Sunday 5 March 2023

It started with a swing .......

...... and just grew from there:

I used:

- 5.5" x 4.25" tent style card blank, cut from 'Syntegro White Linen Silkweave' textured card

- assorted sizes of snippets of the same white card for the image panel and all the little die cuts

- the image panel was die cut from a snippet using a Penny Black set of dies called 'zig-zag stackers', then set aside

- out came my 'recently set up' dedicated storage folder for teeny dies and then the fun began!

- I cut, all from white card snippets, the following die cuts: Memory Box 'Woodland Branch' and a standard hanging swing from 'Set of Swings', unbranded sitting bunny (he also came with a stool). Plus the following Gummiapan dies: one bird from 'Seagulls', crocuses from 'Spring Flowers' and the biggest pot from 'Set with Pots' 

- so, there I was with a lot of little die cuts to colour in - and out came the Distress Oxide ink pads and water brush

- spend a lovely, relaxing time just rubbing a little of each colour in turn onto my glass mat and picking it up from there with the waterbrush to colour the die cut. For my own reference, I used: 'Walnut Stain' for the branch, 'Vintage Photo' for the swing, 'Tea Dye' for the bunny, 'Lost Shadow' for the bird, 'Villainous Poison' for the crocus flowers, 'Peeled Paint' for the crocus leaves and stems - and a mixture of 'Fired Brick' and 'Spiced Marmalade' to get a terracotta for the pot

- then used a large ball ended embossing tool to slightly round/shape the bunny, along with the pot and the flowers, just to add some dimension

- rubbed some Ranger 'Micro Distress Glaze' onto each of the die cut and coloured pieces - just using a finger then buffing it with a clean tissue. It doesn't add a shine but it does 'lift' the 'matt' look - if that makes sense

- stamped the sentiment into the lower left corner of the panel using a stamp from the Clearly Besotted 'Say What?' set of stamps and a SU 'Perfect Plum' ink pad cube. Obviously, I'd checked and double checked the layout and positioning of the other little elements  

- then glued the front panel onto the card front, with a layer of thin foam sheet backing to raise it up a bit

- heart in mouth I then built up the little scene using a glue pen, tweezers, pokey tool and some teensy pieces of thin foam pad behind the pot and the bunny. The trickiest part was adding the swing and piece of tree branch to make sure they were in the right place and trimmed as I wanted them

- finally, using a pencil I added the eye and little nose to the bunny's face

Phew - bit of a marathon and I do need practice using Distress Oxides to colour with but it was huge fun! I think this card might go to Germany for the grand daughters and their Mum.

The swing die set that started it all off was a little gift from a friend a while ago - you know who you are - mwah! x

I send very few Easter cards but do have plans for two different designs for a couple of friends from my school days. More 'scene building', more Gummiapan -  and more of the sitting bunny I suspect.

So grateful to Chrissie Stokes for her YouTube videos, I've learned loads since finding found her channel round about Christmas time.

Out of interest, the micro glaze I used to finish off the coloured die cuts could just work on top of Zig pen colouring - I need to have a play. To be honest, I bet good old fashioned petroleum jelly might work in much the same way - at a fraction of the price?!

I'd like to enter this into Darnell's NBUS Challenge #48 - all of the dies, apart from the 'Woodland Branch' and the 'Zig zag' edging die , were having their first outing.

Dudley Pupdate: It's been an exciting week for the little guy, we've had four different lots of people here doing various things - and once he's been introduced, and is certain that stealing Honka Duck isn't the reason for their visit, he thinks it's great fun. A couple of times he thought it might be a nice change to go home with them when they were leaving!

EDIT: Bad me, I just realised five days later that I didn't tell you that our Sarn has a new Snippets Challenge up and running in the Snippets Playground! Do have a look at her lovely card and join in with the fun - HERE. She's got a super prize on offer as well.

 



19 comments:

  1. Such a sweet Easter card Di and I love the zigzag edge to the mat and your watercolouring looks wonderful. x

    ReplyDelete
  2. Absolutely love it Di, the little pot of flowers is a perfect finishing touch for a Spring card.

    B x

    ReplyDelete
  3. Aww - this Easter card is sooo sweet. I love it.

    Petroleum Jelly is not a substitute for the Micro Glaze although I agree it feels similar. I read about the difference somewhere. You do not want to end up with a greasy mess after all your hard work!!! Just saying! X

    ReplyDelete
  4. A so cute CAS Di, love the dimension of the swinging bunny and that little pot!
    Have a lovely Sunday! Big hugs, and some cuddles for the little furry boy!

    ReplyDelete
  5. A really cute and fun bunny for Easter

    ReplyDelete
  6. Ooh wow Di l just love your card its super cute the image is adorable i agree with Sarn having done such a lovely card would hate for it to be spoilt enjoy your day xx

    ReplyDelete
  7. A beautiful card Di, if only it was warm enough to be sitting on a swing in the garden at the moment, Roll om spring.

    Sue xx

    ReplyDelete
  8. You've stolen my CAs-loving heart with this very delightful scene, Di! I keep going back up to look it over ~ every detail is perfect! Mwah! Thank you for inspiring everyone at NBUS! Hugs, Darnell

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you SO much Darnell! Very kind. x

      Delete
  9. Wonderful card Di, all the die cuts are beautifully coloured. I have this little bunny die too, still in my NBUS pile where he's been sat for a few weeks. (I'm assuming it's a 'he'! 🤣) Thanks for the inspiration to use it. xx

    ReplyDelete
  10. This is fun, everyone loves the bunny die. Many happy hours can be spent watching Chrissie Stokes on You Tube, she is so clever and shares lots of great tips. I love the little pot of flowers and the pretty edge. x

    ReplyDelete
  11. What a wonderful little scene. In my experience the ones that look really simple are the ones that take the most effort and I think this card is a fine example of that. Look closely and there is so much lovely detail, brilliant. I think I have been absent from your blog for a while again. so sorry, I do often find it hard to keep up with everyone. I am interested to hear that you think the micro glaze is like vaseline. I have some of that so might try it and see what happens xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Hilary! I'm game to experiment with Vaseline and have read some good reports from a crafting friend (Scrappy, Stinky, Inky Mess is her blog I think) and she is a USA gal living over here in the UK and fearlessly into experimenting. She used her Vaseline on Distress Oxides and I think hand wash came into the mix when buffing/wiping away any excess oiliness. I would need to watch her video again more closely However, I wouldn't risk it without doing a few experiments on swatches! So lovely that you spotted and appreciated all the little detail - it really was such a fun card to make! You saying so meant a lot - many thanks!
      Di
      xx

      Delete
  12. Awww, utter cuteness!!! Love this Di!

    ReplyDelete
  13. A sweetie of a card Di - love those Gummipan dies, and you have made them really shine on this card!
    Blessings
    Maxine

    ReplyDelete
  14. That is just the cutest little bunny on a swing! I love the simplicity of it with that touch of stitching around the edge! Absolutely adorable!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Adorable bunny and such a calming, relaxing scene -- your recipient is sure to love it. Your work with oxides and glaze is a great learning experience, one I can relate to but that's how we grow, I guess. Oh -- and so happy to hear that Dudley was gracious with his guests, but chose to stay home!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much if you take the time to comment!

This is a public blog. Those leaving a comment on any post on this blog or entering a piece of artwork into a linky do so in the knowledge that their name and blog link are visible to all who visit this blog and in so doing have published their own personal details and consented to my use of that personal information should they be selected as a winner or to accredit work.