If at first you don't succeed...

Welcome back!  Today I'm showing you how I saved some supplies from ending up in the trash.  The problem with learning by trial and error is that occasionally there will be error.  Sometimes, not always, that error can turn into something new, creative and even unique.

Yesterday I posted a card made with white pigment ink and what I found out was that even after heat setting (which I obviously didn't do for a long enough time) and letting my pieces dry overnight they still smudged when I adhered them to my cards.  BUMMER!

So with nothing to lose...I took my finger and ran it back and forth over the image.  I was curious to see just how much it would smudge.  The answer, quite a bit😢 I noticed was that I kind of liked the smudged version...so I went and got a clean stiff paint brush and worked it back and forth over the entire card and what I was left with was a card that has an almost worn chalkboard effect.  I did the same to the other 5 I had made.

Not perfect, not what I intended, but in the end unique and usable.  I also stamped the small floral from the same set and some dots on the back of the envelope for fun.  The recipient will never know this was an oops...unless of course they have read this blog post...hehe!

Thank You...clean and simple

Today I've got a clean and simple Thank You card that I just love!  I'm using a few stamps from the set Remember This by Altenew (a hand me down from a crafty friend...SCORE!!).  This is sure to be one I will be using a lot...so many possibilities💜

It is a large stamp set that creates beautiful layered flowers, but for todays project I'm just using the outline stamps.  I stamped the large flower in the corner with Hero Arts white ink on a 3 x 4-1/4 piece of dark blue card stock. Then I added the small flowers to the left, the leaves to the right and balanced it out with a thank you sentiment in the left corner.

A Bunch of Thanks

Thank You cards are something you should never be without, so I thought it was the perfect choice for my next project.  I was gifted the stamp set Floral Frame from a friend and thought it would be really fun to color.  I'm finding that I enjoy coloring a lot!!...it's super relaxing and who doesn't need time to relax?  

I stamped a floral arch with Hero Arts black dye ink on white cardstock and then decided I wanted more, so I turned the stamp around and stamped it again to form a wreath.  If you don't have an arched stamp, you could lightly trace around the bottom of a glass with a pencil and then stamp small floral and leaf elements over it to create your own unique wreath.

Tip:  Manufactures websites are great places to find project examples for their stamp sets.  Also, try typing in the name of the stamp set followed by the word images (example...Avery Elle Floral Frame images) on google and all kinds of inspiration will be right at your finger tips!