MFT Design Team Creative Challenge - Playing with Paint

O.K. friends - true confession time.  I wasn't sure I was cut out for this month's Design Team Creative Challenge.  I mean paint - really?  But I managed to catch a bit of inspiration and am really happy with how my card turned out!  Who knew?!

I started out with this week's sketch over at Card Positioning Systems - MFT is the sponsor this week and if you play along you could win a prize!  I used a foam brush to sponge some paint around the edges of my panels - love the soft look that it gives!  And then after much fiddling and playing, I decided to use some Grunge Paper (Tim Holtz).  I've had this stuff in my stash for a while, but had never gotten around to actually playing with it and using it.  It starts out as kind of a muddy grey colour, and it takes acrylic paint BEAUTIFULLY!  I took a sheet and painted both sides using a cheapie foam brush.  It dried really quickly and painting both sides stopped it from curling.  Then I ran it through my Cuttlebug with the Mini Rolled Roses, Pretty Posies, Leafy Flourish, and the leaf from the Upsy Daisy die.  

Here's a tip for you!  I didn't actually have any green acrylic paint.  So I took my antique white paint, squirted some on a plastic surface, and added some Kiwi Kiss re-inker.  I mixed it up with my foam brush and voila - green paint!  This should work with any brand of water based re-inker (not so much with alcohol inks).

Because the paper is very flexible, it makes gorgeous flowers that keep their shape really well.  As you can probably see, I curled the edges of the petals on the Pretty Posies and they just stay that way.  Even more delicate pieces, like those in the Leafy Flourish die have give and are pretty darn sturdy.  I added a sentiment from the Inspired by Spring set  and used Fossil (currently being re-stocked), Black Licorice, and Grape Jelly cardstocks.  I also snuck in a Scallop Ribbon border for the horizontal element of the sketch.

In 2011, MFT is working harder than ever to inspire you, and we have come up with something we think you'll really enjoy. Our Design Team Creative Challenge is a new monthly feature, where we challenge our design team to explore their creative side using a specific theme, product or technique. This month, we've all been challenged to paint!  Visit Kim's Blog for a full list of designers that have taken up the challenge!