Is it a gull, is it a teal?

I wasn't intending to use Fine Feathers for the rest of the week but as usual I've got carried away so guess what stamp set I've used for my regular Three Minute Thursday slot today? You're right - Fine Feathers! It's something a little bit different and I've discovered how much fun it is to design with feathers! I chose to use the fabulous colours at Dynamic Duos for this card - come and see how it turned out:

I've cheated a little with this card - the main panel took me three minutes but since cutting the card stock doesn't take much longer it's still a very quick card.

The design relies on a group of three, strong horizontals and the shadow underneath each feather which makes them pop. I stamped the feathers in Island Indigo ink, using a stamp-a-majig to get them where I wanted them, and coloured them with a Pool Party marker. I used long strokes making sure the spines of the feathers were left uncoloured and, underneath each spine, I built up the colour using the same marker - can you see how much darker it is? Finally the shadows were marked in with a Sahara Sand Watercolour Wonder crayon - I love the natural effect this gives.

This gorgeous sentiment from A Word For You has a good horizontal feel to it too and, for a bit of extra pizzazz, I added a quick touch of glitter. I have no idea what kind of gull would be shedding these aqua, glittery feathers but I expect the rest of the gulls would be scandalised!

Here's what you'll need to make this card
Stamps: Fine Feathers, A Word for You
Ink: Island Indigo
Card stock: Very Vanilla, Sahara Sand, Island Indigo
Other: Pool Party marker, Neutrals Watercolour Wonder crayons, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, stamp-a-majig
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When our children were very young, we used to take annual holidays on Norfolk's beautiful north coast where there are many bird reserves, and took to bird watching in a very amateur way. I remember one day out, involving a walk to a birdwatching hide, which didn't go too well until it dawned on me that my youngest son had mistaken the word 'hide' for 'hive'...

Good gracious, it's Friday already tomorrow - how did that happen?! See you tomorrow,