Card making: with old roses, embossed metal and gelli-plate printing.

Hi, hi, hi.

In my previous card-making post [the one about cascade cards] I made the distinction between the kinds of cards you make for special occasions or when you really want to try out a new technique ... and the kind of card you always make, the ones that are your 'go to' format. Because both have their place in your crafting repertoire don't they? It's the same with shoes ...

... some days are silver heels days ... but more often you can find me in my flat black boots with the furry lining. Because while I love love love my silver heels ... it's flat black boots with the furry lining that are best for walking across campus, or to and from the Post Office. But both serve a purpose.

So, in the interests of balance, I thought I'd share the kind of card that I would describe as my 'go to' format; the kind I can compile relatively quickly from beloved scraps and leftovers; the kind I curate by sifting through my supplies like a magpie seeking out the spangles ... the kind that's simpler to make than some ... but is still special in its own way. A card such as this one:

The main background is a page from a book about Shakespeare that I experimented on while attending a gelli-plate printing workshop with Kate Crane last year: 

You know I like to use old text pages anyway ... but having some bespoke patterns printed on top makes it even more interesting! Plus the colours I'd used on the print inspired the colour choices for the rest of the card.

And the rest is [no, Hamlet aficionados, the rest is not 'silence' ...] the rest is:

•  a combination of modern scrapbook papers in warm tan and old rose florals [if you saw the vintage duvet cover I found in a charity shop the other week you'll know about my soft spot for old rose prints].
• a scrap from an old book page featuring an illustration of trees
• some vintage faded ribbon
•  a shiny heart ...

• ... and a focal point cluster made from looped parcel string, flower stamens, a button and a painted, die-cut, embossed metal heart [leftover from a metal-embossing master-class I created for Issue 128 of Papercraft Inspirations magazine in 2014]:

All of which: the roses, the silver, the collage elements, the text print ... pretty much sum up many of my 'go to' features; and I don't just mean in card making.

• Throw in 'black + white stripes' and you've also got many of the elements that feature on my ideas lists / mood-boards that I occasionally add to when I think about having my own web site!
• Plus ... as I sit and type this I'm wearing an old-rose print blouse and a pink cardigan.
• [At a push I'd say my fondness for layering even extends to my clothes although, you'll be happy to know I'm not walking around wearing collage scraps ... yet. I'm not an idiot! It's far too cold to do that in February ... check back with me in July ... ].

The idea that we have a certain style that we return to in all aspects of our creative expression [which covers our clothes choices too] is one we've chatted about here several times in the past ... but I'd still welcome your personal take on the subject. 

For instance ...

• Look at yourself in the mirror right now ... does what you're wearing resemble the last creative project you finished? If so ... how?
• OR ... do you recognise your own 'signature style'?
• When you sit down to craft for pleasure, with a completely free reign ... what do you do? What keeps cropping up in your designs?

I await your responses!

Julie