Birthday Fiesta watercoloured cactus card

I’m loving the cactus vibe of the moment. Have you noticed? They’re everywhere… and you only see them once you start looking. I’ve seen them on pyjamas, a blouse, stationery, a watch, socks, wrapping paper and even pants! (That’s underwear, transatlantic chums.)

I found this background in a stash of watercoloured pieces recently and yes, I think the top half may be painted in a retired colour, Coastal Cabana, but it was such a lovely combo that I couldn’t bear not to use it. Substitute Pool Party and it will work just as well. 

The bottom of the found background wasn’t quite dark enough so I tore some scrap paper to create sand dunes and sponged away. The cacti themselves are stamped by sponging the stamp with different shades of green, to add interest. 

I felt it needed a long thin card so that’s what I made. I think I have some thing envelopes knocking around somewhere, but if I can’t find them, I’ll just make one with my envelope punch board. 

Birthday Fiesta Photopolymer Bundle [142268] £38.50	Barnyard Babies Clear-Mount Stamp Set [139328] £17.00	Watercolor Paper [122959] £4.50	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Ink Refill [122933] £3.00	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Ink Refill [119672] £3.00
Emerald Envy A4 Cardstock [141420] £7.25	Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad [126953] £6.00	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad [131173] £6.00	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] £5.50	Sponge Daubers [133773] £4.50
Basic Black A4 Card Stock [121688] £7.25	Emerald Envy Classic Stampin' Pad [141396] £6.00	Whisper White A4 Card Stock [106549] £8.25

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Mix It Up Monday: Birthday Fiesta stand-out cacti

It’s Mix It Up Monday again and time for another project made with a colour combination from my latest set of In Color charts.

And, while to you this combo may look like a bit of a cop-out, to me it represents a real challenge. Why? Because I confess that I’m not a particular fan of Tangerine Tango… and I can’t stand grey. 

But I had the idea for this card so needed a strong green and this was the most suitable combo in the Emerald Envy chart. Fortunately I had just enough Smoky Slate to complete the project; I’d actually have preferred to use Basic Black but that’s just me, I don’t like grey!

I haven’t decided who will be the lucky recipient of this card yet, I have several friends who fit the bill perfectly, so will hang onto it until I need it. 

Top tip: When stamping the words, I started from the right and worked backwards. Not only did this make it easier for me, as a left-hander, it meant I didn’t run out of space.  And, although the Labeler Alphabet stamp set comes with multiples of common letters so you can stamp whole words at once, I prefer to stamp individual letters so that I can get them closer together. 

Birthday Fiesta Photopolymer Bundle [142268] £38.50	Labeler Alphabet Photopolymer Stamp Set [141936] £15.00	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock [140490] £6.50
Card Stock A4 Smoky Slate [131291] £7.25	Whisper White A4 Card Stock [106549] £8.25	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] £5.50
Emerald Envy Classic Stampin' Pad [141396] £6.00	Tangerine Tango Classic Stampin' Pad [126946] £6.00	2016-2018 In Color Enamel Shapes [141410] £8.25

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com