For today's Tea Party, Trish, our smART Cookie hostess, posted an inspirational challenge.
Although I like the clean, crisp look of this room as a living space, "inspirational" challenges are my least favorite, so my first thought about using it for t-party fare was something like, "Oh, no!!!!"
If you remember, I sort of already told you this when I posted the initial look-see last week. As a result, Trish and former smART Cookie, Donna Duquette, each left me a comment with some similar, and as it turned out, very helpful advice -- Basically, don't look at everything. Instead, check out the piece 2-3 different times, making note of what stands out to you, then take it from there...
With nothing but stress to lose, I decided to give this approach a try... For three days I simply opened the photo file about thirty seconds per day, and made a mental note of what "pulled me in." Each time, I found my eye drawn to two things -- the vase of blue hydrangeas, and the pastel aqua color. I went from there, and ended here:
Now for the deets --
Stamps: FL-04 Hydrangea, WD-194 Worries
Ink: Brilliance - Pearlescent Lavender, Pearlescent Thyme
Punch: Martha Stewart
Other: Pearlescent Cardstock, Lightweight Vellum, Cuttlebug Swiss Dot Embossing Folder, Lavender Glitter Glue, Sheer Ribbon
Notes: *All edges of the aqua stock were edged with lavender ink. *The saying was clear embossed to make it "pop" a bit better. *Card should be fully assembled before vellum petals are adhered.
I used a version of a rather classic layout, and ended up having a great time because in addition to meeting the challenge, this card became an opportunity for me to try something that's been in my "idea bank" for quite some time -- to cover the stamped hydrangea image with punched vellum petals...
First I custom colored the vellum. (In case you've never tried it, Brilliance ink is fabulous for coloring vellum. Just use even pressure while you swipe the pad across the translucent paper, then let the ink dry. You can choose to ink one or both sides as desired.)
When dry, I cut the vellum in 1-inch strips, and punched out a bunch of petals (both sizes). Note: Using strips makes punching easier, and leaves less waste. Just remember the strips need to be sized appropriately for the punch.
Next, I placed the punched petals on a piece of fun foam, and using a ball-stylus pressed in on each petal's center. Instant shape and dimension! So, so cool!
Then came the "fussy" part -- For each punched petal, a little (and I mean "little") dot of glue was applied via toothpick to the stamped image. After the first layer of larger petals was placed (and dry), a second layer of the small petals was added (nesting fashion), followed by a spot of glitter glue into each small center.
Thanks to Trish and Donna, this "inspirational" challenge turned out to be a stress-LESS, enjoyable experience. Now all I have to do is clean up my mess...
I'm off to clean, Susan T.
If you decided to play along, make sure to let one of us - Trish, Dina, Giovana, Donelda, or myself know where we can see your card.
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