Saturday, August 4, 2012

Back With Bling

 
All righty then, I'm back from vacation and the boutique will officially open on Monday.  Shipping will resume on a first-come/first-served basis.   I had a lovely break, but definitely missed my little store and all my fabulous customers.  I had my laptop with me on vacation and was busy tracking down new products and placing orders.  New and seasonal products will be arriving over the next couple of weeks.

And here I am again for my weekly Our Creative Corner post.  This week, one of our new teamies, Paula McClane is our hostess and she is challenging us to create something with both bling and natural elements.  I knew about this challenge ahead of time so when I was making up samples for the July Artistic Outpost release, I knew this MidWinter set would be absolutely perfect for this challenge.  The colors white and silver and lots of bling were dancing around in my brain.  I did the stamping, added a few TH die cut snowflakes and winter roses made with the Tattered Pinecones die, sprinkled them with chunky glitter and this delicate, elegant winter card was born.

As much as I work and work at my photography and lighting, this card still looks SO much better IRL. The snowflakes were made with crumpled parchment paper to which I applied Silver alcohol ink fixative with a felt alcohol ink applicator.  When dry, I flattened the parchment paper out and glued it to chipboard and then cut it with the TH Mini Snowflakes dies.  The left over parchment paper was cut with the Festive Greenery Decorative Strip Die to make the greenery branches.  With my still-wet alcohol ink applicator and Silver mixative, I also colored the white doily.  The only other color used was for the evergreen branches which were stamped with Iced Spruce.  And of course, the winter roses were cut with the tattered Pinecones die.

Sometimes I set out to make something with a preconceived idea and it comes out totally different.  This one was the opposite.  I had a vision in mind and it came out just the way I had envisioned it.  This  new MidWinter set from Artistic Outpost is sensational.  You are going to be seeing lots more if it before the holidays have passed.

Now stop by Our Creative Corner to see what the rest of the designers have whipped up to whet your creative appetite.  Hope you 'll be joining or challenge this week at Our Creative Corner.






24 comments:

Scrumplescrunch said...

WOW! Linda.
This card transports me to wonderland, it has a purity that the White palette imparts, along with the glistening imitation snow.
All the elements are gorgeous, from the doily to your Roses, and the image completes the perfect picture.
I just love it.
Smiles:)
Sue

monique said...

waouhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh splendide
bravoooooooooooooooo

ednamburgess said...

Such a beautiful card. Love the white with all the bling. So pretty. Edna

Lisa Minckler said...

You are really getting your money's worth out of that TH Tattered Pine Cone die..LOL..and I'm loving it! I was really taken back when I saw your card. The overwhelming beauty of a winter wonderland out in the country is truly captivating! If I could click my heels and get there NOW and out of this heat, I'd be a very happy camper.
Beautiful card and amazing combination of nature and bling.
Hugs,
Lisa xx

Paula-Scrap Addict said...

talk about understated bling that REALLY makes a big impact! it is soooo serene, I want to go visit & stay a while in the peaceful cabin. Now if we could only get some snow this winter ;-)

Conniecrafter said...

very pretty, love the stamping and the snowy sparkle!

LeAnne said...

Oh my gosh, I just LOVE that image and sentiment. I feel a trip to AO coming on!

Sophie said...

Was für eine romantische herrliche Winter-Szene...
Wunderschön, man spürt richtig den Frost :-)

Sonnige Grüße

MarcyK924 said...

OMG, Linda, I was just looking at your card enlarged and the photography is gorgeous, never mind your amazing creation! Your idea for white and silver fit the challenge perfectly and even brought a chill - in a good way! Beautiful elements that I'll be using for inspiration! Hugs, Marcy

Jenny Marples said...

Sorry Linda, I refuse to get Christmasy in August! but I DO love your card. The flowers do it for me. How do you keep from getting smudges on your white elements? You must be super clean and careful (not like me!!!) Hope you enjoyed your break. Hugs, Buttons x

Michelle Gray said...

GORGEOUS!

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

Seriously, this is a monochromatic beauty!!! The way you stamped the focal AO image in black and gray is a feast my my eyes...brilliant there! Just a gorgeous make Linda!

Dorothy C. said...

Simply beautiful! Like your idea for using parchment. Thanks for sharing.

Words and Pictures said...

Spectacularly gorgeous, sparkly winter card. The winter roses are utterly lovely, and what a wonderful setting for this beautiful stamp!
Alison x

Anne Marie Hile said...

Wow Linda! Talk about walking in a winter wonderland!I hope I'm on your Christmas card list this year...*wink wink*. I keep going back to look at all of the details you added, which are always perfection. I hope you had a wonderful vacation and I can't wait to see what new goodies you will be bringing to your store. Have a great weekend! :)

Sandy said...

I have already slobbered all over my computer - so hope I did not slobber on yours too! Linda I want to copy this so badly I could spit!! Perfect Christmas card - absolutely perfect. When you are this good, what else can you do but open your own store. Gorgeous art work!!!!!
Sandy

marda said...

This is just beautiful.. but I'm NOT going to wish for winter..we'll have it back soon enough. It was a pleasure to look at your wonderland creation.

Ani said...

Wow! This is truly amazing! Hugs, Ani
P.S. I have a candy over at http://cardmaniachallenges.blogspot.com/ if you're interested...

Meihsia Liu said...

This just totally gorgeous, Linda! What a beautiful winter wonderland!!! ... :)

Kathy/NorthCarolina said...

Stunning. Just stunning. One of the most beautiful cards I have ever seen anywhere! (And, honey, I've seen a LOT of cards!!!) Pat yourself on the back...amazing!

Unknown said...

Linda, this card is just stunning, I just can't stop looking at it, it's beautiful. I don't know what else to say really, if I commented on everything that I like about it, well, you would be reading for quite some time! :) So I will just say that I love everything about it. It makes me want to come and visit on the other side of the world and experience a real "white Christmas"! Love it!
Chris

Anonymous said...

Beautiful card Linda, love the texture and the stamp is just gorgeous ! Sue C x

RitaK said...

Wow! What a stunning winter/x-mas card, I love it :-)

Lili said...

Wow Linda! What a beautiful, serene and wintry card. I agree with Sue that the white palette gives a sense of purity. I love how all the elements complement perfectly your focal point. Maybe because I love winter, I keep looking at your card and I'd love to live in a place like that, lol.
Hugs ;)

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