Ink smooshing with a sandwich baggie.

Hello again, friends!

Remember how fun it was to make ink smooshing cards with Laura?! Well, we are going to do it again!! It is absolutely one of my favorite card techniques.

So get out your favorite Unity stamps and make some ink smooshing cards of any style. (Be sure your creation is new for each challenge! :) And remember, this challenge runs through next Thursday morning!

As a reminder regarding June's favorite animal stamp; don't forget the entire line of Cuddlebug stamps are going to be on sale the entire month of June! Just for you. ;) Here is a link to the entire line of Cuddlebug, including their cut files. So grateful to Whitney and Angela for offering this!

For this weeks mini challenge I am showing you two cards made for the challenge and a few ink smooshed cards I have made in the past.

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This first card uses stamps from Succulent Greetings , and hugs, kisses & birthday wishes. Green and yellow look great smooshed together!

On this next card I used stamps from the sets abundant blessings and Flutters to Go.

I've always adored this coffee cup and have used it on several cards, and tags!

Here are the details in creating this card:

1. First, I made a vertical A2 card base from heavy cardstock, an A2 panel from a decorative piece of cardstock, and a top A2 panel from Canson XL watercolor paper. I've cut down the top panel by 1/4 inch so the bottom panel would be visible on both sides.
2. Here's where I begin the ink smooshing steps on the top panel. The very bottom of this post I've detailed my ink smooshing technique using a plastic sandwich baggie.
3. Next, I stamped the coffee cup image on a piece of scrap watercolor paper. After having water colored the image, I let my Scan n Cut fussy cut for me. ;)
4. Then, I stamped the sentiment on another piece of scrap wc paper and glued it, slightly off, to a piece of the same paper I made the bottom panel with.
5. Now I start to assemble the card by gluing the bottom panel to the card base, and popping up the top panel.
6. Lastly, I popped up the coffee cup over the ink smooshed part of the top panel, and glued the sentiment to the edge of cup.

The 3 ink smooshed cards below are some I've made over the last several months. This is truly a favorite technique of mine! The feather over purple is the first card I completed after discovering ink smooshing. I used a piece of acetate to apply the ink before discovering I preferred using the baggie.

  

I'm super excited to see all of your creative and unique designs using this technique.

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Unity is making your participation even more rewarding by offering a prize for each challenge! Each week you have a chance to win some fantastic Unity stamps! Be sure to post your creations in the challenge album over at Show & Tell!

Have fun creating!

Be sure to join me again next Thursday for a new mini challenge as we use our favorite stamps to creating something that will have you seeing stars!

Until then, friends~

Be blessed,

Bobbie Sue

My technique for ink smooshing with a sandwich baggie:

(I think I like so use the sandwich baggie because it allows you to really control where you touch down your ink.)

• First, I apply color to the center of the baggie from a Tim Holtz's mini distress cube in a circular motion so that it doesn't lay down squared. Distress inks are a number one choice because they react beautifully with water.
• Next, before I spritz with water, I lay a homemade stencil (usually a circle cut into the center of a piece of paper) over the baggie, but leaving the ink exposed.  I do this so the water goes on the ink and not the entire baggie. This helps me avoid spreading ink where I do not want it to go.
• Now, I apply my wet ink to my panel. Sometimes I lay the baggie down and move the ink around, and sometimes I just touch it to the paper. This depends on the look I am going for. I do this in layers allowing to dry in between. This builds up the colors and allows them to each peak through the other.
•  I like to do just a bit of splatter with another color when I am finished layering my smooshed ink. I do this just over and slightly surrounding the dry smooshed ink.

I encourage you to play around with this technique. Once you get the hang of it I think you will love it! Feel free to contact me if you have further questions.