Today I'm sharing the very first card I made with the Darling Donkeys. At the time I knew these little creatures did have potential but I though I'd only seen a small piece of it. Since several of my Stampin' Up team of demonstrators, the he'Artstringstampers, had received this set as a prize patrol at a virtual Onstage event last year I though I better unpack their possibilities. I know you've seen me post some other cards I've made since with this set but this is an idea I had for them that I really want to pursue more.
When I was in college my parents built a new home. Yes, that was way back in the 1970's. It was a contemporary home with beautiful views of Lake Superior. I loved the way they incorporated some old barn boards from the farm where my dad had grown up. Instead of what later became the typical horizontal presentation, they put them up diagonally on one wall. It brought a cozy, yet contemporary, warmth to the family room. This sheet of Designer Series Paper from In Good Taste reminds me of these boards. They are warm and weathered AND just light enough to let my stamped donkeys shine through. Don't the donkeys look right at home on this paper?
- I started with a piece of the DSP cut out with the largest square from the Stitched Shapes Dies.
- I used Stazon Jet Black to do my stamping. This is generally the ink that works best with water and watercolor pencils. I have found that I can get away with using Memento Tuxedo Black if you allow enough drying time and use a very light touch with your water or blender pens.
- I added the tree branch from "From All of Us" and a few blades of grass from "High Tide". Hopefully you have something in your stash to lend a little background. Be creative!
- Coloring is done with Watercolor Pencils and a light touch of the blender pen.
- The DSP square is layered onto a piece of Early Espresso die cut with Layering Squares dies - a large scalloped one.
- As I was flipping through my cardstock I was surprised to see how Petal Pink seems to accentuate the warm tones in the weathered wood paper. The Gray Granite card base makes the perfect contrast to the Petal Pink.
As you can see I have a couple of other donkeys on weathered wood circles. If you know of a sketch you'd like to see with these circles, please leave me a comment/link! Once I get them done they will show up in my Darling Donkey Gallery. You can see my other completed cards there right now.
Onstage events are a wonderful perk to being a demonstrator. So much inspiration and a way to meet new stamping friends. We do pay a registration fee to attend so they aren't free so I don't want to misrepresent that. Signing up to be a demonstrator is one of the best deals during Sale-A-Bration. This year you receive an additional 5 packages of Color Family DSP. DSP that will be in next year's catalog.
Let me know if you are interested in more information!
I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.
Check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link at the top of my blog. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]
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