2020 #10 Postcards with ESN {by Carol Fox}

2020 Topic 10: Recycled Packaging

Intro
There is something super appealing about white, black and a splash of blue on kraft card. The white space is less 'white' when you work with kraft (duh) and somehow that adds a warm balance which I find super-appealing! Carol works her magic utilising many of Sara Naumann's stamps, and there are always a load of interesting elements within them to suit the painted layers perfectly!
~ Leandra

Hi everyone, it's Carol with you today, and I'd like to share with you some postcards made with my favorite packaging to recycle those lovely Amazon Kraft Coloured envelopes.

I have made some 6 x 4 postcards to send in the place of Cards, either for birthdays or just a random "miss you card". I do usually send these naked through the post so I make them flat. Here I have simply stenciled and then added stamping over the top with paints and inks. I used a combination of paints and inks as this adds more layers and I was also introduced to my new must have background stamp, and yes I do admit to being a little bit in love with it.

My finished postcards. I usually send them naked through the post like this, but due to the present circumstances I have added an envelope and this is shown in the last photo.

Background stencil with PS046 and Chalk fresco Paint. I went for a softer white as I thought this looked nicer against the Kraft coloured card.

My new favourite background stamp set ESN09 stamped using Marbles Fresco Paint. I pounced my paint gently onto the stamp with a bit of cut and dry to avoid to much paint and a smudgy image.

  

The words from ESN05 stamped in black archival in. 

Using sets ESN21 and ESN28 I stamped an image on each card using black archival ink.

I added the same splatter image I used before from ESN09 but this time I stamped it in black archival ink. I like how the same image stamped in different mediums adds depth to my postcard.

I didn't like the way the quote had covered my 'Carte Postal' on one of my cards, so I decided to colour in the words on each card and this helped to lift the words in front of the circle stamp. I also ran my ink pad around the edge of the cards to frame them a little bit.

On my envelope I simply repeated what I did for the cards, but I masked off a bit in the middle with a post it note to give a space for the address.

These are very quick to make and are handy for a last minute Birthday card and I like them in preference to a proper card as they remind me of when I was little and we always seemed to get loads of postcards in the summer from Holidays, a bit of the lost past now with all the social media sites and everything being so instant...grief showing my age here!! But I suppose they appeal to the retro chick in me and I love writing my message on the back. My family did think I was either weird or to mean to give them an envelope at first but I think they get it now. Also if anyone still reads proper books they make great bookmarks. 

Have a lovely Day and I can be found at the following places.

Carol x

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