A First Foray into Patterned Papers

All right, so I have accumulated quite the stash of 12 x 12 and 6 x 6 patterned papers, with the full intention of using them but for some reason, I always reach for my solid card stock when I'm making cards.  To help with my fear of patterns, I enrolled in Online Card Classes' Pattern Play class.

I was inspired by the great videos and projects in the class, but I still am a bit shy when it comes to patterns, so these first two attempts are a little less than bold lol.

I took myself to Michael's for a little shopping trip since they had a couple of awesome coupons this weekend and picked up a 6 x 6 patterned paper pad from My Mind's Eye "Now and Then", which has my favorite aqua colors teamed with navy, grey, and yellow.  I also grabbed some coordinating Bazzill card stock and treated myself to a Sizzix die set.  Like I said, it was a great sale. Unfortunately, I did not find what I actually went in there for- clear and white embossing powders!  lol

My first card uses one of the boldest papers in the pack- wow, was I a little nervous about how it would turn out!  So here it is:

This paper is such a departure for me!  But I do like the way it turned out.  One thing about the Sizzix Flipits cards- there isn't much room to write a greeting to your recipient.  But it's a fast, easy way to create a card that looks like you're a paper engineer.  Plus, the sets come with some great elements that you can use separately.  This one includes a set of scalloped and dotted nesting circles.

Supplies used:

Sizzix Card, Circle Flip Its die set
My Mind's Eye paper pad
Bazzill Marshmallow card stock
Distress Marker Pine Needles to stamp with
Technique Tuesday Adored by Ali Edwards stamp set

My second card is a little different, I wanted to use a patterned paper but I wanted to use the Happy  Birthday die too, so I had to find a way to make them work together.  The key was to find a paper that wasn't too busy so that my greeting would still be readable.

Supplies used:

SSS Stitched Rectangles die
Paper Smooches Stitched Frame Wise Dies
Impression Obsession Greeting Bottom Edgers Die
My Mind's Eye paper pad
Bazzill Blue Calypso card stock

So that's it for my toe dip into patterned papers.  Look for more in the near future!

Thanks for looking!