Two Ways With Hearts

I really love the idea of the Twofer Challenge that Darnell started. It’s very different from any of challenges, or at least than the ones I’m familiar with (which is a fair few!) I didn’t manage to find the time to play along with the first challenge but was determined to play along with this second one. I came up with my ideas fairly easily, and the card making process went very smoothly. My biggest problem actually was when it came to do the photographs. The light box I use for my photographs is not very big, and I couldn’t fit the cards in it side by side to photograph. Even with a slight overlap it wasn’t working. I managed to get photos in the end using some white card as a backdrop and my SAD light for lighting, but I definitely need to come up with another solution in future.

Card 1 – Heart Petaled Flower

I started the first card by cutting down a panel of white card just smaller than my card base. I then used the heart die from the Carta Bella Forever die set to cut five hearts in a circle of sorts towards the top of my card. I set the resulting hearts aside. I then stamped a green stem to my flower using part of a stamp from The Cat’s Pajamas Big Blooms.

Setting my panel aside I started working on the card base. I ink blended some Worn Lipstick Distress Oxide onto the area that would be beneath the die cut apertures. I kept the colour darker at the bottom, lightening up towards the top of the area, to create a gradient.

Returning to my panel I stamped a sentiment from the Big Blooms stamp set onto the lower right corner using the Worn Lipstick ink. I used my ink blending tool across the top of the stamp after inking but before stamping in order to remove some of the ink. In this way I was able to replicate the gradient of the background in my sentiment.

My original plan had been to create a shaker card with the flower, but I decided to leave it just as an aperture instead. I popped the panel up with foam tape and adhered it to the card base, completing the first card.

Card 2 – Row of Hearts

For the second card I took the five hearts that were leftover from creating the first card. I added colour to them using Delicata Pink Shimmer ink, then played with how I wanted to arrange them on my card base. I decided to place them as a line across the card, but felt they needed something a little extra to really set them off. I ended up adding three score lines to the card base going behind the hearts. I considered popping up the hearts on foam squares but eventually settled on adhering them flush to the card base.

I chose a sentiment from Simon Says Stamp’s Really Like You stamp set and added it to the lower right corner using MFT Black Licorice Hybrid Ink.

I’m happy with both of these cards. Which card do you prefer? I think my favourite is the first one. I just love the gradient behind the flower. I do really like the shimmer on the second card, too. I think that the first one is a bit more creative though, which is another reason I like it more. It’s fun to find a different way to use stamps and dies than just the obvious.

Love,

Lady Joyful

*Affiliate links may have been used in this post. When you buy products from a company after following an affiliate link, I will get a kickback at no extra cost to you. This helps me to keep doing what I do! Thank you for your support.*

Challenges included:

Crafty Gals – Add A Heart

Inkspirational – Aperture Card

Paru’s Card Making Challenges – Love

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday – Add A Die Cut

Twofer Card Challenge – Hearts (edit – where it was an honourable mention!)

Uniko Challenge – Something Old, Something New and Optional: Love (old – the heart die, new – the shimmer ink)