Hi everyone! I'm on the Pinkfresh Studio blog today with a boldly colored encouragement card. I used the new Petal Perfection stencil and die sets with some of their beautiful inks and all of their blending brushes! I adore PFS inks and decided to let loose and have some fun with the complementary colors of turquoise-blue and red-orange.

So let's get into it!

1. Starting with the background, grab a panel of smooth, white cardstock and one of Pinkfresh's 1/2" blending brushes. Using Apricot, I randomly blended some orange areas onto the panel. Then I applied Clementine and Mango Sorbet over the same areas. And with Fruit Punch, the darkest red-orange, I used the 1/4" brushes. Letting a portion of the brush sit on the paper for a few seconds for some fun texture and contrast.
2. Then, using Pinkfresh's 1" brushes, blend the colors Waterfall and Aquamarine onto the rest of the card front. Start in opposite corners, and in my case, I wanted more of the panel to be blue than green. Blend around the orange areas.
3. Using the 1/2 " brushes, apply Turquoise just in loose circles or abstract shapes over the lighter, Waterfall. Pinkfresh inks will smooth out a little. 
4. And the same again with Paradise, which is the third darkest color in the Amalfi Coast collection. I blended in slightly smaller blobs, developing layers of color.
5. Apply just a couple of small areas of Atlantis ink, the darkest of the turquoise colors.

And that's it for the background!

1. For the flowers, I used Pinkfresh's new Petal Perfection stencil and die. I prefer to use the die first, then arrange the stencil over it. It's just easier for me, but I encourage you to experiment to find your preference.
2. I used Apricot and Clementine for a yellow-orange. Then I used the gorgeous red-oranges, Mango Sorbet, Fruit Punch, and just a little Berrylicious on the very tips of the petals.
3. I used the Amalfi Coast collection of colors for the stems.
4. Use the die set again with white cardstock and double up the flowers and stems to make them more sturdy.
5. I used the image on the back of the Petal Perfection package to figure out how to lay out my flowers.
6. Some are adhered straight to the backing panel. And with the rest, I used either one or two layers of foam tape (just under the flowers or leaves, not the stems, which would have been very difficult) to vary the heights.
7. I used the Garden Party die set to cut out some small blue and black dots.
8. I got a lovely sentiment from the new Guiding Light stamp and die sets.

Pinkfresh Studio's inks, bold or pastel, are gorgeous. And I hope that you feel inspired to experiment with abstract coloring and design!  

Thanks so much for coming by!

-Anne