On Friday afternoon I followed through on my New Year's resolution of "more snark" by hitting an after-Christmas sale at Joanne's and purchasing a couple of Tim Holtz "Mixed Media" Collections (clear stamps with layering stencils) of his Snarky Cats.
My younger brother has a 74th birthday coming soon, and I think he'll appreciate this card - he's a pretty good sport! I used three challenges for inspiration: Just Us Girls #614 Trend Week - "Inked or Sprayed Backgrounds", Seize the Birthday #229 - "Blue and Gray", and SoSS Challenge #201 - "I is for Ink".
I struggled a bit with my phone camera, not quite matching the colors of the original card. The top layer is a pale blue that comes across as more gray than it is. I started with a 5-1/2" square side-folded white card and a 5" square of pale blue card stock. Using the stencils from my new Tim Holtz, I applied a layer of Memento "Gray Flannel" and a layer of PTI "Blueberry Sky" circles with a blending sponge, followed by a layer of splatters in Gray Flannel. I over-stamped the sentiment in Memento "Tuxedo Black" and adhered this to the face of the card base. I die-cut a stitched circle through both of these layers, exposing the inside of the card. The final layer on the face of the card was the die-cut numbers from PTI.
I also did a bit of stamping on the square envelope. My family name is Poe and some years ago I purchased this "Poe-Stage" rubber stamp from Stampfrancisco and I always put it somewhere on the envelope on all mail sent to family members. I added some blue splatters.
My card design style tends more to the CAS side, so while this all seems pretty tame by normal grunge standards, for me it's quite daring to smush ink randomly - even when it's only 2 colors. Once the front was completed, I opened the card and stamped the inside so that the cat could stare out from the little porthole in the front. Once stamped in black and colored with Copic markers, I masked the little guy and his deflated balloon and stamped a splatter in Blueberry Sky.
Here are the challenges I used for inspiration:
"Just Us Girls" Challenge: Just Us Girls Challenge #614 - Trend Week
Added January 25, 2022:
Haha, what a FUN sentiment! Your brother is going to love this card, Fran it's terrific! Thanks for joining us at Just Us Girls!
ReplyDeleteOhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I so very much miss being able to hit the US craft stores and Olive Garden...rotten old pandemic!
ReplyDeleteLOL
I love your snarky cat card and I am soooooo glad you came back to play with the sisterhood again!
Happy birthday to your wee brother and thanks for getting inky with Edna and the sisterhood of snarky stampers!
Oh my gosh! I love your card and it made me laugh out loud. I sure hope that your brother loves it as much as I do.Thanks for linking up with us at Seize the Birthday Challenge.
ReplyDeleteI really love this, Fran. I salute your 'More snark' resolution, and you're always welcome to get your snark on with The Sisterhood, Jo x
ReplyDeleteWell this just tickled my funny bone and I had to laugh out loud! Wonderful birthday card for your brother!! BTW, I love all your envelopes - they are so creative.
ReplyDeleteLOL that sentiment is hysterical! Super fun card - love the cat too. Thanks for joining in at JUGS
ReplyDeleteI love the design of this card!!! And the inside splatters are so clever! How can he not love it? Thanks so much for playing with us at the Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers!
ReplyDeleteFabulous card Fran :-) I have just linked a card into the Snarky Challenge and had to pop by for a closer look at yours :-) Your brother is going to love this!! I made mine for my brother too!!
ReplyDeleteHope you have a great day!
luv
Lols x x x
Hey Fran, have you seen the winners post over at The Sisterhood of Snarky Stampers???? Jo x
ReplyDeleteGreat card. I may need to get that stamp set. Thanks for getting inky with the Sisterhood.
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