Iceland Poppy
by Jeanne Jachna
I'm fortunate to live in the Midwest - you won't hear that too much in the dog days of Summer, or the freezing January cold, but I appreciate how each season brings it's own beauty and I try to enjoy them all. I'm really loving the show of color in the garden, and the bright sunny days of Summer - they were the inspiration for my card today.
I fought the water coloring trend when it first came out. I spent lots of time working on achieving the look I saw others create seamlessly and lots of money trying so many different brands. I feel like I've finally got it down and appreciate how you can use a handful of inexpensive simple ingredients to create a beautiful card. The real trick for me was discovering the watercolors that were right for me. I can't tell you how much I love the Peerless. They react more like dye inks than traditional watercolor so they move around (bloom) more quickly and blend beautifully. I used Yellow Ochre to create a simple wash background. I added a little Amber Yellow to brighten it up. Once it was dry I gave the brush a few taps to add some dots of the Yellow Ochre on the page.
I use Canson XL watercolor paper. I cut the Hip Hello, Viola Leaves, and Small Iceland Poppy stems from the same paper so that it would match the background completely. The heavy watercolor paper gives the die cuts great dimension and greater detail on the stitching.
I cut the Small Iceland Poppies from purple card stock and added a darker shade of distress ink to the edges to add dimension.
The butterflies are from the Emelia Butterfly Trio. I double cut them from two shades of yellow and stacked them on top of each other - the darker shade on bottom. I only attached them with adhesive in the center so I could bend the wings up.
The die cuts look amazing on the simple background. I hope you'll try this technique - a little practice will have you feeling like a pro, and you'll be so happy with the results.
Comments
Really stunning colours your garden must look pretty too as well as your card thanks for sharing.
This is one of the most beautiful cards I have ever seen Jeanne! I've been stamping for 15 years so when I say that you know how impressed with it I am. Just fabulous.
Absolutely love this!!!
cudna :)
Hi Jeanne, This card is stunning, I love the colours of the icelandic poppies and I love the background they are enhancing. I really have to get these poppy dies, they are fabulous. The colours you have used 'marry' beautifully and they are so 'fresh' looking.
Lots of love from Patricia xx
Jeanne, your card is absolutely stunning. The colours are amazing. The poppies seem to almost glow - fabulous!!
Absolutely beautiful, Jeanne
This is lovely!
Beautiful card, I just love those colors together!
Oh my that is just gorgeous, I love the colors and shading!!
Beautiful card Jeanne. The colors are so vibrant. The Iceland poppy stamp is fantastic and one I'm going to have to add to my collection :-)