Lavinia Zemira Mixed Media Birthday Card

 

Hi blogging friends,

Today I am sharing a Birthday Card that I made for an acquaintance using lots of Lavinia stamps:

Challenges

This is my card for the following challenges - click on the underlined link to take you to the challenge:

• Splitcoaststampers - Free for All Friday F4A866 - Squares. Make a square card or feature a square element

• Creative Artiste Mixed Media - #131 - Anything Mixed Media 

• Creative Crafters - #104 - Anything Goes

I used a Lavinia Scene Scapes called Live the Dream for the background.  I love using Scene Scapes because it makes the whole process a bit quicker.  I did trim it down slightly as it is 6 x 6 inches and I wanted to be able to add some cardstock layers and still have it fit into the envelope that I use for 6 x 6 inch cards.

The main image is called Zemira and was first released in 2019 and is still readily available worlwide including on the Lavinia Stamps website.  That's what I love about Lavinia Stamps - they don't automatically retire their stamps just because they release new ones.  Tracey who designs her stamps frequently uses older stamps in her You-Tube videos - and sometimes a mix of old and new.  

Where is my creative heart at lately?

• Loving what I have:  I don't care if a product is old or retired—if it sparks joy, it's going on my desk.
• Finding inspiration at home:  I get way more excited 'shopping my stash' these days than browsing new catalogues.
• Focusing on the process:  Creativity for me is about the making, not the buying.

Please note, I have no connection to Lavinia Stamps other than just being a very happy long-term customer.

I stamped Zemira and the Fairy Orb that Zemira is holding using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink.  The trees on the LHS & RHS are called Woodland which are bare trees which I love because you can add the foliage that you want or just leave them bare if you prefer.  I used the Maple Leaf Stamp for the foliage and stamped it using Nocturne Ink + Shady Lane.  Some are first generation and others second generation to add some depth.  I also added some Wild Foliage stamped in Shady Lane Ink.

The garden along the bottom is Slender Mushrooms Mini, Wild Foliage and Lavender.  I stamped the mushrooms with Fallen Leaves Ink.  I know you can't necessarily see them all that well but they are mostly to the left and right of the tree trunks and they are really there to just fill the space.

The Lavender was stamped using Nocturne Ink plus Warm Breeze and Twilight using first and second generation to add depth.  The Wild Foliage was stamped using Shady Lane.

Note that at every step, I heat-set my images because Scene Scapes are coated papers and it takes a while for everything to dry and I was afraid of smearing the ink.

I used my Ink Blending Tool fitted with a Domed Pad to ink around the edges using Warm Breeze then Nocturne.  I tore a sheet of scrap paper so I had an edge to ink blend against to ground Zemira and the Trees using Nocturne Ink.

I put some JoSonja White Acrylic Gouache onto a stamp block and watered it down a little, then picked up the paint using a #000 Round Paintbrush to add some highlights to Zemira's hair as well as on her dress.

I used Titanium White Pan Pastel to add soft highlights to the areas where Zemira is facing the light plus the edges of the tree trunks.

The gold dots on the Fairy Orb and flowing down to the ground were done using a Crayola Signature Gold Pen.

The aqua dots were made using a Artistro Aqua 0.7mm Glitter Marker.

I added some dots of glue using a Uniquely Creative Fine Glue Pen then added Glitzee Aqua Glitter, then added more dots of glue and added Celebrations Australia Gold Glitter.  It's a shame you can't see the sparkliness of the card from the photo - but it really brings some magic to the scene.

Once I had finished my scene, I layered it onto Gold Metallic Paper which I originally bought from KMart (Australia) but is no longer available.  I then layered this onto Colormates Deep Terrific Teal Cardstock, then Portacraft Black Cardstock - all with a 1/16" border which was done using my We R Memory Keepers Perfect Layers Guides.  Now that I had finished my card front, I glued it to a White Cardstock Card Base using Tombow Mono Multi Glue.

I really enjoyed making this card.  It was just lovely to be in my happy place looking outside at the pouring rain through my craft room window and lose all track of time as I created the scene.   It hasn't rained all day for some time and September's rainfall was way below average.  We ended up with 67mm of rain which is a bit over 2-1/2 inches - so it was very welcome and the garden is happy again 😊 

Of course, the great thing about the card is that is flat so can go through the mail without extra postage.

Finished size is 6 x 6 inches.

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Lavinia Maple Leaf LAV039, Wild Foliage LAV980, Slender Mushrooms Mini LAV151, Lavender LAV093, Woodland LAV456, Fairy Orbs LAV377, Zemira LAV554

Designer Paper:  Lavinia Scene Scapes Live the Dream LAV-SS-LIVEDRM

Ink:  Versafine Clair - Nocturne, Shady Lane, Fallen Leaves, Warm Breeze & Twilight

Accessories:  WRMK Perfect Layers Guides, Stamp Positioner, Heat-gun, Ink Blending Tool with Domed Pad, Crayola Signature Gold Pen, JoSonja Titanium White Acrylic Gouache, Artistro Aqua Glitter Marker 0.7mm , #000 Round Paintbrush, Titanium White Pan Pastel + Applicator, Uniquely Creative Fine Glue Pen, Tombow Mono Multi Glue,  Glitzee Aqua Glitter, Celebrations Australia Gold Glitter, Cardstock - Colormates Deep Terrific Teal + Portacraft (Australia) Black, White Card Base, Anko Gold Metallic Paper (KMart)