A Card from Scratch

Hello!

This week’s Monday Challenge at Simon Says Stamp is to make something from scratch.  For me  gardening and drying flowers extends our short summer and carries happy memories into our long winter. So I am very excited to start in my garden to create this card from scratch.  I select the best flowers and plants for their size, color and quality to make the card. I use a microwave flower press to quickly dry the plant material. For this challenge I decided to incorporate watercolor, acrylic paints and stamping with the 2 dried flowers and fern.  Here is my card created from scratch.

 

   

The image background is started with a watercolor technique.  After the background is dry I ink a background script stamp and stamped it off onto scrap paper and then onto the watercolor background.  To create some additional interest I ink a flower blossom stamp with white acrylic paint and stamp the subtle image onto the background then completely dry it. 

Each dried piece is laid into place for a final layout check.  I put a small amount of gel medium on the background to adhere the flower and then a small amount on my finger I very delicately rub it on the front of each petal from the center to the outer tip of the petal. Hooray, the gel medium did not react with the watercolor background. Then I use a white pen to color in accents on the stamped image and add a flower stock.  

For my card base I used a high quality paper for acrylic paint to create a metallic and iridescent background.  I start by covering the paper with a black paint and after drying I sponge on metallic silver and repeat additional layers of black and silver iridescent paints, drying between each layer. 

This project is also a reminder of the new Mixed Media Card Challenge #1 .  I am on their design team and encourage you to consider entering before the deadline of July 25, 11:55 p.m. PDT (GMT -700).                                        

Happy inky moments!...Jan

 

Supplies

Stamps: Stampendous Agapanthus background flower;  Hero Arts Cherish Yesterday

Paper: Arches white wove, Tim Holtz watercolor paper

Acrylic Paint: Golden fluid acrylic carbon black, metallic sparkle and silver iridescent  

Inks: Archival Black and Watering Can; Kaleidacolor multicolor, Uniball Signo white pen, Micron Archival Ink Pen

Other Supplies:  Golden Soft Gel Medium and Microfleur flower press