Just the Right Background Paper

 

Even thought I possess about two tons of craft paper, sometimes I can’t find just the right background paper for a card making project. If this ever happens to you, take out your digital camera and look around your own house for interesting things or colors and take a picture. It could be a colorful pillow or a shelf full of books. A patterned shirt or dress or a box full of Christmas ornaments make great backgrounds. Go outside and snap away close-ups of flowers and leaves or even, as I did once in Oxford England, the cobblestone street.
Scan your photo and print it out on cardstock. Now you have something just right for your newest creation!
Print a copy of my painting and cut it up to make the card project above.

Materials:
Michael’s downloaded painting
MSRS Cloisonné Pot
Cardstock (butter yellow, black, metallic copper)
Versamark inkpad or similar
Pigment inkpad (green)
Embossing powder (black)
Heat tool
Paper cutter
Scissors
Glue or double-sided tape
Foam mounting tape
Flower shaped paper punch
Black Pearl Pen from MSRS

Steps:

From the yellow cardstock, cut a 5 ½” x 4 ¼” folded card.
From the black cardstock, cut a 2 ¾” x 3 ¾” framing mat and a 3 ½” x 3 ½” piece for stamping on.
From the downloaded painting, cut a 2 ½” x 3 ½” piece and mount it on the black frame. From the Copper cardstock, cut a 5 ½” x 1” accent strip.
Glue or tape the accent strip along the bottom of the card approximately ½” from the bottom. Add the framed painted piece to the left side of the card.
Stamp and emboss the Cloisonné Pot onto the black cardstock. Finger paint a little green pigment ink onto the pot here and there for color variation and to pick up the green tones in the painted background. Cut off the top of the pot and use it as a small dish as seen in the finished card.
Using a paper cutter or scissors, cut six or seven thin strips from the reserved Copper cardstock. They should be approximately 5 ½” long. Crumple all the strips in your hand together. This gives the strips a nice random look of twisted willow. Tape the twisted willow branches to the reverse side of the cut pot and mount the pot on the accent strip using foam mounting tape. Add a double flower punched from the yellow cardstock as shown. I made the center of the flower with a black Pearl Pen. A small black bead will substitute well if you don’t have the Pearl Pen. Enjoy!