May Color Tag Challenge

Here's my finished product for the May Color Tag Challenge swap coordinated by Inky Whiskers on Rubber Stamp Chat forum. The challenge was to create 4.35" x 2.75" tags to swap with other members using a specific color scheme. This month the colors were orange, turquoise, cream and each stamper had to pick a fourth color to add. Neutrals were freebies.

Aside from the tag challenge set up by Inky Whiskers, I knew I would be incorporating Stampee Foil into the design. I wanted to use the distressed foil technique (May 2009), because the bottom layer of ink that shows through the distressed foil could easily add the fourth color to my scheme.

My final color scheme: orange, turquoise, cream and gold.

This is how I created the tags:
1. The tags were cut out of a cream colored parchment style card stock.

2. The edges of each tag were aged with a combination of Slate and Meadow Adirondack alcohol inks from Ranger. I just took a few drops of each color on the dabber and added a bit of blending solution. Then I started with the dabber off of the tag and brought the color onto the edges and blended. This gave the tag a nice aged effect that coordinated with the distress technique used to apply the Stampee Foil. Tim Holtz has a great YouTube video tutorial showing the different ways the Adirondack inks can be used. Watch Tim's fancy video.

3. Using a large french script stamp inked with Encore gold pigment ink, both from Stampin' Up, I stamped the background image over the whole card.

4. Using the distressed foil technique I applied Stampee Foil in Aquamarine over the entire background image. Note: when the aqua foil is removed, small areas of gold pigment ink are revealed.

5. After the background was completed I used an embellished Cherish stamp (Stampin' Up) inked with the gold pigment ink, to stamp the image in the top right hand corner of the tag.

6. I then used the distressed foil technique to apply Orange Stampee Foil to the newly stamped image.

7. My tags were ready for swappin'. :)

♥ Stacey