STAMPIN' UP! QUIET MEADOW BIRTHDAY CARD FEATURING GRAY GRANITE

 

This week's Colour Creations blog hop is all about Gray Granite.  This Stampin' Up! Neutral colour is what I like to call "elephant grey"; it has brownish undertones.  There are only a few of us taking part in this week's blog hop, so it won't take long to "hop" around all the blogs.

I searched online for colour combinations including Gray Granite, and settled on this one:

After deciding to use the Quiet Meadow stamp set, and Meadow Dies, I wasn't so sure about the inclusion of Calypso Coral for the soft look I was after.  I did, however, incorporate it, in the flower centres (very subtly!).

The background of my card design is a piece of Earthen Elegance Designer Series Paper, matted on a Gray Granite piece of card.  I die-cut two stems from Gray Granite card, using Meadow Dies, and glued them to the Designer Series Paper.

On a piece of Basic White card, I stamped the floral image using Gray Granite ink.  I used Stampin' Blends markers in Gray Granite, Pool Party and Calypso Coral to colour the stems and flowers.  I also used the Color Lifter to lighten the colour of the flowers and flower centres.

After cutting out the stamped and coloured piece with a Deckled Circles Die, I trimmed the right-hand part of the circle, to allow it to be tucked underneath the sentiment strip.  At this point I decided to add some Pool Party ink, using a Blending Brush, around the stamped flowers.

The sentiment, from So Sincere, was stamped in Gray Granite ink on a strip of Pool Party card.  I added a thin strip of Basic White card to the sentiment piece, for a bit of contrast.  Truthfully, this decision was prompted by my smudging some Gray Granite ink alongside the sentiment!  Rather than discard the smudged piece, I just added a "design element".

The sequins started off as matte silver, but I wanted to colour them with my Dark Gray Granite Stampin' Blends marker, to tone in better with my card.  The alcohol marker actually lifted off/dissolved the matte coating on the sequins, so they ended up shiny silver.  Not the look I was going for, but they work!  😄

The bow is Pool Party Grosgrain Ribbon (so pretty, don't you think?).

I share this close-up pic, in the hopes you can just make out the shimmer on the right-hand flower.  After colouring the flowers, I added Wink of Stella to give them some sparkle.

Next up on tonight's blog hop is Catherine Proctor, who does a fantastic job of co-ordinating our Colour Creations blog hops, all throughout the year.:

Listed below are all the products I used to create my card.  If you live in Australia, and would like to shop with me for your Stampin' Up! supplies, you can get to my online store by clicking on any of the thumbnail images below.

Product List

Quiet Meadow Cling Stamp Set [155082] $37.00	So Sincere Cling Stamp Set (English) [162283] $42.00	Basic White A4 Thick Cardstock [159230] $15.75	Gray Granite A4 Cardstock [147008] $17.50	Pool Party A4 Card Stock [124391] $17.50
Basic White A4 Cardstock [159228] $18.50	Earthen Elegance 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [161503] $21.75	Gray Granite Classic Stampin' Pad [147118] $15.75	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad [147107] $15.75	Gray Granite Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154886] $17.50
Pool Party Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154894] $17.50	Calypso Coral Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154881] $17.50	Stampin' Blends Color Lifter [144608] $8.75	Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush [141897] $14.00	Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $223.00
Meadow Dies [155852] $67.00	Deckled Circles Dies [162286] $65.00	Pool Party 3/8" (1 Cm) Grosgrain Ribbon [160430] $14.00	Neutrals Adhesive Backed Sequins [161627] $13.25	Blending Brushes [153611] $23.00
Sponge Daubers [133773] $9.75	Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] $9.75	Mini Glue Dots [103683] $10.25

STAMPIN' UP! SYMPATHY CARD IN SOFT SEA FOAM

 

The colour we're focussing on, for this week's Colour Creations blog hop, is Soft Sea Foam.  This pale green is very subtle.  I have paired it with Mossy Meadow, to give it a bit of a lift.

The stamped succulent leaves (that I think look rather like seaweed, the way I've placed them!) are from a beautiful new stamp set called Botanical Layers, which is being released in the new Stampin' Up! Annual Catalogue on 3rd May.

On a piece of Basic White card, that has a rounded edge cut with a Basic Borders Die, I stamped the leaves three times - twice in Soft Sea Foam ink, and once in Mossy Meadow ink.  I used my Light Soft Sea Foam Stampin' Blends marker to fill in the negative spaces of the Soft Sea Foam leaves.  The Mossy Meadow leaves were coloured with the Dark Soft Sea Foam Stampin' Blends marker.  The little "frilly" green flowers stamped in the background are also from Botanical Layers, and were stamped in Soft Sea Foam and Mossy Meadow.  Before adhering the stamped piece to the checked Soft Sea Foam background, I added a very thin strip of Mossy Meadow checked DSP to the bottom.

I coloured two strands of White Baker's Twine, using my Dark Soft Sea Foam Stampin' Blends marker.  The other embellishments on my card are Genial Gems, that I think nicely complement the two greens I've used in my design.

I stamped the sentiment, from the Quiet Meadow stamp set, directly onto the DSP using Mossy Meadow ink (and my Stamparatus, to allow me to stamp over a few times).  A Stitched With Whimsy Die adds some extra detail around the sentiment.

Next up on tonight's blog hop is Kate Morgan.  If you click on the button below, you will be taken to her blog:

If you come across any broken links, or would like to see a comprehensive list of all participants in this week's blog hop, head over to Catherine Proctor's blog.  Cathy does a great job every week of co-ordinating our Colour Creations shares.

Listed below are the current Stampin' Up! products I used to make my card.  NB:  The Botanical Layers stamp set will be available to purchase from 3rd May, unless you choose to sign up as a Stampin' Up! demonstrator before then (in which case you would get to pre-order new goodies early!).

If you live in Australia, and would like to shop with me for your Stampin' Up! supplies, you can get to my online store by clicking on any of the thumbnail images below.

Product List

Quiet Meadow Cling Stamp Set [155082] $37.00	Stamparatus [148187] $85.00	Clear Block A [118487] $7.00	Basic White A4 Thick Cardstock [159230] $14.25	Mossy Meadow A4 Cardstock [133683] $15.25
Basic White A4 Cardstock [159228] $17.00	Subtles 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) Designer Series Paper [155229] $20.00	Neutrals 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) Designer Series Paper [155226] $20.00	Soft Sea Foam Classic Stampin' Pad [147102] $13.00	Mossy Meadow Classic Stampin' Pad [147111] $13.00
Soft Sea Foam Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154902] $15.50	Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $209.00	Basic Borders Dies [155558] $50.00	Stitched With Whimsy Dies [155314] $50.00	Baker's Twine Essentials Pack [155475] $19.25
Genial Gems [155500] $14.00	Sponge Daubers [133773] $9.00	Stampin' Seal [152813] $14.00	Mini Glue Dots [103683] $8.00