A Year of Leaves Blog Hop!

This blog candy is now closed. Find the winner here.

Thank you for joining the Gina K team and our guests for this special " A Year of Leaves" hop today!
Today I have a sample that's Pure Luxury: Chocolate Kiss, Soft Sand, and Ivory, that is! They are just the perfect neutrals alone or together, so rich! I embossed the oak leaf from this set in gold EP onto the Chocolate Kiss CS, and colored them in with a Q-tip and bleach! I think this just might be my favorite way to color the leaves now, you can see below how realistic looking the fading light to dark and variety of colors are! Stamp on any earth tone paper and watch the new colors appear as the bleach does its magic! And virtually no "technique" to it either, just dip and rub!

I rubbed a little gold metallic paste around the edges of the mat and a little on the punched chocolate oval frame, doesn't the chocolate paper look so beautifully burnished? I added some ribbon and a few of the adhesive nail heads to embellish it. I tore the edge to make a little more distressed and "leafy", then you have a beautiful peek of the inside.

I lined the inside with the Ivory and stamped "Thanks" and the little caterpillar, both from the set at the corner. Stamping the oak leaf repeatedly on the envelope flap makes easy coordination.

For even more inspiration, please visit our Illustrator of the Year of Leaves stamp set, Melanie Muenchinger's blog. You'll want to leave a comment on her blog because she is hosting a drawing for her gorgeous stamp set there tonight!
Melanie has asked her two guest designers to join in on her blog hop too:
Selma Stevenson
Karen Knegten

Also showcasing Year of Leaves stamp set samples tonight are these GinaK Designers:
Gina Krupsky
Carolyn King
Donna Baker
Erika Martin
Jessica Fick
Kurtis Amundson
Lee Murphy
Theresa Momber
as well as our CenterStage Spotlight Designers:
Geri Utterback
Shelly Wilson
Tina Gilliland

Would you like to win "A Year Of Leaves"? I will post the winner here tomorrow night!