Simplicity...

.... is Beauty! That's what is says on the rubber stamp and who am I to argue?

Although we love to marvel at incredibly intricate works craftsmanship, nothing quite compares to a simple artistic statement.

At times I love to listen to a fabulous symphony orchestra yet nothing quite compares to a simple 12 bar rock and roll tune bashed out by young musicians on cheap instruments.

I adore the complex flavours of a great curry with it's careful blend of herbs and spices creating a fireworks display on your taste buds but you can't beat fresh bread and olives?

I have made many large ornate projects for trade shows and magazines, most of them have been very well received but it's the still simple things that excite me.

Today I'm going back to the Thinlits Die Set 15PK w/Quiling Tool- Tiny Tattered Florals by Tim Holtz which we used last week, this time I'm using just ivory and green card and letting the dies do the talking.

I set out by die-cutting about 30 separate leaves before curling them on a foam mat using a large ball end stylus. This softens the card and adds those lovely little creases around the edges. Next, I creased each one down the centre. 
I die-cut each of the three spiral rose dies three times each from ivory card. To see how the flowers come together you will have to skip back to last weeks blog.

I cut an 11 x 13 cm rectangle of the same ivory card that I used to cut the flowers and stamped my sentiment across the base in grey ink using the New Day Stamp Set from the Precious Remembrance Shop before marking a circle in pencil using a circle Framelits die, you can use a compass if you don't have one!

I attached the leaves individually following the circle while trying not to be too precise. Next, I distressed the edges of the card with the blade of my scissors and added a faux stitched effect around the perimeter using a pattern makers wheel.

Once the flowers where all assembled, I attached them one at a time using my glue gun.

All that was left was to attach the rectangle to a  12 x 14 cm base card. It's tough to resist the temptation to add a few adhesive pearls or a little Distress Glitter but I managed somehow!