So this year I have decided to challenge myself to make a set of cards, scrapbook page or journal layout using each of my stamp sets as I know I have some I rarely use!

This week I am playing with the Bliss stamp set. I’ve had this set for ages… about 6 years I think.  But apart from the flourish which I used on the cards I shared on Sunday I rarely use these stamps.  So for today’s cards I was determined not to use the flourish. 

I started with a distress ink square (I used a Clarity framer stencil for both cards) and onto this I added water through a swirly stencil.  This gives a very subtle pattern to the background.   I then stamped the butterfly three times in the Seedless Preserves ink and added the sentiment in Black.

I then doodled the border round the inked square.

For this one I graduated the colour diagonally and chose the circle framer.  Then I used the leaf stencil and inked that with peeled paint distress ink.  The butterfly and flowers I stamped on a separate piece of card and cut them out …. might have worked better if I had masked them off after stamping first?

Again a doodled border and a sentiment from another set of stamps.

I added butterflies to the envelopes

I just used one ink colour and did a first, second and third generation inking to get the graduated colour.

Love how the cards turned out but not convinced about the stamp set.  I have Papillon Pot Pourri which fits the punches I have so the butterfly isn’t really a must have.  The flower isn’t my favourite and can’t see me using the Bliss sentiment much.  There is a small bird in the set but only ever used that once … It’s not exactly my style.  This leaves the flourish. 

I do love the flourish… but do I need it?

Ho hum!  This is a real undecided set.  But I think it goes into the Lose it pile… well maybe I hang onto that pile for another week or so before I decide completely?

Happy crafting!

Catherine