Working with Angles and a Birthday Fish

Hi everyone!  This Tuesday I'm the hostess at TWO - challenges CAS Colours & Sketches and Splitcoast Stampers Color Challenge.  Last weekend was a busy one for me, so I decided to combine the challenges.

Here are the posted challenges:

and the colors Pool Party, Coastal Cabana and Calypso Coral:

Even though I picked the colors and designed the sketch they both proved challenging.  Angles add interest to a card (in my opinion) but they can also offer challenges.  This was no exception.  The image I had originally planned to use was too large to fit on the card using this layout.  Objects when placed at an angle take up more space.  This bear works because he is basically a triangle and fits nicely into the square.  My first image was rectangular and to fit it in, my square would have been HUGE!

I had to be very precise in the addition of the sentiment for it not to look off-kilter. When I had laid out the angles of the two square panels I very lightly marked the top edge of the top panel in pencil on the bottom panel.  This allowed me to stamp my sentiment straight; then I glued my top panel just over the marked line.  The sentiment was perfectly aligned this way.

I wanted just a hint of color behind the panels.  Although I had glued the square panels together I had not yet adhered them to the card.  So I outlined them on card stock and cut that out.

I used that as a  mask and sponged around the edges to get the light shadow of Pool Party.  And I had exactly where I needed to place my panels!

I love working with angles on cards.  For one, they add interest.  Another bonus is that if you aren't comfortable lining things up, or if you are very particular that everything is straight or even, placing elements at an angle lessens this need for precision.  I say "lessens" because you should make sure your angle is enough that it looks deliberate - too little and it may just look "off".  And when working with angles, there are decisions on sentiment placement, like here.  I toyed with making the sentiment parallel to the bottom of the card but decided it was best aligned at the same angle as the top panel.  The mechanics of making that sort of placement happen can be tricky.  Overall though, working with angles on your cards is worth the time you spend.

I hope you join us in our fun "angle sketch challenge" at CC&S and our color challenge at Splitcoast Stampers.  We'd love to see what you create!

Stamps:  MFT Polar Bear Pals
Dies: Cottage Cutz Nested Stitched Squares
Markers: Pool Party Stampin' Up! Blends Pool Party Light & Dark and Copic BG10;  Calypso Coral Stampin' Up! Blends Calypso Coral Light & Dark and Copic R01; Coastal Cabana Copic BG10, BG23, BG32; N0, N1, C00, C0, C1, C2, R000

Thanks for visiting today!  Click here to sign up for email notifications of future posts (you will be sent an email to verify your address - don't forget this step).  Follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Bloglovin'.