Fine Feathers

Happy Monday!

Ugh!  I'm STILL full from dinner last night.  WHY do we have to get full?  Why can't we just eat and eat and eat and eat - and not get to the point where you can't breathe ... and never gain weight???  When I become Queen of theWorld I'm going to make that a priority mandate!  I had a lovely day.  It all started with the Easter Bunny fun and Scavenger Hunt.  It never ceases to amaze me how many hours it takes to orchestrate these holidays and just how quickly it is all over!  I didn't have too much prep to do for Easter Dinner since my Mom cooked the turkey and dressing at her house and then brought it over ready-to-carve to our house.  I just had to make the potatoes, veg, salad and dessert - and Craig made the dessert - Black Forrest cake - complete with his own home-made cherry jam from last fall!  I SO have the best husband in the world!!!

So!  On to a project!  I got a new stamp set last week and decided to play around with it.  Here is what I came up with:

It took me about 2 hours to come up with this but I thouroughly enjoyed the process.  It was really relaxing as I tried using different colors and textures.  I used the stamp set "Fine Feathers" (page 79 - $15.95 clear; $20.95 wood).  I hadn't really noticed it before but once I did I thought it would be a nice set for masculine cards or sympathy cards.  It was more of a challenge than I thought it would be ... but I DO enjoy a challenge.  For this card I used whisper white, basic black and Baja Breeze card stock with Craft White and Staz-on Black ink.  I used the Large Oval punch (page 184 - $21.95) for the accents along with the Fabulous Phrases "gratitude" (page 133 - $32.95 clear; $46.95 wood - this is another essential set, in my opinion!)  I wrapped some Linen Thread around the black layer (page 173 - $5.95) and used a 3/16" Neutral brad for some added color and texture.  I felt it needed just a little something "more" so I grabbed my new Distressing Tool (page 14 of the Spring Mini - $6.95) and distressed the edge of the black and baja cs as well as the top edges of the ovals.  I LOVE how it turned out.  It softened the edges in a "feathery" way and really pulled the whole thing together.  It's not my usual "style" but I really like the finished look.

I want to play with this set a little more - I'm thinking of the same layout I used for my "By The Tide" triple square card ... so check back again soon to see how that one turns out.  Until then - have a stampy day!

Tam