I finally decided to subscribe to Altenew's Craft-A-Flower die program this month... after debating too long last month and missing the opportunity to purchase a die set I really wanted. This month's flower is an antique rose and while I have to admit I'm generally not a huge rose fan (yes, they're lovely but they just seem overdone to me) I'm still so bummed about missing last month's die set that I decided to give it a go.
The set arrived this week - just in time for me to create a Thank You card for a dear friend who gave me a priceless gift at church last Sunday... and I have to mention that her last name is Rose :-)
I had so much fun playing with the set and was excited to see how beautifully it comes together. As I cut the pieces, the leftover gave me an idea for the Hi card pictured below as well.
For the Thank You card, I pulled out some really old colored cardstock to create the roses. I honestly don't know where it's from but likely a color stack from Hobby Lobby. For the leaves, I used ink blending using Altenew Crisp Dye inks in Frayed Leaf, Forest Glen, and Evergreen. After I die cut all the pieces I used the guide with the dies to glue everything together - they make it super easy. Of course, I was so excited to play with the set that I went about it too quickly... I forgot that I wanted to use an ink blender around each layer to help give them some more depth... but I did remember before the leaves! So, to help with the "pop" a bit on the roses, I used the Wink of Stella glitter brush to highlight each of the exterior petals. Unfortunately it's hard to see that in the picture but trust me, it's lovely!
After glueing the individual pieces together, the fun started with moving the pieces around until I found a composition I was happy with. Once I had that, I rubbed some Glad Press 'n Seal over it so that it would stay together (thank you Jennifer McGuire for that that great tip!!), flipped it over and added blue tape to keep it together. Next - tape runner over the back and flipped it over and adhered it to the "lattice" background. The Thank You sentiment is from the Altenew Adore You stamp & die set. I used Picked Rasberry Distress Ink for that, fussy cut around it, added foam to the back and adhered it in place.
To create the "lattice" background, I used the Altenew Rows of Squares 3D embossing folder, glued it to the pink cardstock. I then decided to flick some more color across it so I used a fan brush to splatter a bit of Picked Rasberry Distress Ink. Then I added some fun foam to the back for dimension and popped it on the card base. I hope you like the finished card as much as I do.
Next, the Hi card. Remember I mentioned that the "left over" after I cut gave me an idea? I decided to use it as a stencil. I pulled out Mustard Seed Distress Oxide and GENTLY dabbed the color on using the domed foam blenders from Scrapbook.com. Then I die cut the Hi sentiment from black card stock using the Impression Obsession "Hi" die and covering it with Ranger clear embossing powder. Again, I decided to add just a bit more color so pulled the fan brush and the Picked Rasberry Distress Ink out again to flick some pink spray across the front at an angle. Finally I added fun foam to the back, glued it to some black cardstock and then to the card base. This was a really fast and easy card.
So, though still not a huge rose fan, I do have to say that I enjoy using this Craft-a-Flower set and know that it'll be of great use long into the future!
Have a blessed day!!