VanGoghChica Studio

Have you ever liked fashion or art that was made up of elements you would not think "go together"? Have you ever heard someone describe something as "beautifully ugly"? I can not tell you why or how but sometimes you can go afoul of basic design principles and come out with something appealing. Well, I set out to create a visually pleasing card with elements that normally clash. I think I succeeded in designing a fun card that illustrates this point. I used non-analogous and non-complimentary dominant colors of purple and green and mixed vintage style florals with a modern graphic of thick stripes.  The sentiment set I used was perfect as it paired a lilting cursive "You" with a modern computer-ish block type. And the end result... I like it! it's quirky and fanciful. Supplies Altenew's Scalloped Ornaments layering stamp set. This set is not  available anymore but there are several other Altenew layering stamp sets to choose from. Altenew's  Y...

I love  working color onto surfaces in interesting ways.  So playing with watercolor in unconventional ways was fun. I made a couple cards using watercolors in loose and surprising ways. These techniques require you leave your perfectionism at the door. I will go over one of those methods here. Supplies Altenew's  Nostalgic Florals  stamp and die  set Altenew's Garden Gala stamps. At the time of this writing, the Garden Gala set is only sold to subscribers of  Craft Your Life membership plan . Subscribers got early access to this March 2026 set. It will not be available to non-subscribers until next month. Altenew's  metallic watercolor set Altenew's  solar white card stock Altenew's fresh dye inks in  azurite ,  ultraviolet ,  volcano lake  and fresh lemon Altenew's  crisp ink in parrot Altenew's  permanent black pigment ink Watercolor paper, preferably  hot press Watercolor brushes - I used a number 9 round tip...

Note: I am writing a separate post on the process of creating these  cards. This post looks at the design of the project as a whole. My teacher in the Altenew Educator Card Making (AECP) Program, Erum Tasneem , issued me a challenge one third of the way through the program. The challenge consists of designing two sets of cards drawing on similar motifs and theme, but making one for men and the other for women.  I need to incorporate and explain three technical components I learned so far. These his and hers sets were to be packaged creatively and I should incorporate the use of at least one recycled item in the packaging. Everything was to be hand made. If you ask most people what a his and hers set means, the majority would come up with similar characteristics: durable vs delicate, plain vs frilly, bold vs soft, flowery vs architectural, you get the idea.  Now, I know exactly what my teacher meant. On a personal level, I lean towards traditional feminine aesthetics. But ...

  A favorite past time for adults to relax with is coloring. In this tutorial, I will show you how to use your stamping ink pad to paint watercolor on your cards. And it is just like coloring in that you can easily brush on washes of color with three simple tools - a paintbrush, a paper towel and water. If you would like to see the accompanying video on how to achieve this look, click here .  Supplies Altenew's Nostalgic Florals stamp  and die set White and light orange card stock Altenew's Satin Gold Sequins Altenew's Summer Afternoon fresh dye ink mini set Altenew's Coffee Break fresh dye ink mini set Altenew's Fresh Dye Ink in Grass Field   Altenew's Crisp Inks in  Parrot Altenew's gluetape Liquid glue Altenew's watercolor brush Paper towels Water spritzer Stamp a 4"X5.25" card stock rectangle with your flower image and sentiment. Cut a 4.25"X5.5" yellow card stockout rectangle. Glue the yellow card stock to the front of your A2 si...

 

  My first class in the Clean & Simple (CAS) style of card making was basic. I admit, that I had to hold myself back while creating this card. Basically, I stamped the images and colored in two spots that I felt balanced the composition and injected a little pizazz. It is pretty straight forward.  Supplies Altenew Many Thanks stamp set Altenew Healthcare Heroes stamp set Altenew fresh dye ink in crimson Altenew pigment ink in permanent black Staedtler watercolor pencil no. 124 Hangfan alcohol marker in carmine No. 6 round brush One item that I did not list in the supplies is Altenew Stampwheel 2.0. I did not list it because it is absolutely not necessary. But I am writing about it because it makes your life so much easier if you're going to be making cards regularly. I love it! If you are into making cards, put it on your gift wish list now. A birthday or celebration anytime soon? This detail shows how thorough my black ink stamped. Without the Stampwheel 2.0 , I would pro...

This card is a far cry from the multilayered roses in a Victorian garden card I made two posts ago. Granted, a skeletal human spine and brain are not usual thank you card images. Does it clarify things if I tell you this is a thank you card that I plan on giving my neurosurgeon(s) at my next appointment.? Thought so. Within this last year, I had two serious spinal neurosurgeries. They were both myelopathy emergencies and I was quite ill by the time I was taken to surgery. The good news is that I have regained abilities with my hands for the most part and my doctors arrested the spinal compression that was causing me to lose my balance and that would eventually paralyze, then kill me.  I am still trying to walk and hope the end of the year will see me getting around without a wheelchair or walker. But even if I stay as I am now, I am so very, very grateful to the neurosurgery department of Cleveland Clinic Hospital in Florida for saving my life and giving me back much of my abilitie...