February 1 means I get to share another 2 Crafty Critter Crazies Design Team creation! This month we are working with Beccy's Place!
Beccy has a full and diverse line of products ranging in styles, so choosing the digital stamp I wanted to use was REALLY hard! Just when I thought I had it narrowed down, I'd spot something else and have to start all over again deciding. But all of a sudden, I saw this one image of a seagull on pier posts and immediately knew the card I wanted to make. The image is from the Smooth Seas Digital Stamp Set.
Unfortunately, I was a little dreadful about taking process pics, but I think most things will be pretty clear. To get the card to open up in two directions, I made sure I had a kraft paper card base and a white card base. The kraft has the fold on the left (typical card), while the white would be decorated and glued in with the fold on the right.
Next, I trimmed the front of the craft card down to a rectangle of 4.25" x 1.5". This was to be my pier.
I unfolded the card and inserted just the pier rectangle into an embossing folder. After I embossed it, I lightly brushed some darker brown ink over the top to catch and highlight the woodgrain.
Next I got to work coloring the seagull and pier posts. The bottom of the image does show the posts in water. I refrained from coloring that until I created the front design. You'll see why in a moment!
Now on to creating the second layer of the card. I started by stamping the Simon Says Waves Background stamp in navy across the bottom half of the scene. I chose graduating colors of pencils to create the ombre effect. Then came the scary part, the sunset. I didn't have a huge amount of space and I'd just (rather thoughtlessly) put a lot of effort until coloring the sea. I very carefully masked the sea with washi tape and began to do the most delicate thin rows of ink blending I think I'll ever accomplish. I worked with one little row at a time, adding the next color and working back and forth between the two to get the smoothest blend possible. When I saw the finished piece, I breathed a sigh of relief.
Now I was back to the easy parts! First I stamped and colored the sailboat from The Simon Says stamp set and glued it on so it looked like it was riding a wave. Then I closed the pier back over the scene and positioned my seagull image. I noted the color of the water the pier posts would align with and colored the ripples to match. I glued the seagull down and high fived myself for the card turning out pretty much as I envisioned!
You will note that there is no sentiment on this card. That is intentional. My first thought is that it makes a rather dramatic sympathy card. After all, sailboats sailing into sunsets is a fairly common imagery for that occasion. But that doesn't have to be the case. This would work for a masculine birthday card, a supportive friendship card, retirement, or even just because!
Thanks for visiting and reading! Please check out the other awesome contributions by the design team this month and be sure to support Beccy's Place! With a variety of styles, you're gonna find a lot to love!