Inky Backgrounds with Altenew!

Hi!  I played with my Altenew Sketchy Cities America stamp set for the Altenew Instagram video challenge and the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and got super inky with it (and now that Will Smith song is stuck in my head….waaaaah)!!  I couldn’t decide what kind of inky background I wanted so I created three!  And  yes, one is a holiday card but that background was singing christmas carols to me so I just had to do it!  hehe  Do you have a preference over these inky backgrounds behind a gorgeous New York City skyline?!

See below for steps to reproduce:

1. Create a cardbase out of Neenah Solar White 110lb. Cardstock
2. Create a frame using the stitched rectangle die from the Mama Elephant Basic Set Creative Cuts out of Canson 90lb Cold Press Watercolor Paper
3. Stamp the New York City skyline from the Altenew Sketchy Cities America Stamp Set with Versafine Smokey Gray Ink and heat emboss with Ranger Clear Embossing Powder
4. Create a mask for the Altenew New York City skyline and a circle out of Inkadinkado Stamping Mask Paper
5. Mask the cityscape and create inky backgrounds with the following Distress Inks:
   1. Tumbled Glass, Salty Ocean, Faded Jeans, Chipped Sapphire
   2. Tumbled Glass, Salty Ocean, Faded Jeans, Chipped Sapphire, Dusty Concord, Antique Linen
   3. Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Barn Door, Dusty Concord
6. Stamp a sentiment with the Papertrey Ink Signature Christmas Stamp Set, Winnie & Walter The Big The Bold and The Happy and Altenew Sketchy Cities America Stamp Set using Versamark Ink and heat emboss with Hero Arts White embossing powders
7. Mist some water on the inky background with a Ranger Mini Mister filled with water and Tsukineko Sheer Shimmer Spritz
8. Adhere the card together using foam tape and double-sided adhesive
9. Embellish/Fill with some Pretty Pink Posh Sequins (8mm Sparkling Clear, 6mm Sparkling Clear, 4mm Sparking Clear, 6mm Winter Snow Mix), Doodlebug Lily White Sequins and Simon Says Stamp Snowflake Sequins
10. Scrub really hard to clean those inky fingers that will take days to go back to normal flesh color!  haha

I will be submitting these cards to the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog | Use Your Favorite Technique and/or Product.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog today and Happy Crafting!