The Flower Challenge - Shaped Cards

April already, I've no idea where the time is going! I hope you all had a lovely Easter and are refreshed and ready to join in our new challenge over at The Flower Challenge and this month we want to see shaped cards, so not your standard square or rectangular card.

I used the Tonic verso Twisting Veranda dies for my card base, overhanging the largest basic shape slightly over the crease of my 8x8 card blank to make my base card. I then layered up the dies in cream and purple card to create the background. I stamped Heartfelt Creations Arrianna Blooms on some patterned paper (craftwork cards?) in black ink and cut them out. I then shaped and layered them up to form the flowers. I also diecut some more patterned paper in green tones with Sue Wilson's Bold Scrolled Vine die. It doesn't show up well in the photo, but this die has a lovely debossed detail to it. I tucked this behind the flowers including some snipped into smaller pieces. I die cut the Elizabeth Craft's sentiment in black card and added it to the card. To finish, I added some nuvo drops to the flower centres.

I have to confess to a mishap with this card. I finished it, put it down and realised that I'd stuck the sentiment on at a very wonky angle! I was determined to save the card though. The striped section was originally a cream die cut placed on top of the cream card. I managed to peel off the sentiment without damaging the stripes and then cut the inner edge of the striped border again out of cream. I then trimmed it down bit by bit to poke under the edge of the flowers without damaging them so it fitted back into the gap. I had to cut a few extra leaves to cover where I'd snipped in a little too far! I then had a problem that I'd die cut the sentiment out of the middle of the purple layer and didn't have any more of that colour. I decided to go with black in the end as I'd stamped the flowers in black. Finally I added glitter nuvo drops to the centre of the darker flowers and gloss lilac drops to the centre of the paler one. The paler centres looked too pale and so I ended up adding purple stickles on top of the crusted over gloss drops without squashing them. Finally something went right!

Along with the rest of the design team (check out our fantastic new teamies), we can't wait to see your shaped cards this month. Just remember to make flowers the main focus of your card and if you could include our cue card in your post we'd love you even more than we already do! Happy creating x