Thank You Cards - Finally!

I finally have most of my craft room set up so I could get some cards made. With seeing family tomorrow I pushed through to get quite a few done.

I created watercolor abstract art on a sheet of 12x18 inch Strathmore Cold Press 140lb paper.  I added salt in some areas.  I ripped my masking tape which held down my edges which gave wonderful irregular edges to my watercolor art.  Great idea. 

Left: SU Pear Pizazz green card stock in A2 size because I know where those envelopes are.

I ripped the bottom edge and added a sequin star in the top right hand corner with half of the one piece of 3D foam tape I could find.

Still stuff to unpack.

I chose blues - Prussian Blue, Ultramarine, and Turquoise along with some Sap Green and Cadmiium Yellow Hue.

Of course not all pieces have the same colors.

The card base is SU Night of Navy with a landscape orientation.  The right hand side ripped with an oval punchie greeting overlapping the ripped edge.

The A2 card base is SU Bermuda Bay.

I ripped the top edge of the watercolor and aligned the right hand edge to the card edge.

I chose to create a flower with watercolor and metallic watercolor around the dot of color left by a grain of coarse salt.

I added a line of pearl watercolor along the top and mounted a greeting over it.

Greeting is SU Modern Label punchie with a Word Window greeting.

Christmas Card Challenge - Watercolor - Aug - Salt Backgrounds

I created a watercolor background for my large Christmas greetings for this month's challenge.

I started with 140lb Arches watercolor paper I purchased from my sister. It had been rolled up so I spritzed it with water and let it relax itself to flatish.

I cut a strip about 6 inches tall and the width of the sheet.  I taped that down to my waterproof work surface.  I used my small watercolor palette I created the other day.  You can follow this link to the post which contains the details. 

I soaked the paper with my spray bottle then I just worked with the greens and blues in my palette. As I moved across I switched from the blues to adding red to create purples. Once I was happy with the colors I misted it again to ensure the whole surface was wet then just added some table salt to the surface.  It then dried for several hours.

I believe this is rough water color paper but is softer than the sheets have I have been using. I was very happy with the pattern produced by the salt.  Once completely dry, I cut it into 4.00 x 5.25 inch sheets.  These will leave a small border of the card base showing.  Since I was not using Stampin Up watercolors it took a bit of evaluation to see which card colors to use.

While the paper dried and searched the internet for some free large greetings I could use. The card above features the one I liked best.  The greetings were sized to be smaller than the watercolor background and printed grey on vellum.  They were then heat embossed with gold powder.  I ripped the edges to provide a more natural edge.

On the right I created some portrait (tall) cards with vellum greetings which also included images. This one is a Christmas tree. For most of  these cards, the vellum is adhered to the watercolor background with tiny gold brads. Then the watercolor layer is adhered to the card base with 3D foam tape squares.

The greeting on the card on the left has been around for a very long time.  It is very classic fonts and makes a great greeting.

The card base on this card is Marina Mist. The brads used on this one are larger sparkly gold star brads. 

I added some vellum adhesive in the opposite corners to keep the vellum close to the watercolor.

 The watercolor background features the transition from green to blue in my original painting.

This watercolor background was the toughest to match to card stock.  I tried Chocolate Chip, Perfect Plum, Sahara Sand and eventually settled on Soft Suede. 

That is the challenge - when I was painting I did not measure the width of the colors so this piece ended up with some muddier colors with the n bright blue on the right hand side.  

This is the other portrait (tall) card where I combined an image and a greeting.

Again, I was not thinking of images at all when I was painting.  I had to trust I could work it out once the watercolor background was dry.

I think this worked out well.

This card features Bermuda Bay for the card base.  Another landscape (wide) layout.

This time tiny gold star brads in all four corners.

I will be adding quarter sheet inserts with a seasonal sentiment to each of these and pairing them with a white A2 envelope.

Another great set of cards for my box.  Ready to give come December st!

These worked out well and the background is worth considering again.

R2Go All Occasion Card Kit - Set 8

I made a couple more Ready 2 Go All Occasion Card Kits today.

This card started with a navy blue card base set in the tall orientation.

I chose designer paper Color Ways Sapphire Collection by Paper House. I trimmed it to 4" by 5.25" and then cut it with the Stampin Up Sunburst Thinlit die.  I adhered it to the card front aligning all edges leaving a small border.

I created an accent with a 2" white circle punchie then a blue 1.75" punchie.  I added a large white silk flower, then a smaller blue one.  I aligned them on the circle and used a push pin to create the hole for the brad.  I placed the silk flowers on the brad and pushed the prongs through the hole and spread them apart on the back of the circle.  This was adhered to the card front with 3D foam tape.

I generally include cards in a stack kit which would work for the guys in our lives.

I started with a Soft Suede colored card base.  I added a layer of gorgeous designer paper but I can't find the credit now.  I trimmed it to 4" by 5.25" then angled it on the card front until I was happy.  I adhered it with double sided tape and then trimmed it to the card edges with scissors.

I added a Tim Holtz Old Jalopy die cut in dark brown card stock.  It was cut with the Movers & Shapers set.  It was adhered with 3D foam tape.

The greeting was printed and then punched with the Stampin Up Modern Label punch.  It was adhered with 3D foam tape as well.   

These layouts are very versatile as they work in both orientations and a greeting can easily be added to either.  I included SU Modern Label punchie greetings in this kit with 3D foam tape to adhere them.

R2G Card Kits - SU - Believe

Here's my next Stampin Up Ready 2 Go Card kit.  Again, I selected Winter Frost Designer Paper. I cut the DSP to 2.12 x 5.5 inches. I chose Pool Party card stock onto which I put stamps from Snowflake Soiree set, The snowflake in Smoky Slate and Believe in Bermuda Bay. I adhered the DSP layer it to the bottom of the landscape card. I then adhered a .5 x 5.5 inch strip of Whisper White over the edge of the DSP.  I added 3 rhinestones in clear and warm blue with Bling Zots to the right hand side of the white strip.

Washi Tape Cross Section

I made the card based on a challenge sketch.  I chose Stampin Up Washi Tape for the elements.  I used Hello Honey from at Happiness Is Project Life Accessory Pack, Bermuda Bay from the Everyday Adventure and the other is Crushed Curry from the Cherry on Top set. I placed them 90 degree angles to each other in the bottom left hand corner on a white card. I cut a couple of them down to half the width to add interest. Once the tape was applied a spattered the piece with Bermuda Bay ink. I chose a More Mustard card and a button to match. I stamped the greeting from the Noteworthy stamp set in black and then added a layer of black between the card and the washi tape layer.  I knotted some black string into the button then adhered it to the card front with a Zot. 
Submitting this card to the following challenges:
Stampin Celebration Sketch 109