Best Catch

Howdy Stampers!
It's good to be back with a new product post. There is so much to love about the new 2019 Occasions Catalog and if you or your family like to fish, this is one of the best sets around!  It's called "Best Catch" and includes some wonderful stamp images as well as framelit dies so you can avoid fussy cutting. Who doesn't love that?!!

I feel I should apologize if my fish are not colored exactly like they would look in a river. I just played with my Stampin' Blends alcohol markers and didn't stop to research what fish actually look like for real, haha!  I did have fun, however!  Here's what I came up with:

For my background of this card, I went back to some favorite background paper, "Nature's Poem" Designer Series Paper. Next to the "Tranquil Textures" DSP, I have used this more than any other DSP this past year.  I purposely wanted to vary my coloring so I used watercolor pencils for the creel (basket) and fly. You can see the results are a bit understated. I did use a blender pen to enhance the color a bit. For the fish, I used variations of the Calypso Coral and Old Olive Stampin' Blends. the color is much more vibrant.  When I need to raise up my sentiment, I often reach for my "Tailored Tag" punch, perfect especially for a non-frilly card.

For my second card, I wanted to use one of the framelits that is a stand alone, meaning there is not a stamp that coordinates with it. It cuts some wonderful reeds and cattails. I switched up my coloring of the fish with shades of Shaded Spruce and Soft Suede. To create the water, I used some Pacific Point blue ink that I captured off the lid of my ink pad by squeezing the lid down on the ink pad itself, while it is still shut. I used an Aqua Painter with almost no water because I wasn't using watercolor paper, just regular Whisper White card stock.  I love everything about this card!

This wonderful set also includes suitable "Dad" sentiments so it can easily be made into a Father's Day card or masculine birthday card. On my last card, I played with the fun fish framelits that come with this set. There are two sizes and I switched up my colors between Soft Suede, Mossy Meadow and Old Olive. I used the same Aqua Painter technique on this card as I did above, but not as much coloring.  Next time, I will heat emboss the fisherman image and try to make it stand out a little more. By the way, my weeds in this card are made from a stamp in the "Home to Roost" set, a favorite Sale-A-Bration freebie!

Where I live in SW Montana, we have major rivers surrounding us and blue ribbon fly fishing abounds. In less than a half hour, you can be fishing in the world class Yellowstone, Gallatin and Madison rivers. I keep thinking that is a sport I may take up some day. My husband loves it and it would be fun to join him on these gorgeous rivers. Catching anything would be a bonus!

If you purchase this "Best Catch" bundle, you are almost at $50 which qualifies you for a Sale-A-Bration freebie. Now is the best time to shop with Stampin'Up!, host a party or even join as a demo if your wish list is really long!  Ask me for details and I'll be happy to steer you in the right direction.

I hope you have a great weekend ahead of you!  I have a Valentine Card buffet tomorrow, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. so if you're in the area and want to stop by, please do!  I'll come back later this weekend and share some of the cards and pics from that fun event!

Happy Stampin',
Sarah