Flowering Zinnias Quick Card

Hello there!  Hope you're enjoying your day today.  It's another sunny day and that puts me in mind of summer and flowers.  Who cares if it's chilly as long as there's sunshine.  It always brightens my mood and gives me a little extra boost of creativity.  Each time I get a new suite of products, I have a tendency to first play with the DSP before I get around to the stamps, dies, etc.  This gives me a feel for the colors and overall ambiance of the new suite.  That's what I've done with today's card.  It's very simple and totally focuses on the Flowering Zinnias Designer Series Paper (Online Exclusive) which is bold and beautiful.  So, to my mind, it needs bold colors to balance it out.

Ok, here's my bright and beautiful card.  This uses two different prints of the Flowering Zinnias DSP that I think go perfectly together.  You know this bold color is outside of my comfort zone, but I'm happy with how it all came together.  Using the color choices that are listed on the DSP, I added a small bit of Blackberry Bliss to my card for an accent.  Let's do a step-by-step walk through on making this card.

Start with a base of Basic White Thick cardstock that measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2".  It's scored at 4 1/2" and folded in half.  I chose the white to frame up the bright colors and blend with the background of white on the main print.  White just seemed to draw it all together.

The layer on the card front is a Melon Mambo print from the paper pack.  The print is subtle, so it doesn't fight with the bold center piece.  This measures 5 1/4" x 4" and it's not attached just yet.

Next, I cut a piece of the zinnia print for the focal point.  This is trimmed to measure 4 1/4" x 3".  I made sure there was enough white space at the top to stamp in a sentiment.  The sentiment is from the Simply Zinnia stamp set and fit perfectly at the top.  It is stamped with Blackberry Bliss ink to coordinate with the darkest color on the flower print.  

The layer behind this print is Blackberry Bliss cardstock.  I was going to frame the whole layer with the Blackberry Bliss but thought that made the whole card fairly dark.  I wanted to keep more of the brightness showing.  So to compromise, I used a partial layer that is not as wide as the DSP, but it is longer.  The measurements are 4 3/4" x 2 3/4".  This added the Blackberry Bliss color but didn't add too much darkness to the overall look.

Next, the ribbon choice was made.  I wanted the ribbon to be a bold statement across the bold card.  The Black and White Gingham ribbon was a nice contrast to the print.  I preferred the look of the ribbon wrapped around all the layers instead of just the focal layers.  The floral layers were attached to the center of the Melon Mambo layer using Dimensionals.  Then the ribbon was wrapped around and tied into a bow in the front.  Finally, this all was attached to the white card base using "green glue".

The final touch was the Adhesive-backed Shiny Sequins that are also an Online Exclusive item.  The colors of the sequins match the DSP to a "T".  I didn't choose the reddish color because there was so much of this on the card already.  But chose the yellower color to pick up some of the lighter colors on the print.  

Like I said in the beginning, this was a very simple card.  Because of the boldness of the DSP, I didn't think it needed any more fussiness going on.  I hope this inspires you to check out the Simply Zinnias Online Exclusive bundle and all the coordinating items made to go with it.  Even though I'm more of a pastel kind of gal, this suite caught my eye.  Looks like it will really be fun to create all those bright summery cards I'll be needing.  

Thanks for stopping by today.  Hope you noticed the Retiring Lists on the previous post so you can get some of those items on your wish list before they're gone.  Happy shopping, and I hope you can find everything that you need.  Email me at sharoncarr50@gmail.com if you need any help.

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon