Brushstroke Backgrounds Part Three by Judi Kauffman for The Queen’s Ink

Brushstroke Backgrounds One and Two were such popular tutorials that I’m revisiting it with Part Three. This time I used a piece of dark red cardstock that I’d wiped with black and gold paint Talk about easy! This is a fast and fun project.

Before providing instructions, I’d like to take a detour:

It dawned on me that I must sound like I never spend a long time on any projects. That’s not true! I stitch needlepoint on 18 ct. canvas and those pieces take months. I’ve spent many hours working on scratchboard drawings and have embroidered and beaded many garments. When I was a weaver I designed scarves that took days (and made about a dollar an hour when I sold them...). But I figure that cards are meant to be enjoyed and then tossed, so I rarely take more than a few minutes – half an hour at most, to complete something that is, by nature, ephemeral. 

I LOVE MAKING CARDS, I adore decorating envelopes. I do both the pleasure of the process without worrying about what happens once they’ve been stamped and sent.

I have had friends honor me by framing a card now and then, some get perched on a desk or shelf long enough to gather dust, but I envision a card enjoyed for a short time and then discarded or at best tucked away by a person who keeps cards out of habit.

What’s YOUR take on this? Please leave a comment – weigh in, offer your opinion and start a dialogue!

Do you make cards and how much time are you willing to put into them? If not, what would get you started? Do you send cards only to people you think will hold onto them, just to family and friends, a wider circle, to strangers through a charity program? Do you make cards ‘by the batch’ method, like I do, one at a time, often or only when an occasion is imminent?

OK, now back to the tutorial...

Instructions:

1. Randomly brush paint onto sheets of 8.5” x 11” cardstock. (Wipe brushes while working on other projects or create the sheets from scratch.)

2. Cut each sheet in half and each half into three pieces. Glue each one to a Kraft brown A2-size card base.

3. Create a collage on each card front. Arrange and adhere a mix of faux postage or canceled stamps, labels, stickers with words and phrases, computer-generated or hand-stamped sentiments.

The Queen’s Ink has a wonderful selection of stamps and stickers that are perfect for collages like these; next time you’re at the store be sure to look through Tim Holtz’s quirky sheets, Dyan Reaveley’s whimsical sayings, and don’t miss the latest from RubberMoon!

Supplies:

• Brushstroke Backgrounds (cardstock sheets covered in random paint streaks)
• Kraft brown cardstock (8.5” x 5.5” per card, folded in half for a side-fold 4.25” x 5.5”)
• Double-sided adhesive tape, glue stick and/or other adhesive(s) of choice
• Collage materials – Stickers, labels, canceled stamps, faux postage
• Stamps and inks