As the reality of physical distancing hits home and more activities are no longer available, are you finding new things to enjoy? Are you taking advantage of the enforced downtime and doing things you’ve been putting off? Although I am still working at the pharmacy, I do have some extra time on my hands now that my classes are cancelled for the forseeable future. So I’m planning to reorganise my craft studio. It’s something that I do every April in preparation for the new Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalogue release, but this year I may do some rearranging too.
While I sort I often play a little guessing game about which stamp sets I think may retire. Today’s project uses the Enjoy Life Stamp Set, and this is one I have a feeling will go.
ENJOY LIFE
I bought the Enjoy Life Stamp Set because the cyclist image reminded me of my late son who went everywhere on his bike. But today, before I could get to the stamps, I needed to create the background for the bookmark.
I began by cutting a 2″ x 5-1/2″ strip of Thick Very Vanilla Card. Using the Detailed Trio Punch I first added an oval hole at the top. Then using the corner rounder option on the punch I shaped each of the four corners.
To create the background I had planned to use Stampin’ Sponge but then I spotted my Sponge Brayers. I decided to create a subtle early morning effect and that helped me with my colour choices.
Working the brayer from side-to side across the card I first used Blushing Bride ink. Next came Seaside Spray, followed by Crushed Curry. Then towards the bottom I added Old Olive.
SIMPLY STAMPED
With the background effect complete I used Early Espresso ink to stamp the sentiment before adding the silhouette figure. To ensure the silhouette was really solid I made sure to use my Stamparatus. This way I could reink the stamp and stamp again in exactly the same place until I was happy with the image.
Next, going back to the Old Olive ink pad I stamped the grass image at the bottom of the strip. Then I brought it all together using the larger plant image coming in on the left and right edges.
To complete the bookmark I chose 1/4″ Old Olive ribbon. This is from the new Ornate Garden Ribbon Combo Pack which will be available for customers to order on April 1st. I simply threaded 8″ of ribbon through the hole and tied it in a simple knot.
I’m so happy with how this project turned out, the blended horizontal bands of colour really do remind me of that time just before the sun makes it over the horizon. I love the sentiments in this stamp set and the longer one is quite apt right now don’t you think?
You’ll find more projects using the Enjoy Life Stamp Set in these earlier blog posts:
So while I nip off to work, I hope you’re able to spend a little time today doing something you enjoy.
Leave a Reply