Pink Joy

I'm going to try to make this a quick post, but we'll have to see how it goes!  I sat down this morning to make a couple more Christmas cards and next thing I knew it, I was inking up a Ranger Mini Ink Blending Tool with one of my favorite colors - SU! Melon Mambo.  I love that color - it's even delicious sounding.

After I started, there was no stepping back and next thing I knew I had inked up the entire panel with Melon Mambo even though my intention was to use pink and coral or pink and yellow.  Pretty soon I was channeling Laura Bassen on a recent Simon Says Stamp "From All of Us" release day where she made this card. Now I don't know much about Laura, but she does love her bright colors which is easy to see if you've looked at her blog, Doublestick Heaven, more than once!  She loves any brand of inks that allow her to mix and blend and she does it well.  I just happened to think that this bright pink was gorgeous and I knew I wanted to pair it up with some Gold Mirror Card Stock.  I don't have much of that around because most of the time it simply is too bright to pair up with very many colors that I use, but it was perfect for this and there just happened to be a 2 inch wide strip on my table next to my Cuttlebug.

For my card, I actually had inked up another piece of watercolor card stock with Calypso Coral Ink and I die cut that with my Joy Die.  This particular die came from Paper Trey Ink.  I have a few of their dies and I've been very happy with them.  Anyhow, when I inlaid that coral die cut into the pink frame, I didn't really care for it but that is also when I noticed the Gold Mirror scrap laying on my table.  So, it was a no brainer after that.  I love pink and gold together, in any shade of pink but I'm fussy about my gold.  Most of the time I use a more muted softly brushed gold card stock.

I inlaid the Gold Mirror Card Stock using a little trick that I've seen Jennifer McGuire do which is to place a piece of Post-It Tape over the back of that area because it helps to hold the die cut in place while you set all the little extra pieces into your card front.  You can also use this trick if you want to do ink blending on a die cut to keep from bending or crumpling it up.  I chose this die because there were only 2 pieces to put in but also because with the Jingle Snowflake Border from Simon Says Stamp, it makes me think of the Christmas Carol, "Joy to the World".  This particular card is being designed for a woman, so the pink is a good fit in that regard as well.  I also place the Jingle Snowflake Border across the card front how and where I wanted for the inlay of that part but rather than cutting it through, I used my Cuttlebug Embossing Mat.  This makes the imprint of the die, without cutting all the way through so it acts like a place holder.  Your card will look as if you inlaid that die cut.  All in all, a very fun technique. I just trimmed off the excess with my Cutter Bee Scissors.

I love ink blending and there's no better way to do it than with a Ranger Mini Ink Blending Tool.  Whether you have one that is actually that brand, or something you have made at home to do the same thing, it gives you a result that can't really be obtained any other way.  You only need to remember to start with a light, circular touch and add more layers if you want a deeper color.  Distress Inks seem to work particularly well for this technique, but I am using the ink pads I already have which are 95% Stampin' Up ink pads.  I had never even used most of them until a few months ago. Stamping, like anything else you want to do well, requires practice.  I think I've watched pretty much every Jennifer McGuire, Ink YouTube video because I think she is a champ at card making & techniques and in her videos she will give you little tips & tricks to achieve the same results. I don't get a perfect result every single time I try, but I used to tell people that I am not a stamper.  That is no longer true.  While I do love to use watercolor in my card making, I also really love heat embossing and I've found that I get far better results now that I've had some pretty consistent practice.

I believe that if you want to be successful at something, you have to find someone who already is and then imitate them.  Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery after all.

The Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge this week is "Holly Jolly" and I'll be entering this card over on that blog.  I hope I've inspired you to try some new techniques and experiment a little with your supplies.  Thanks for stopping by today!