Dots, stripes and peonies

 Hi all!

I'm SO ready for nice weather!  In Ohio we have 2nd and 3rd winters lasting until about May, sometimes we even get snow!  Today has been lovely and I'm hoping it continues to stay this way...fingers crossed.

After a whirlwind last 10 days helping out my 'protégé' at my old job (aprox 130 hrs), I'm finally able to find some time for my self in the studio. I'm participating in the Altenew May Inspiration Challenge hosted by the uber talented Jaycee Gaspar.  He is just...amazing.  Coloring and shading? CHECK!  Design and layout? CHECK!  Color and out of the box thinking? CHECK! CHECK! CHECK!  Amazeballs...

I mean...come on...really.  Have you seen anything else more exquisite? ALL of his work is of this caliber.  I still need to invest in some great alcohol markers, but I have pencils on the way so I can work on his techniques.  I am inspired!  I am also combining this with the Inkspirational challenge this week, Stripes and Dots. 

I started with stamping the image with Vanilla Cream ink using the Altenew Billowing Peonies bundle. It kept the image looking like a watercolor after using the stencils as the lines didn't show up hardly at all.  It's such a pretty set, I used the smaller of the 2 flower stamps with coordinating stencil using the Tropical Forest ink color group for the leaves and Rose Petal ink color group for the flowers, finishing the centers with the Warm and Cozy ink color group for the centers.

For the background, I used the Altenew Buffalo Plaid builder stencil with Orange Cream ink for my stripes and the dots were created with an old shimmer spray I had on hand and with gold metallic watercolor paint.  The sentiment is from the stamp set, which I stamped, embossed with gold embossing powder (I need to get some new stuff...it seems...off?) and die cut.  I finished off with a little sparkle from the sequins around the sentiment and the flowers.

Overall, I like the card...I think perhaps I should have used a darker ink for the stamp so the details would be more prominent.  I may try again with the larger stamp next time...

Have a colorful day!