Stargazing

Hey Friends,
I don't know about you, but one of my favorite things, especially on a clear night, is to stare at the stars. They are so vibrant some nights. We live out in the country far enough that there aren't city lights or street lights to dim their brightness and especially in the winter, they can be magnificent.  I've noticed I pay more attention to them with the passing away of my parents. It's not that I think they are stars but I do find myself pondering the heavens and what that must be like, as well as the hope of an eventual reunion with them.

I knew I would want to get the "Stargazing" stamp set sooner or later!  It's has some great star stamps that I think are beautiful for use throughout the year but I am looking forward to making some Christmas-themed designs with them as well.   Here's what I came up with for my first go-round:

This galaxy swirl of stars is probably my favorite stamp in the set. I wanted to get some different colors on there so I used my dauber to apply ink, starting in the center with Daffodil Delight, then some Pacific Point and finally some Night of Navy. I couldn't believe the wonderful results when I stamped!  With this technique, no two galaxies would look exactly the same but it was really fun. I dressed the card up with some random, mostly retired, ribbon as well.

The above little experiment went so well, I decided to go for it with something else. With the second swirly stars stamp, I used Versamark and our new Shimmer Black embossing powder to heat emboss the stamp on 3 separate pieces of Whisper White card stock, all cut to the same measurement of 4" by 1.75".  After they had fully dried and set, I sprinkled some new Pigment Sprinkles on each one and then spritzed them with water. They did explode and bleed just like I was hoping!  Again, with this technique, every time you try it, you will get slightly different results.   I used the Gorgeous Grape, Bermuda Bay and Granny Apple Green sprinkles.

For my last card, I wanted to use the sentiment above and try to create a night sky without using dark blue or black or silver or gold glimmers.  I'm not completely sure I achieved that, but I really like this card!  You might recognize the girl silhouette stamp from  the See A Silhouette stamp set. Boy am I using those a lot!  I just love them!  In case you're wondering, I freehand drew the grey line for the ground and then just colored a bit with my gray watercolor pencil and a blender pen. By the way, the moon stamp coordinates with our Twinkle Builder punch that came out last year! Bonus!

This was so fun to play with and it ended up being perfect for trying some different techniques with. I don't ever want to be in such a big hurry that I can't experiment, try new things and even risk failing! I think that's what furthers your craft and your artistic eye. The more you try, the more you learn.

Thanks so much for stopping by! My supplies are listed below and I'm always available to answer questions, solve some problems or encourage you in your creative adventures!  Meanwhile, keep looking up at those beautiful stars!

Happy Stampin'!
Sarah