Creation Station April Blog Hop--It's What's on the Inside!

Welcome to the Creation Station April Blog Hop! Whether you hopped over from Julie's blog or are starting here, I'm glad to have you visit. We have a really fun hop theme for you this month:  "It's What's on The Inside that Counts!"  We are going to surprise you when we open our projects.  Here's my card:

Did you guess what you'll see when I open the card?

It's an Under the Sea adventure!  I used the Sea of Textures stamp set (#146488) and the coordinating Under the Sea dies (#146334).  The background was created on Watercolor Paper.  I inked up my "F" clear block with Soft Sea Foam, Balmy Blue and Bermuda Bay ink pads, then spritzed both the block and the water color paper with water before centering the inked up block on the paper.  I loved the mottled texture this gives my background.

The background images were stamped in Mossy Meadow, Balmy Blue, Soft Suede, Soft Sea Foam and Rich Razzleberry.  The octopi were stamped in Calypso Coral on Watercolor Paper.  Other die cuts are Mossy Meadow, Soft Sea Foam and Rich Razzleberry stamped on Rich Razzleberry.  The fish were created with embossing paste colored with Crushed Curry reinker and supplemented with a bit of Dazzling Diamonds Stampin' glitter.  (I used the fish die to create a mask to use with the paste).  I also dabbed on a bit of embossing paste tinted with Crumb Cake and a bit of glitter for a sandy bottom.  I embedded some Tranquil Textures Sprinkles in the paste.  Those sprinkles are retired, but I had them and they do add a bit of something, something. . . 

The right hand side of the card has a little secret.  Hiding under the octopus is a packet just the right size for a gift card or cash:

The octopus is adhered to the packet with just one glue dot.  The  packet is Soft Sea Foam stamped with the netting image in Soft Sea Foam, the tall plant in Mossy Meadow and the sea coral in Rich Razzleberry.  Linen Thread was wrapped around the packet three times and tied in a bow.

A note on the card construction:  I had to adjust the card base to accommodate the packet, so I cut my card base at 5-1/2" x 4-1/4", then scored it at 4-3/16" and 4-5/16" to create an 1/8" spine on my card. On the inside, the left-hand side is 5-1/4' x 4" and is adhered directly to the card base with Multi-purpose liquid adhesive.  The right-hand side is 5" x 4" and is adhered to the card base with foam Adhesive Strips on the top, bottom and left-hand side.  The packet slips under this piece with a about a 1/4" reveal. 

The packet is 2-1/4" x 4".   I used a retired die to create my packet but you can easily make one the same size by using a 6" x 6" piece of card stock scored at 1" on two opposite sides and at 1-7/8" on the other two sides. Then trim out the corners, fold it up and glue together, leaving one end open to insert a card or cash.

I hope I've given you a bit of inspiration for your own surprise project!  Now it's time to see the fantastic project Mikaela has for us:

To Mikaela's Blog . . .

Praying that you are staying safe and well!

--Sara Nell

Psalm 112:7