winnie & walter :: february leading lady, part 2 :: floral gift wrap

Hello all!  I'm back with my second post as February's Leading Lady over on the Winnie & Walter blog.  But first, I just want to say how unbelievable you all have made me feel about my first project.  The outpouring of kindness in your comments, both here and on the post at W&W, blew me away.  I read every single one with a little flush in my cheeks and a grateful heart.  Thank you so, so much!  (If you've asked me a question and are awaiting a reply, I promise it is coming!)

Second, let's have another project, yes?  I will confess to not having the stamping prowess of most of you out there, and certainly nothing I stamp could even come close to what the amazing W&W Talent does every day.  That doesn't mean that I don't love and covet stamp sets, though.  And if you're a simple stamper like me, the good news is that there's a place for everyone in the crafting community.  That said, I really wanted to challenge myself at least once this month.

I've seen people do such amazing things with stamping and watercoloring--especially when it comes to florals--so I told myself I would give it a shot.  It sort of worked.  I suppose I didn't end up actually doing any watercoloring, but I still got the results I was hoping for and what I did was way more involved than I usually get when I stamp.

Also, I just flew by the seat of my pants.  I bought watercolor paper (because I intended to use them), and rummaged through my box of tools that I put away years ago looking for one of those blue water brushes.  I know my mom gave me one about 9 or 10 years ago, but of course I couldn't find it.  I did, however, find a box of unused blender pens, again years old, but I thought I'd give them a go just to see what happened.

The result?  Darn near exactly what I pictured when I imagined myself watercoloring!  I stamped a floral image in Papertrey Ink's Melon Berry, then dabbed my blender in the ink and started coloring.  I got the shade variation I had hoped for and when I added some minty leaves, it looked even better.  I'm officially hooked!

I did a whole 9" x 12" page of the florals and leaves (which, by the way, are from The Big, the Bold, and Extras set) and then tried to decide what to do with them.  In the end, gift wrap won out (as is usually the case for me).  The paper size was large enough to wrap a small box (mine is just under 4" x 4" square).

It's thicker than most wrapping paper so a bone folder to press down folds and creases, as well as super sticky tape are handy tools.  It's definitely a labor of love, but some people are just worth the extra time and effort, don't you think?

When it came time to add finishing touches, I tried to keep them simple, not wishing to cover up the pretty florals I had spent the last hour painting, er, blending.  A thin strip of lace tied on with some coral pink twine was my trim.  Then a gold glitter bow that I made with the Take A Bow cutaways (*possible new favorite die set!!!), and a little tag with 'dearest' stamped on it.

I didn't really mean to return this week with another gift box and card set, but I had a 4" x 12" length of stamped paper left so I couldn't resist turning it into a card.  I cut 4" off and folded the remnant into a 4" x 4" card.  Again, I didn't want to add a lot of elements to it, nor did I wish to cover up the flowers, so I stitched a piece of lace along the bottom edge and cut 3 banners out of gold glitter (2) and pink (1) paper, then matted them together, the pink sitting center on top of the 2 golds.  The banner die comes from The Big, the Bold, and Extras cutaway set, which matches the stamps I used for the florals.

I needed a sentiment and was hoping for something that would coordinate with the package.  The Sentimental: Love stamp set offered the perfect words; I just had to add a little bit of a curve to them when I stuck them to my acrylic block.  It looks like it was meant to be, doesn't it?

I'm not sure what took me so long to try adding a little color variation to my stamps, but I am hooked now!  I encourage you to try something 'new to you' this week, too.  I HIGHLY recommend Winnie & Walter stamps and cutaways (dies).  They're such good quality and I swear that every new item I use instantly becomes my most favorite thing ever ;)  I'm really excited about my next W&W post so definitely check back here in a week's time.  (There just might be a giveaway happening and you don't want to miss it!)  Have a lovely weekend!

~Rebecca

xoxo