Birthday Blends

The truck on this card is from the Country Livin' stamp set, which is the very first set I got from Stampin' Up!. I like to come back to it every so often and combine it with a new technique I've learned. For today's card, I played around with the Stampin' Blends. This truck is always a bit intriguing to color, with all its little details. No truck I've colored is ever the same, but I love the way this one turned out!

I absolutely love the Blends. They're so much fun to use, and give a beautiful, smooth look that I haven't been able to achieve with the Stampin' Write markers. Even an inexperienced color..er? like myself can turn out a great final product.

I always stamp the image I plan to color with the Memento ink pad, since it's quick drying and doesn't smudge with the markers. When I use the Blends, I use the darker version first, and then immediately color over with the lighter version. I start in the dark section and work my way down, to pull the color out into a nice blend instead of a harsh line.

I will note, though, that the Blends can bleed a little, so be sure not to color too heavy by the edges of your image. Otherwise, go crazy!

I'm off to go stare at my stamp sets and see what else I can color. You can expect more cards made using the Stampin' Blends soon!

Here's a list of products used to make this card: