After a lot of planning and preparation I am finally getting more natural light in my studio. I’ve spent the best part of the morning helping hubby remove the old french doors. Then by the end of today they will be have been replaced by doors with a much greater proportion of glass. The doors have actually needed replacing for a long time and the change will make my studio much more comfortable to work in too. Of course having an uninterrupted view of our garden and being able to make the most of the sunshine doesn’t hurt either. Once hubby no longer needed an extra pair of hands, I was finally free to create today’s bookmark project.

SENDING SUNSHINE

I began my bookmark with a 2″ x 5-1/2″ piece of Thick Very Vanilla Card and the Sending Sunshine Stamp Set.

After placing the card onto my Stamparatus stamp platform I mounted the large water image on one of the plates. Then to make the images delicate, instead inking up the stamp with an ink pad, I transferred the ink to the stamp using a Sponge Dauber.

First I inked up the water image with Coastal Cabana ink and stamped it onto the card. Then leaving the stamp on the plate I cleaned it using my Simply Shammy. With that done I used a Sponge Dauber to add Balmy Blue ink to the edges of the stamp. Then after making the sure the card hadn’t moved I stamped the image again. This made the edges of the water much darker as I had hoped.

With that done placed the sun stamp into place on the card and closed the Stamparatus plate to pick it up. For the sun I chose Bumblebee ink and once again used a Sponge Dauber to transfer the ink to the stamp. Once it was stamped I was ready to add the rest of the scene elements.

EVENING SUNSHINE

Next, to create the evening sunshine effect I covered the bottom section of the bookmark with scrap paper. Then I used a Sponge Brayer to sponge Bumblebee ink over the ‘sky’. Then I changed to Calypso Coral ink followed by Pumpkin Pie. Finally towards the very top and at the edges I used the Sponge Brayer to add Seaside Spray ink.

If you’ve not used a Sponge Brayer or want some tips for using them, check out this short video.

For the ground I chose Old Olive, adding the ink with a Sponge Brayer and stopping at the edge of the water. With that the basic scene was set.

While I quite liked how things were progressing the wide expanse of sky looked a little flat. So I stamped the long cloud image a couple of times across the sky using Seaside Spray ink. Then to add even more depth I inked up the image and stamped off onto scrap paper before stamping on the card. This created light and dark areas of clouds which looked much more natural.

Finally I chose the leafy stamp image and Mossy Meadow ink. I stamped the image a couple of times at each end of the bookmark to frame the scene. Then I stamped the “Have a beautiful day” sentiment from the Beautiful Autumn Stamp Set across the open sky.

Now all I had left to do was punch one end of the card using the Scalloped Tag Topper Punch. Next I cut some 1/4″ Old Olive ribbon from the Ornate Garden Ribbon Combo Pack. I folded it in half and threaded the ends through the slot and then through the ribbon loop to secure them. With that my project was done.

Just in time too, as hubby has returned from the store with more materials so we can get the new doors in place before it gets dark. I have a feeling we’ll both sleep well tonight.

For another project using the Sending Sunshine Stamp Set see my earlier blog post Creating a little sea & sunshine.

PRODUCT LIST

BUNDLE BONUS – I bought the Beautiful Autumn Stamp Set in a bundle with the coordinating Autumn Punch Pack (not used today). Buying the two items using a single ‘bundle’ item number meant I saved 10% off the cost of buying the two items separately. I’ve included a link to that bundle in case you want to explore this option.