Bokeh Technique and Sneak Peek From 2015 Occasions Catalog

Do you ever feel like there are just too many products and too many techniques and not enough time to use them? If you're like me, this is a common complaint!

Because I get to work in my craft room in bits and pieces, I sometimes try to combine too many products and techniques into the same card just so I can use them! However, I sometimes get the balance just right like I did today!

Today's card makes use of the Bokeh Technique for the background of the card while also using new products from the 2015 Occasions Catalog which goes live on January 6. For this card I was able to use the Butterfly Thinlits Dies, the Sheltering Tree stamp set and the Bermuda Bay Sequin Trim.

I actually created the watercolor part of the backgrounds yesterday so they would be completely dry for today's work. I started by taping two pieces of watercolor paper to my craft mat using Washi tape. I was careful to keep my tape placement straight so I would have an even border when I was finished.

I followed the tutorial for the Bokeh Technique by placing 10 drops of water and three drops of Reinker in several little containers. I decided to try the technique using two different color combos:

1. Melon Mambo, Totally Turquoise, and Crushed Curry
2. Bermuda Bay, Old Olive, and Perfect Plum

Next, I filled my Aqua Pen with water and completely wet the surface of one piece of watercolor paper. I then dipped into one color and dabbed it around the paper. Immediately, I could tell that the color was too intense for what I was after but I persevered, adding each of the two other colors, allowing each color to bleed into the next. I continued till no white remained.

I then repeated the process with the other piece of watercolor paper and the second color combo. These colors kind of looked a little muddy to me when complete but they were more muted looking than the first set.

I will try this technique again in the future but I will not wet the paper so much to start with, preferring to spritz it as I go, if needed. I may also spritz and blot the paper to create a more muted look. In addition, I may use a ratio of 10 drops water to 1 drop of reinker.

I dried the pieces with my heat tool and then left them to dry completely overnight. I removed the washi tape which had been used to preserve a straight, white border and keep the paper from curling up as it got wet.

Next, I used the Circles Collection Framelits to cut the three smallest circles in a piece of Window Sheet to provide a template. I held this template over my first colored piece and used a sponge dauber to apply Brilliance Moonlight White pigment ink in one of the template openings.

I moved the template and repeated the process, alternating circle sizes and placement, being sure to overlap some of the circles as well as hanging some of the circles off the edge of the page.
I definitely thought the circles of white—or bokeh—enhanced the colored pieces, even the first, more intense color combo. Once completed, though, I chose the second color combo with which to work.

I trimmed down the colored panel to remove the white edges and then inked the edges using Perfect Plum ink. I cut mattes of Whisper White and Old Olive and a card base of Perfect Plum.
I used Fuse Fast to adhere each matte and then adhered some Whisper White Satin Ribbon with a strip of the Bermuda Bay Sequin Trim on top, using Sticky Strip. I then adhered the mattes to the card base.

I used Black Stazon ink to stamp the sentiment—from the Sheltering Tree stamp set—on vellum and used the Hexagon Punch to create a banner end. I used Tombow glue to adhere the banner to the top left and used glue dots to adhere a Vintage Faceted Button, topped with one of the loose sequins over the spot to hide the glue.

I die cut the largest of the Butterfly Thinlits from Bermuda Bay card stock and bent each wing up a bit. I then inked half of it with Versamark ink. I heat embossed it using non Stampin' Up! Kaleidoscope Embossing Powder. I repeated this step with the other half of the butterfly and then adhered it to the card front using glue dots.

To complete the card, I adhered four more loose sequins to the card front.
Here are a few shots of the card from different angles.

A close up to show the details of the sparkle!

I hope you will try the Bokeh Technique. I found it to be a lot of fun!

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