Variations of Bleached Tulips

The Group of Cardmakers are trying the technique of bleaching on cards.  I don't mind using actual bleach but if you don't like using bleach, you can try using water (though I found it much less effective).  Since spring is just around the corner, I decided to use three different tulip stamps.

The card I am most happy with is this one:

I created a smooshed background with various red, orange, and yellow Distress inks on watercolour paper.  I used a bit too much water and it all blended into this dark peach colour.  I put it in my MISTI and stamped the tulip in Versafine black and heat embossed with clear powder.  I then used bleach and a waterbrush to lift the background colour from the tulip.  I also splattered a bit of bleach on the panel.  I chose to leave the tulip white and not add any colour to it. Trimmed it with a stitched rectangle die and added a sentiment.

Next up:

Another smooshed background - this one on white cs with yellow and orange Distress inks.  I then stamped with Distress Walnut Stain and heat embossed with clear powder.  I used bleach and a waterbrush to lift the background colour from all of the flower heads.  The embossing powder had not stuck to all of the image so I lost a bit of my stamping when I did the bleaching.  So I put it back in the MISTI (luckily I hadn't taken the stamp out) but the restamping ended up slightly off set so there's a bit of an out of focus look to the bottom of the image.

This time I added some colour - I used a bit of Distress Candied Apple to add colour to the bottoms of each flower head.  It came out more pink than red, likely because of the bleach residue on the cs.  

I trimmed the panel, popped it up on fun foam on a text embossed background, and added a sentiment.

The third one uses a collage style stamp:

I used various red and orange Distress inks on white cs for this smooshed background.  Again too much water and I ended up with a mostly pink background.  Like the second card, I stamped with Distress Walnut Stain and heat embossed in clear, and again, not all of it ended up embossed.  So I found when I bleached the flower heads, some of the brown lines bleached out and in other spots I ended up with pink bits mixed in with the brown embossed details of the flower heads.  I liked the effect so didn't add any additional colour in the petals, but did use a brown coloured pencil to add back some of the outlines of the petals.

I trimmed the panel, added it to the card base, stamped a sentiment that I cut into two sections and angled on the card.

Final impressions:

• I prefer using watercolour paper to regular cardstock as I found I got better bleaching.
• Heat embossing creates a dam to help you keep the bleach where you want it.  
• If you stamp with a water-based ink and don't manage to heat emboss it thoroughly, the bleach will lift it.  Therefore I will avoid Distress inks for my stamping as they are not as effective for heat embossing.  The pigment ink I used for the first card was much better. 

Brushos (or other powders that work with water) are also effective.  Here's a card I made several years ago using Brushos for the background.  See this post for details.

 

Head over to the Group of Cardmakers blog to see how the rest of the group used bleach.

Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - AALL & Create tulip, unknown sentiment
Ink - Versafine Onyx Black, various red, orange, and yellow Distress inks
Paper - watercolour paper, off white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - clear embossing powder, bleach, Lil Inker's stitched rectangle die, Spellbinders oval die

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - Stamplorations Framed Tulips, Rosie's Roadshow sentiment
Ink - Distress Walnut Stain, various yellow and orange Distress inks, Distress Candied Apple
Paper - white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - bleach, clear embossing powder, text embossing folder, fun foam

Supplies for card 3:
Stamps - Darkroom Door tulip collage, Tim Holtz sentiment
Ink - Distress Walnut Stain, various red and orange Distress inks
Paper - white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - bleach, clear embossing powder, brown coloured pencil

A Baby Horse and an Easter Bunny

A twofer with animals today!

For Simply Clean and Simple, the theme is Baby Animals.  And AAA Cards is "Zoo or Animals".

I sponged Distress inks onto cs, and then stamped the horses (using my MISTI to get a good strong silhouette image).  I trimmed the panel with a hemstitch square die and layered over pink cs.  My sister's riding coach is having a baby girl so she asked me to make a horse-themed card for her to take to the baby shower.

Then for two Easter challenges - Double D and Festive Friday.  The Festive Friday elements I used are pastel colours, rabbit, Easter eggs, and Easter greeting.

I stamped the eggs from the old SU Nature Walk set in pastel shades of blue and then fussy cut them.  I arranged them on focal panel and then inked and spritzed some pastel green leaves around them, and sponged in some pastel blue in the spaces.  The rabbit is die cut from a leftover scrap of pale brown/beige smooshing.  I sat him on the biggest of the eggs and added a small sentiment.

  

Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - Lavinia horses, SU sentiment
Ink - Versafine Onyx Black, Distress Mowed Lawn, Faded Jeans, Spun Sugar, and Wild Honey
Paper - white, pink, and cream cs
Size - 4.75" square
Accessories - Spellbinders hemstitch square die

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - SU Nature Walk and SU sentiment
Ink - various pastel greens, blues, beige Distress inks
Paper - white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Charlie & Paulchen rabbit die

Blue and White Christmas and Belated Flowers

A couple of cards just in time for some challenges!

52 Christmas Card Throwdown wants blue and white cards - my favourite colour combination!

I made a background by sprinkling blue Brushos on watercolour paper and spritzing with water.  When dry, I trimmed it with a pierced dot rectangle die.  I die cut the dove and sentiment from the same white cs as the card base.

The Paper Players want a clean and simple card featuring florals. 

Stamped, coloured with coloured pencils and blended with a bit of Gamsol, trimmed and mounted on a red card base.

  

Supplies for card 1:
Stamps -
Ink -
Paper -
Size -
Accessories -

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps -
Ink -
Paper -
Size -
Accessories -

Sledding Bear

The new Peace on Earth mood board has images of skating and sledding.  I pulled out a Penny Black stamp of two bears sledding.

Stamped and coloured with coloured pencils and trimmed with a square die.  I stepped out of my comfort zone and set the background dp at an angle.  Not sure I like it, but I think it adds to the sense of downhill movement.  I added some Stickles to the snowflakes on the image.

Here's the mood board.  Head over to Peace on Earth to see how it inspired the rest of the Design Team.

 

Supplies:
Stamps - Penny Black
Ink - Versafine Onyx Black
Paper - white cs, snowy dp
Size - 5.25" square
Accessories - coloured pencils, Stickles, Spellbinders square dies

Birthday Flowers, a Hollyhock Garden, and Green and Gold Christmas

I've got three cards for today.  I've really been in the mood to make cards lately!

First up a birthday card (a belated one as I know the post won't get it there in time!).  It's for Cut It Up's "Happy Birthday" challenge.

I inked up a Penny Black background stamp with Distress Oxide Shabby Shutters and Speckled Egg and patted off some of the ink with a rag.  I inked on hammered cs which added to the faded texture of the stamping.  I die cut the flowers and smooshed them into the same two inks.  I  used a separate "belated" sentiment stamp over the "birthday wishes" stamp.

Addicted to CAS's code word is Garden.  One of my favourite flowers is hollyhock and I always have a section of my garden devoted to them.

I stamped and heat embossed the hollyhocks in gold on watercolour paper, then painted them and splattered a bit of gold paint. I created a frame by cutting out the centre of a piece of gold cs with a double stitched rectangle die.

Last one is a very quick CAS card for Color Hues "Green and Gold".  It's also for the Neglected Stuff challenge - I haven't used this stamp set since 2017!

I stamped the base tree in green, then heat embossed the overlap in gold.  I wanted a border that matched the gold on the tree and sentiment so I cut a rectangle one size larger, went around the edge of it with Versamark and heat embossed with the same gold embossing powder all around the edge.

 
     

Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - Penny Black background stamp, SU birthday wishes, Impression Obsession belated
Ink - Distress Oxide Shabby Shutters and Speckled Egg, Archival Potting Soil
Paper - white hammered cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Poppy Stamps flower die

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - The Stampin' Place hollyhocks
Ink - ColorBox Gold
Paper - watercolour paper, gold and off white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - gold embossing powder, watercolour paints, Memory Box double stitched rectangle die cut, Spellbinders rectangle die

Supplies for card 3:
Stamps - SU Solemn Stillness tree, Rosie's Roadshow sentiment
Ink - ColorBox green and gold
Paper - white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - gold embossing powder, Spellbinders rectangle dies

Star with Greenery / Spring Blossoms with Hummingbird

Color Hues wants to see green and gold, and Shopping our Stash wants us to feature gold.

I die cut a star and sentiment out of gold mirror cs, and some greenery out of white shimmer and green shimmer cs. Assembled the card and finished with a gold cord bow.

Seize the Birthday wants Anything with Wings, Four Seasons has a Spring challenge, and I've got birds and blooms for the Triple B challenge (any of birds, blooms, and / or butterflies).

 

I inked up the blossoms stamp in my MISTI with markers, then spritzed lightly with water I die cut the hummingbird out of watercolour paper and coloured him with watercolour paints. His beak is glued down to the centre of one blossom and the rest of him is popped up with foam tape to give the sense of him hovering over the blossom. 

  

 

Supplies for card 1:
Paper - white linen cs, white and green shimmer cs, gold mirror cs
Size - 4.75" square
Accessories - Spellbinders star die, Tim Holtz greenery and joy dies, gold cord

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - Penny Black blossoms, SU sentiment
Ink - Ranger Archival Potting Soil
Paper - Ranger Archival Potting Soil
Size - A2
Accessories - Tombow markers, Gina Marie hummingbird die, watercolour paints, foam tap