Tuesday, March 1, 2016

SSCB#53 Circles / Dots - Happy Flowers

Hi sweet friends!  I hope you're having a great day!  Everything is good here!  The weather has been crazy, but that seems so typical for the Chicago area.  One day it's in the 50's and you think.. .Ah.. spring is finally here.. and then the next day it will snow.   I think there is a lesson in patience in there somewhere for me!   I'm taking an on line class in photography - just trying to get to know my camera a little better.  I took photography in high school - but that was in the old days - before digital.  So usually I set my camera on "automatic" - now I'm learning a little bit more on how to change the settings to get different effects.  Hopefully you'll be able to see some subtle differences soon. 

I've had a few questions about the new look of my blog and I'm happy to report that I've made all those changes myself. How many years of blogging and I'm understanding how to write a little code for the gadgets, and make some new headers.  My old header - remember that?  Was a collage of flower photos that I took myself in the back yard, and it was a bit difficult to let go of.   I'm so sentimental.  The new header - with the birds is a vector that I altered.  There are lots of free or low cost ($1 - $2) vectors you can download for your personal use.   I took two bird images and positioned them on a blank Photoshop file, added then added my blog text.  Thanks for your positive feedback on the changes.

A new challenge begins today at Serendipity Stamps Challenge Blog!  The challenge begins on the first of the month and this time it's all about circles and dots!   Serendipity has the most unique word / verse stamps - like this one "You Make Me Happy"  I love that it's circular.  The mix of fonts is fun too.  It's really versatile too because you can color in the open letters if you like.  I started my project with this verse cut in a circle.  I knew I wanted it to be surrounded by more circles, large and small.  I stamped several floral stamps and cut sections of them with circle dies.  I did a little playing around deciding which flowers to use, size of circle to put where etc. before I colored them in. 

 I played around with putting solid color card stock mats under each circle, but decided I liked them "as is".  So what do you do when you cut out extra dies that you don't use?  I just slip them in with the die set that I keep in a sleeve.  So the next time I pull out my circle dies the "extras" are tucked inside.  
The neutral background pattern paper reminds me of newsprint and  really makes the colors pop.  The final touch was a sprinkle of wood grain look sequins.  You can find these at Serendipity - they are wood grain on one side, and plain on the other.  You get LOTS in a package for $3 so you'll have them for a while, and they lie completely flat on your projects.

Want to go shopping?  Serendipity has a 50% off  Stamp of the Month.  This time it's "To The World" !! Perfect for our circle challenge!!  

Want to see more circle inspired creations from the design team?  Just click on their names to jump to their blogs!  We have a very special guestie too - Please hop on over to say hi to Jinny Newlin from Soaring

I hope you join us at Serendipity Stamps Challenge Blog!  You have the entire month to play along!   












Finished Size 4.25 x 5.5"
Stamps | Serendipity Stamps | You Make Me Happy | Pansy Corner | Hollyhock | English Rose
Sequins | Serendipity Stamps
Dies | Spellbinder Standard Circles
Pattern Paper | Pebbles Cedar Lane 6"

9 comments:

BenteS said...

Such a pretty card!
A wonderful way to use circles :))

Diane Jaquay said...

Your card is beautiful, Jeanne! Your new header is also beautiful, and kudos to you for doing it yourself! I'd be completely lost without my programmer hubby to help me with things like that ;)

Joyce said...

Stunning card, and I really love the new look of your blog. Impressed that you did it yourself.

Lisa Elton said...

How FUN is this!! The circles are terrific and your flowers so pretty!!

Darnell said...

Your card is so perfect for these days when we long for spring, Jeanne! The layering and coloring are divine and I'm in love with that dotty sediment!!

I think I've told you how much I love your new blog look! I'm so in awe of how you self-taught yourself to make these beautiful changes!! Can you set your old header as a desktop wallpaper and that way you will still see it everyday? I hope you're having a great week! Hugs, Darnell

Lesley said...

Gorgeous and love those florals!

Sharron said...

Beautiful card, Jeanne! Fabulous coloring and layering and I love that wonderful sentiment. The fonts look great. And I'm impressed that you did your header. It's fantastic!!

Jinny Newlin said...

So pretty, Jeanne! Love your take on this challenge and how that word stamp fits the bill perfectly! Beautiful palette, too! I got a few of those woodgrain sequins, too. LOVE, and can't wait to put them to good use!

cm said...

Jeanne, your beautifully coloured and arranged floral circles are gorgeous; promises of Spring about to bloom. The background paper and sentiment: perfect accompaniments. Your tech savviness in learning about your camera and, especially, in re-designing your blog's appearance (so pretty!) is yet more evidence of your abundant creativity and ingenuity...
Hugs~c