Back already?!?

Why, yes! I *am* back already! *lol*

I just finished making this card last night, took me until tonight to get a pic & 'prepare' it for my blog. When I saw this stamp in Mike's I knew I had to have it. I already had several ideas for cards, and I've made two of them. Soon I'll make some more... hope family & friends like it as much as I do!

There are a couple of things you should know about making this card. First is that the base is from Archiver's (called Polarized) back when they still sold 'normal' size bases. I haven't even bothered to pick up any more base cards from them since the change, can't seem to get excited about their new line. I'm sure that you can still get this card stock, maybe I've seen it from the Paper Cut? Oh, yup, linked it there for you. Anyway, it is white, but it also has a gold shimmer to it. Impossible to tell from the pic but absolutely there.

Second is that since my white stamping looked so flat (with the polarized cs) that I went over some of it with Golden Mist Opalite ink. Just a touch (used a blending stump cause it was handy!) so you can't see that in the pic either! :(

And third is that I had the *hardest* time trying to get those red flowers, well, RED. I wanted a nice deep, rich red. Not pink or purple - but RED. First I used prismacolor pencils. Ish. Then I tried ink, Distress & chalk. Still no go. I even bought a vial of ink (for calligraphy) and tried that! That white pigment ink just would not give up! Finally I used the dark red Glaze pen. Success! But just so you know, I did not use the pen by itself - the final piece is over pencil and calligraphy ink (your mileage may vary). You can see the dimension it added in this close up pic. I think for these flowers I liked the shiny effect of the Glaze pens, ties the crystals in with the flowers I think. And in case you can't tell, I used the same glaze pen all around the red layer to make the colors match. Even though I started with a red paper for the layer, the match looks great!

Finally, I know the ribbon looks crooked. It's not IRL, just appears that way because the glue under the crystals stuck the ribbon down too. Maybe someday I'll figure out better photo taking techniques... nah, too much stampin to do! :D

Thanks for visiting with me again! Hope you try some stamping on black!

Recipe: Flower by Hero Arts, Love by Rubber Soul, Ranger Snow Cap, Memento Rhubarb Stalk, Opalites Golden Mist (also Distress Ink Brick Red), various prismacolor pencils, red calligraphy ink, Glaze pen in dark red, Satin edged organza ribbon, red swarovski crystals, pop dots, Glossy Accents, Polarized base