Country Home Color Challenge

 

Time for another color combo challenge entry.  Each month we're given a set of colors and challenged to create a project with a given set of colors.  This month's colors are Pineapple Punch, Highland Heather and Sahara Sand.  The colors are quite different from each other, yet all seemed somewhat muted and neutral. I chose to use the Country Home stamp set to showcase a pitcher full of foliage.

Along with some really beautiful floral images, the Country Home Stamp Set also has a very interesting geometric shape. I used this shape to stamp the purple strip on the left side of the card.

The only possible way to get perfect alignment of a geometric image like this is to use a hinged stamp positioner with multiple hinge positions. While there are many different manufacturers of stamp positioning tools, to get this kind of perfect placement you really need the option for multiple hinge positions. Stampin'UP!'s Stamparatus has the option to shift hinge positions of the stamping plate.

The focus of this project was to showcase the color combination. So rather than stamp the floral sprays from the stamp set, I chose instead to punch some floral springs from the Pineapple Punch and Highland Heather cardstock and to fussy cut the pitcher from the Sahara Sand.  

As you cycle through the blog hop you're sure to see a wide variety of projects using this color combination. Next up on your tour is BirgitHeßdörfer

Here is a full list of the hop participants.

1. Sue McDonald (UK) 
2. Caroline Peck  (USA)  
3. Tanja Klingler-Selinger (AT)  
4. Tricia Butts (US)  
5. Angélique Nederpel  (NL)  
6. Katie Johnson (US)
7. Birgit Heßdörfer 
8. Sue Allen - Australia 
9. Rebecca-Jo Unwin- Australia 

If you're reading this far you must have come full circle in the hop.  As a final comment I'll just add that if you don't already have a Stamparatus, you need one for sure.  There are so many things you can do with this tool. Check out this video using the Stamparatus to do wreath stamping  and  this video showing how to do reflection stamping.

 

You can order the Stamparatus and all the tools used for this project from my on-line store. Shopping links are below.

Again, thanks for visiting today and I hope you've found something to inspire you to go play with color.

If you haven't browsed the Stampin'UP! store I encourage you to spend a little time there. This is a great company with wonderful product. I do receive commission on sales and I appreciate your business - thank-you. My commission is paid by the company, you pay nothing extra when purchasing product through me.

Because I do appreciate your business, you can earn extra rewards when you shop with me
Just be sure to use the Rewards Code for the month (found in the left pane of the blog) when you place your on-line order.

Country Home Photopolymer Stamp Set [147678] - $21.00	Stamparatus [146276] - $49.00	Sprig Punch [148012] -$18.00	Paper Snips [103579] - $10.00	Rhinestone Basic Jewels [144220] - $5.00
	Highland Heather 8-1/2" X 11" Paper [146986] - $8.75	Highland Heather Classic Ink Pad [147103] - $7.50	Pineapple Punch 8-1/2" X 11" paper [146971] - $8.75	Sahara Sand 8-1/2" X 11" Paper [121043] - $8.75	Sahara Sand Classic Ink Pad [147117] - $7.50

February Color Challenge

I participate in a monthly color challenge.  

I think its good to sometimes stretch yourself  with your art . . . and starting a project with colors rather than the image is definitely a stretch.  

Its easy to start with imagery and pick the right colors.  Its more challenging to reverse the process and start with colors and then try choose the imagery.

The February trio of colors is: Soft Sea Foam,
Mossy Meadow and Poppy Parade.

Two greens and a red? 

My first thought was Christmas! But of course February is the wrong month for that holiday.  Then, because its winter here in Wisconsin, I thought about evergreens and cardinals. But I felt the contrast between the two greens was too big a difference to use both greens as trees. In the end I settled on flowers.

I like the contrast of the colors, but felt kind of like I was cheating, like there wasn't enough of the 2 greens.  So I stepped it up a bit with a 2nd card. The flower on both cards was stamped on the Poppy Parade paper and punched out with the Daisy Punch.

The difference on this 2nd card is that I stamped the leaves on the Mossy Meadow and "fussy cut" them with a scissors.  I then glued them over the leaves on stamped stem.  I really like the addition of the extra splash of dark green contrasted with the brightness of the flower.

I'm not sure how well you can see the sparkle on the petals. I went around the edges of each petal and down the center with the Wink of Stella pen.  It really adds a finished look to the flower.

And then because you can never have too much sparkle (right?), I also traced over the letters in the sentiment with the Wink of Stella pen.  Its subtle, but very effective.

Thanks for hopping by.  When you have time, you may enjoy browsing my blog for more ideas. Be sure to check out all the great projects in our February Color Challenge Blog Hop. Click this button to see Astrid's creation.

Back to visit Brigitte

Onward to visit Astrid

1. Tanja Klingler  - (AT)
2. Dorothee Felicitas Buhn 
3. Sandra Roberts - (UK)
4. Pia Gerhardt - (DE
5. Sue McDonald - (UK) 
6. Sandra Herzog
7. Janey Backer - (US)
8. Tricia Butts - (US)
9. Lauren Meiklejohn - (Aust)
10. Silke Trapani - (DE)
11. Renée Eckhardt - (AT)
12. Judith Postler 
13. Rene Guenther - (DE)
14. Jo Blackman - (UK)
15. Laura Mackie - (UK) 
16. Angélique Nederpel - (NL)
17. Rebecca-Jo Unwin - (Australia)
18. Carmen Groinig -  (Austria)
19. Tracy Marie Lewis - (US)
20. Brigitte Baier-Moser - (AT) 
21. *** you are here ***  Katie Johnson - (United States)  
22. Astrid Hofmann (AT)  
23. Tatiana Grübler (DE)  
24. Angela Köber (DE)  
25. Cheryl Taylor (UK)   
26. AnastasiaRadloff (US)

I hope I've inspired you to add a little shine to your next project. The Wink of Stella pen is amazing and the Daisy Delight stamp set and Daisy Punch are a really versatile combo. I'm happy to answer questions about this or any other project. My email is in the header at the top of the page.

If you haven't browsed the Stampin'UP! store I encourage you to spend a little time there. This is a great company with wonderful product. I do receive commission on sales and I appreciate your business - thank-you. My commission is paid by the company, you pay nothing extra when purchasing product through me.

Because I do appreciate your business, you can earn extra rewards when you shop with me
Just be sure to use the Rewards Code for the month (found in the left pane of the blog) when you place your on-line order.

Daisy Delight Photopolymer Stamp Set [143669] - $17.00	Soft Sea Foam Cardstock [146988] - $8.50	Mossy Meadow Cardstock [133676] - $8.50	Mossy Meadow Classic Stampin' Pad [147111] - $7.50	Poppy Parade Card Stock" [119793] - $8.50
	Daisy Punch [143713] - $18.00	Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush [141897] - $8.00	Clear Faceted Gems [144142] - $5.00	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] - $6.00

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Well Said Color Challenge

#ItsAllAboutTheColors!  l

Today I'm participating in the Color Combo Blog Hop.  Each month we're challenged to make something from a new trio of colors. This is a really fun way to stretch yourself because you're totally open on the imagery to use. You get to play in what ever way the colors speak to you. What would you do with the January color challenge?

The blue (Coastal Cabana) and purple (Gorgeous Grape) compliment each other nicely and the Cajun Craze is a strong neutral to complete the triad.  When I saw this color combo the first thing I thought of was "BALLOONS!" 

This month I have 3 cards to show you; all using a balloon shape. The cards are all the same but they showcase 2 different ways to add shine to the same image.  The first card is plain cardstock for comparison.

Shine details coming - first a bonus tip about the balloon strings.  I wanted the strings of the balloons to compliment the texture of the ribbon.  So instead of looking for some sort of twine, I took apart the ribbon to get a few threads for the balloon strings. The technique works especially well with Stampin'UP!'s Flax Ribbon.

The card is cute enough by itself, but real balloons do have a shine to them.
So in an attempt to be more realistic I tried 2 different techniques to add some shine.

On this second card I embossed the whole balloon piece with clear embossing powder.

The effect definitely adds shine to the balloons . . .  heat embossing is super fun  to watch.
and you can add layers for thicker texture and shine.

 

For this last card I covered the whole balloon piece in clear glue using the Fine Tip Glue Pen. Wow, great color and shine. It also adds some texture interest because the balloon is thicker with that layer of glue on it.

 

Both embossing and the use of the clear glue are really fun, easy techniques that I'd encourage you to try. If you've tried either of these techniques I'd love to hear your experience with it in the comments below.

For more details about the product I used there is a list of products at the end of this post.

When you have time, you may enjoy browsing my blog for more ideas.  Thanks for stopping by.  Click this button to visit the next blog in today's Color Combo Blog Hop.

Here are the links to all the blogs in the hop.

1. ElisabethPirolt (AT)
2. Pia Gerhardt - (DE) 
3. TanjaKlingler-Selinger (AT)
4. SandraHerzog 
5. Sue McDonald (UK) 
6. Rene Guenther (DE) 
7. Renée Eckhardt (AT) 
8. Carmen Groinig (AT)
9.  Silke Trapani (DE) -
10. Tracy Marie Lewis - (US)
11. Janey Backer (US)
12. Tricia Butts (U.S.) 
13. Laura Mackie UK
14. Rebecca-JoUnwin- Australia 
15. DorotheeFelicitas Buhn 
16. Cheryl Taylor - UK
17. Sharon Dalton - Australia 
18. JoBlackman
19. Astrid Hofmann (AT) 
20. Kimberley Morris (US) 
21. Tatiana Grübler (DE) 
22. Anastasia Radloff (US) 
23. Angélique Nederpel (NL
24. Katie Johnson (US) - you are here

 I hope I've inspired you to add a little shine to your next project. I'm happy to answer questions about this or any other project. My email is in the header at the top of the page.

If you haven't browsed the Stampin'UP! store I encourage you to spend a little time there. This is a great company with wonderful product. I do receive commission on sales and I appreciate your business - thank-you. My commission is paid by the company, you pay nothing extra when purchasing product through me.

Balloon Bouquet Punch [140609] -$18.00	Whisper White 5/8" (1.6 Cm) Flax Ribbon [148764] - $7.00	Gorgeous Grape 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146987] - $8.50	Cajun Craze 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [119684] - $8.50	Coastal Cabana 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [131297] - $8.50
Basic Black 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [121045] [ $8.50	Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Card Stock [100730] - $9.75	Versamark Pad [102283] - $9.00	Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder [109130] - $5.00	Heat Tool [129053] - $30.00
Fine-Tip Glue Pen [138309] - $7.00	Sunshine Wishes Thinlits Dies [141489] - $27.00	Sparkle Glimmer Paper [146957] - $5.00

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com