Simple Watercolor Blossom - Stampin' Up! Special Reason

  I think you'll be seeing a lot of the Special Reason stamp set and Stylish Stems framelits over the coming months.  This suite makes such pretty cards every time!  You can layer the stamps and dies to make a very detailed card or you can go really clean and simple.  A versatile flower set with a coordinating die set is really a must have in any stampers collection.  You can make birthday, thinking of you, sympathy, hello and get well with just a change of sentiment and colors.

 

  You can't really get any more clean and simple than this card!  The base is Sahara Sand (a fantastic crisp neutral) and then a layer of Basic Black.  The top layer of Whisper White is die cut with the detailed flower die from Stylish Stems.  

  The soft color wash behind the flower cut out is made with a piece of Shimmery White cardstock colored with watercolor pencils.  Just scribble in random patches covering all the white and slightly overlapping the colors.  I used Daffodil Delight, Calypso Coral, and Melon Mambo.  Using an Aquapainter blend the colors together across the panel.  Adhere it to the back of the die cut panel after drying it with a heat tool (if you can't wait for it to dry on its own!).  This is a fun technique because each panel will be different depending on how heavy you applied the color and how much water is used to blend.

  This card is finished off with a black baker's twine bow, a small happy birthday sentiment in black and a small rhinestone.

  I'm going to enter this card in the Paper Players challenge to make a Clean and Simple flower card.  Always a fun challenge!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Special Reason

Ink: Basic Black

Paper: Sahara Sand, Basic Black, Whisper White, Shimmery White

Accessories: watercolor pencils, Stylish Stems framelits, baker's twine, rhinestone