Kool Kitty Musings

DCM - Proud as a peacock

Good morning!

This week over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, Joanne is challenging us to be inspired by peacocks, their iridescent plumage, and even the phrase "proud as a peacock".

Well, I didn't have any peacock images to hand, but I did remember there was a sheet of cardstock in my Concord & 9th sampler pack that is called Peacock and I tried to work around that colour, I even managed to get a "proud" sentiment in too. ;)

Stamps: Concord & 9th - Banner Builder
Dies: Concord & 9th - Banner Builder, The Stamp Market - Easter Egg Shaker, The Stamp Market - Postage Stamp

I started off by cutting the peacock cardstock with the Postage stamp die from The Stamp Market for the main pop of colour.

I then stamped the Banner Builder sentiments on white cardstock and coloured the middle banner with Grapefruit ink using the solid banner stamp in the set.

I mounted the full banner with 3D foam tape and then used floral and leaf accents from the Easter Egg Shaker set to add pops of colour.

The smallest flower in this set is the perfect size to take those awkward large enamel dots that always seem to be left over.

Make sure you check out the wonderful projects from the rest of the design team here, and play along if you can!

Happy crafting!

 

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Concord & 9th - Banner Builder stamps Shop at: EH | MISC | SBC | SHC	Concord & 9th - Banner Builder dies Shop at: EH | MISC | SBC | SHC	The Stamp Market - Easter Egg Shaker dies Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Postage Stamp dies Shop at: MISC
Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	Concord & 9th - Ink cube set Shop at: EH | MISC | SHC	Concord & 9th - Assorted cardstock pack Shop at: EH | MISC | SHC	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ | EH | SSS
The Stamp Market - Cotton Candy cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Curry cardstock Shop at: MISC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	3M Scotch double-sided foam tape Shop at: AZ | EH
Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ | SBC
Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC

DCM - May elemental inspiration

Morning!

It's been a while since I shared a card project, but my mojo thankfully has returned for this week's Daring Cardmakers challenge. Miri has chosen the fab image for our elemental inspiration dare this month:

For my elements I chose the aqua blue, yellow, and grey colour palette, florals, and black dots:

Stamps: Concord & 9th - Painted Peony, Concord & 9th - Botanical Turnabout, Concord & 9th - Paint Swash Turnabout
Dies: Concord & 9th - Painted Peony, Pinkfresh Studio - Diagonal Stitched Rectangles, The Stamp Market - Oblong Hexagon

I started off by creating the blue background with the Paint Swash Turnabout stamp and Lawn Fawn Kiddie Pool ink layered up for 3 rotations of the stamp, leaving areas to go in with the spotty stamp in Onyx black ink and randomly fill in some of the white gaps.

I set the background aside to dry while I inked up the Painted Peony stamps in various colours from the Concord & 9th ink cube set.

For the large peony I used Pinkfresh Sweet Mustard ink for the bottom and middle layer, then Altenew Honey Drizzle for the last layer.

I used my go-to diagonal stitched rectangle die to cut the background to size, and added a grey oblong to make the floral element really stand out against the background.

Press and Seal was of course deployed to keep the floral spray in place so I could stick it down right where I wanted it. It also made it easier to line everything up in the Misti so I could add the sentiment from the Botanical Turnabout stamp set just so...

Once everything was assembled I added some sequins from the Blossom set by Lucy's Things as a finishing touch.

Make sure you check out the wonderful projects from the rest of the design team, and play along if you can!

Happy crafting!

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Concord & 9th - Painted Peony stamps Shop at: EH | MISC | SBC | SHC	Concord & 9th - Botanical Turnabout stamp Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC	Concord & 9th - Paint Swash Turnabout stamp Shop at: EH | MISC | SBC | SHC	Concord & 9th - Painted Peony dies Shop at: EH | MISC | SBC | SHC
Pinkfresh Studio - Diagonal Stitched Rectangles dies Shop at: EH | MISC | SBC	The Stamp Market - Oblong Hexagon dies Shop at: MISC	Altenew - Honey Drizzle dye ink Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Kiddie Pool ink pad Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC
Pinkfresh Studio - Sweet Mustard ink pad Shop at: MISC | SBC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	Altenew - Pocketful of Sunshine ink cube set Shop at: EH | MISC | SHC	Concord & 9th - Ink cube set Shop at: EH | MISC | SHC
Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ | EH | SSS	Simon Says Stamp - Fog cardstock Shop at: SSS	Ranger - Multi-Medium Matte adhesive Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC
3M Scotch double-sided foam tape Shop at: AZ | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ | SBC
Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ | EH | SBC

2021 Card Challenge - May Prompt

Good morning and happy weekend!

This month's prompt enters classic wedding territory with this palette:

{Pinterest pin}

Focus colour: Blush

But it's not all about weddings, here are some ideas to get you started that will work for any occasion:

• Clean and simple - use elements in the layout of the image as a sketch, e.g., a circle as the main focus, as an aperture, wreath or even to hide a gatefold design. You can also use clean fonts for sentiments rather than elaborate ones.
• Ombré - create an ombré look through ink blending, watercolour washes, or simply die-cutting elements in different shades of the same colour.
• Clear - feature a transparent element, such as vellum, acetate, or even mimic a glass vase or jar.
• Confetti/sequins - whether for a shaker card or just as a finishing touch.
• Doily/mandala - the plate of macarons reminds me of doilies, doily background stamps, mandalas, and other decorative designs.
• Florals - again they can be the focus of your card, incorporating the blush tone, or a finishing touch to your design. Paper flowers would work really well here.
• Frame it - be as elaborate as you like with this one. Ornate frames that are the centrepiece of your project (perhaps metal embellishments or laser-cut frames) or a fancy edge on a die-cut panel.
• Marble effect - use alcohol inks or Distress Oxides on glossy paper (with Distress Glaze) to create a marble look for your background.
• Slimline cards - the paint swatches remind me of a landscape slimline card. If you usually make cards in portrait orientation, why not try a landscape card for a change?
• Heat embossing - emboss your sentiment in gold or another shade on a contrasting background.
• Dimension is life - in the words of Laura Bassen, go the extra step and create a card with real dimension, such as a pop-up box card. There are plenty of tutorials on YouTube for pop-up and interactive cards.
• Gold band - feature a gold edge such as Washi tape, metallic cardstock, or glitter paper to add a little glam. You could even use gold braid or feature a gold ribbon, or just any gold embellishment.

Happy crafting!