You're Pandastic!

Hi friends! Can you believe it is time for April's Paper Funday Challenge? The months just roll around so quickly. This month Lee Holland Art is one of our sponsors and I choose the cute cute digital stamp: Panda on a Branch:

My original thought was that this would be a "Hang in There" type of card, but I changed my mind when I saw in my stash Katie's Cutie's Panda Stamp with the sentiment "You're Pandastic"! This was a stamp & die set from The Greetery which is now retired and I am just using it now...

To begin I printed the image on my Brother Laser Printer with Ranger Tim Holtz Watercolor Paper which is my most used. It's bright white, has a smooth and a textured side, it is not too thick and doesn't warp very much.  All perfect for card making. I used the textured side for these images to give the white fur-like texture.

What I really wanted to do was to have a play with the new set of Daniel Smith Dot Watercolor Cards I bought from Blick Art: 4 cards with 238 colors to try! Full set syndrome on a small scale.

The genius of these dot watercolor cards is that you can try almost every color in the line without breaking the bank. And if you know watercolors, they go a very long way. I took a dampish brush and swiped the colors so that I could see the actual color and then I just played. Daniel Smith is a high quality watercolor and can be expensive if bought in quantity. This way, using the dots, when I want to purchase a tube, I will know which are my favorites.

I used blues and greens and the dot cards had 5 different blacks to try. I found out that, right now, Cobalt Teal Blue is definitely a favorite. If you are new to watercolor, these Daniel Smith watercolor dot cards also come in a set of 66 for under $5.00! You can't beat that.

I made 2 cards cut them both down with rectangle die cuts in my stash: Sugar Pea Designs Stitched Scallop Rectangles and a Gina Marie Design from Joy Clair Designs (now retired). Popped them up on Fun Foam for a nice even layer that won't bend in the mail.

Joy Clair Designs has many many dies that are so reasonably priced. I am always looking for a new rectangle set - my most used items. 

Next, I stamped a background with a leafy type image from a retired set I have in my stash from The Stamp Market called Field Flowers. I wanted a kind of bamboo look. One background is green and one is blue.

I know this post is long, but these cards came together very quickly and that Daniel Smith Watercolor is stunning in real life! Thank you to Lee Holland Art for their sponsorship this month. They have tons of really cute images to color on their Etsy Shop.  Give it a try!

I am also submitting to NBUS for this challenge group keep me using my stash, which is a very good thing!:

*Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive a small affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.