Sunday, October 16, 2016

Merry Mouse

Hello again!  Today I have a Christmas card to share with you that I made using the current sketch challenge at Pals Paper Arts.  I pulled out my Merry Mice stamp set and a piece of the Warmth and Cheer designer series paper stack to use with this terrific sketch.


The Merry Mice stamp set has three mouse images, two individuals and a stamp with three mice lined up walking.  For this card I decided to use one of the three so I could keep my circle fairly small.  I started by inking him up with Versamark Onyx Black and stamped on a piece of Strathmore Mixed Media paper.  I like this paper when I use a Blender Pen to color because, like water color paper, it doesn't absorb ink as quickly as regular card stock.  That way you can blend your colors better and avoid pilling plus it has a nice smooth finish to it.


His hat and jacket were colored in Soft Sky ink, then used Garden Green on the scarf and Memento Tuxedo Black for his pants.  Crumb Cake was used to color the mouse, with a bit of Flirty Flamingo on his nose and ear. I wanted to give him some ground to walk on, so I lightly applied some Sahara Sand, intentionally giving a look of some texture.  Layering Circle Framelits were used to cut out the colored image and the card stock scallop circle layers.

I thought I would use one of the untraditional holiday designs in the paper stack, with a Crumb Cake background and black trees.  It was layered it on a 4.25" x 5.50" panel of Crumb Cake that wrapped with three separate pieces of the beautiful Cherry Cobbler Silky Taffeta ribbon that is part of the combo pack in the holiday catalogue.  I used a pencil on the back of the card panel to where I wanted the tops of the ribbon to line up so they would be lined up evenly, then Dimensionals were used to pop up the mouse image over the top of the ribbon.


The word "Merry" was die cut in both white card stock and Cherry Cobbler and layered with the white underneath so it would stand out against the dsp.  Then, inking up just part of a sentiment from the stamp set, the word "Christmouse" was stamped a piece of Strathmore, cut with a Bitty Banner framelit, then one end was trimmed off.  The finishing touches were to add some enamel dots.

I've included a link above to the PPA challenge, so be sure to head on over there and check out all the wonderful inspiration!

Thanks for visiting!

Stef


Product details
Stamps:  Merry Mice
Paper:  Thick Whisper White (base), Crumb Cake, Warmth and Cheer dsp stack, Strathmore Mixed Media
Ink:  Versamark Onyx Black, Memento Tuxedo Black, Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler, Soft Sky, Garden Green, Flirty Flamingo, Sahara Sand
Other:  Layering Circles and Bitty Banner Framelits, Christmas Greetings Thinlits, White and Gold gel pens, 3/8" Silky Taffeta Ribbon Combo Pack, Perfect White Accents, Home for Christmas enamel dots, Metallic Enamel Shapes

2 comments:

Ann Schach said...

Absolutely adorable, Stef! Such a sweet card! Your coloring is awesome! Thanks for sharing with Pals Paper Arts this week!

Susan Itell said...

You stole my heart with this sweet card! These mice are just soooo darn adorable! Super job in coloring - just adorable! Thanks for playing the sketch challenge!