Charmed Realm

I created this card using Lavinia stamps, a gel plate, ColorBox dye inks, Brusho Crystal Colours, and VersaFine Clair inks.

A shout-out: I’d like to thank my Tech Support (my baby brother Donny). It took us hours to add a subscription button and contact page to my blog. Well…actually it didn’t take long to do these things, because he’s a tech guru, but we TALKED for hours. When we talk on the phone, I’ll glance at the clock and an hour will have passed when it seems like it’s been only a few minutes. I enjoy talking to him that much! I feel so blessed because I hit the Family Jackpot with my entire family!

I put Turquoise, Leaf Green, and Sea Green brushos separately into three palette containers; filled the containers with water; and stirred to mix. Brushos create really vivid colors, so you don’t need to add a lot of it. Next, I used a brayer to apply Sky ColorBox dye ink to a gel plate, covering the surface evenly. I dipped a fan paintbrush into the Sea Green container; tapped the brush over the gel plate to distribute drops of the brusho water; and followed with the other two colors. I placed a piece of Multifarious Card on the gel plate, smoothed it with my fingers, and pulled off a print. I hand cut around the circle with a scissor. A Sizzix circle die, along with my Big Shot, cut out the window so we could see the mermaid passing by.

The blue area behind the mermaid was created by sprinkling Turquoise and Sea Green brushos on a piece of Strathmore Watercolor paper. I lifted the paper slightly at the top; spritzed water over it with a Ranger mister, spraying downward; and tilted the paper to move the water and brushos around.

Note:  Brusho powder can get EVERYWHERE if your work area isn’t covered. It’s kind of like glitter on steroids. In addition to covering my area, I also wear gloves. I’ve found that it really stains and is hard to remove. One thing I’d like to pass along also…I didn’t take the lids off when I received my brushos. I punched a hole in the top of the containers with a push pin, and then just kept a push pin in each of the container tops. When I researched brusho techniques, doing it this way was often mentioned.

For the card background (with the verse), I put Banana ColorBox dye ink on a gel plate with a brayer. I placed a stencil on top and sponged Tangerine and Ocean ColorBox on the stencil, covering the stencil completely. I removed the stencil from the gel plate. Next, I put multifarious cardstock on top of the gel plate, smoothed it with my fingers, and pulled off a print. (The stenciled area on the card is the orange sunshine rays at the top of it.) The verse was stamped with Nocturne VersaFine Clair ink. 

I stamped the rest of the Lavinia stamps and used Scor-Tape to attach the card layers. When I stepped back and looked at the card, I thought YIKES! Something was off with the color combination. To resolve this, I used a Life Changing Blender Brush to sponge Warm Breeze VersaFine Clair ink over the verse and bottom flourish area. Success! To finish, I added a lot of sparkle with a clear Gelly Roll pen.  

General Materials:

• Black Cardstock
• Yellow Cardstock Base
• Lavinia Stamps: Zelith, Water Spirit Verse, Fish Set, Sea Tangle, Sea Algae, and Coral Stencil (Tracey Lavinia Dutton is the artist of the Lavinia stamps and stencil.)
• VersaFine Clair Ink: Nocturne (to ink the stamps)
• Sakura Stardust Clear Gelly Roll Pen
• Tim Holtz Stamp Platform
• Tim Holtz Glass Media Mat
• Scor-Tape: 1/4” and 3/8”
• Baby Wipes/Gloves

The circle piece around the mermaid:

• Multifarious Card (Lavinia Stamps)
• Stephanie Barnard ColorBox Premium Dye Ink: Sky
• Colourcraft Brusho Crystal Colours: Turquoise, Leaf Green, and Sea Green
• Art Palette with 12 containers with Lids
• Sizzix Framelits Die Set-Circles, 657551
• Gel Press Gel Printing Plate, 6” Round
• Speedball Pop-In Soft Rubber Brayer, 4”

Machine: Sizzix Big Shot, with two cutting pads, and the magnetic platform

(If you would like to see another card made with this technique: Unicorn Dreams)

The brusho area behind the mermaid:

• Strathmore Watercolor Paper, Cold Press, 140 lb.
• Colourcraft Brusho Crystal Colours: Turquoise and Sea Green
• Art Palette with 12 containers with Lids
• Ranger Mister

The Verse area:

• Multifarious Card
• Stephanie Barnard ColorBox Premium Dye Inks: Banana, Tangerine, and Ocean
• Gel Press Gel Printing Plate, 6” Round
• Speedball Pop-In Soft Rubber Brayer, 4”
• VersaFine Clair Ink: Warm Breeze
• Picket Fence Studios Life Changing Blender Brush

Thanks for visiting my website! Have a blessed day!!!

Diane