Tuesday 9 February 2021

Block Work

 Hi and welcome!  There's a bit of a back story to today's card.  I play a word game in the evenings on my tablet and it features different backdrops.  The latest backdrop really piqued my creative interest and I would ponder how I could re-create it in a card.  Here is a screen shot of the backdrop.


I figured stenciling would be the best way and using white ink to get the lighter tones would be easiest.  So yesterday, which was the last day of a long weekend, I sat down and came up with this card.


I am so happy with how this came out and it was so easy!  I started by looking for square masking stencils but the only ones I had were too big, so I made my own stencil with acetate and three square dies.  I then cut a panel of Bristol Smooth cardstock and selected some Distress Oxide inks.  I ink-blended over the background - sort of mimicking the inspiration photo, but adding more blues and less pink.  Once I was finished, I took my acetate stencil and stenciled over the panel with the Distress Oxide inks, creating the squares you can see in the photo below.


Then, to add the lighter tones, I went over it again with the same stencil and Unicorn White pigment ink and this was the result.


The white faded back a bit as it dried but it still had enough variation to satisfy me.  Once it was dry, I die-cut it into a smaller panel with a stitched rectangle die.  So now onto the card!

I didn't want to cover up that background so I went for an inlaid die-cut sentiment.  I cut the Big Hugs die three times from black and once from the ink-blended panel.  I then adhered the ink-blended panel onto a white card base and stacked the black die-cuts back into the gap.  Now for the Doh! moment.  I decided to add some sparkle to the letters, so grabbed my clear sparkle pen, not for a minute thinking the liquid would react with the oxide inks (as I said earlier - DOH!). I couldn't start again so decided to make a feature of it and liberally sprayed all the letters with shimmer spray. I then added the top layer to the card but very slightly offset each letter so a hint of black would show through.



I white-embossed a sub-sentiment and added that across the die-cut word and then added some black hearts which I also sprayed with shimmer spray.

Thanks for visiting!  I'm entering this card into the following challenges:  








Products used:

Stamps:  Essential Sentiments (MFT)
Ink:  Versamark, Unicorn White (Hero Arts), Squeezed Lemonade, Spiced Marmalade, Picked Raspberry, Tumbled Glass, Peacock Feathers, Blueprint Sketch Distress Oxide Inks
Cardstock:  White, Bristol Smooth, Black
Dies:  Stitched Rectangle Stax, Blueprints 11, Band Aids, Big Hugs (MFT), Classic Squares (Spellbinders)
Accessories:  White EP, Acetate, Shimmer Spray

Cheers
Karren

Edited to Add:  This card got a shout out at Paper Players.

21 comments:

Dawn T said...

stunning Karren. It looks bokeh like with the white stenciling on top. Great card.

I Card Everyone said...

Oh, Karren!!! What a fabulous inspiration to recreate! You've done it perfectly!
LOve that you've splattered those hugs to make them stand out even more!
FABulous! xoxo
=]

Nancy said...

Oh, Karren this is such an outstanding card and I had to come by and check it out up close and personal! You should be really happy with this beauty! Thanks for inspiring all of us over at The Paper Players too.

Vicki Dutcher said...

Saw this on FB and loved it there, but having you joining in at our challenge with it is super! This is fabulous! It is on my list to CASE -- just love the overlapping colors and soft end result! Thanks for joining in at JUGS

lostinpaper said...

I absolutely love this and must give it a try! Thanks yet again for the wonderful inspriation Karren

Carol Cel said...

awesome idea!! it looks terrific

Barb Ghig said...

How clever you are to re-create this design! Using Oxide inks and white pigment ink was such a great idea and I love the black shadow behind the die-cut alphas...Another really cool card, Karren!

Linda Callahan said...

This is amazing.....beautifully done!

Kim S said...

This is stunning!!

Claire Broadwater said...

Karren, this is so gorgeous! I love all the colors you used to create this fabulous background! I am so impressed you made your own stencil! If I got this Valentine in the mail, I would frame it! SO happy to see you in the gallery this week! I always admire your work! XX

Jaydee said...

Fabulous! I love the inspiration and your interpretation. Pairing that gorgeous background with the bold sentiment was the perfect finishing touch. So glad you joined us at the Paper Players this week
Jaydee

laurie said...

Thats really an awesome background...love it! Thanks for joining us at The Paper Players !

Jacquie Southas said...

The rainbow square background is beyond stunning, Karren!!

Anne Marie Hile said...

Karren, I love you inspiration for the background and you did an amazing job recreating it. Wow! Those colors really pop. Thank you so much for joining us this week over at The Paper Players!

Christine Blain said...

Wow!! This is a beautiful work of art, Karren. Such a gorgeous background, and your "Doh" moment became a great creative opportunity that really paid off! Love your card to bits.

cm said...

WOW! What an impressive background you've created with your home-made stencil! Such crisp edges and a lovely palette! Perfect for your sentiments! Thank you for joining us at Inkspirational!
~carol

Julie B said...

Bit late to the party but saw this at Inkspirations and was inspired to check it out further. Fabulous technique and love your own inspiration. :)

Carol said...

This is such a cool technique and you were kind enough to share it! Thank you for that and what a beautiful creation!

Nandini said...

Wow! Stunning background. Thanks for the detailed explanation. I am definitely trying this technique!

JoAnn said...

Wow what a fabulous background you have created. Love the colors and also how you added the white over it. Great job.

marilyn said...

How totally clever to see something & then actually recreate it so beautifully! Awesome job...very impressed!