Tutorial Tuesday: Fall Love

This week is super busy for me!  I have a wedding, a birthday party, and a baby shower all to attend this week!  So...I have a lot of cards to make!  And that's good news, because I'm pretty sure that what I will be making is what I will be sharing this week!  (If you have a wedding this fall, birthday parties, or baby shower, then this whole week will have you covered---so stay tuned!)

OK, wedding card.  Since it's a fall wedding, I wanted to do something really simple, but pretty.  And since the couple are a whimsical two, super romantic really isn't their thing.  Have you used the Sheltering Tree Stamp Set?  It is truly one of my absolutely favorites because I just love the possibilities you can have with trees!  You can change the colors of the "leaves" for all the seasons, or just leave the tree bare for some stunning winter scenes, too.  Plus, if you use this set with layers...mmm!  It's gorgeous!  Seriously.  You will get tons of use out of this set.  Promise.

When I made this card, I did have a "Creative Opportunity" (aka Mistake, but that word never gets used in this house!) that allowed me to go with the flow and the result is pretty cool!

Can you see my Creative Opportunity??  I'm going to bet you can't!  I turned my Creative Opportunity into something that looks quite intentional and now you'll know what to do if you have a similar situation happen to you!  Read on for all the details!

Let's get started...

Supply List:

• Whisper White Cardstock #100730
• Sheltering Tree Photopolymer Stamp Set #137163
• In the City (Hostess) Photopolymer Stamp Set (available exclusively as a Hostess Reward!)
• Watercolor Wash Background Stamp (Wood Mount) # 138704
• Classic Stampin' Pad (Soft Sky) #131181
• Classic Stampin' Pad (Early Espresso) #126974
• Classic Stampin' Pad (Wild Wasabi) #126959
• Classic Stampin' Pad (Calypso Coral) #126983
• Classic Stampin' Pad (Crushed Curry) #131173
• Classic Stampin' Pad (Cajun Craze) #126965
• Hearts & Stars Elements #144215

Paper Dimensions:

• Whisper White Cardstock (8-1/2" x 5-1/2"; scored at 4-1/4")

Directions:

• To make this card as simplistic as possible, I decided to just make it a single layer card; layering the colors and using the Hearts & Stars Elements as my additional "texture" to the card front.  
• I started by inking the Watercolor Wash Background Stamp in Soft Sky Ink and stamped the image once before using half to stamp the sky on the card.  Now, generally, I use clear mount stamps, but when it comes to the background stamps, I prefer them being wood mounted so I don't have to lug around my large clear block if I need to travel with it and just overall more convenient usage.
• Tip: It's best to ink the stamp by tapping your ink pad directly to the stamp, versus trying to ink the stamp on the ink pad.  This way you can easily see where you've inked and where you still need ink.
• Next, I stamped the ground from the Sheltering Tree Photopolymer Stamp Set in Wild Wasabi Ink in three different rows.  The clear photopolymer is perfect so I can see exactly where I'm stamping the multiple layers.
• Now, it's time to stamp your tree from the Sheltering Tree Photopolymer Stamp Set, too.  I used the Early Espresso Ink for this part.
• Here's where the fun part is!  To create the multiple colors and get a "full" leaf tree image, I stamped the leaves image from the Sheltering Tree Photopolymer Stamp Set three different times, in three different colors (Cajun Craze, Calypso Coral, and Crushed Curry---in that order, but you don't have to, I was merely experimenting!).  
• Hint: Each time I stamped the leaves in a new color, I rotated the leaves image slightly so it would "fill in" some of the gaps and also overlap the colors better.
• Lastly, I stamped the "Happy for you!" sentiment in Early Espresso Ink from the In the City Hostess Set on a scrap piece of Whisper White Cardstock.  I had originally intended to make it into a banner, but I stamped the sentiment very crooked!  Oops!  So, what did I do?  I simply cut out each of the words individually and adhered them to my card separately and in an artistic manner.  Oopsie no more!!  Best part: it looks intentional!  WooHoo!
• To finish off my card, I used the Fine Tip Glue Pen (#138309) to adhere the smallest full heart element from the Hearts & Stars Elements to the tree trunk.  It was just the perfect amount of "rustic" and "romantic" for a minimalist feel.

I hope that you learned a tip from me today in addition to how to make a gorgeously easy fall wedding card for a more non-traditional couple!  See you again soon!