If You Need a Hug

The "Hope You Can Cling To" challenge theme for October 27th (2015) is "Strength in Numbers." I must admit, when I first saw the title, I assumed this would be about using numbers on a card. Well, you know what they say about people who assume things. ;) When I read the description, actual numbers are not involved. Instead, the challenge is to use masking to create a group (number) of people or critters as the focal point of your card. Ahhh--numbers! :)

I chose to use the "In My Heart" stamp set by Mama Elephant. Now, this set does come with matching dies, which I have. But you can't really use dies to create good masks, at least not for something like this, since they cut larger than the image itself. So I stamped each of the children on scraps of masking paper, "laminated" them with packing tape to make them more easily reusable, and fussy cut all five of them out.

For the focal panel, I die cut a piece of Strathmore Mixed Media paper with the largest of Lawn Fawn's "Small Stitched Rectangle" dies. I traced around that on a piece of scratch paper, so I could do a "test run" on my stamping. I didn't bother with the masks at this point; I just wanted to get a sense of where each child would go on my panel. After I did that, I stamped the children on my panel, using Ranger Archival Jet Black ink & masking as I went. I then colored them with Inktense pencils.

I'm still experimenting with what colors to use for different skin tones. One thing I find as a minor annoyance is how it seems so many card makers default to doing only Caucasian skin tones. It frustrates me, because I (and others) then have no reference for what colors in different mediums to use for other ethnicities. So I decided just to forge ahead on my own. Like I said, I'm still working out the kinks. But I think, in this card, I got a pretty good approximation of African & Hispanic skin, as well as Caucasian.

Anyway, back to the card. After I'd finished coloring the children, I masked off the edges of my panel outside the faux stitching, and the sky area, and blended Distress inks in Twisted Citron & Mowed Lawn along the bottom for grass. I then masked off the grass area, and used Tumbled Glass, Broken China, Peacock Feathers, and a touch of Mermaid Lagoon Distress inks to create a sky. Finally, I removed all my masking, and stamped the greeting (from the same set) in Jet Black. I also went over the children's eyes with a black gel pen, and the buttons on their clothes with a white gel pen, just to make them pop more.

For the mat, I chose to use the same technique I'd done in this card. I used Twisted Citron, Broken China, & Peacock Feathers, blending a bit of each color here & there around the edges of a white 4.25x5.5" cardstock panel. Finally, I adhered the main panel to this mat, and mounted the entire card front to a white A2 card base.

I'm also entering this card in Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday "Anything Goes" challenge.