The Craft Barn Alpha/Dictionary Challenge 2016 - Letter B

This year the Craft Barn is running an Alpha/Dictionary Challenge. In the previous Alpha/Dictionary Challenge in 2013 I made a set of atc's, so for this year I wanted to use a different format. I made portrait orientated postcards for the Lyrics and Quotes Challenge in 2014 and I've decided to return to that format this year but make them landscape which may well be a bit more challenging.

The postcards will be 6" x 4" and made as flat as possible so they could be posted - they wont because I intend to collate them into a book. The first letter in the challenge is B and and I have been rather predictable with my choice of subject to start off the year.

I started by brushing Distress Inks over the card. I then stamped the large bee image and masked it before stencilling and stamping the background. The flower image was stamped several times and roughly painted (perhaps a little too roughly!) with Distress Ink. I added some small bees to fill the gaps and coloured their bodies with pencil. I couldn't bring myself to cut up a dictionary so I printed out the definition on paper and attached.

Postcard Recipe
Card 
Anna Marie Super Smooth Printer Card 250gsm
Copier paper 90gsm
Inks 
Distress Inks - Wild Honey, Rusty Hinge, Walnut Stain, Worn Lipstick
Ranger Archival Jet Black
Spectrum Noir pencils
Stamps/Stencils
Hexagons - Kaisercraft CS160
Script - Crafty Individuals CI-161
Stencil - The Crafter's Workshop Mini Chickenwire Reversed TCW259s
Flowers - PaperArtsy
Bees - Stampotique
Other
Dictionary definition - computer generated  "Typewriter" font

The Craft Barn Weekly Challenge - Hat(s)

As always seems to happen just before the new year my mojo went on holiday but with the return of the Craft Barn weekly challenges this week I seem to have gained the momentum to get going again in my craft room.

The first weekly challenge for 2016 is to use a hat or hats on a project.

For my card I stamped the image and coloured the elegant lady with Spectrum Noir pencils before masking her and colouring the background with Distress Inks. I created the panel using the wrinkle free Distress Ink technique and over-stamped it with a background stamp that has been in my collection for several years and finally seen the light of day. Now it has come out of hiding I think it will be appearing  quite often on backgrounds. The image, panel and sentiment were all then mounted onto black card before attaching to the base card.

Card Recipe
Card
Card blank - Craftworks Cards
Anna Marie Super Smooth Printer Card 200gsm
Xerox Colortec +
Black card
Inks
Memento - Tuxedo Black
Ranger Archival - Watering Can
Distress Inks - Seedless Preserves, Worn Lipstick, Walnut Stain, Frayed Burlap, Rusty Hinge
Spectrum Noir pencils 
Stamps
Hero Arts Gracious Lady G2811
Background stamp - Stamp Addicts Ironworks SA-8004
Sentiment - Woodware JW503