Hidden in the Stars

Inspired by Lisa Spangler

Hubby and I celebrated our anniversary last month and this is the card I made for him. He likes cards depicting nature, scenery, and animals, so I thought he would enjoy this one. I recently received the Hero Arts "Tree for Life" stamp and was looking forward to having a chance to use it. I saw this card on Lisa Spangler's blog and swooned! The constellation background and the peacefulness of being under the canopy of stars is so inviting, her inking technique superb. I love how light her card looks, but still depicts nighttime. Mine came out a bit dark, I think, but there wasn't time for any do-overs!

I used a technique I've seen on Heather Telford's blog to obtain the shadow around the tree. Heather's blog is always a delight to visit; her cards are beautiful, many of them depicting nature at its finest. She uses different techniques and explains them so well. I first stamped the tree in versamark and then reinked it in Versafine Black, stamping slightly below and to the left of the original image. Next, I added clear embossing powder and sprinkled on just a bit of sparkle embossing powder and heat embossed the image. Once I inked the sky, the shadow appeared like magic and there was just a bit of sparkle.

My plan all along was for there to be a heart in the sky, a new constellation. My original thought was to use a die cut heart to pierce around and then add some gems for the heart along with a few random stars. Then I thought about using the Hero Arts "Tiny Star Background," but decided that would be too many stars for the simpler design I had in mind. I pulled out my Simon Says Stamp "Falling Stars" Stencil and decided, yes, this would give me the option to choose how many stars I really wanted while still trying to decide how to include a heart. As I stared at the stencil, deciding which stars to mask, it suddenly appeared. It was beyond belief! Hidden amongst all those stars was my very own heart constellation, already designed for me! I think my very heart skipped a little! Want to see it?

I used Encore Metallic Silver ink with a dauber for the stars. The addition of one star at the very bottom finished the heart design. A few gems for sparkle and the heart was complete.

Our anniversary was one of those "ordinary" days. We were going to visit the zoo to see the new penguin exhibit, but it was a pouring rain kind of day. Then we thought about a movie, but there wasn't anything playing we really wanted to see. When all else failed, what did we decide to do? We worked! Silly old people we are! Dh took down the family room mini blinds, one by one, and while he held them above the bathtub, I washed and sprayed all the dust and grime away. What we thought was a little project, took much longer than anticipated. Oh, and I washed and rehung the swags also. Were we desperate for something to do? Ah, but I am still enjoying the shine on the slats even now as I gaze at the birds at their feeders or the setting sun late in the day. Afterwards, we went for a quiet early dinner where our waitress treated us to an apple cobbler with ice cream dessert since she noticed our exchanged cards on the table beside us. It was definitely a good day to celebrate. And, I think we found a movie to go see in a couple of weeks. A second day of celebration!

Dh gave me two beautiful cards to celebrate our day. Now that I am creating cards, I think he makes an even more concerted effort to choose the most beautiful card he can find, and that he does. So, I just want to share how the card conversation went when he opened his:

dh: Ooooooooooooooh, wow! (or some such exclamation.)

me: (grinning) Do you like it?

dh: I love it! That's really beautiful.

me: It's not quite what I wanted.

dh: It's great! I love it! What's wrong with it?

me: The ground looks like snow.

dh: I love snow!

me: It's supposed to be a warm June evening. With grass. 

      Sitting outside looking up at the stars...

dh: But I love snow!

Thirty-two years later, still gotta love him!

Venture out tonight. Look up at the stars. Find the love hidden there!

Materials:

Cardstock: Neenah Solar White; ANW Crestwood Amethyst Metallic

Stamps: Hero Arts "Tree for Life" K5910

Ink: Versafine Black; Versamark; Encore Silver Metallic

Distress Inks: Broken China, Chipped Sapphire, Faded Jeans, Pumice Stone, Shaded Lilac, Tumbled Glass

Stencil: SSS "Falling Stars"

Other: Hero Arts Clear Gemstones; May Arts Silver Twine; Hero Arts Clear and Sparkle Embossing Powder