Lots of hearts

I'm back to share the rest of my valentines. This year I was more interested in doing mixed-media projects than making "cute" cards, so that's what I did. (I love cute cards, but that's what I usually make for Meals on Wheels, which I didn't do this year.) Today's cards have stamping, texture, drawing, and definitely lots of hearts.

These are the first three mixed-media cards. They are 5" x 7" rather than the usual A2 size (for the U.S.), which I think is easier for me when it comes to mixed media. I used lots of supplies, and I even tried to keep a list this time, which is at the end of the post. The middle card in this group has clear glossy hearts. Here is another view:

It's hard to detail the steps for making these cards. I started by stamping the hearts on the tan panel and then just started applying different "stuff." I tried to just create and not overthink anything, but I'm a chronic overthinker, so I don't know how well I succeeded with that. Most of all, I just wanted to enjoy the process, which I did.

These are the last two cards in this style. For these two I covered the middle panel with clear gesso after I was done with the stamping. I wanted to try adding water to the Distress Crayon (the red and pink) instead of just smudging it with my finger. It didn't turn out exactly as I had hoped, but the nice thing was that I could just wipe it off the gesso'd surface. It did leave a hit of color, though, which is why the card on the left has a bit of a red tint to it. I tried using rub-on transfers on the right-hand card, but it was really hard to get them to stick, and I think that may have been because of the gesso. There's always something new to learn!

Before I go, I meant to include these cards in my last post, but I forgot. Oops!

I guess they are mixed media -- at least in terms of the textured backgrounds made with stencils. The two outside cards used foil with Deco Foil Transfer Gel Duo. The middle card used a glitter texture paste. Die-cut hearts and sentiment strips make up the focal images. And that's it for this year's valentines!

As I mentioned, here are (most of) the supplies I used for the tan mixed-media cards:

Stamps: Love Notes (Stampers Anonymous - Tim Holtz), Well-Read (Altenew), Beautiful Soul (Taylored Expressions), Zen Messages (Hero Arts)

Paper: Tan mixed media paper and tan cards (Strathmore), black card stock (Taylored Expressions), Poppy Parade card stock (Stampin' Up!), white card stock (Neenah)

Ink: Toffee (Taylored Expressions), Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), Abandoned Coral and Worn Lipstick Distress Crayons (Ranger - Tim Holtz)

Accessories: Sketched Hearts dies (Taylored Expressions), gold Hero Paste (Hero Arts), transparent gloss texture paste (Ranger), clear gesso (Prima Art Basics), white Collage Backgrounds Hero Transfers (Hero Arts), Fluttering Hearts stencils (Honey Bee Stamps), clay hearts (HAI)

I'm going to try to get back to a more regular blog-posting schedule. Nothing set in stone, but I'm planning to do one post each weekend and at least one post during the week. That should help me catch up on the back log of cards I have to share and hopefully keep me on track. Thanks for stopping by!