ID: VSN June 2010 - Summer Vacation  - Victoria Butterfly Gardens
Closed 5"w  x 7"h .25" thk (opens to 15"w)

Created: June 9, 2010
Modified: August 4, 2010
This is my submission for the Vamp Stamp Magazine for the August 2010 issue with the theme of "Summer Vacation (not the usual)". It didn't make it into the magazine itself, but is in the monthly gallery.

I love the Butterfly Gardens in Victoria, British Columbia. So I thought I'd do something on that theme.

The main card uses white Linen cardstock which has a beautiful texture to it. I rubber stamped the butterfly border (Quietfire Design) using Distress stamp pads, Pumice Stone & Bundled Sage, giving a nice low key tone to the images. Rubber stamped the quote (also Quietfire Design) using the black. Die cut using Spellbinder's labels 4, dry embossed it, then sponged some Distress Forest Moss around the edges. Die cut a larger one from some olive toned cardstock.

The next panel uses the larger of the butterflies from Quietfire Design and the words from the set, stamped with the same stamp pads. Wrote in my words "wishing you were here" with a grey Zig Writer in a funky style.

The ribbon holds the front closed and is attached to the inside and hidden behind the left framed butterflies. The bow does open if necessary, but the card flap fits nicely underneath it without having to open it.

I pulled out most of my butterfly stamps (many from Inkadinkado or MSE), stamped them on tracing paper so I could get a feel for which ones to use. I also determined which of my larger stamps I would use as focal points.

For the large butterflies I used an Evolving Images plate #63 butterfly, rubber stamping the one on the bottom with Versafine Black Onyx and coloring with Prisma colors. I cut it out, then used it as a template to cut out the one on copper (the copper is slug tape from Lee Valley, which I put onto a piece of white cardstock). Cut it out and ran through the Cuttlebug with the D'Vine swirls folder then dropped alcohol inks into the crevices, colored in the body with a black Sharpie. Added floral stamen for the antennae.

Used 3D foam tape and mounted them to a piece of Linen cardstock.

Cut out the 5w x 7'h frame from a piece of foamcore (with a new sharp blade) which I painted black with Bob Ross's Black Gesso.  Wrote in the words at the bottom with a white colored pencil.

The left and right panels are done on white cardstock with black cardstock matting the images.

I picked some linear and some more solid images for variety. The linear images I stamped with the black and colored with Prisma colors. The solid images I stamped with Brilliance stamp pads in various colors, over inking on some. As a final touch on some of the bodies I added some Rangers Black Accents using the tip of a bamboo skewer.

All the borders are 1/2"w.
 

The tape was a touch smaller than the butterfly so had to shorten the tails a bit.

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