Lightning Bugs that Glow

Last night, I was thinking about some of the bundles that will soon be retiring. The Lighting the Way bundle came to mind. I wanted to make another card with this great set before it went dark (ha ha!). And for some unknown reason, I remembered the glow-in-the-dark paper from the fall Mini Catalog. Then my mind began racing with ways to create a card using the two. I couldn’t wait to get to my craft room to play.

I stamped three lightning bugs with Momento ink onto Boho Blue paper. Because the smaller bugs don’t have a die, I just fussing cut all the bugs out. It is pretty tedious work, but I was willing to give it a try. After the bugs were cut out, I cut out the light up section of their bodies from the glow-in-the-dark paper. I learned that only one side of the paper glows. Consequently, I used a pencil and scribbled on the back of the paper. So, I would know which side to glue down to the card.

The card base is Blueberry Bushel and the landscape is Garden Green. To give the trees and bushes some dimension, I used a stamp from Artistically Inked. The landscape itself was cut from the Grove dies. For the tree trunks and branches, I colored them with the Pecan Pie Stampin’ Write Marker. Finally, I punched out tiny pieces of the glow-in-the-dark paper using the retired Owl Punch. Again, I had to be sure to draw on the back of the paper so I could tell which side was the glowing side.

Lights out

Doesn’t it look cool when you turn out the lights? I’ve always loved things that glow in the dark. When my daughter was small, I used a glow-in-the-dark pen to write on a pillowcase for her bed. I think she shares my love for things that glow in the dark because she loves lightning bugs. She affectionately calls them, “tree glitter”.

At our house the lightning bugs are already lightning up in my backyard. I love to see them twinkling as they call to one another. Several years ago my family got to see the synchronized lightning bugs near Gatlinburg. Those bugs are a special species that all light up at the exact same time. The show they put on is unique and quite magical.

Well, I’m so glad you stopped by the Treehouse today to check out my glow-in-the-dark lightning bug card. Perhaps you already own the Lighting the Way bundle and still have some of the special paper. If you do, you could give my card a try. Or you might want to check out another lightning bug card that I made. You can see it here. Let me know you stopped by and what you think of my card by leaving a comment.