The Warmth of Friendship

Welcome to Flourishes' Friday Design Team Challenge!

You can find links to all the Design Team Cards at the bottom of this post.

Be sure to stay tuned...my newly designed Beverly Cole stamp sets, created exclusively for Flourishes, will be here in a few weeks!

a tiny hint...

Oh, how I enjoyed making this card!

As I have said before, with all the art I have been doing over the past few years,

my card making skills are rusty, to say the least.

So...today I decided to just relax and go back to my proverbial, "roots"

of card design.

I used so many fun tools and products from my stash, along with some classic techniques.

First, I took out a stamp set created by Sam Pickard for Flourishes entitled,
"Happy Thoughts"

How fitting for this warm toned card.  I made a mask for the flower stamp in the set,
after cutting the stem off the stamp...I know, I know but it's all good! I can simply reconnect the cut
pieces on an acrylic block when I want to stamp the flower with a stem.

Then, using the "cut" flower stamp and the mask, I created a border.
I colored using my Caran D'Ache Museum Aquarelle pencils, and blended them with
a clear Wink of Stella pen, instead of my water brush. They are subtly sparkly,
which is difficult to see here.

After fussy cutting the image, I flipped it over and used some deep orange ink on a sponge and rubbed the edges of the image, so they were no longer stark white.

Then I started on my background.

I used Flourishes New Leaves and  Tiger Lily card stock from the

Color Made Easy Collection.

I also used some of the adorable patterned papers in the,

"Nestled" 6x6 collection by Authentique. The are available in the Flourishes store.

I used the Perfectly Pierced Classic Hourglass Template Die set by Flourishes

to create an inlaid design. I then "quilted" the two pieces together

with an embossing folder by Anna Griffin.

It's a bit difficult to see in this picture, but if you look carefully, you can see it.

Then, I got out my Singer and zig zag stitched the edges around

the inlay and the edge of the card.

I then added a sentiment from the same stamp set

on Flourishes Classic Ivory Cardstock,

and cut it with another die from the same set.

I added some gems and gold Stickles to the card and the flower centers.

The border is on dimensionals to make it pop.

I truly loved making this. I was in my element...my happy place...my comfort zone.

It felt good.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
C.R.A.F.T. challenge 379 embossing
DL.Art September Linky Challenge
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes
Die Cuttin Divas Challenge #281 Must use a die cut

Visit my friends on the Flourishes Design Team and check out the Flourishes Blog

for Vicki Dutcher's challenge to the Design Team.

Beverly Cole (me!)

Vicki Dutcher

Amanda Havon

Naomi Gong

Linda Lucas

Nancy Nickel

Enjoy!