Vintage Christmas

Hi everyone, today I would like to share a card that is my first attempt with a new-to-me technique - stamping a silhouette stamp with Distress Oxide ink and then dragging out the colour with water, and then creating the background by watercolouring (carefully!) around the stamped images with more DOX. This was inspired by one of Tracy Evans’ snippet videos - she used different stamps and colours, but it prompted me to try something very similar with the Christmas baubles.  It’s quite a different approach to my recent card here where I stamped the baubles with VFC and coloured with Zig pens and pastel pencil. 

I cut a 6” x 4” piece of stamping card, then stamped the baubles by dabbing Scorched Timber DOX around the edges. I then drew the colour towards the centre of each bauble and added more watered down DOX with a water brush until I was reasonably happy with the shading. 

I created the background by painting around the baubles using watered down DOX and dragging out the colour, gradually adding more nearest to the baubles. I spattered with water and allowed to dry naturally, then added random background script stamping using Vintage Photo DOX. I then brought into play my new set of  Tracy’s stamps for AALL & Create which I bought last week in the A&C sale - I have wanted those ferny branches for a while! I stamped these at both top and bottom of the panel using Scorched Timber and Vintage Photo DOX, then added some blended DOX around the edges. 

I added some Wink of Stella to highlight the baubles, white Posca accents and spatters, then stamped, cut out and attached the sentiment which as also lightly brushed with blended DOX and topped with white Posca to represent snow. Finally I hand drew the bauble strings with a dark brown fine liner pen, and matted the finished panel onto dark brown and kraft card stock then a 7” x 5” card blank.

Here’s an angled picture to show the shimmer on the baubles.

Stamps: Tracy Evans Boutique Designs TE18 Decorations, TE22 Christmas Wishes, TE11 Background Elements; AALL & Create #806 Fallen Leaves (branches);

Media: Tim Holtz Distress Oxide inks (Scorched Timber, Vintage Photo); Versafine Clair (Nocturne); Wink of Stella; Posca pen (clear).

Challenges I would like to enter:

12 Months of Christmas #115 - Anything Christmas Goes (7th entry)

ABC Christmas Challenge - U is for Unusual Christmas Colours (4th entry)

Allsorts #803 - Anything Goes (2nd entry)

Ally’s Angels #87 - Anything Goes

Creative Moments #263 - Monochrome (2nd entry)

Dream Valley #324 - Anything Goes (2nd entry)

Festive Friday (October) - Christmas (3rd entry)

The Holly and Ivy #171 - Anything Christmas Goes (2nd entry)

Inkspirational #327 - Seasonal (3rd entry)

Krafty Chicks #739 - All Occasions

My Time to Craft #545 - Monochrome (2nd entry)

Peace On Earth #74 - Anything Christmas Goes (2nd entry)

Simon Says (Wednesday) - Christmas

Simon Says - Celebrating 20 Years of Distress #SSS20YearsofDistress

Word Art Wednesday #671/672 -  Anything Goes 

I’m really delighted with how this one turned out as I love the soft vintage look of the Distress Oxides, and the time spent watercolouring was really therapeutic! It’s actually my favourite of the cards I have made with these bauble stamps  so far. My enthusiasm for colouring these baubles in various ways means my Christmas card pile is now starting to look a bit more healthy, though there is still some way to go!

Take care and thanks for visiting.

Hugs,