WWC321 - Tristan's Challenge: All Things Masculine

Time for some adorable little Gnomes at the beach!  I just got this set from Stampendous and have to use it for Tristan's masculine challenge.

For this card I decided to use a top fold since I had plans for the inside, as you'll see.  My base is a Heavy Whisper White followed by a matte of Pool Party.  For the images, I used a piece of Mixed Media paper and stamped my scene.  I love the fact that this set has lots of background images as well as images of the gnomes.  It really helped a lot since I didn't have to go hunting through various stamp sets just to set a scene.  For a change I watercoloured my images and background using a variety of Stampin' Up! stamp pads as well as my Stampin' Markers.

I love the way I was able to have a veritable waterfall of images by using this top fold, don't you?  The background paper is stunning and I'm so glad I got it from the Craft Consortium.  The grunge colours really compliment the colours in each scene, don't they?   I've even added one extra frame with the sentiment stamped right on it and waiting for personal greetings to the birthday boy/man.  I love that there is such a variety of images with which I could play.  This set will definitely be used many more times, it's such fun.

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, August 9th, 2021.

I've also entered my card at the following challenges:

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #151 - Anything Goes

Unicorn Challenge #67 - Summer Time

{PIN}spirational Challenge #279 July

WWC316 - Cathy's Challenge: All About Occasions

 I am madly in love with the wonderful images which Anita Jeram has created for the Colorado Craft Company.  The set which I am using for Cathy's challenge is called Birthday Wishes and, although I didn't use them for my one-layer card, also has dies.  I'm sure I'll be using the images along with the dies sooner than later.

I used a base of the Heavy Whisper White and then stamped my images on regular Whisper White cardstock.  While I like the regular Whisper White, it isn't the best for watercolouring.  I found it really soaked up the colour and, for a very anxious half hour, I though that it would never dry to a smooth finish.  It is, however, a very bright white, and I think the colours show up brilliantly, don't you?

As I said, I kept this to a single layer on my base.  I didn't use a matte to keep the scene dominant, rather than have competition with a bright surrounding colour.  I like the results.  The sentiment, rabbit holding the balloon and hamster jumping up from the tree stump are all by Anita Jeram.  The tree stump, however, is from the Craft Consortium's Little Fawn and Friends series of stamps.  I think it works together with the other stamps quite perfectly, don't you?

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, May 31st, 2021.

I've also entered my card in the following challenges:

AAA Birthday: Game #25 - Happy Birthday  (Happy 2nd Birthday)

Simon Says Monday Challenge Blog - Four legged friends

NBUS Challenge #26 - Never Before Used Shtuff

PCC427 - Theme Challenge (#SimpleStamping)

WWC 290 - Michelle's Challenge: All About Occasions

I love owls!  Imagine my happiness at buying an adorable stamp which has FOUR owls, all dressed in scarves and winter caps, holding their Christmas stockings.   

I used the Heavy Whisper White as my base and actually die-cut a piece of Craft Consortium patterned paper: the Grunge in Light Tones.  After die-cutting that wonderful snowflake edge, I stamped the Wild Rose Studio image of the four owls (Owl Family) and then, near the bottom edge, the sentiment.  Because the paper is lighter in the centre, it was easy to colour the owls using my Stampin' Markers.  The colours show up nice and clean and bright, exactly the way I had hoped they would.

Rather than use a matte behind the paper, I attached it directly to the white base.  The soft colours show up well against the white and give a cooler, more wintery look, don't you agree?  To add a bit of dimension, I used my Snow Marker on the "furry" edges of the hats and stockings.  After this dried, I used my heat gun to  make it nice and puffy.  A final bit of bling, thanks to my Silver Nuvo drops, in the centres of the snowflakes, and my card was finished.    I hope you like it as much as I do.

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, September 28th.         

  

I've also entered my card in the following challenges:

Make My Monday Challenge #131 - Christmas in September    

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #129 - Anything Goes    

CAS Christmas Card Challenge: Christmas September 2020    

Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #508 - Anything Goes     

WWC288 - Kath's Challenge: All About Occasions

I am falling in love with the wonderful images by the Craft Consortium.  The one I've used this week is from the "It's Snome Time', by the talented British illustrator, Helz Cuppleditch.  The stamps are beautiful and the premium patterned paper pads are even more so.  But judge for yourselves.

Isn't that the cutest Gnome ever?  I had such fun watercolouring him with my Aquapainter and stamp pads.  The red is Real Red, the blue is Pool Party, the tips of his boots are Gray Granite, the lowlights in his beard are a very pale Smoky Slate and, finally, the nose and hands take their colour from the Petal Pink Stampin' Marker.

I used a base of the Heavy Whisper White.  Actually I had meant to use a base of Garden Green but when I checked out the layers against both the white and the green, the white made it look lighter and more festive, so that was an easy decision.  Behind the adorable Gnome is a strip of patterned paper with a matte of Real Red and then a layer of another design of the patterned paper.   It's difficult to see in the photo, but those snowflakes all look as if they've been heat embossed onto the paper.  It's a lovely effect.

While the layers of paper are all adhered directly onto each other, the Gnome is raised up on Dimensionals.  I thought a very small sentiment was best so that no attention was taken away from the gorgeous colours and design.  I love the way it turned out, don't you?

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, September 14th.

I've also entered my card in the following challenges:

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #128 - Anything Goes

The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge #78 - Anything Christmas Goes

Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge #506 - Use some patterned paper

WWC287 - Helen's Challenge: Anything Goes With a Feminine Twist

Oh my!  I just bought a gorgeous stamp set from the Craft Consortium and had to use it.  The set is called The Riverbank and the images are simply beautiful.

I decided to use the retired but absolutely lovely Perennial Essence Designer Series paper as my background.  The look of the artist's brushstrokes and the bold mix of colours compliments the swan image which I've used as well as the water lilies in the foreground.

My base is the Heavy Whisper White and then I've used a matte of the Gorgeous Grape to accent the colours in the patterned paper.  I fussy cut the swan as well as the water lilies since, alas, there are no matching dies in this set.  For the swan I used a light watercolour wash of Smoky Slate to add form to the body and neck.  For the water lilies, I began with watercolouring the blossoms, using the pretty Powder Pink.  Layering the colour in places, adds form to the blossoms, too.  The leaves, however, were coloured using my Stampin' Blends.  I used both the dark and the light Call Me Clover to give them form as well as carry the colour from the background.

While I adhered the swan directly to the background, I used dimensionals to pop up the water lilies and thus add dimension to the card.  A quick heat embossing of the sentiment using white embossing powder, and the card was done.  I love the way it turned out, don't you? 

Have fun checking out our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge and I hope you'll link your creation before the deadline on Monday, September 7th.

I've also entered my card in the following challenges:

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #127 - Anything Goes

Crafty Hazelnut's September 2020 Patterned Paper Challenge

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #262 - Things With Wings

Simon Says Stamp it in STAMPtember