Simple is best...

Sometimes simple is just best. Like sugar cookies (my favorite, yummy), nap time, a sunset, a hug from your favorite someone, warm soup or a toddlers smacking kiss... I like simple, sometimes anyway. And today is all about simple, sort of. I had a lot of fun coloring the image for my card today (which is not simple) but when it came time to make it into a card anything but simple seem to distract from the main image. So I went with a very plain card body, simple greeting and minimal layers that just seem to make the image pop off the card. I created the main image using the Autumn Harvest stamp set which was originally in the Holiday mini, last fall, and made it into the new big catalog. Picture me doing my happy dance because I just love this set. I started out by making masks of both pumpkins and the leaf. On watercolor paper I stamp the small pumpkin first using Black Stazon ink. I placed a mask over the small pumpkin then stamped the larger pumpkin. I placed another mask over the large pumpkin then stamped the leaves below the pumpkins. I removed the masks then starting with the lightest colors, colored the pumpkins and the leaves with Stampin' Write markers in various different colors. I then used an aquapainter to blend the colors and lift off excess color. After it was dry I masked the pumpkins again and sponged in the sky using Baja Breeze classic ink. I removed the masks and blended the sky with my aquapainter as well.

What I used:
Autumn Harvest, God's Blessings
watercolor paper, Kraft, Basic Black, Tangerine Tango card stock
Black Stazon, Baja Breeze classic stamp pad
various Stampin' Write markers, aquapainter
sponge

Now speaking of simple. Isn't this sunset simply gorgeous? Last night as I was driving my oldest daughter home from cheerleading I decided to go the back way home and caught this sunset over the swamp behind and below our house. I quickly dropped her off home and ran back with my camera to catch it. I almost missed it, and the hubby thought I was a little nuts but later agreed that it was worth it, don't you agree?