Ellen Hutson | Summer of Stamping: Week 1 -- Avery Elle IG Hop

The Essentials by Ellen Summer of Stamping is HERE and the Brand Ambassadors are celebrating with an exclusive Avery Elle stamp and die combo called Soak It Up! There's an Instagram Hop with the Avery Elle design team to bring you inspiration using these fabulous new products! While appreciated, comments left here are not eligible for the $25 gift certificate. Please head to Instagram for all the details!

I have been a long-time fan of Avery Elle's Peek-a-Boo stamp sets. There are quite a few of them and I think I own most - if not all - of them! I love the variety of cute animals and the different accessories that come with each set. I love mixing and matching all the sets, even the seasonal ones. While these animals are wearing sunglasses and were specifically designed for summer, they can still be used year-round.

I picked the cat and dog for my card and they're enjoying a game of water polo. The cat is clearly in possession of the ball but the dog doesn't seem to mind. LOL I started by choosing my images, stamping them with Versafine Onyx Black pigment ink and heat embossing them with clear embossing powder.

I decided to create the background scene first, by die cutting the Abstract Sunset from watercolour cardstock and using distress inks to blend the different sections. For the sunset - from top to bottom - I used Scattered Straw, Wild Honey, Carved Pumpkin and Ripe Persimmon. For the water - from top to bottom - I used Blueprint Sketch, Mermaid Lagoon, Peacock Feathers, Broken China and Tumbled Glass. 

I mixed up the colours for each section and added colour from the previous sections to make it look more realistic. After the water panels were completed, I used a distress sprayer to create splatter and also used shimmer spritz to make it sparkle. I set all those pieces aside to dry while I watercoloured the images.

I smoosh my ink pads on a silicone mat and use artist brushes to colour the images. I used the same colours in the background to colour the stars, water droplets, beach ball and swimsuits. For the cat, I used Pumice Stone, Hickory Smoke and Black Soot. For the dog, I used Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy, Gathered Twigs and Ground Espresso.

Before assembling the card, I used the Stitches Cover Plate on two-thirds of the front of the white linen card base. Then I cut a silver glitter mat which I attached to the card base before assembling the ink blended Abstract Sunset background. The bottom three layers of waves were popped up with foam tape, as were the heads of the cat and dog for dimension. Everything else was attached with liquid glue.

Thanks so much for hopping along!

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