ATC Cactus

 It was so much fun to get inky in creating these ATCs! I had just returned from my trip to Phoenix, so obviously there were cacti on my mind :)

I started with Strathmore Mixed Media Paper cut to 2.5" x 3.5". With Distress Watercolor Pencils, I painted the base orange and blue. Then I used Hero Arts Paste over the Stripes stencil and the Nordic stencil.

Next I loosely painted parts of each ATC with Distress Paint in Twisted Citron. Later, I sort of covered up this color with Cracked Pistachio because the green cactus blended in too much.

Next I added some of the new Hero Arts Transfers Collage Backgrounds.

Now it's time for the cactus! With Strathmore Mixed Media Paper I die cut the saguaro and the prickly pear dies from the Sizzix Funky Cactus collection. I painted them with various shades of green Distress Watercolor Pencils, glued together with Precision Glue, then inked over the edged with Walnut Stain.

Then I pulled out some Dina Wakley stamps, Text and Scribbles, and stamped those with Distress Watercolor Pencils in pink and blue shades. I did this to help break up all the Twisted Citron in the center of the ATCs.

As mentioned earlier, I then covered up the green with Cracked Pistachio paint...

The final step of the background is here... Gold Leaf! I used some gold leaf from the Hero Arts March Kit... this is my first time using it and I held my breath the whole time :) 

The finishing touches - I used foam tape to adhere the cactus pieces. The sentiments were stamped with Versafine Ink from the Tiny Text stamp set.

Are you team saguaro or team prickly pear?

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