Thinking of You Skunk Card and Floral Collage

I really enjoy looking out the window overlooking my gardens while I'm working on my computer.  I watch the birds come and go and the wildlife going in and out of the woodlands.  As I was sitting here at my computer looking out the window and contemplating which card to share, I decided to pull out a card which reminds me somewhat of the activity in my garden.  It features a skunk standing amongst some flowers.  As I shared with you in my previous Happy Stinking Birthday post, the skunks roam around in my garden at night.  That fact makes this card very befitting to me.  It's also on the humorous side just like some of the critter antics I see from my window.  I used the bright colors of hot pink and black with one of my favorite embellishments...buttons.  Since it has buttons it meets the criteria for this week's Stamp Something Challenge which is to use your favorite embellishments.

Before I delve into my skunk card I would like to share a little bit about my gardens.  They are a mix of woodland and rock gardens filled with plants geared specifically for the bird and butterfly species in our area.  During the winter they provide food for the birds because we let them go to seed and don't cut them down until early spring.  There are several bird feeding areas, bird baths, butterfly feeders, and butterfly drinking areas throughout the gardens.  We've installed numerous bird houses that always have nests built in them, as well as, a butterfly house and ladybug house.  We've placed plant hooks, lights, and various statues throughout the gardens that give the birds plenty of perches which are in constant use.  We also have a 300 gallon ornamental pond with a flowing waterfall and two spitter bowls that wildlife of all kinds visit.  I have to say we have been extremely successful in drawing in the wildlife and butterflies.  They bring me great joy and are worth the loss of some of my flowers that get chomped.

Here is a collage of some of the flowers in my gardens.

Creating My "Thinking of You Skunk Card"


Card Statistics

• Final Card Size: 6.5" tall x 5.5" tall
• Tools: scoring board, skunk stamp, paper cutter, circle cutter, blending stumps, scissors, ruler, rectangular aluminum pan, wooden skewer
• Materials: cardstock, cover stock, buttons, adhesive, Stazon ink, Prismacolor pencils, gamsol, spray adhesive, india inks, foam shaving cream, foam dimensionals

Card Front

The first thing I did to create this card was make the pink marbled background paper.  I made it using the shaving cream technique.  I placed a layer of shaving cream in the bottom of a rectangular aluminum pan and dotted it with a few drops of pink, dark pink, purple, and green india ink.  Using a wooden skewer I made a few swirls in the shaving cream to streak the ink.  Next I placed a piece of white cardstock on top of the shaving cream and gently patted it.  I removed the cardstock and let it dry.  Once it was dry I wiped off the excess shaving cream and cut the cardstock to size.

I used the background paper as a starting point for my color selections and pulled the hot pink and black cardstocks from my stash.  I used black cardstock for my card base and created a topper panel for the front of the card.  I used the hot pink cardstock for the base of my topper panel and layered it with a diagonal strip of my hand marbled paper that I had matted with black cardstock.

For my image I used white cardstock and colored the cute little skunk with Prismacolor pencils and gamsol.  I matted the completed image with hot pink and black cardstocks and affixed it to the topper.  I printed "Just Standing Here..." on a round of white cardstock and matted it with hot pink and black cardstocks.  To add dimension to the card I attached the sentiment round using foam dimensions.  As a finishing touch to the topper I affixed three black buttons.  Finally, I affixed the topper panel to the base card.


Angle Views of Card Front to Show Dimension

The pictures above show the dimension I achieved with the sentiment round and the buttons.


Inside Card

For the inside panel I printed "...Stinking of You!" on white cardstock and matted it with hot pink cardstock.  I completed the panel by adding a strip of my hand marbled paper that I had matted with black and hot pink cardstocks.  I affixed the completed panel to the inside of my card base.

I constructed an envelope specifically for this card from heavy cover stock.  Prior to gluing the envelope together I printed a design in the lower left corner to compliment the card.  For the design I scanned the front of my card into the computer and then used Photoshop Elements to crop out the cute little skunk and deckle the edges around him in hot pink.  I sprayed the image with sealer to protect it.


Final Card and Envelope Ensemble

So there you have it, my "Thinking of You Skunk Card" that reminds me of the critters roaming my gardens.


Card Recipe Specifics

• Cardstock: Wausau, Hammermill, Embassy
• Cover Stock: Staples
• Stamp: Whipper Snapper
• Ink: Stazon black, Bombay india ink
• Prismacolor Pencils: pink rose, pink, black, cool grey 90%, warm grey 50%, poppy red, peach, olive green, kelp green, limepeel
• Tools: Martha Stewart scoring board, Making Memories paper cutter, EK Success curvy circle cutter, blending stumps, scissors, ruler, rectangular aluminum pan, wooden skewer
• Misc: buttons, adhesive, gamsol, spray adhesive, foam shaving cream, foam dimensionals 
• Techniques: stamping, gamsol, shaving cream background 

 

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