GD: Wanda Hentges #2 Darcy Flower Cards

Hello!!!  Wanda here again and today we are making a couple of cards starting with a fun background technique. 

I'm using stamps from both of Darcy's newest sets today, EDY09 and EDY10.

For the first card, I started with a 6" x 6" piece of heavy smoothy card and painted it with Baltic blue.

And now the fun part!!  I'm using 91% rubbing alcohol (mineral spirits).  The higher the percentage the better for this technique.  We'll be adding watered down paint and immediately dripping on the rubbing alcohol.  Since Fresco Finish paints dry quickly even if they are watered down, the faster you work the better the result.  I'm using mermaid over the top of the Baltic blue.  If you try the technique and the alcohol doesn't cause the paint to move, then either it dried too much or the paint needs to be a little thinner.  

You can also play around with blotting at the paint after dripping on the alcohol.  This was already drying since I set up the above picture and took it before grabbing a paper towel and blotting.  Also since my paper towels have texture, it effects how the blotting looks, picking up the texture of the towel.  That is something to keep in mind depending on the look you are going for.  

I decided to add another color on top, candy floss.  I was sure to move quickly and I had a paper towel ready to go, laying it on immediately after dripping the alcohol, pressing it down and then pulling it back up. 

Is this not cool looking!?!

You can certainly stamp directly onto the background but I decided to use tissue paper to add the flowers.  My main reason was so that I could paint from behind and still have a nice black line without having to be super careful since I was using opaque colors - mermaid, haystack, guacamole and Hyde park.  

EDY09

This picture shows the back of the tissue paper.

Here is the front of the tissue paper with the black stamping still pristine.

Before adding the flower I stamped the small single flower with mermaid over the background to look like a whole field of the flowers.  

Instead of tearing out the flower I glued the tissue paper over the whole card.  Sometimes when I use tissue paper and glue it on, you can tell where the tissue paper is as it doesn't go completely clear.  I didn't want that look so opted to cover the whole thing.  I used Gloss Glaze brushing it on the card, laying on the paper, and then brushing it over the top also.  While the tissue paper was wet, I tore the edges off.  At first I was wrapping any small bits that didn't tear evenly to the back but then decided to just leave them.

I stamped the grass image along the bottom with jet black overlapping in some areas to give more depth.

The quote it also stamped with jet black.

I used The Crafter's Workshop stencil mini tiny circles and stenciled candy floss around the edges.

I sewed around the edges with black thread and then mounted the piece to a folded white card (smoothy card). 

For the second card I again used the heart flowers.  I couldn't help it, I wanted to make a Valentine's card!!!  The piece of heavy smoothy card I started with measures not quite 6 1/2" x 4 1/4".  It was a piece left over from a sheet, that looked like a good size.  I painted the card with very berry and cherry red.

I added watered down snowflake over the top and immediately dripped with alcohol. This time I did not blot at all but just left it all to dry. I could have made more drips but went with the more open look.

Once it was dry, I stamped the bricks using Archival Ink watering can, stamping more than once with each inking.  

I determined where I was going to stamp the flowers and sponged just a bit of snowflake in the areas where the flower heads would be.  

I stamped the flower image with jet black ink and then painted it in with cherry red, pewter, hey pesto and tinned peas. The pewter was painted in the center of the flowers and then cherry red painted over it where the circles are.  

EDY10.

I watered down some cherry red and splattered it on, added white dots to the flower petals with an extra fine white Sharpie paint marker, sponged the edges first with pewter (wider) and then with cherry red (narrower), attached the panel to a black panel and then to a folded white card (smoothy), painted the edges of Scrabble tiles (to spell the word LOVE) with little black dress and glued them on the card.  Oh, I almost forgot, I added just a bit of charcoal pencil around the flowers blending with a stump to add a shadow and giving them more depth. 

I hope you've enjoyed the cards and that you'll give the background technique a try.  It really is fun!!

~Wanda~

A huge thanks to Wanda from PaperArtsy HQ for these brilliant cards. How fabulous is that background technique. it really adds a special kind of dimension behind the stamps. 

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