Hair Gel (Water) Card: Mara Mermaid floats with the Fishys

The galz in my stamp club want to make a kid's card. So, what's more fun to a kid (little or BIG) than squishy glittery things that you can poke? :0)

This gel (water) card is easy to make with any hair gel. It's bigger than usual 5x7 inches (kids like big 'n' bold, no?) And I wanted to have lots of texture, so I combined 2 cuttlebug techniques: (1) inking the negative & (2) hot cuttlebug embossing. (The swirly frame with the scallop sqare punched out of it) Basically, it's regular cuttlebugging but with ink on the folder, then you just add heat embossing (with clear embossing powder.) Usually people use chalk ink (or you could use craft ink) but I used a homemade tinted Versamark pad.

To make a tinted Versamark pad:

1. Take an old (stained?) Versamark pad
2. In turns, add ink colour(s) of your choice and versamark refill.
3. Work in circles to add it (as you would with craft refills)

Tinted Versamark is fun for stamping to get a sheer look and makes embossing schtuff so easy. It also makes great distressing pads.

This cute Mara mermaid is the image for the girl option (I'll be making a version with Silly Sealife for boys too...) Mara is from eat cake graphics--The fishy & the seahorse are also from eat cake graphics.

Everything is stamped in Stazon and coloured with Stampin Up's watercolour pencil crayons. I really love the effect you can get with these pencils by layering colours and stippling. I like to colour in little circles for smoothness & I found that these images didn't need water--the pigment is rich enough as is.



The gel part of the card is made with a ziplock baggie (3x4 inches) that I got at the dollar store. I just squirted a little clear hair gel & some icicles Stickles in there & smooshed it all around. I like the clear gel best because you can see the glitteriness & the image underneath, but you could use blue gel too.

Tutorial for gel (water) card here.

The wave piece at the bottom is:

1. Cut with Creative Memories cutting mat and wavy ruler thingy.
   
2. Embossed with the sentiment "You make me Smile" from Stampin Up!'s Simple Sayings II set (Using the tinted turquoise Versamark pad)
   
3. Wrinkled to distress
   
4. Washed with an aquapainter and the left over ink from the cuttlebug folder.
   
5. The brads are 'painted' with a mix of Crystal Effects & Tempting Turquoise craft ink.

The fishys are:

1. Stamped onto Vanilla cardstock (in Stazon)
   
2. Coloured with watercolour pencil crayons & cut out.
3. Given dimension using Dimensionals (cut in half to fit.)

Thanks for surfin' on by, :0)


P.S. More watery gel cards--and amniotic gel cards--(I kid you not! Too cute!) here:

• Gorgeous 'fish in pocket' card by Nichole :0)
• Sweet Crab n Fish card by Linda
• Cute baby gel card by Rochelle

P.P.S. I am driving Charles bonkers by singing the jingle "I love the fishes 'cause they're so delicious!" (which is mercilessly stuck in my head); except, my whacked brain added the line "I love the fishes 'cause they're never vicious!" So sorry, had to share! ;0)