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Sunday 20 October 2019

The Miraculous Maple leaf!

Hello crafting friends!

I've been wanting to join in the fun at the CAS Watercolour Card Challenge where Maple Leaf is the cue word. And (this is a recurring theme I know) I have no maple leaf stamp! But a lovely pal of mine mentioned that she's been dragging real leaves through ink pads and 'stamping' them onto card stock; and then, while I was out yesterday, a Maple leaf blew onto my coat! So, I took those things as A Sign! Come and see what I made with the leaf:


I started by washing a damp panel of watercolour paper with So Saffron and Old Olive inks. When the panel was dry, I pushed my leaf into a Soft Suede ink pad, using a paper towel to protect my fingers, and once I felt it was thoroughly inked up, pressed it onto my watercoloured panel. It made a vague maple leaf impression, not very pretty at all. But I was undeterred!


I got out Cajun Craze and Pumpkin Pie inks and watercoloured the leaf, building up colour gradually. Once I was satisfied, I allowed it to dry, then added detail with a fine liner pen and a gold Stampin' Dazzle pen.


The sentiment is from MFT's Floral Focus and I sponged Old Olive ink round the bottom left hand corner of the panel to add depth before attaching it to the card front. 

Really glad to be linking up with CAS Watercolour, where the challenges always seem to get me extra inky!


AND IN OTHER NEWS
The maple leaf came from Waterperry Gardens near Oxford where a friend and I went to explore yesterday. It's a beautiful garden, open to the public, and has a series of inspiring smaller gardens within a garden. There's a tiny rural museum there and a really gorgeous gift shop as well as a well-stocked tea room where we partook of some delicious homemade cakes. There was also a pumpkin hunt laid on to entertain the children but which did a great job of entertaining us too. One of the pumpkins laughed ghoulishly at us as we passed, making us jump out of our skins - not just once but repeatedly! 

Thanks for joining me today. Have you ever tried 'stamping' with leaves? Do let me know in the comments below - and I've love to see if you have photos or a link!

Hugs,

16 comments:

  1. WOW! This is one gorgeous card Vicky! I LOVE your stamped real leaf. Definitely a sign when it landed on your coat! And what a lovely day out you had when your maple leaf appeared. Gorgeous colours and layering of colours. Adding the details with your marker and gold pen really adds such a special touch. Thanks for sharing with us at CAS Watercolour!

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    1. Thanks Loll. To be honest I can make anything be 'A Sign' that I should be crafting!

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  2. Also meant to say that I have only done one card using a leaf from my garden, but it was fun. Can't add link in comments, but if you want to take a look, here's the url: https://www.stampingwithloll.com/2014/07/ferns-from-garden.html

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    1. My goodness, it's stunning Loll. How clever to cut it out with a tag die and the splatters are a wonderful touch. Thank you for sharing it :)

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  3. Oh, that is GORGEOUS! I leaf(!) it.

    Your trip out sounds de-leaf-ful! Maple you have a leafly Sunday!

    Sorrel, I'll ginkgo biloba off now!

    Hugs, Sarn xxx

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    1. Haha, Yew are a Nut!
      Thanks for the 'Stamping with Leaves' idea my artistic friend :)
      xxx

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  4. What a fabulous way to "create" a stamp....your leaf is a perfect replica of the real thing. I, on the other hand, DO have a leaf stamp and still cannot come up with something suitable for this challenge, sigh!

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    1. I'd love to say it was my idea LeAnne but sadly not! You have a few days to come up with something gorgeous and I have every faith that you'll pull it out of the bag!

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    1. It was amazing to have been found by a leaf! x

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  6. That turned out so well. I love that you made do without a stamp. I need to try that too. Though, looking out my window, not today maybe. It's looking cold and wet.
    Love
    Ela

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    1. Haha, this is when it's handy to have stamps and dies in a nice warm craft room Ela!

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  7. What an awesome maple leaf, Vicky! I love that you used a natural leaf as a stamp! The colors are true to Fall and the watercolor background is perfect! Thanks so much for sharing with us at CAS Watercolour!

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    1. Thanks Bonnie. CAS Watercolour certainly pushes me outside my comfort zone!

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  8. What fun, to stamp with a real leaf! I love how the card turned out.

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    1. Thanks Eveline! It was certainly a bit of good inky fun!

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I'd love to know what you think. Do leave me a comment - it always makes my day! Vicky x


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