Caring Thoughts

Good evening, and here we are in a new month, ready for a weekend. We've had some nice rain over the past few days, and cooler temps. Thankfully in the community where we live, there's been no flooding issues but there are in some areas. We're grateful to have the rain, as for the most part, it's been the kind that soaks into the ground.

One of our neighbors is having some serious health issues, and has been hospitalized at Emory Hospital in Atlanta. I have been working on a card for her, trying to watercolor again, after seeing a video at Jennifer McGuire's blog, with a guest Lisa Tilson. Inspired me to try my hand....Uh-GIN! I tried to use a simple stamp, and here's the result. After I finished it, I wasn't brave enough to try the spatters!

 

 

Heat embossed with a white EP (Sorry, don't remember the brand, but it was not a pearl powder. It sort of looks like it though). Then used the  zigs with a water brush as Lisa did in her video, to blend the zig ink. There's a couple layers in the green leaves.  Then decided to try to do the 'shadow' effect as she did, using a gray blue with a very pale pink. Decided I didn't like the pink, so went back over it, so that the entire area would be in the gray blue, and liked it better.

 

The water color cardstock was cut some time back, and since it was already squared, just used a stitched die to add a little detail. Then tried to use some mats that would complement the colors of the main image. It's amazing what the camera shows --these mats looked perfectly straight when I was putting each one down, and the card looked pretty good until I saw the photo!!! But I don't think my neighbor will nitpick it.

 

Hope you're ready for a pleasant weekend where you might be. We should be pretty relaxed; hope to have a new recliner delivered for my tv room tomorrow.  I probably should have just had the old chair reupholstered, but I didn't. You only go around once. There's a pretty new card on the Cards by Friends page, which I hope you'll take time to enjoy.

 

Thanks for visiting this evening. I have a few more cards I've been working on, just can't seem to get in a 'finishing' mode. Hugs & Blessings.

 



July CAS Mix up Challenge

Good evening. We had a nice little rainstorm this afternoon. Has cooled down the temps beautifully. After spending the afternoon as we usually do on Sunday - with my 2 brothers, then  we ate out as a family. Came home, got showered & into my summer jammies;  sat out on the porch swing, reading and watching the heat lightning for a little while. Very pleasant, almost too cool for bare arms, so as twilight fell, I came inside.

I've been working on this card off and on for a while, hoping to get it finished before the July CAS Mix Up Challenge ends. I hope it fits the requirements.

Played with Distress and Oxide inks, smooshing onto a craft mat, spritzing, sometimes with water, sometimes with a pearlized spray. Smooshed pieces of 140# watercolor pieces into the inks. Think it was Twisted Citrus, Bundled Sage, Mustard Seed and Peacock blue. Don't remember which was DI and which was DOX. Let layers dry, then added more of the same colors, but at each layer, used a different combination of the same inks. Sometimes after finishing the smooshing, sprayed a gold spray lightly over the piece to dry. When doing the next layer, I'd try to let some of the gold show through. IRL you can see the gold glimmer, not so much in the photo.

Die cut with a Penny Black fern shape, which dictated the smooshing colors I selected. The negative piece will be used for something else later.

A white snippet from which an oval die shape had been cut, was used for the topper. Placed the die behind the oval, tucking some of the fronds to the outside. Thought that looked cool, but the plain white looked 'plain'! Used the 3D Sizzix branches EF to emboss the front. Had thought to ink up the folder, but remembered for the CAS the background needed to be white. (Not real certain if the embossing will disqualify this as CAS!) Needed to have a background behind the die cut, so used another white snippet.  Memento New Sprout inked the EF before running this through the Big Shot. Added a couple sequins & used a tear drop pad of New Sprout to emphasize the oval edge. (Adhered the pieces, but later wished I'd used some fun foam behind the topper to create more dimension). The sentiment was inked with some green pigment ink, but then while it was still wet, decided to heat emboss with Ranger Queen's Gold. I was glad I had, as I think this showed up better than the green ink would have.

Hope all of you had a pleasant and relaxing weekend. Blessings and Hugs, and come back when you have time! Thanks for visiting this evening.