Thursday Dream Schemes

This week, the Dreamweaver Team was challenged to use a sketch. Upon seeing it, I immediately thought about that ribbon and the three bows. Truth be told, I actually became a little obsessed with the idea of attaching charms in three spots on that ribbon. I decided to use shrink plastic to make the Dreamweaver Stencils the appropriate size. Then, the idea hit me--I could use the Candy Cane stencil LL 555 to make cute little canes to hang from the ribbon. I would use a small Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays for the sentiment. I also downloaded some cute Silhouette designs for the flourishy parts around the edges.

Well, you know what they say about "the best laid plans". The candy canes were too long and narrow to shrink well. I had to try it several times before I realized that they would just curl up and stay that way. Still obsessed with the plan, I switched to Valentine's Day. These shrunken patterns were really cute (expect to see them soon). I guess I just wasn't in the Valentine's mood during the first week of December, because I couldn't finish it. I switched again--this time to the small ornament stencils LM 297 and LS 98. I used pigment ink to stencil them on white shrink plastic and heated it with my heat gun. This was a bit scary at first, because they would blow around the table. Once I realized that I could gently hold them down with a wooden skewer as they heated, it all turned out fine. I am actually thinking about using this technique to make cute charms for Christmas earrings.

The charms looked a little too small for the original three bow vertical design, so I opted to switch the design to horizontal and add two more charms. Then, I took a good look and decided that I wanted the sentiment to be a larger focal point, so I switched the stencil to a larger, more graphic version of the Happy Holiday sentiment.

Next, I used the Double Sided Adhesive Paper behind the Happy Holidays stencil LM 249 to create the sentiment. Just a little soap on the back of the stencil before I adhered it to the paper, and I was assured that it would come off without bending. I have used this technique several times, but have recently discovered a new secret--the Microfine Glitter by the Art Institute Glitter Company. It goes right into every little crevice in the stencil and really enhances all the detail. Then, I used the Art Institute Ultrafine Transparent White Glitter (my favorite--Polar Bear) for the background.

The background papers were the Reminisce Christmas Collection from last year. Very glittery and shiny. So, that left me with the question of the flourish. With all the glitter, the charms and the larger sentiment, I really didn't think I needed the flourishes. They would have probably been a little too much, so I deleted them.

Unfortunately, it is snowing and dark here in Michigan again, so photographing it was a little difficult. This card is SO sparkly, that this picture does not do it justice. Here is another. It is also not great, but if you can imagine the above colors with the below shine, well, that is what it really looks like. The charms look askew, but they are actually free to swing.