These past few weeks, I have been in a bit of a creative rut so I decided to start searching the internet for some paper crafting challenges. Challenges inspire me and give me a jumping off point♥ when I have no ideas of my own. I am not one to search Pinterest because I have found it to be the eternal time sucking rabbit hole with my attention deficit brain. Instead, I chose three challenges which I combined into one simple card.
The colors for this card are a little outside my comfort zone, but I like how the Color Throwdown challenged me with this combination. The stamped flower image from A Million Little Things, was shaded using our TriBlend Markers.
I used a combination of blue, purple, greens, and tan to create the cone flower, then stamped some splatter using Carolina Ink. I love the simplicity of these flower images – they call to my gardening soul♥.
One of the challenges I joined also spoke to the gardener in me. I was inspired by the words in this quote at Time Out Challenges. I felt like this card speaks to the all the gardeners out there “who make our souls bloom”.
After I was finished shading the image, I roughed up the edges, wrapped some twine around the base, and backed it in some Sapphire cardstock.
I chose to keep the background of the card white, but felt like it needed a little texture, so I pulled out my score board and created a grid pattern on the card base. This is a very simple technique♥ that creates a striking backdrop on any card.
When I was finished, I realized that the design for the card matched the Atlantic Heart Sketch challenge perfectly. I moved the sentiment to a different location, but the design was perfect for this stamped image and I really like how this card turned out. I can honestly say that these challenges have started to help my creative brain start working again♥.
If you have been in a bit of a creative rut lately, I challenge you to do what I did and join a few online challenges. For me, they provide the inspiration I need and make my creative gears turn. Maybe they will do the same for you.
