Group of Seven Cardmakers - May 2024 Bokeh Technique

 This month, the Group of 7 Cardmakers are working with the Bokeh technique.

There is a link to a YouTube video on this technique as well as written instructions and supply list over at the G07 blog.

Here are two cards I created with my Bokeh backgrounds.

The beautiful trees are a stamp called Forest Scene from Lavinia.

Here is my second card using the same colors on my 2nd panel.  The stamps used here are Tall Dandelion (the stem is really straight on the stamp but I bent it a bit to turn into the center of the card) and Drooping Dandelion also from Lavinia.  I added White Nuvo drops to the dandelion bits.

Here is how I made my cards.

I chose 3 Distress Inks - Mermaid Lagoon, Twisted Cintron and Hickory Smoke.  I smooshed them on my craft mat (one color at a time going light to dark), spritzed with water and pressed a panel of white card stock into the colors.  I kept inking and smooshing until I got a coverage that I liked.  I made two panels in case I ruined one later!  Luckily both survived and I made two cards!

I put double sided removable tape on the back of my panel to hold it down on my glass mat, laid my White Orbs stencil from Lavinia over the panel and taped the edges to hold it.

I took a finger sponge, inked it on a White Pigment ink pad and then dabbed it over random circles.  My stencil was already a mix of big and small circles so I didn't have to move it around.  

Below are my two finished panels.  You can see that even though I used the same inks for smooshing- they look quite different.

NOTE:   I have to confess -  I hadn't gone back to the group instructions after reading it once - and I forgot the part about overlapping some of your circles to make it look more mystical -  probably because my stencil had all the different size circles and I didn't have to move it at all (that's my excuse anyway!)  -  so consider my cards as examples of how it looks if you don't overlap the circles!!??!!  I was afraid to go back when I was done - and try to overlap some -  we all know what happens when you try to fix or add something right??!

I also didn't really achieve darker white on small circles and lighter white on big circles although I tried!  My first panel may be better than the 2nd on this point.

So please check out the rest of the G07's beautiful Bokeh cards over at the Group of Seven Blog.  We hope to inspire you to try it out if you haven't yet, or even play with it again if you have!  You can link up your cards there so we can all see! 

I'm linking my dandelion card to:

NBUS

first time using the Tall Dandelion stamp

Stencil Fun

Girly theme -  Flowers  Ends 5/31

Double D Challenges

Polka Dots ends 6/2

Stamps:  Forest Scene, Tall Dandelion, Drooping Dandelion - Lavinia, Birthday Basics - PTI, Simple Strips - Sympathy - Taylored Expressions.

Paper:  White - PTI, Easter Grass - Bazzill.

Ink:  Twisted Cintron, Mermaid Lagoon, Hickory Smoke - Ranger Distress, White Pigment - Hampton Arts, Nocturne - Versafine Clair.

Accessories:  White Orbs Stencil - Lavinia, A2 Arches - The Greetery, Gloss Simply White Nuvo Drops, Simple Strips flag end and straight end dies - Taylored Expressions.