One Sketch, Two Cards

I used the sketch for Catch the Bug's Challenge Blog's "Stella Says Sketch" Challenge #606 for my design for two cards to donate to Send a Smile 4 Kids. I followed the sketch exactly for both cards, just using different products for each.

For my first card, I used Bugaboo's "Birdhouses" digi image for the focal panel. I printed it onto a piece of Strathmore Smooth Bristol paper, intending to color it with Tombow markers. I had forgotten that those markers cause the printer ink to smear on the bristol, even when it's dry. So I changed my mind and went with my Mijello Mission Gold watercolors instead. I applied the colors mostly with a #4 round Black Velvet brush from the Silver Brush Company, and used a #8 round for the sky.

I used a patterned paper from Crate Paper's "Cool Kid" 6x6" pad to go behind my focal panel. I also cut strips from green and blue patterned papers from The Paper Studio's "So So Sweet" mat stack. I used a Fiskars "Scallop Sentiment" border punch to punch one long edge of the blue.

I die cut a doily, using a Spellbinders "Delicate Doilies" die, from white cardstock. After my focal panel had dried, I adhered the doily to the back, so about half of it is showing.

To finish my card, I adhered my patterned papers to an A2-size piece of orange cardstock. I stamped my greeting, from Stampendous' "Happy Messages" set, in Versamark ink, and heat embossed with Ranger Super Fine Detail White embossing powder. Finally, I adhered my focal image/doily piece to the panel, and mounted it to a white card base.

The image for my second card was inspired by a challenge at Splitcoaststampers.com, to use an image and make it look like it was reflected in a puddle, pond, etc. I chose Bugaboo's "Flower Pot 1" digital image (currently unavailable). I sized it on a blank "canvas" in Photoshop, then duplicated that layer and flipped the second image vertically. I blurred that second image slightly, then printed the composite onto a piece of Canson XL Mixed Media paper. I colored it with my Inktense pencils, using a damp paintbrush to pick up the color from the pencils and apply it to the paper. When the image was dry, I glazed a light blue over the lower portion, including the pot & flowers, to simulate a puddle.

I used patterned papers from the "So So Sweet" pad to go behind & below my focal panel. I matted the plaid onto a piece of pale blue cardstock. I used a Recollections border punch (name unknown) to punch a yellow strip, and adhered that & a teal strip below my plaid. I stamped the "smile" from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' "Happy Happy" set in Versafine Onyx Black ink onto the background. I also added Rhubarb Crumble Nuvo Crystal Drops to the centers of the flowers in the punched border, to bring the magenta from the plaid paper down the card.

I die cut a doily using a My Favorite Things "Decorative Doily Duo" (discontinued) from the yellow paper in the "So So Sweet" pad, and adhered it & my image panel to the card front. Finally, I mounted the card front to a white A2 card base, and these two encouragement cards are ready to go!

I'm also entering these cards in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday Challenge: "Anything Goes"
Pile It On Challenge #140: "Circles and/or Squares" (used circular doilies)