Cheater's Bow and Sailor's Knot....feminine and masculine sides!

    I'm so excited to be back on the splitcoaststampers Sketch Challenge Design Team again. So much fun! I really do love using sketches and seeing how versatile they are as folks put them to use. I created two very different cards even though I stayed quite true to Cathy's lovely sketch for today's challenge.

This feminine card uses today's color challenge colors (Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo and Tangerine Tango) with green added (Pear Pizzazz and Old Olive stamped and Mossy Meadow paper)Stamps: Lotus Blossom Paper: Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, Tangerine Tango, Mossy Meadow, Whisper White Ink: Crushed Curry, Melon Mambo, Tangerine Tango, Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive Accessories: Circle punches, Tiny Triangles ef, More Mustard Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals Techniques: 2 step stamping, Stamping Off, Cheater's Bow

Read more:   http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/2630191#ixzz3ZJTmVZsR

Here's my masculine card that was inspired by the colors in these

pillows from Saturday's Inspiration Site Novica. I'm a sucker for blues and the gray and green all pulled together.

I watercolored in the subtle blues and greys by scribbling with markers on acetate  and using a wet brush to pick up the colors and paint onto my stamped image. I went to Barbara Anders blog Paper Pursuits for the sailor's knot tutorial. I found this cool thick jute the other day. I ended up popping my panel over my base and double popping the sentiment

Stamps: Coast to Coast, Hello Sailor, Family Reunion, All Year Cheer II Paper: Not Quite Navy, Lost Lagoon, Mossy Meadow, Smoky Slate, Whisper White, Basic Gray, Bermuda Bay (on inside) Ink: Island Indigo, Smoky Slate, Memento Black Accessories: Paintbrush, Jute, Circle Punches, Houndstooth ef, Sponge, Stampin' Dimensionals, Markers: Soft Sky, Marina Mist, Lost Lagoon, Tempting Turquoise, Island Indigo, Mossy Meadow, Smoky Slate, Basic Grey Techniques: Stamping Off, Markers on Acetate, Sponging, Dry Embossing, Sailor's Knot

   Read more:    http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/2630235#ixzz3ZK1E89BJ

Here are the directions for the cheater's bow. I like this bow for several reasons: I'm bow challenged, this bow lays nice and flat, it uses very little ribbon, and because it isn't super fancy it can be used on either masculine or feminine cards.

Cut a piece of ribbon a little longer than the piece you'll attach it to. Tie it into a knot, but don't pull it tight. If you want the bow off center, make sure you tie the knot to that side.

Cut a small piece with diagonal ends and slip it into your knot.

Now you're ready to pull the knot tight.

I wanted a bit more color on this sentiment which is stamped on a 1" circle so I punched a 3/4" circle out of a piece of sticky note and used that as a stencil.

I sponged through the hole in the sticky note with Crushed Curry

I can't believe how much easier it is to line up the multi-step stamps in the photopolymer!
Hope you have lots of fun using this sketch. Can't wait to see what you all come up with!