Sharing Fall Hop
Woodland Wonders
Good day, fellow crafters. Today I am sharing with you my entry into this week’s Sharing Fall Challenge! This challenge is being hosted by @thatcraftygolden and you can find their page on Instagram, and is running from September 18th - October 19th. This week's theme revolves around Woodland Wonders and in the heart of the woodland wonders, where ancient trees stand tall and the air is infused with the sweet scent of pine, there resides a majestic creature that embodies the spirit of the wilderness: the bear. Bears, with their gentle strength and quiet majesty, is my choice of design theme for this challenge. If this theme sparks your creativity, join us in the fun! Don't forget to use the hashtag #sharingfallcards, as we can't wait to admire your creations. I hope you enjoy my submission to this challenge.
The idea for this design struck me during a recent visit to the Great Smoky Mountains. One of my family members, in a rather candid moment, mentioned they "didn't really like bears." Now, I'm all for good-natured banter, especially within the family. Considering I had been creating a series of raccoon-themed cards, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to tease them a bit. Hence, the decision was made: that family member was definitely getting a bear card from me this time. Gotta keep the laughter going, right?
To begin I divided my background panel into visual thirds then utilized some Distress Oxides to get a ground layer, a middle horizon layer, and an upper sky layer. I next used the Hero Arts Woodland Forest stencil, above left, along with Distress Oxide’s in the colors of Weathered Wood and Gathered Twigs which to be honest I couldn’t help continuously giggling about those names as I applied the ink to the stencil. Once I was satisfied with the hues I set the panel aside to dry.
The next step was to create the bear. To accomplish this I ink-blended with some more of the Distress Oxides in Weathered Wood and Gathered Twigs until I got a richer dark brown hue that I was happy with. I next used the Bear die from Impression Obsession Paper Crafts, featured on the right, to cut out the shape.
The next stage was assembly. I trimmed the background panel to its final dimensions, then used an A2-sized rectangular die to cut a black mat. I adhered the two together with double-sided tape and then adhered the composite to a pre-cut and folded A2 white card base. Next, I used some black pigment ink to stamp my sentiment and with foam tape for added dimension mounted the bear to the card. With that, I called the card complete.
