Altenew Build-A-Flower: Dahlia Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Welcome, welcome! I'm just delighted to be a stop on this fabulous blog hop celebrating the newest Bulid-a-Flower release from Altenew ... the Dahlia! You may have just come from Svitlana Shayevich's blog, but if not feel free to start at the beginning of the hop at the Altenew Card Blog.

Yet again, Altenew has released a multi-step flower that allows you to have a burst of color, all without having to do the actual coloring. Genius!  

 In no time I was able to create this vibrant bouquet of dahlias in several different colors. 

 

I decided to turn the dahlia flower heads into stemmed flowers, and collect them in a glass vase that's filled with water. Here's how I did it:  

I always keep hard plastic packaging on hand instead of tossing it for reasons just like this. I drew a vase in permanent marker on the leftover packaging (I'm sure from a toy at Christmas) and cut it out. I then cut a piece of vellum with the same silhouette, and used the Altenew Artist Markers in the palest blue to make some water. Finally, some thin strips of paper are colored in green to make stems. 

Then it's just a matter of arranging your bouquet. Once I have them all in a pleasing arrangement I take a picture so I can remember how to put them back (I could also use the Glad Press 'n Seal plastic to pick everything up and hold it in place while I'm putting adhesive on).

To enhance the realism, I cut a slit along the lip of the vase so I could stick the actual stems through. Under the vase on the card base I've done a very light stenciling through the Elegant Swirls Stencil and added some spatters with the Altenew watercolors. The beautiful sentiment is from this new BAF Dahlia set.

After finishing this card, I realized I used a lot less flowers than I intended, so instead of putting the leftovers in a pile never-to-be-seen again, I pushed myself to make a few more cards.

They're super basic, with a trio of flowers gathered in an ink-blended corner of the card. Some have a gold embossed sentiment, some I left empty so I could pick the greeting when I need one.

Then I decided to try out a different color combination, and wouldn't you know, those turned out really well too!

For this card I just assembled the flowers in the center of the card and added some sequins and ink spatters. 

The background is blended with the colors I used for the flowers and leaves to keep things cohesive. I stamped a sentiment from this set on two strips of paper spanning across the card.

Again, I made a few too many flowers (because they are just so quick and easy to make!) so I used this opportunity to make an additional card. To keep things moving quickly, I didn't think about the format of the card at all, and just used the same formula as the last set of cards.

 

Wow, before I knew it I had SIX cards made from the Dahlia Build-a-Flower ... so fun!

Subscription Plan
There is now a monthly subscription plan for the Build-A-Flower sets! When signed up, you are guaranteed a spot in the monthly Build-A-Flower releases (which often sell out) and will receive the stamp and coordinating die set at a specially discounted price ($35.00 →$29.99). See the Altenew site for further details.
 
Prizes:

To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $30 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or Altenew Scrapbook Blog for a chance to win. Three winners will be announced on the Card Blog, and other three winners will be announced on the Scrapbook Blog on 3/9/2019.

My Giveaway:

The folks at Altenew have also generously provided a $20 gift certificate for one lucky follower/commenter on my blog! To be eligible, please 1) follow my blog and 2) leave a comment on this post before March 6th, 2019. I will announce the lucky winner on my blog on the 6th.

Your next stop on this hop is the lovely Vicky Papaioannou who has something beautiful to share with you!

Thanks so much for stopping by. Sure hope you enjoy all the wonderful inspiration from all of these mega-talented crafters!

Kelly

At no cost to you, affiliate links may be used.
If you get lost along the way, here is a complete list of the hop:

Altenew Card Blog

Norine Borys

Laura Bassen

Therese Calvird

Kathleen Graumüller

Svitlana Shayevich

Kelly Griglione <--- you are here!

Vicky Papaioannou

Patricia Roebuck

Virginia Lu

Seeka

Emily Midgett

Nathalie DeSousa

Altenew Scrapbook Blog

Anna Komenda

Heather Hoffman

Laurie Willison

Amber Rain Davis

Zinia Redo

Joni Andaya

Gayatri Murali