I needed a few thank you cards to send to people that recently placed an online order, and this weekend I had a lot of fun creating several of this card. I purchased the Loveliest Layers Decorative Masks (the rest of the world calls them stencils) in my pre-order for the January – April mini catalog. And as I frequently do – I put it away and didn’t touch it for a while; and then I was inspired to play with them over the weekend. Also – just so you know – these lovely stencils are also one of the additional $50 level Sale-A-Bration options starting February 1st. So until 11:50 pm (Mountain Time) on Tuesday (2/28), you can also get these stencils for free with a qualifying order.

One critique that I’ve got is that it was a pain in the patoot to be able to do a different color in the center of the flower. That small circle and the highlight are part of the stencils for the flower petals. I’ve seen most people use the same color as the flower and it looks lovely. However, I wanted my flower center to be different. So… I used a few post-its to separate the center from the petals as I was applying ink to each of them. I really like how it turned out, but it was a bit fiddly to achieve the look I wanted. The leaves were totally easy-peasy!

You will see a few extra small circles near the clusters and those are from the Sequins for Everything embellishments. They coordinated perfectly with my flower! The way to tell the difference is that the sequins are a single color, where the stenciled circles have two tones. And happily the Sequins for Everything sequins are currently available on the Clearance Rack for $4.80! I’ve been having a lot of fun lately including them on various projects I’ve been doing, and I encourage you to check them out. There are lots of colors and they go with lots of different types of projects.

I also did a sort of technique-y thing on this card. I glued together a stack of 3 die cuts of the sentiment in Basic Black and then applied Shimmery Crystal Effects to the top to get the gorgeous, shiny look. The Shimmery Crystal Effects is no longer available, but you can achieve the same look with the Fine Tip Glue Pen. I need to buy a new one of those so I dug around in my various supplies to find something that would help me get the look I wanted.

This current Tic Tac Toe Challenge was part of the inspiration for my card. I had a hankering to make some cards and I love participating in challenges. So… I checked out some of my favorite challenge sites and found this one that was perfect for my mission. I saw the card that a designer created with bright poppies and that is what made me pull out my stencils. And then it was super-easy to pick the top row as my inspiration: Bright Colors, Bold Sentiment and Spring. I had A LOT of fun with this challenge!

Post updated March 20, 2023: I’m super-excited to share that my card was chosen as one of the Team Picks for the challenge. I’m sharing the recognition with three other card makers, and I’m so proud to be part of the group. The announcement was several days ago, but I just learned it over the weekend. What a great boost to my spirit, and a wonderful way to start the week!

Loveliest Layers Decorative Masks [160517] $10.50	Amazing Thanks Dies (English) [157816] $27.00	Blending Brushes [153611] $12.50	Small Blending Brushes [160518] $11.50
Sequins For Everything [153556] $12.00	Take Your Pick [144107] $10.00	Shimmery Crystal Effects [150892] $5.00	Basic White 8 1/2″ X 11″ Thick Cardstock [159229] $8.75
Melon Mambo 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [115320] $9.25	Basic White 8 1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [159276] $10.25	Basic Black 8-1/2″ X 11″ Cardstock [121045] $9.25	Polished Pink Classic Stampin’ Pad [155712] $8.00
Melon Mambo Classic Stampin’ Pad [147051] $8.00	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin’ Pad [147094] $8.00	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin’ Pad [147087] $8.00	Parakeet Party Classic Stampin’ Pad [159208] $8.00
Granny Apple Green Stampin’ Pad [147095] $8.00