CAS Stencil Challenge ......

Happy Monday evening ........

I hope your week has got off to a good start.  It's going to be a busy one here .... lots going on in the craft room.  At least it's nice and cosy in there ....... although it's not as cold here in this part of the world as it is in some.  Stay safe and warm if you're in the artic blast!!

We're at the beginning of a new month so, that means new Blog Challenges.
Thank you to everyone that played along with the first CAS Stencil Challenge in January.  We had some amazing entries.  It was great to see you all having fun with your stencils.
Check out the January's Top Picks post if you played along ..... you might just be on there!

OK ..... time for February's CAS Stencil Challenge
This month the challenge is hosted by the lovely Nancy, and the theme is ...... Powdered Inks.

Now these can be things like ..... Brushos, Color Bursts, Infusions.  Magicals, Bisters, or Pixie Powders.  Little pots of magic as I like to call them.  Just add water and watch the magic appear.
They're great to use with stencils too.
If you've never used powdered inks before don't worry ...... check out this month's CAS Stencil Challenge post and follow the links to some great videos ....... and have fun!

Now for a little inspiration from me ...... and as it's February, it's time for Valentine's

I used Brusho's as my powdered inks, and a Tim Holtz stencil to create my background.
I sprinkled a tiny amount of the powders directly onto my stencil, spritzed with a little water to activate the colours and then laid the stencil on top of a piece of watercolour cardstock.
A quick press down with a paper towel and voila! ..... when I lifted off the stencil I had this pretty piece of cardstock .....

So easy to do, but so effective .... and you'll never get two backgrounds the same .....

A nice large sentiment stamped on the top .....

And I used a Stardust Gel Pen to highlight some of the hearts ..... just a little shimmer here and there when the light catches

And of course that all important Valentine's greeting

Another way of doing it is to simply place your stencil over your cardstock as you would normally, sprinkle a tiny amount of powdered ink through the design and spritz with a little water.  Quickly, and carefully lift off the stencil to reveal your design ........

You may not always get a nice crisp finish to your designs.  If you spritz with too much water then it  can sometimes bleed underneath the stencil, but I quite like that ..... it looks a bit arty I think

When I took the stencil off this one there was quite a bit of water/ink sat in places.  Now you know me,  I don't like to waste any of my precious colour so, I took a piece of scrap card that was on my desk and placed it over the top of the design ....... and look .... I got a background to use on another  project .....

A little Brusho goes a long way .......

Now it's your turn ..... time to have for some inky fun with your stencils.  I'm looking forward to seeing the results.
You'll find more fabulous inspiration from the rest of the Design Team on the CAS Stencil Challenge Blog

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your day.

Cheerio until next time .....