Whimsy Stamps ~ Peaceful Poinsettia

Hey crafty friends, I'm back after an extended break having been really poorly and boy am I glad to be back. I have a sweet slimline card to share with you today. I've used a lovely embossing folder to add some texture to the background. I've been trying to catch up some crafting these past few days, so will have a few cards to share with you in a row.

I ink-blended the background panel before embossing it with the lovely Slimline Holly Embossing Folder. I used a mix of red Oxide Inks to create a lovely gradient of colour on the panel. I masked off the edge of the paper before blending, to keep a 

I used some shimmery opaque watercolours from Vicki Boutin and Gansai Tambi to paint this beautiful poinsettia from Whimsy Stamps. I didn’t have a dark red, so used a rich copper red. I coloured the main poinsettia twice, fussy cut the second one into individual petals and layered up some of the petals for extra dimension and interest. I did draw very carefully back over the artist lines after watercolouring, because these opaque watercolours obscure the stamping. If I'd thought ahead, I'd have left the image in the MISTI and stamped it again afterwards. Lesson learnt for next time.

I splattered some Brutus Monroe Gold Aqua Pigment over the watercolouring for some extra shimmer and shine. I bought the little bottle for this, called Shimmer Splash in the colour Gilded. It's like a little nail polish bottle, but the tiny short brush isn't easy to use to actually add the splatter, so I'll go back to the bigger bottle next time and use a brush from my stash. It does add a gorgeous hint of gold though, it's very pretty as the light catches it. 

I just love the texture, the dimension and the shimmer on this creation, but it hasn't photographed as well as it could have. So if you're able, do check out the short real I did for Instagram, which better shows some of the shimmer and sparkle. I love a bit of tartan or plaid, so added a lovely strip of McGregor Tartan Ribbon behind the poinsettia and added a double bow to finish the design. I may yet add a sentiment, but couldn't decide what I wanted to add, so have left it plain for now. I may opt to stamp the sentiment on the inside of the card, which I often do when I've filled the front and not left room! I handmade the envelope to match the red of the background.

Thanks for popping in today, I hope you enjoyed this creative journey and I'll be back very soon with the next one. How is your Christmas crafting going? I'm very behind and not sure I'll catch up now! But I'll give it my best shot! Hugs and happy crafting until next time, Wends xoxo

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