AECP-Level 2-In The Mood for Color

 These cards are inspired my my latest Altenew class- In The Mood for Color.  Did you know that your color choices relay a message to the recipient?  I had never considered this when card making.  This class was another good one in the Altenew lineup.  

My first card uses blue as the main color.  Blue is calming and tranquil. I think this is a good color for a sympathy card and this one is going to my cousin in North Carolina who recently lost his wife.

I stamped each of the blooms in the Wallpaper Art set and colored them with various blue Copic markers.  After stamping the leaf stamp from that set onto my cardstock using Hunter Green ink, I ink blended Arctic blue ink around the edges. I then arranged my blooms.  I attached my cardstock piece to a black piece of cardstock slightly larger.  My sentiment is stamped in black and is from the Starry Flowers stamp set.  This piece was also backed with black cardstock.  All were then adhered to an A2 card base.  The blooms were trimmed as they were hanging over the edge in places.

The color red signifies love, passion or energy.  The Watercolor Blooms stamp set if full of blooms and is easy to stamp.  I stamped several of the images using a base layer of pink with the second layer in red.  The foliage is stamped using Just Green ink.  The sentiment is from the Paint A Flower Anemone set and stamped in red.  

The circle of black and white is preprinted vellum from my stash backed with a white piece of cardstock.  I dry embossed my card front with an embossing folder in my stash as well.  I thought the tiny dots continued the theme of my card.  After die cutting and attaching all of my pieces, I adhered my card front to an A2 card base.

Yellow is a color that can demonstrate energy, optimism, or cheer.  I think this card does that.  It utilizes a partial die cut technique that I have been wanting to try.  The bloom in the Ranunculus set is perfect for this. I used Mocha, Citrus Burst, Maple Yellow, Honey Drizzle and Caramel Toffee for the flower.  The foliage was stamped using Galactic Stream, Dew Drops and Aqualicious inks. I then ink blended the edges using Maple Yellow.  The sentiment is stamped in Galactic Stream, then in Versa Mark and then heat embossed with clear embossing powder. To finish off the card, I added tiny gold splatters.

The next two cards are quick and easy ones using embossing folders.  Altenew has some amazing folders.  I received this one in my last order and love it!  This is the Floating Foliage embossing folder.  I used a very light green cardstock from my stash.  After the panel was embossed, I lightly ran Cracked Pistachio Distress Oxide Ink over the raised portions.  I used Lucky Clover Distress Oxide ink to darken the centers of the leaves. I cut a 1 1/2" strip off one end of my panel and after white heat embossing my sentiment, I attached it to black cardstock.  I then attached the top portion, added a few pearls and attached to an A2 card base.

Words associated with the color green are growth, soothing and natural.  This embossing folder seems to use those words as well.  The card below uses the same technique as above with a slight color change.  I used Mowed Lawn and Luck Clover Distress Oxide inks.  I completed the card using the Fancy For You die cut out of some gold card stock in my stash. I did add a few matching gems from my stash as well.

Two slightly different looks using the same embossing folder.  I hope you enjoyed today's cards.

Happy Stamping!

AECP-Easy Ink Blending

 Hello! I hope you are having a great weekend & staying cool.  It is hot and dry here.  That is a good reason to stay in & craft!  I am SO enjoying the Altenew classes & have just completed Easy Ink Blending with Amy Lee.  I am learning so much & think I will start keeping a notebook with all the tips & tricks from each class to refer to.

The above card uses the Emboss Resist Technique. Start with white cardstock, apply antistatic powder, and stamp your image with VersaMark Embossing Ink.  Sprinkle with embossing powder & heat set. I used the image & sentiments from Altenew Paint A Flower Daffodil and copper embossing powder.  Ink blend until you are happy with your results.  I chose to go lighter in the center & then used a small brush to darken a few spots. I mounted this piece onto copper foil cardstock & then mounted onto an A2 card.  Here is a close up.

Next is a way to add dimension to your inked backgrounds.  Start by ink blending your background in your choice of colors & then use a stencil to add more color.  I used Distress Oxide Inks for my background-Kitsch Flamingo, Twisted Citron, & Wilted Violet.  After this was done, I placed the Altenew Deco Wallpaper Stencil in random spots on my blended piece & applied more ink through the stencil. I stamped the butterfly from Altenew Dream Big in black ink with the layers in colors to match my blended background. The sentiment was embossed on black cardstock using white embossing powder.  I layered this piece on black cardstock & placed on my notecard. I also added a few silver gems.  This card measures 3 1/2 x 7 so I made an envelope from some printed paper in my stash.

My last card features a technique called Faux Watercoloring.  Using watercolor paper, heat emboss your image using white embossing powder.  Ink blend colors of your choice onto your image & surrounding area.  When you are happy with your results, spritz your piece with water, apply ink to a nonporous surface & using a little water & a wet paintbrush, add more color to areas as you prefer. For my card, I used the Altenew Paint A Flower Anemone for the image & a sentiment from Altenew Majestic Bloom.

I added a few ink splatters & Wink of Stella for a little sparkle.  I mounted this onto a grey cardstock & adhered this to an A2 card. I got carried away with my ink blending & painting, but really enjoyed the process.  My picture has a shadow across the bottom-the actual card doesn't have a line across it.