You are Incredible with Jenny Colacicco

I’ve been in a gold mood this month, and I think it certainly comes through in today’s project!  I’ve always loved the Erin Lee Creative stamps that feature the Indian motifs, they’re so ornate - just perfect to use with gold everything!

To start off I first created my  background. I used Nuvo Glacier Paste in Golden Era - it’s like a paste that turns into gold leaf when it dries, it’s gorgeous.  Rather than stencilling, I decided to go for a modern look and smeared it across panel of 110 lb black cardstock with a palette knife, then set it aside to dry.

While it dried, I started my stamping. Today I’m using the Incredible India stamp set and die set - I love all of the images in the set, the patterns are gorgeous, and perfect for heat embossing.  I used WOW! Metallic Rich Pale Gold embossing powder to emboss this elephant on black cardstock. I then watercolored him using Finetec Gold paints.  These require very little water to apply (although you need a fair bit to get them mixing), so it’s ok that the cardstock I’m using isn’t strictly for wet mediums.  I used all of the golds in the set to paint the image, leaving some areas black for contrast.  I then trimmed him out.  I also added some gold splatters to my now dry background panel.

For my sentiment, I really  wanted to stamp directly  onto  that gold schmear in black, as if it was ‘carved’ out of the paste. I decided to try Stazon black ink and low and behold it worked! I used a MISTI and the ‘You Are Incredible’ sentiment from the stamp set, and stamped it 7 or 8 times (really!) to get a clear impression. I then popped my elephant underneath with foam squares and mounted it onto a note card. 

I really love how the modern background contrasts with the traditional Indian image and how sumptuous the golds are without being overpowering - pairing gold with black is a good way to keep it classy and understated but still bling! 

Jenny