Autumn has arrived and we are officially on Christmas countdown... 105 days to go lol :-)
This week I'm combining products from both Jamie Rodgers Crafts Collections -
The Christmas Wishes and Floral Lace Collection to show you just how well these Collection work together!!
My inspiration for large card creation came from a famous Christmas movie with a little boy and a snowman..
Step 1
I needed a big card blank for this; with the colour and size this is perfect
Creating A Background......
For my mat and layers, I cut out two squares in Elite Card; one in Night Sky Navy and the other in Polar White.
📝 NOTE - I used Square Nesting Dies or you can use a trimmer to cut to size.
Taking the white layer, I started to colour my sky.
For this I used my blending sponges, along with Distress Oxide Inks :-
▪️Iced Spruce (for the bottom section),
▪️Chipped Sapphire (middle section)
▪️Prize Ribbon (for the top section).
Don't not worry about it looking too mottled, as this adds to the effect.
Step 2
The Fluffy Clouds Stencil makes light work of creating beautiful cloudy sky.....
The ink I used here (believe it or not) was Piggy Pink Quick Dry Pigment Ink.
It's a lovely subtle ink and also you to create authentic pink shade clouds which we see during the winter months!
📝 NOTE - No need to secure your stencils as you will need to move it about frequently.
Laying it onto my sky layer, I proceeded to ink up my clouds, howeverI extended them by adding two or three clouds together. I added clouds to 2 thirds of my background.
✅ TIP - I gently used my sponge to make it look like a larger cloud.
Once finished, I took a little 'watered down' white acrylic paint and added some detail to the bottom of each cloud.
✅ TIP - I blended it inwards so they were not too white.
If you add to much just dab a piece of kitchen towel and then use some water on a brush to thin out.
Step 3
Creating A Scene......
Next I cut out my village and Christmas trees with the above die set in Polar White Elite Card.
Here I coloured them in using Alcohol Marker Pens as I wanted them to look distressed rather than really shiny.....
✅ TIP - You can create this effect also with Distress Oxide Inks (with a little water on a glass mat) or certain Metallic Card. (See my Shopping List below 🛒)
I added detail with a tiny brush and white acrylic to my die cuts.
I also cut some small pieces of yellow card to put behind the houses (see Step 4) to look like lights are on.
Step 4
Assembling my card.....
▪️I glued my Navy layer onto my card base and then added my sky layer.
▪️Next I glued the long strip of trees to the bottom centre of the card (about 5mm from the bottom).
▪️To add dimension, I used foam pads on the houses
▪️With the smaller die cut off the trees, I cut two pieces to add to each end with foam pads.
I then cut up the rest and glued them in behind the houses to give extra detail.
Step 5
For the balloon I used above MDF set by Jamie Rodgers Crafts!
I covered them with white acrylic paint as a base coat (see left Picture below 📸)
Next I started designing the basket (see right Picture 📸) which I used my alcohol marker pens.
Again you could use your Distress Inks / Oxides which are both great mediums to paint with as I mentioned earlier :-)
✅ TIP - Use my photos as a guide to help you as you go along.
📝 NOTE: The blue section of the basket was altered once I had finished, as I wanted to match it up against my background.
I added a section around the centre of the balloon, before turning my lovely balloon red!
I used different shades of red on all areas of the balloon to give the perception of depth... but the choice is yours.....
Next I used the handy snowflake stamp from the above set.
I put it onto a small stamping block, and used the Piggy Pink Ink pad to randomly stamp over the red part of the balloon.
I also added a little white acrylic paint to add some detail.
Once dry, I placed the MDF element onto my card where I wanted it.
I used Distress Oxide Inks for my sky to add a better match where the rope was.
Again using the sponge, I added pink ink marks for the clouds.
I glued this onto my card front with the Jamie Rodgers Clear Drying Glue
Step 6
Final stage to complete the card......
I put some white acrylic paint on to my clear mat, and using a very small fine paintbrush I added dots to the sky to create my snowy effect!
✅ TIP - You could go to town with making your snowy effects... I'll pop some ideas in my Shopping List below).
I waited for this to dry for about 15 minutes before adding the sentiment.
I chose the sentiment from Jamie Rodgers Crafts Sentiment Craft Die Collection which was cut in Raven Black Elite Card; snipping the words out of the outer circle.
I glued this to my card front with glue and this then completed my card.
I think this card has an artistic feel to it, a bit like a painting so I'm chuffed with the result!
I hope this has given you a few ideas of how to combine MDF into your cardmaking and also to try out some different mediums too!!
Cheers for checking out my blog this week, and I look forward to seeing some of your crafty makes from the week... share on our Facebook Group - Create With Craftmania And Jamie Rodgers.
Until next week guys,
Take care,
Ian x
Craftmania Shopping List.......
DIES STAMPS & STENCILS
Matching Products With MDF Balloon Set
CARD & ESSENTIALS
Stock Up On Essential Colours - Large Packs Of Elite Card
SPECIALITY CARD
QUICK DRY PIGMENT INK PADS
DISTRESS RANGE
ACRYLIC PAINTS
SNOW EFFECT MEDIUMS
GLUES & ADHESIVES
Also Available
CRAFTING TOOLS