Spring Challenge

I belong to a group of mixed media artists in Memphis, Tennessee, the River City Stampers. This group has so much talent, and we cover a lot of different artists' media, with members teaching a new technique or project each month. We also have swaps and challenges, which is what I want to discuss today.

Our challenge for May is to create tags using the colors pink and green. Other colors can be added as long as the two main colors are included. This made me combine colors I never would have before. I tend to get into phases of using the same colors over and over for months, even years, before going on to something different. My career as a graphic designer is mapped out in more than 30 years of two-color jobs featuring brown/blue, brown/green, teal/purple, teal/brown and purple/green with bursts of full-color jobs in between. Of course, I had to slip in the company colors, red, blue and yellow, at times, but you can pretty well tell the decade something I designed was printed according to the color.

I love rusted things, old things, faded fabrics, antique toys...anything old. Pink and green was a serious challenge for me, although at one time, my favorite Stampin'Up!® ink combo was More Mustard, Cameo Coral and Olive Green.

Anyway, here is one of the tags I made using Viva Décor products, plus the Duetica Lettering System software, which is my new fave computer product. It allows you to set your headline type, then select each letter style individually to create the perfect headline for your project.

I will be adding a couple more tags tomorrow and Friday, so be sure to check back!

Apologies to the author of this saying (Lord, thank you for letting me be born in the South and for the cornbread and turnip greens in my mouth.). I heard it many years ago, but never knew who came up with it. It's perfect for the way I feel about living in Tennessee.


Supplies
Cream Cardstock (Stampin'Up!®)
Viva Décor: Metallic Paint, bronze; Pearl Pen, Cream; Paper Pens, Cream and Carmine; Paper Soft Color, Apricot, Magenta and Moss Green, Sponge applicators, assorted (www.viva-decor.us)
Prima Flowers (any light color will do)
Beacon 3-in-1 Adhesive
Duetica Lettering Arts Studio Software (www.duetica.com)
Corner rounder punch (Stampin'Up!®)
Flowering branch stamp (Stampin'Up!®)
Workable Fixatif (www.krylon.com)
Assorted ribbons, 8" long each
(www.vivadecor.com)

Directions

1. Set up type for saying. You can do the layout in any word program after setting the type with the Duetica Lettering Arts software.* Print onto cream card stock and trim out tag shape. Round top corners with punch. Spray lightly with Krylon Workable Fixatif to protect type and set aside to dry.

2. Apply Paper Soft Color to flowers with sponge applicator. (This will make your flowers work with your tag no matter what, as long as the flowers are a light color to begin with. The two small ones were a dull green, the large one a VERY bright pink and white.) Brush flower edges with bronze paint and set aside to dry.

3. Apply Magenta Paper Soft Color to tag, using a circular motion and a large round sponge applicator. Use a smaller applicator to apply Moss Green and Apricot randomly, keeping majority of the color on the edges to avoid coloring the print too much.

4. Stamp flowering branch on top of the tag with your choice of inks. Cover the branches with the Cream Paper Pen and add swirls along the lower border. Apply Carmine Paper Pen in dots to the flower buds, then add Cream Pearl Pen and Cream Paper Pen. Use Cream Paper pen to add dots and dotted swirls to remainder of tag.

5. Glue dogwood blossoms to bottom of tag and add Magenta and Cream Paper Pen centers to flowers.

This tag is ready to hang on a gift bag, use for a bookmark or a little something to keep in your work space to remind you of how blessed you are.

Have a fabulous day and be sure to hug someone you love. I know I will!


* I actually set only the word "South" with Duetica, changed the color and saved it as a png file, then placed it in an InDesign file, adding the additional words above and below the "South". This is because I work with InDesign daily and am more comfortable with it.




I received product from Viva Décor and Duetica Lettering System.

Comments

Subriagirl said…
Very nice Candice......love it!
Anonymous said…
Hi, I am looking for a cross-stitch pattern with this rhyme. Have you seen one like it anywhere? I saw it hanging on a wall in restuarant and have not been able to find the pattern.

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