Catalog Inspiration #1

I saw on a YouTube channel that there won't be any more full size Stampin' Up! Annual Catalogs. With so many people ordering online, and with the cost of printing and mailing, it seems much more efficient choice. There will be smaller seasonal catalogs 3-4 times a year, which will still be fun. 

Seeing as how this is the last Annual Catalog (as long as that YouTuber was correct), I'm starting something that I've had on my mind for a while. I'd like to copy, or at least be inspired by cards I've seen in the catalog.

So today's card is an inspiration from page 11. It’s actually a card kit featuring blue paper with white printed flowers on it. But I was able to recreate this look with some reverse stamping.

I started with a piece of white 110# card stock (from Michaels) and stamped the floral images using Versa Mark, then I embossed the images with white embossing powder. 

The image is hard to see at first, but it really pops after the dark ink is applied.

The first time I added the ink I chose Stampin' Up!'s Balmy Blue, which looked okay, but I thought it was to light. You could see the design, but the impact wasn't that great.

Since the Balmy Blue ink wasn't what I was going for, I then mixed Stampin' Up!'s Blueberry Bushel Ink with water and painted right over the embossing and old ink. It left the white flowers very visible. 

The darker blue ink definitely makes a greater impact.

Wiping the excess ink off the white embossing really makes the image pop!

Placing a big, heavy book on top of the card (after I dried it a bit with the heat tool) really helped
flatten it out after taking on all that watercoloring.

Next I used Blueberry Bushel Card Stock and cut a shape with a spellbinders die. I then embossed the sentiment in white. I didn’t have a white base that I thought looked elegant, so I decided on silver. I finished it all off with clear/silver looking rhinestones.

It was fun to do this technique and I’m pleased with the results. It’s also a great way to use up those leftover inks that you may not have a stamp pad for anymore. And the cool thing is that you can use many stamps that you already have for this technique.

I think the image is pretty close to the Stampin' Up! cards!

And on a helpful note, if you get ink on your desk like I did, I found that Fantastic works really well to get the stains out. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy inking! 🐌