Friendship Card using Footloose Paper and May Stamp of the Month

I was determined to make a friendship card using the new May Stamp of the Month - Friendship Bouquet.  This set can be purchased this month ONLY for $5 with any $50 order, or for $17.95.  Please pardon my fingers and the shadows in the photo.  I really wanted an outdoor shot, but the wind was NOT co-operating!  Supplies and exact dimensions can be found at the bottom of this post.

I generally add color to stamped images by using a watercolor pen or blender pen with chalks or ink pads.  When you do that, you have to make sure you stamp your initial image with something that is not going to smear when you add your color.  Usually, I use  my Staz On ink pad, but I didn't have mine handy.  I opted to stamp with Versamark and then emboss with black embossing powder.  I actually prefer this method when adding color, as the embossed image then has a slight border.  When I was a kid, I disliked coloring a picture and "going out of the lines", and this definitely helps prevent that.

To do my coloring on the sunflower image, I just pushed the lid of my stamp pad against the stamp pad.

  Then, I used my blender pen to pick up the ink off the lid and color in my image.  I don't use copic markers, so this is my way of adding color to an image.  I enjoy using this technique as it is very forgiving, and you end up with a "watercolor" like image.

 

 When choosing my paper, I thought I would grab the Florentine collection, but after looking through  my "stash",  I decided that using any floral paper with this image would take away from the sunflower.  I decided on the Footloose paper!  I love the yellow B&T paper in that pack-- it is casually elegant.  I kept the layout super simple, and I am happy with the result.  Don't forget to distress the edges of each section with a sponge and some ink.  It disguises the seem between each paper piece quite nicely.

Paper Dimensions:

Colonial White Card Base:  4-1/4" x 5-1/2"

Yellow B&T paper: 4-1/4" x 1-1/2"

Sweet Leaf (green) paper:  1-1/2" x 4"

Speckled B&T paper:  2-3/4" x 4"

Colonial White (for image): 2-1/2" x 3"

Supplies (all are CTMH unless otherwise noted)

Paper:  Footloose Paper Packet (X7151B)
Embellishments:  Pearl Opaques (Z1333), Color-Ready Seam Binding Ribbon (Z1732)
Stamps: May Stamp of the Month - Friendship Bouquet (S1205A)
Ink:  Olive, Desert Sand
Embossing:  Versamark, Black Embossing Powder, Craft Heater

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

May Stamp of the Month

This set is gorgeous and can be easily used for both cards and scrapbook pages.

 You can purchase it for $17.95, or only $5 with any $50 order!

You may ALSO take advantage of the Dotty for Your Promotion!

Dotty for You!

Celebrate National Scrapbooking Month in May by mixing and matching to your heart’s content with our new Dotty for You paper packet! The trendy patterns on the front of the papers coordinate perfectly with the dots on the reverse side, giving you lots of options for crafting colorful layouts, cards, and other projects. Dotty for You includes 24 specially designed, coordinating B&T Duos^® sheets (2 each of 12 patterns) and an artwork idea insert to get your creative juices flowing.
There are three ways to get this exclusive Dotty for You paper packet, valued at $19.95:

• Place an order of $35 or more in products from the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book between April 17 and May 31, and add the Dotty for You paper packet for just $5*.
• Host a Gathering with a sales total of $400 or more (excluding tax, shipping/handling, and Operation Smile^® donations) between April 17 and May 31 and receive a Dotty for You paper packet FREE.
• Join Close To My Heart as a new Consultant between April 1 and May 31 and receive a Dotty for You paper packet FREE.