Inspired by Nature

Good morning & welcome to Fall !    Here in Ontario we are enjoying cooler temperatures without the humidity of the summer, it's wonderful.   It rained overnight so it's cool & wet this morning and a perfect time to drink Tea and catch up on blogging.

The challenge theme this week at Impression Obsession is "Inspired by Nature".    I was gardening all afternoon yesterday and was certainly inspired by all the nature around me.   I love this time of year when the leaves are turning and the Mums are blooming.      Last night I created this card to enter into this challenge.

I used the Damask Floral image which is another one of my favourites by Leigh Hannan,      I'll also link into Judith's Forgotten Friday post as these stamps haven't seen ink for approx two years.   Too many stamps, not enough time !

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Impression Obsession Stamps used:  Damask Floral J2011 (rubber stamp) & Damask Floral CL109 Clear set (in which the same image is slightly larger and separated which are great for using as accents).  

I embossed the J2011 Damask Floral and a couple of the leaf images from the CL109 Damask Floral set with dark brown.   I coloured all the images with Tombows and blended Salty Ocean & Evergreen Bough Distress Inks around the image.    I attached the leafy arrangement & the flower charm into the bottom/centre as shown.   I also added some holograph glitter and tiny rhinestones.    The flower charm came from charm necklaces that I took apart to use for embellishments.

Below is a photo of Purple Coneflowers that were blooming in July & August in our garden and are a great inspiration for creating.

Well that's all for this morning !
Thanks for your visit and enjoy your day,
Shirley

Life is Beautiful

Hello everyone !

My sister is out visiting today, and it's raining so I had unexpected time for crafting.     I decided to work on a card to enter into the For Your Inspiration  Challenge Blog (FYI #35)  before it closes in 4 days.   I always find the photos and creations from the DT inspiring.  See bottom of this post for this challenge's photo, it's a beauty !

I was going through all my stamps with my Sister yesterday and when I saw this one I had the desire to create something with it.   I've always been 'in love' with this design, but haven't used it for at least a year & half.    How does the time go by so fast ?    Too many stamps and not enough time :)

Since I've used a 'forgotten' stamp, this also qualifies for Judiths' Forgotten Friday as well.  If you have a chance to visit Judith's blog you won't be disappointed, she creates beautiful work !

Stamps:   Hero Art - S5356 Etched Medallion
               Impression Obsession - CC027 Cover a Card - Flourishes
               Rubber Stamped - A1102E Fern
               "Life is Beautiful" sentiment stamp was included in the gift package at the Art Specially show in Zeist, The Netherlands in April.   I wasn't there, but my sweet Sis kindly gave me hers  :)

Dies used:   Marianne Design LR0150 (blue leafy branch)
                  Crealies CL CS 11 - green leaves

The background for this card was created by using a sheet of paper from the Basic Grey Kioshi Collection (6x6 pad).   I stamped over this sheet using the CAC - Flourishes with Brilliance Galaxy Gold Ink. 

The narrow strip across the background is a piece of left-over watercolour paper that I dipped into Peacock Feathers DI that was rubbed onto my craft mat and sprayed with water.  I then stamped it with the Fern stamp & Mowed Grass DI. 

The flower was stamped and embossed with Gold EP three times.  The powder has a bit of glitter in it, which gives an uneven texture and a bit of sparkle.    I coloured the flower with my Tom Bow markers and cut out them out in sections to layer as shown. 

"Life is Beautiful" was stamped with Colorbox Harbor Pigment Ink.   I also added rhinestones. 

And below is the Inspiration Photo:

By the way, some of my blogland friends have been asking about my knee.  I'm happy to report that I'm doing great.  Not a 100% (yet) but I'm thrilled to be back to most of my regular activities !

Thanks for your visit & have a great day !     
Shirley