A Dose of Vitamin Sea

A DOSE OF VITAMIN SEA

Hello stamping friend! I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s post, where I shared some brand new stamps, from a new-to-me stamp company in Ukraine! If you missed it, be sure to check out the post – or at least the pictures! The company is called Lesia Zgharda Designs, and the stamps are beautifully created. Today I’m sharing another animal themed card with you, featuring the A Dose of Vitamin Sea stamp set and coordinating dies, by Picket Fence Studios.

THINGS ARE BETTER BY THE SEA

Maybe it’s because our bodies are mainly water, or maybe it’s because I’ve spent most of my life living close to water. Either way, I always feel better when I’m by some body of water; sea, ocean, lake or river. When I used this stamp set last, I talked about how I’ve gone whale-watching, and it truly was a spectacular experience! (If you missed it, that post is HERE).  The most amazing part is when you see the whales ‘breaching’ – that’s when they propel themselves up & out of the water, and then splash back down. That’s what I tried to capture in this card.

I also love how this whale appears to be smiling!

CARD DETAILS

I wanted to use my Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers for colouring, so I stamped the whale onto a piece of watercolour paper, in Memento Tuxedo Black ink. Make sure your ink is completely dry before colouring, so that it doesn’t smudge. The colours I used are 091 Gray and 092 Blue Gray, along with a water brush for blending. For the two water spray images, I stamped Distress Oxide ink in Broken China and Blueprint Sketch onto the stamp, sprayed the watercolour paper with water, and then stamped onto the wet paper. I did this twice without re-inking in between. I liked  the effect of the soft blending of the inks for a natural looking spray. The picture below shows the spray.

After colouring and stamping, use the coordinating A Dose of Vitamin Sea dies to die cut the whale and sprays.

BACKGROUND PANEL

To create the background panel, use the Life Changing Blender Brushes. First, apply Broken China Distress Oxide ink to the bottom two-thirds of the white cardstock panel. Bring up the ink on both edges, to look as if the water is splashing upwards, on either side of the whale. Next, blend Blueprint Sketch Distress Oxide over the bottom portion of the panel, again blending upwards on the sides.

I debated on whether to stamp any fish in the water, but decided I wanted the focus to be on the whale. Stamp the water bubbles in the Blueprint Sketch ink. Next, spray some water drops onto the panel, and then blot them up with a cloth or paper towel. This lightens areas of the ink, creating another type of ‘bubble’ look.

Stamp the sentiment, from the A Dose of Vitamin Sea stamp set, in Blueprint Sketch ink at the top left of the panel. Now, attach your whale and splashes, with foam tape or squares.

Finally, go back and add some dots and highlights to the whale and the bubbles, with a white gel pen.

GET YOURSELF A DOSE OF VITAMIN SEA!

If you ever have the chance to go whale watching – go!! Choose a reputable company that adheres to the rules of staying the required distance from the whales. This reduces the stress on the whales, plus ensures safety of everyone on the boat, and the whales. Take your camera, and enjoy yourself! If you can’t go whale watching, then maybe you’d like to create your own whale scene, like I did here.

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