love a die cut or punch to take care of that, but it had to be done.  Both projects were finished off with this elegant vanilla satin ribbon.  And yes, it is that smooth and delicious to the touch.  I love beautiful ribbon.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

I Hope You Feel Appreciated

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I don’t think I will ever find too many places to stamp this awesome chicken, ever.  There are two other adorable chickens and a little egg too, but this guy rocks!  So here he is peepin’ in a little window to say hello.  Too adorable.

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For a very simple card, I sure did use a lot of different products.  Really though, it went together quite fast.  The card base became a one layer card.  I stamped with white stazon onto the card base using the hardwood stamp.  So cool.  It gave me a subtle woodgrain look that was just right.  I die cut the window out of the card base and again out of whisper white. I glued those two windows together so when I nested them back into the opening, the white one would layer up just ever so slightly.

I backed the window with velum to create the ‘glass’.  I traced the window pane openings on my inside piece of cardstock so I knew where to stamp the trees and chicken.  They got a little ink and a little water color pencil activity and then I glued them in place.  I could have left them on the inside back of the card, but I knew I wanted to cover up the back of the window and have plenty of space to write to my friend.  So I adhered it to the inside top flap of the card and put another blank piece down on the inside back.  Then I had double the space to write and my window stuff all covered up.  Total win!

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Blooms & Wishes

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This stamp set sat in the annual catalog and teased me often.  I would try to pass by it saying that I surely did not need yet another floral stamp set.  Well, I broke down and bought it.  So very glad I did.  What a beautiful watercolor piece, right?  Great stamps make all of the difference.

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I chose a few spring colors to work with, focusing on daffodil delight.  With all of the rainy, cloudy days we have had I wanted something bright and cheery. Mission accomplished for sure!  I stamped the large flowers from the set in different colors, stamping off as I went along.  The centers were all daffodil delight and more of an idea than a detailed center.  I sponged more yellow ink all around the flowers filling in most of the white areas before moving on to spritzing with water.  It was just a matter of managing the water spritzing to allow some ink movement, but not blurring too much.  It didn’t take long before I was satisfied.  A quick drying moment or two with my heat tool and it was ready for the sentiment.

That was stamped on a strip of velum cardstock and then wrapped around the bottom of the card front.  I used a lovely mint macaron satin ribbon to accent the bottom and layered it up with dimensionals.  Such a lovely spring card.  Of course I had to stamp a bit inside with a few yellow daisy images and one for the back too.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

For You

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This was the third project we created at workshop last weekend.  I know this stamp and framelit set are about a whole lot more, but as yet I still haven’t gotten past the hydrangea. I think with fall and the holiday seasons coming I will enjoy more of the trees, but not yet.

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I used the heavy weight whisper white card stock for the background.  I handles the deep impressions of the embossing folders much better.  Also, I had plans for spritzing some color and that would have made some warping sadness otherwise.  It isn’t easy to see, but there is a light tan speckling going on there.  Such an easy technique to employ.

I stamped on wisteria wonder with elegant eggplant for the different tones and accented with more elegant eggplant.  The ink, thick bakers twine, and border piece were all done in elegant eggplant.  It is a dark color, so I kept it under control.  I didn’t sponge anything, that was a challenge to be honest.  The die cutting was simple and then layered in place. The stamping was done last. It did give a bit of a crease line in the sentiment, but worth it.  I worried if I stamped and then spritzed the wording would bleed and I wanted it crisp.  Done.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Fear Not My Friend…

~ moanaj ~ 2 Comments

When I am wanting to convey more emotion in a card, I go directly to water coloring.  The softness it creates is perfect.  And with this card, I literally poured my heart into it.

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I wanted more space to work with so I created a larger card than normal.  This one measures 5″ x 6.5″.  Big, but not too big.  I also created my inside writing panel at the same time.  This card wasn’t going to just get a blank insert, or even a nicely stamped one. Besides, I love writing on water color paper, so very satisfying.

I stamped my floral image and sentiment first so I could control the strength of color where they were.  Then I brushed the papers with clean water to allow plenty of color movement. I kept the background light and tried to keep mixing to a minimum.  The colors I choose don’t always blend nicely, but that doesn’t stop me.  I dried, distressed a bit, and dried until I was happy.

I painted the flowers with strong color, allowed them to dry clean.  Then worked them over properly.  This included adding, dobbing, and adding color on the flower petals for a bit.  I centered the flowers with a strong yellow, but kept the color from the edge of the flower center.  Then I hit that area with a water spritzer and watched the flower bloom all over again.  The color moved nicely and then was dobbed some more.  Gold wink of stella was brushed into the petals and blended with water again.  The overall effect was lovely.

A special card for a very special friend.  She is far more brave than I can imagine.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Thinking of You

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

What an impact some pretty paper and a lovely stamp can make.  I tried to think of other things to add to embellish this project and kept coming up empty.  So, I left it as is and was quite happy with the simplicity of it.

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The designer paper stack is measured 6 x 6 and I used every bit.  The card front was measured out first which left me a wide strip.  Yup, I made a tiny gift bag to go with.  What can I put inside?  I thought of several that would work and I can’t wait to give it a try.  It was a tricky little bag to put into place.  Any piece of leftover paper seems to find its way to a gift bag or box with me, I do hate wasting!

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Have a creative day!

Moana

We Age Not by Years, but by Stories

~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

Well, I survived the first couple of days back to school.  Time to get other things back into place as well.  Seems like there isn’t enough time for the fun things.  I will just have to sneak it in when I can.  Like this little project.

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I opened a new dsp stack and found a bunch of great paper.  One side is a variety of printed photo images and the other is designer paper.  I intended on using a distressed wood pattern, but looked on the other side and found this one.  It reminded me of a stamp in my new Fresh Fruit set and the project was on its way.

I created a coordinating piece of white card stock double stamping the swirly circles in pool party.  I thought that was pretty cool.  Then I stamped two sentiment parts and layered the lot of them.  A simple arrangement stuck together and then raised up all together on dimensionals.  With a little bit of stamping inside as well, of course.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

You’re in My Thoughts

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This is me getting more comfortable with this sassy paper stack.  I have to admit though, the colors are what make it work.  Aren’t they beautiful together?  I don’t think I would have paired them myself, but I will be now.

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Sometimes a simple card works for me.  This one just has a few layers focusing on the patterns of the paper and a simple sentiment.  I left a bit of a gap at the top of the sentiment so I could wrap a bit of ribbon around it.  This ribbon, I love it.  It looked kind of funky in the catalog, but I went for it anyway to share it with my class.  Glad I did.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Love You More

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Smudges and all, I love this card.  Leave it to me to use a stamp set that is filled with two step fruit images to use the flowers instead.  Like I said, I love flowers.  The fruits are great though, and I do plan on making fun projects with them too.  I actually used an old kit from nearly a year ago.  I love putting old kits to use.

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The prior kit had patterned paper in these colors, but has been retired, so I thought I would make my own.  Making background images is so much fun to me.  It takes me back to the roots of my stamping, using quality tools for endless creativity.  This stamp set is made for just that thing.  You will be seeing it a lot I think.

The flowers were stamped first in calypso coral and then outlined with the coordinating stamp.  They match, but don’t have to be exact.  It goes with the artsy look it is designed with.  Works even better for me.  And the sentiment, how perfect is that.  I opted to center the flowers with large basic rhinestones instead of the stamped center.  Either would have been nice, but I wanted sparkle.  A finishing touch of solid bakers twine with a sweet bow. It actually came together pretty quick, it helps to have leftover kits to work with.  That makes me fuss less when I have last minute class cancellations because I know I will put the pre-cut kits to good use eventually.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

I’m Here For You

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Don’t you just love these two?  I am not one to fall for whimsy stamps, especially cutsie animal ones.  But these guys got me.  The whole set is that way and I have used it so much. It is only a host set, so you can’t just buy it, but need to host a workshop to get to it. Totally worth it though.  Who doesn’t love a fun creative workshop though, right?

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I was actually able to put to use an old workshop kit for this project.  It was a sympathy card with a totally different look, but it worked great for this one too.  I sometimes put leftover workshop kits back into my supplies, but sometimes I just keep those kits separate.  They have come in handy more than once, so I keep a small stash on hand.

Simple stamping and light sponging across the embossed folders was really all there was here.  I did run the linen thread across a bone folder to help get the kinks out and give the ends a curl as well.  I didn’t paint or sponge these two, amazing for me really, but I managed.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Love…

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Okay, a little time off is nice, but that wasn’t my intention here.  Life took a busy turn and I am trying to get back on track.  I am out of town trying to enjoy time with my son and his new bride, help my oldest daughter with wedding plans, and manage a little bit of business as well.  I would like to say I am on vacation, but a bit too busy for that.  No fussing, just enjoy the love through it all.

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This simple card was made from an extra kit from a workshop last weekend.  Simple layers, this is all about those layers.  I wouldn’t have paired this particular embossing folder with items outside of nautical items, but I loved how it looked.  I made a large set of cards to blog ahead with and had the intention of sharing them with my new daughter in love.  She is adorable.  Living in a university town there are plenty of weddings to attend, so that is the job of this particular card.  They actually have three to go to in the next month or so.  Busy.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Wishing You Brighter Days…

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Some days can be filled more struggles than others and it can be difficult to find the bright spots.  Being creative each day certainly does bring a lovely balance into my life.  It allows me to grow, share kindness and even teach a few people along the way.  Very nice indeed.

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I tried a different product.  If I am honest, I have had it on my shelf for some time, but hesitated to use it.  I typically am Stampin’Up! exclusive, but was given a gift from my oldest daughter.  Some Ranger distress inks.  So, they are very lovely to water color with. Luckily I have a few to play with, otherwise I might be tempted to get into those.  They react differently than the inks I work with.

These umbrellas though, how adorable!  I have seen images like these for so long, often with the one umbrella being red.  Flirty flamingo works nicely here as a nice contrast to the black.  I created six black umbrellas and a fancy one for the front.  The basic rhinestones come in a few sizes as well as three strings that are connected by adhesive.  One string was just long enough to travel along the bottom of the umbrella leaving two left over that I placed on the top.  The umbrella framelits have so many fun options to make one creative look after another.  It was kind of tricky to choose, but I managed.

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I layered these guys around for a while before I committed to their positioning.  The back ones were adhered directly to the water color paper with the front umbrellas being raised up on dimensionals.  What a lovely card to share with someone needing a little lift.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Comfort & Healing to You…

~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

There are so many talented people out there that love to share their projects like I do. Sometimes one will come along that I not only enjoy, but have to give it a try.  This project is a mix of a couple of different ideas with my own twist.  I do love how it turned out.

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One of the projects I studied had the card base smooth, which was lovely, and no extra layers, just the circle tag.  The other had the same layers I used with a different embossing folder, but I didn’t want to use that one.  I decided on the brick wall folder, but thought it still looked a bit plain.  After it got a good sponging and distressing I was much happier.  I even sponged the die cut piece because it just didn’t match the rest.  A healthy dose of basic pearls finished everything off.

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The inside of a card almost always gets a whisper white or very vanilla piece, but I went with the card front color of so saffron like another example showed.  The color is light enough to be written and stamped on equally well.  A very nice touch.

Have a creative day!

Moana