Movin' On--Happy Father's Day!

After working so much on Mother's Day cards for Operation Write Home & Send a Smile 4 Kids, it's time to move along to Father's Day. Both those organizations have at least a month's lead time for special days like this, so they can get the cards sent out in time for the initial recipients to send/give them to their loved ones. So, even though Father's Day is still a couple of months away, it's time to craft those cards!

My first card was inspired by this YouTube video that Sandy Allnock did on OWHTv. She heat embossed a background, then smooshed Distress ink pads onto that. After spritzing it with water, she let it dry, and had a nice, masculine background. The same technique could be used for a feminine card, just by changing the color scheme.

I used the Hero Arts/BasicGrey "Highline Ironwork" background stamp. I inked it up with Versamark, and stamped onto a piece of Strathmore Mixed Media Paper that I'd cut to 4x5.25". After sprinkling on Ranger's Super Fine Detail White embossing powder, I heat embossed it. I then applied Distress inks in Weathered Wood, Peeled Paint, and Chipped Sapphire to the background, spreading the colors directly with the ink pads. I spritzed it generously with water from my mister bottle. Not having Sandy's patience to let it air dry, I sped it along with my heat tool, being careful not to remelt the heat embossing. While I was drying it, I did use a paper towel to soak up a few spots that just looked too dark, before the ink dried.

After I'd dried the background, I used one of Spellbinders' "Classic Ovals SM" dies to cut a window out of one side of the panel. I scanned the panel into my computer, then opened the image in Photoshop. I used that to size and position my greeting, from this Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps set, so it would show through the window. Then I printed the greeting onto a piece of white cardstock that I'd cut to 4.25x5.5". I did end up having to trim that piece slightly, because I got some ink on where it would have shown. So I cut it smaller than the inked background, and adhered it to the back of that panel. Finally, I adhered the entire piece to a white A2-size card base.

a2z Scrapbooking's challenge theme this month is "Stencil." I decided to combine this challenge with A Blog Named Hero's "Embossing" challenge, and create a stenciled/embossed background. My design inspiration came from Operation Write Home's Sketch #227:

I did a rather loose interpretation, mostly using the focal panel position from the sketch.

I used the Hero Arts/BasicGrey "Flag Pattern" stencil, a recent acquisition. I taped it over a 3.75x5" piece of Mixed Media Paper, and smooshed Versamark ink through the stencil. Once I knew I had good coverage, I applied Ranger Super Fine Detail White embossing powder, and melted that with my heat tool. Then I went over the embossing with watercolors in the orange/red range. The embossing resisted the watercolors, giving a really neat effect!

For the focal point, I stamped the gears image from Stampers Anonymous' "Mini Blueprints 3" stamp set onto a piece of blue cardstock, using Versamark. I white heat embossed that, and matted the panel with a burnt orange cardstock, which I felt went well with the background, and complemented the blue. After adhering that in place, I matted the background with more of the blue cardstock. I colored 3 silver mini round brads with Ranger's black alcohol ink, and used those to attach 3 of The Paper Studio's "Vintage Gears" around the focal panel. Finally, I created my greeting in Photoshop, printed it on a piece of bristol paper, cut that into a banner shape, and adhered it with foam tape to the card front. I matted the whole thing with more burnt orange cardstock before adhering it to an A2 card base. I will be sending these cards to Operation Write Home.

I'm entering my first card in A Blog Named Hero's "Embossing" challenge as well.