Studio Calico Sunday Sketch 4/18

I have only made one attempt at using a sketch thus far in my crafting career, and I can't say I loved how it turned out. :) There are some out there for card makers but most of the ones that cross my path are for 12x12 scrapbook pages so I don't usually bother thinking too much about them. But for some reason, this week's Studio Calico Sunday Sketch really spoke to me! You can view the original blog post here, and this is what the sketch looks like:

 

Now, like I said, I don't scrapbook on a regular basis - except for my page-per-month 6x6 album. So I decided I was going to use this sketch as a template for a couple cards. So I grabbed my Joyland kit (SC April 2010) and separated out the papers into oranges/reds and blues/greens and started punching away with my 1.5" circle punch. I used the Jenni Bowlin embellished butterfiles (I'm in LOVE with these - even though everyone is using them these days!) and My Mind's Eye Lush rhinestones from the kit, plus the bonus stamp and my fave Chestnut Roan Colorbox chalk ink. I also used my Martha Stewart butterfly punch. And I have to say I absolutely LOVE the results!

 

This card layout was also exciting for me to make because of something I've been struggling with a lot lately: negative space. This was a good exercise in accepting negative space because I didn't have to decide on my own if it looked good because the locations of the elements AND the negative space were dictated by the sketch. It's definitely helping me see when space does and does not need to be filled.

Thanks for looking! Happy Monday! :)