Getting started...

Well folks, I finally did it, I've finally started my own blog.  This site will be "under construction" for a while so I hope you will bear with me as I continue to tweak the layout and content.  I'm really looking forward to "sharing art" with you.

Today I'm sharing a card using a beautiful Elizabeth Craft die and Elizabeth Craft Microfine Glitter.  I recently had the opportunity to work in the Elizabeth Craft booth at the Puyallup Stamp and Scrapbook Expo where I got to see their beautiful dies, stamps, and new glitter colors plus lots of amazing sample cards that featured their products.  This particular video from Elizabeth Craft inspired my cards:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzGWhAsed_g

The great thing about this technique is that you end up with two cards.  To get started, I used VersaFine Clair Warm Breeze Ink to stamp a sentiment from the Penny Black Special Thoughts (30-338) stamp set, in the upper right corner of a panel of white cardstock cut to 5 1/4" x 4".  I embossed the sentiment with Judikins Clear Embossing Powder.  (I love the new VersaFine Clair inks!  They colors are amazing and they also work great with embossing powders.  I plan to be doing lots more with these inks.)

Next I applied Distress Oxide inks (Mermaid Lagoon, Broken China and Wilted Violet) to a craft mat and sprayed it lightly with water.  I cut a mask for the sentiment from a sticky note and placed it over the sentiment on the card panel.  I dabbed the panel into the Oxide ink, working around the sentiment, then dried it with a heat gun.  I repeated this process two more times until I got the depth of color I wanted.

I die cut the panel with the Elizabeth Craft Flower Lace 2 die.  I also die cut a second piece from a panel of white cardstock that had been cut to 5 1/4" X 4".  This gives you two die cuts and two open panels.  To the back of the Oxide Ink panel, I applied a piece of Elizabeth Craft double sided adhesive, cut slightly smaller than the panel.  I turned it over, sticky side up and pieced in the white die cut, pressing it into the adhesive firmly.  Then I put the panel on a coffee filter and sprinkled Elizabeth Craft Blue Streak MicroFine glitter over the panel.  Tap off the excess glitter and burnish it with your finger.  The more you burnish the glitter, the more it will shine.  Wipe off the panel with a microfiber cloth.

To finish the card, I adhered the panel to a piece of Glamour Green So Silk cardstock and then adhered it to an A2 size card.  I added a few gems for accents.

For the second card, I followed the steps above and pieced the Oxide ink die cut into the white cardstock panel.  I used Elizabeth Craft Amethyst Microfine glitter and in addition to gems, I also used the swirls from the die cut for additional accents.

Products I used:

Elizabeth Craft Flower Lace 2, #1383

Elizabeth Craft Microfine Glitter (Blue Streak, Amethyst)

Penny Black Special Thoughts, #30-338

Distress Oxide Ink (Mermaid Lagoon, Broken China, Wilted Violet)

VersaFine Clair Ink, (Warm Breeze)

Judikins Clear Embossing Powder

So Silk Cardstock

I really loved how easily these dies cut through the cardstock.  It would be easy to make several of these cards, with or without a sentiment.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog.  I hope you will visit again.