I BELIEVE IN SNOWFLAKES

Snowflakes, snowflakes, snowflakes! Aren't they beautiful? Especially those fluffy perfectly-formed snowflake-looking snowflakes we get a few times a winter here in Wisconsin! I love it when those delicate little masterpieces land softly on my black winter coat. I always take the
time to examine and admire them. Smile. Feel somehow warm inside. And then walk on in appreciation. What a mysterious gift!

For winter cards, I tend to gravitate toward snowflakes. As snowflakes gravitate toward the Earth.

Another person, Wilson Bentley (1865-1931) also gravitated toward snowflakes. He came up with a way to  capture snowflakes on black velvet to photograph them in all their intricacy before they melted and disappeared forever. His photographs are incredible in their perfection. I am always fascinated with his work, and even own a book about him and his frosty friends.

If you are interested in more detail on Bentley and his snowflakes:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilson_Bentley Here is a copy of one of his photos, in all its icy wonder.

Anyway, Stampin' Up! introduced to its adoring public a new stamp set, Snowflake Soiree 

(page 5 of the Holiday Catalog), which I immediately fell in love with. This stamp set called 

to me to use it with emboss resist. And I responded with this card:

We created it at my November workshop. Instead of the traditional way of doing an emboss 

resist by sponging with ink, this one uses reinker instead. It's a little messy, a little less predictable, and I think, a lot of beautiful. 

I know they're not as beautiful as Bentley's snowflakes, mostly because these snowflakes 

are merely (wo)man-made. And not the real thing. You can see how the inks run and flow 

into each other to form marvelous marblized areas of mystery, evoking a wintry sky. 

To create your own Believe snowflake card:

Supplies:

Snowflake Soiree stamp set

Tempting Turquoise card stock

Whisper White card stock

Glossy White card stock

Reinkers in various light blues and purples (I used three retired Stampin' Up! inks)

Tempting Turquoise ink

VersaMark ink

White Embossing Powder

Heat Tool

Aqua Painter

Water Spritzer

Directions:

Fold a 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" piece of Tempting Turquoise card stock in half, and crease it well 

with a bone folder.

Stamp the various snowflakes randomly across the Glossy White card stock with VersaMark 

ink. (I did not use the largest of the snowflake stamps.)

Cover the stamped snowflakes with White Embossing Powder, tapping the excess back 

into 

the container. Heat to emboss. Make sure ALL the snowflakes are shiny!

Drop a single drop of each of the three reinkers on a scrap of glossy card stock. Spritz 

the embossed piece with water. With an Aqua Painter, pick up a bit of one of the colors 

and randomly drop it here and there among the wet snowflakes. Continue doing this with 

each of the colors until your background is covered with blended inks. Use the Heat Tool 

to move the colors around and to dry the piece. Isn't that pretty?

Wrap a length of Tempting Turquoise Grosgrain Ribbon around the snowflake piece, securing 

it on the back. Adhere this piece to the card front.

On a 1" x 3 1/2" piece of Whisper White card stock, stamp "Believe" in Tempting Turquoise. 

Use a square punch to create the flagged end. Attach this over the ribbon with Stampin' Dimensionals. Tie a bow in a piece of Tempting Turquoise ribbon, and attach it to the card 

with a Mini Glue Dot.

Now, enjoy those real snowflakes when they make their appearance!

Smiles.