Paper Seedlings: BRUSHO HIBISCUS

Have you played with your Brushos lately? No?

I tend to forget at times about using mine. Recently, however, I remembered them! And I decided to create a card for my Stamp-In girls to make. Here is what I came up with:

Obviously there is no sense of perfection in this card. And obviously you could never re-create the exact same card no matter how much you tried. That's the fun of Brushos. They enable you, the creator, to get unforeseen results. You take what you get. And rarely --unless you are too heavy-handed with the Brusho crystals -- does your creation not turn out to be delightful in some way..

WORTH REPEATING: As I've said, the secret to having success with the Brushos is to use them sparingly. You can always add more to achieve added color and intensity. You just cannot remove them once they are applied.

The photo below shows the one I did first when trying to create my card. I was still restrained in adding my color. And I'm not saying it is unsuccessful. It just doesn't have any amount of control, which was what I was looking for to a certain extent. In this rendition, I'd added the water FIRST, followed by the Brusho. It just isn't to my taste. So, you will see in the directions that I have instructed you to proceed JUST THE OPPOSITE.

How about trying your hand at a card like this? Here you go:

SUPPLIES:

Whisper White cardstock

Real Red cardstock

Watercolor Paper

Humming Along (page 36, Occasions Catalog)

Happy Birthday Gorgeous (page 72, Annual Catalog)

Black ink

Brushos

Grapefruit Grove Stampin' Blend

Water spritzer

Paper towels

Heat Tool (optional)

Post It Notes

INSTRUCTIONS:

WARNING: THE OUTCOME OF THIS CARD IS FAIRLY UNPREDICTABLE. THAT'S OK. THAT'S THE BEAUTY OF IT. JUST GO WITH IT!

Fold a 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" piece of Whisper White cardstock in half, creasing it well with a bone folder.

To the card base, add a 4" x 5 1/4" piece of Real Red cardstock.

NOW, ALL THE MAGIC WILL HAPPEN ON A 3 1/2" X 4 3/4" PIECE OF WATERCOLOR PAPER. I used a stamp positioner to do my stamping since that gives the capability to do it more than once if the image didn't come out exactly on the watercolor paper the first time I stamped it. Stamp the hibiscus in black so the top of the flower is about 3/4" from the top of the watercolor paper.

Carefully cut a piece of Post It Note (the sticky portion; I actually use Post It Tape) to about the size and shape of the stamen of the flower. Press it in place to keep color from getting on it.

Sprinkle JUST A FEW DOTS of the red Brusho over the flower portion of the image. Follow with a few dots of green in the leaf area. With the water spritzer, start out very slowly, spritzing the Brusho until it has spread and pooled as you desire. You can use a paper towel to sop up too much excess moisture. I like to let this dry naturally, but you may use the Heat Tool to hasten the drying.

If, after this first application, your colors are not intense enough, repeat the previous step one more time.

When the Brusho is as you like it and is completely dry, carefully peel off the Post It Note from the stamen. With the Grapefruit Grove Stampin' Blend, color this, as well as its stem.

Adhere the finished piece to the card front.

On a strip of Whisper White that measures 1/2" x 3 1/2", stamp the sentiment in black.

Adhere this to the lower portion of the card, leaving a small margin of white at the bottom.

If you'd like, you can stamp a birthday greeting inside the card in black.