Hi Everyone. Happy Sunday.
It's the fabulous Claire's turn to host our Paper Players challenge this week and she has a sketch for us:
As usual, sketches with lots of layers cause me problems :-) After some thought, I realized I could go with a monochromatic color scheme for the layers so that it would feel somewhat clean and simple. I began with some old SU DSP and that was perfect for the base. I die-cut the stitched rectangle tag and was ready to start stamping the elements.
I recently purchased this Hero Arts set called Seas the Day. It's such a cool little set and I have already made several cards with it.
I had such fun stamping the gulls and coloring them with my Comic markers. Luckily you can also get a matching die set and I made good use of that!
Here's a closeup of the tag:
I added a little gel pen to the waves and also to his very fashionable and jaunty kerchief! I popped the gull and the stump up from the tag and adhered the cloud directly to the tag. I popped the tag up off the card base for a little extra dimension.
Here's my full card:
I kept the inside clean and simple. I stamped one of the other gulls onto the card base and repeated the wave image from the front of the card.
I continued the theme on the envelope:
I hope you will join us and play along this week. As usual, if you are looking for some inspiration, you can find some fabulous creations from our design team:
On a personal note:
The weather has been amazing the last couple of days. Cool nights, warm days and low humidity. Absolutely perfect. I really do love these halcyon days of summer and it's wonderful to watch all the babies learning to fend for themselves.
Talking of babies. A couple of days ago I managed to snap a couple of shots of the Barn Swallow's in their nest.
It was obvious by looking at them that it was getting just a little crowded in there and that they would be fledging very soon.
In this closeup, you can see some stray baby feathers on their backs and how white their gape is - all the better to get Mom and Dad to feed you :-)
A couple of days after I took this photo, Lou called to me. One of the fledglings had taken it's first flight and had landed on the lantern on the porch and was preening itself and stretching its wings.
As I couldn't exactly go out the front door and take photos, I had to make do with taking some through the window - and the screen!
But.... isn't this the cutest little thing? :-)
He then decided it was a great opportunity to spread those wings and give them a really good clean.
Then, there were those pesky stray baby back feathers that needed to be removed:
And.... about 24 hours later... they were all gone. They had upped and left and flown off! I'm going to miss watching their antics and watching them fly behind the lawn mowers catching insects. Lou and I have decided to keep their nest up (although we will spray for mites) in the hope that they return again next year!
I'll be back in a couple of days with another birthday card and some more photos. In the meantime, warm hugs and prayers for those of you who need a little lift tonight.
Hugs
Jaydee
Card recipe:
- Stamps and Dies: Seas the Day - Hero Arts
- Inks: Copic Markers
- Paper: Stampin' Up! (retired)
- Cardstock: Neenah Solar White 80 and 110#
Jaydee, this is adorable! You would never know you struggle with layers. This card is so FUN! Love that little gull and the sentiment made me smile! Your choice of papers is perfect! Love the glittery waves and the inside/envelope too! Certain to make the recipient smile! Your rocked my sketch this week! Love your little babies---Such sweet photos!! You take the best pictures! I hope you have a lovely week, My Friend! XX
Posted by: Claire Broadwater | 29 July 2018 at 02:43 PM
It’s a beautiful card. I have to start challenging myself to use some of these amazing sketches.
Your photos are so delightful.
Posted by: Terri | 30 July 2018 at 12:43 AM
Love your card Jaydee! I think that is an awesome new stamp set with fun images for summer!
The barn swallows are just adorable! You captured some lovely pics. I really enjoy watching the babies grow and learn. And I’m amazed that when they leave the nest that they don’t stick around too long.
We had the same beautiful weather this weekend but some much needed rain is forecast today. Enjoy your week Jaydee!
Posted by: Kelly W. | 30 July 2018 at 05:34 AM
Love your layers. Such a perfect way to go with them. Lots of interest without detracting from the focal point and such a cute gull!
Posted by: Evelyn B | 30 July 2018 at 06:14 AM
I liked your card very much. Love the sea gull. I also appreciate you sharing your pictures of all your birds. How exciting it must be to see all the actions in person.
Posted by: kathy | 30 July 2018 at 10:32 AM
Jaydee... the swallow pics are just wonderful! And so is your adorable card this week!
Posted by: ElizStewart | 31 July 2018 at 10:08 AM
That soft and subtle paper really lets your tag and gull shine out. I have some of that paper stashed too! The soft colours still shout summer. It's a lovely card, Jaydee.
Posted by: Jan Clothier | 31 July 2018 at 04:05 PM
Love this nautical card! Cute sentiment too. Your layers work perfectly.....awesome card!
Have a great day!
Posted by: laurie | 01 August 2018 at 06:15 AM
Your DSP is so soft and pretty and the seagull images are so cute! Great baby pictures too. It's always fun to watch the little ones find their wings! Hope you're having a good week - Hugs, Annie
Posted by: Annie Abrahamson | 02 August 2018 at 09:06 AM
Jaydee, you certainly did manage to keep all these layers CAS with your monochromatic papers. Love that seagull, especially with the scarf around his neck. Love the baby bird pics, too!
Posted by: sandym | 02 August 2018 at 03:05 PM
Love that monochromatic background Jaydee - such a clever way to retain a CAS feel and such a lovely calming green too. The seagull and punny sentiment make for a cute tag too! Great bird photos this week - how wonderful you got to see one of the babies fly the nest!
Posted by: Joanne James | 03 August 2018 at 04:42 PM