Peaceful Spring

Hi Everyone

Happy Sunday.  Quick post for you tonight.  Lou and I are off to see Wynton Marsalis in concert.  This has been 20 years in the making for me.  So, I am really excited and it kicks off my birthday celebration events. 🙂

Tonight's card features a fabulous spring image from Peace Within set.

I decided to challenge myself to do something different this week.  I rarely do the Featured Stamper challenges on splitcoast.  I think I've done a couple.  However, I saw Apricot Rose, a fellow stamper on splitcoast challenge herself to do a featured stamper card every day for a week.  I thought it was a cool idea… Apricot Rose is pretty cool, too 🙂 and followed her lead.   If you are stuck for ideas, these particular challenges are ideal.  So, I encourage you to check them out at this link.  So, one of my new resolutions  …. we don't have to wait until New Year do we? :-)…. is to make Sunday Featured Stamper day.  The challenge gets posted on Saturday, so hopefully I should be able to get a card posted on Sunday.

The one for today, really took me outside my comfort zone in terms of layout.  Here's my inspiration card.  However, I did have tremendous fun coloring it in.  This is when your markers really come in handy to highlight these gorgeous little flowers and more intricate images.   I tried to make the basket look aged… not sure I succeeded that well, but I did buy a video training CD on how to watercolor, so I am hoping that I will get better.  It's immensely relaxing and meditative and I know it's putzy, but you can get it done really quickly.

I had a similar image from the Peace Within set (114312) and decided to get out my markers, my blender pens and get to work.  I kept the layout the same as the inspiration card, I kept a very similar color scheme and kept the general feel of hte original focal image.  The original card had a much bigger butterfly, but I decided to change it out and use my Beautiful Wings embosslit and cut a small butterfly to fit with the scale of the pic.

To keep with the layout, I used my scallop border punch to create the interest in the top right hand corner and instead of a rhinestone in the left top corner, I used a pearl.  You all know I LOVE my pearls!

The interesting thing for me, was how did I use vellum behind the central image, as had been done in the inspiration card, and still keep the color behind the vellum noticeable…. I decided to use a piece of Certainly Celery behind the vellum.  The vellum softened the yellow of the Certainly Celery, yet still provided enough contrast for you to realize that there is a difference in color between that and the backing card stock, which is Mellow Moss.

Lou is outside taking down our external Christmas tree.  FINALLY.. we have been able to get to it.  The snow has all but melted – oh yeah!  the bulbs are starting to poke their little heads out of their mulch and we are really hoping spring is on her way. 

We have had very foggy days the last few days.  Apparently that is due to the fact that there has been so much snow on the ground and that the melting is raising the humidity level.  So, there you go, I learned something from the weather man this week!

I hope you are all having a fabulous Sunday.  No stamping for me today.  Unfortunately!  But… I was looking to spend a few hours down in my stamping space yesterday.

OOOHHHHHH…. and I got a thank you note from the cards for the troops.  The boxes arrived and are being sorted and on their way to the forces.  Great job everyone.  I felt really happy when I received the notifications.   All the cards that I make for my blog are being collected for my next shipment to the troops.  So much more satisfying than having them sit in a box waiting for the right occasion to send them!

As always, thank you to you all for stopping by my little area of the stamping blogosphere.  Your visits are always appreciated.  tonight I would like to give a special shout out to Terri U and Beth R and another one…. this time a  huge congratulations to Adelle on becoming a grandma again!

Hugs

Jaydee