Live the Life: a Sneak Peek

Sometimes things don’t work out exactly the way we planned.  Life can be really frustrating, forcing us to take different paths to get where we need to be.  In the end, though, we sometimes find a solution that’s better than what we originally wanted.  Today’s project is a series of missteps and mistakes, and I couldn’t be happier with the finished product.  Here’s my card: Really Good Greetings, Stampin' Up!, Brian King

Tips, Tricks and Reminders:

  • Uni-Ball Signa Gel Pen.    Did you know this is a product in the Stampin’ Up! catalog?  I have known it’s there, but I never ordered it until I tacked it onto a small order last month – a little $3.95 gift to myself.  I knew I would be able to paint on dark paper with this pen, but I didn’t know how impressed I’d be with the outcome.  The lines were vivid and rich.  Perfection!
  • Drawing lines on a card front.  I’ve shared this tip before, but it bears repeating because it’s saved me a lot of rework.  When you want to create a line across a card front, use a ruler or a thick piece of card stock to guide the pen.  Begin drawing the line off one side of the cardstock to avoid a “glob” of ink in the middle of the card.  Start off the card, and end off the other side of the card.
  • Change of plans.  This card started as a base for The Paper Players’ color challenge last week (it included Midnight Muse).  My original idea was to create a diagonal grid in the background of a piece of Midnight Muse with my Uni-Ball Signa Gel Pen.  I wanted to make all the lines even.  My spacing of the lines, however, was a bit off.  They seemed to get closer and closer as I made my way across the page, so I decided to intentionally make them closer to the previous line.  In the end, the lines seem to radiate from one corner of the page.  

Shhh!  Don’t tell anyone.  Once I got close to the bottom, left corner, the lines started getting too close, creating a mess.  I decided to clip off the edge and then repeat the clip on the other three corners.  Makes for an interesting look, don’t you think?  I really like this sentiment from Really Good Greetings (available in the 2013-2014 Annual Catalog).  “Live the life you imagined” seems to fit well on this card that turned out better than I imagined.  🙂

Stamp Sets: Really Good Greetings  Inks: Midnight Muse, Uni-Ball Signa Gel Pen  Papers:  Midnight Muse, Whisper White Accessories:  Stampin’ Dimensionals

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Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Brian

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21 Comments

  1. That’s a nice look Brian 🙂

  2. Ah! Love the architecture in this card! I swear I’m looking through some expensive bridge or something. Love the contrast of the blue and white. Don’t you just love a great Gel Pen!

  3. It turned out beautifully. Making mistakes and knowing how to come up with something better is an important skill for a demo. I have to figure out how to correct mistakes my customers make and ones I make all the time. I wonder if it is possible to just put the card on the diagonal plate of the simply scored and just run the pen along instead of the tool?

  4. Oh Brian how have you stamped so long without a signo gel pen? I have at least a dozen of these babies and use them all the time!! There are so many cool techniques….my fav being stamping an image (filigrees & flowers work beautifullly) and tracing all lines, both sides, with the pen. Yours is such an amazing card….now I have another use for one of my favorite tools!! Love your tips and techniques…so helpful; THANKS/!!

  5. Ha ha, one of the first things I noticed was how you did the corners. Who knew a mistake led to this element of the card? I love when that happens. Thanks for sharing!

  6. Brilliant of course! Nice flub recovery. The only time my signo pen is open, is to make faux stitch lines. Apparently I need to really think outside the box.

  7. I am so glad you discovered this little “necessity” . I love them !! There is no way you can get that “white” with any other pen or marker . I even tried the Sharpie Paint Pen ….Not the same !! As you know I ordered two because they are hard to find at times .
    This card is very very different . And very versatile ! And thank you for telling us how you do a save on your cards . We all have been there and like getting hints on how to maybe hide or improvise a “boo boo ” . Hey ….that could be a feature every now and then . Maybe once a month !! It could be called “Brian`s Boo Boos ” I know I would be here for sure .

    • Love the idea of “Brian’s Boo Boos”, Sonny! Isn’t it great how it’s called a Happy Accident? But, some have to be “covered up”, which we do a lot, too… I would love to see what Brian does in other cases! ;D

  8. Oh I forgot to mention that I love the sentiment ….one of my gotta haves !!

  9. Cindie McDuffee

    I was wondering where that DSP was from…. LOL.
    And like Traci Davis, I too love those corners

  10. I love the way you work around the mistakes. 99.9% of us would have thrown it in the trash but you just keep on going with it and it wows us every time. Love this card. I can’t believe you just discovered the gel pen. I wholly expect to see a lot more of it now that it is in the fungeon!

  11. Beautiful and Elegant. Very refreshing card. Love it. Love the way you cut the corners off – going to case this card. Thanks, Brian.

  12. Smashing card!!

  13. Maria Rodriguez

    WOW Brian!! how fabulous that a little mistake lead you to this awesome grand finale!!! The lines on the bottom left corner give the illusion of depth, the design appears to curve a little in the middle, really fantastic. You really encourage us to work around our mistakes and do not give up on a card because of them but instead, find a way to beautifully save it.

  14. Nothing about your design that I do not love….our white gel pen is the best out there…trust me, I know! Your boo boo made for a wonderful surprise and a great card…for anyone! Great job!

  15. Fab card! At first I thought the lines were just part of the paper. I didn’t realize you drew the lines until reading your post! Wow! And, I love this card! Thank so much for the inspiration…great job!

  16. Brian – this card is a work of art and if it were on canvas it would most likely be in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan (one of my favorite places to visit). The stark colors and clean lines prove that often less is more. I just absolutely love this card. My favorite saying is “KISS – Keep it simple sweetie” and this card is a great example of that.

  17. Great tips! I think I have that pen.

  18. Gotta’ have the pen and the sentiment! Already thinking of many possibilities and they aren’t even to correct a boo boo! Love the card!!!

  19. Happy accidents lead to new creative opportunities! Love the structural design of this card, and its corners!!

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