Pretty Things: Effortless Beach-Inspired Cards - Ashley Marcu

We return with this month's 'Pretty Things' theme - The Beach! CP Gal, Ashley Marcu, has brought to shore three effortless cards using the beach-a-riffic collection, Open Road!
.......
Summer is just around the corner and I'm excited to bring the outside in, to three beach inspired cards!

There are so many ways to celebrate the waves and easy feeling of the beach through crafting, so let's get started!

I always enjoy seeing the endless blue water at the beach. I used it as inspiration and cut stripes of blue paper from the Open Road collection. By layering them, it creates a textured beachy backdrop. Stickers and die cut pieces were layered over the backdrop to complete the look.

The beach is a beautiful place, but it also makes me think of parties with friends, family gatherings, and fun! This next card captures that side of the beach. I started with the 'Big Sky' patterned paper angled in the background. This provided a trendy backdrop for a fun frame, stickers, and chipboard stickers from the Open Road collection. I kept the bright sentiment on an angle, too, which keeps this card playful and fun, just like the beach!

I can't create beach inspired cards without water color! They just seem to go together, right? I made a simple water colored panel to start my card. Then, I layered a few Open Road patterned papers together with a few embellishments. This card is purposely very casual and simple. How fun would it be to take your Open Road embellishments on a summer vacation with a few pre-created card bases?!

I hope you were inspired to bring the beauty and simplicity of the beach inside to your craft room, or to even create on the road!