Whimsy Stamps ~ It's Easy Being Green

Hey crafty friends, this month has been super full for me, so I'm a bit behind with my posting, so today I'm bringing you two creations using the same adorable froggy stamp set. I think these images are super cute and so fun. So I had fun trying a couple of different approaches with these images. 

This first card, I embossed with a large circle stencil, yes stencil, not embossing folder, fun to stretch the stash a bit and I had what I needed in stencil form. After doing the embossing, I took my Copic pens and started drawing in the lily pads over the raised circles in the different sizes provided by the embossing. My lily pads are pretty loose and free, but they looked a lot better once I added in some extra lines for definition. I then added in the colour for the water with my dark B colours. I kept the dark shades tucked in tight around the lily pads and went lighter towards the open water. I trimmed around a couple of the lily pads so I could tuck the frogs under for a more integrated look, rather than just having them float on top. I added some little dragonflies from the same set, cut from vellum and used an opaque metallic pen to add the colour over the vellum for their bodies. I actually also used metallic pens to colour the frogs. They have a fun watery slick sheen in the light, much like I think frogs would look fresh out of a pond. The froggy in front is taking a 'selfie' thanks to a Whimsy die set that has this little selfie stick and the word as part of the diecut options. I finished the design with a couple of rolled roses in place of waterlilies. I didn't have any lily shaped flowers in my stash, so took a little artistic license here for a pop of colour to complete the design.

For this second card, I've used that same stencil to create this bokeh style bubbly background for a bit of fun and interest. I used three shades of Distress Oxide Inks in Salvaged Patina, Cracked Pistachio and Twisted Citron. I shifted and rotated the stencil with each colour change to get a different placement for the bubbles. I think I could have taken it one step further for that true bokeh look and used a white pigment ink as the fourth layer, but didn't want to dull the colours that were there, so opted against this. I diecut a word die from lovely bright emerald green cardstock and added the stamped sentiments in Pine Needles Distress Oxide. This time, my froggies are coloured with Copic Markers apart from the sun brollie and towel which I used the metallic markers for. Such a fun cheeky card.

The rest of our amazing team have created some incredibly cute cards with these fun beach frogs. So be sure to go check those out in our Whimsy Stamps Facebook Group. So many fun makes are shared there, both by our amazing creative team and by our Whimsy friends and fans. So it's rich with inspiration! We also share regular inspiration posts over on the Whimsy Stamps Inspiration Blog, well it's in the name right?! I'll be back soon, with another crafty adventure. I'm working like crazy behind the scenes at the moment ahead of a fun new venture, so I'm less around at the moment, but I'll pop in on your blogs whenever I can. Sending hugs and wishes for happy creative days xoxo

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Challenge Entries:

Cardz 4 Galz: Use Dies & Punches

Alphabet Challenge: F is for Flying (Two little dragonflies are on my lilypad card)