Build Your Own Floral Bouquets

One of my favorite things to do in cardmaking is to stamp my own floral arrangements like I have done on today's cards.

I love to mix and match individual floral and foliage stamps to create a layout for the focal point of my cards.  It is so satisfying and no matter how many times I use the same images each composition is always unique.

The secret of being able to build bouquets like these is masking, a basic stamping technique that will make your work look like art.  Masking lets you layer stamped images over each other creating depth to your design.  In this case it will appear that there are flowers and leaves in the background as well as the foreground.  

Step-by-Step Tutorial

What you will need are some images of your choice, masking paper, scrap paper or Post-It Notes, scissors, temporary glue, stamping ink, stamping block or stamp press and cardstock.

Begin by stamping the first of your largest images onto your cardstock and then without re-inking, stamp that same image onto your scrap paper.  There should be plenty of ink still on your stamp for this.  Now fussy cut out the image stamped on the scrap paper, getting as close to the outline as possible.  Add some removable glue or tape to the back and lay it over top of the image on your card making sure the image is completely covered.  This is where masking paper or Post-It Notes come in handy, they are already sticky.  If you use a regular Post-It Note be sure that you stamp part of your image up near the edge where the sticky is on the back.  You can also find all over sticky Post-It's that work really well for masking.  Another masking option is to use masking fluid but it takes time to dry so I like using paper masks.

Next stamp another image or the same image allowing part of it to be stamped over the mask.  Now remove your mask and see how the second image appears to be behind the first.  Cool huh?  

Continue to do this with all of the elements that you want in your bouquet building up and around your original image.  In the cards above I used two or three of the same large floral images first then I added smaller flowers and foliage to fill in and complete the arrangement.  For the butterfly card, I made two masks of the sunflower so I could stamp the foliage between them and in the second card I created just one mask and moved it around between the two mums as needed.  Use as many masks as you want and when you are done, save them with your stamp set to use the  next time.  I typically reuse masks several times before I toss them out and create new ones.

Learning how to mask can open up a whole new love of stamping.  Give it a try, with just a little practice you'll be creating all sorts of scenes and using your stamps in ways you never thought possible.

Thank you for visiting,
Dawn

All products used are my own and purchased by me.  My blog posts, videos and opinions are not sponsored, and I am not paid by the product companies to create these posts and videos. 

Where Has This Year Gone?

It's Fall Y'all and that means cooler weather and glorious colors.  Raise your hand if you love fall!  For ten years I lived in the Midwest and nothing beat the changing of Summer to Fall; well except maybe the ice covered trees in winter which looked so much like the trees were made of crystal.  What glory nature can bring.  

I now live in coastal southern California and I don't get to enjoy the changing of the season quite as much but I always try to bring the memory of the beautiful Autumns that I enjoyed so much into my stamping.  

This year I have been creating cards using the Autumn Splendor Card Kit from Gina K Designs.  Gina K's fall kits are always my favorite and this year's kit does not disappoint.  It includes two sets of stamps, one is a layered leaf stamp set the other has large cone head daisies, its foliage and also some nice sentiments.  Also included in the kit are a number of dies for cutting out the stamp images, a mandala stencil and several pieces of cardstock ready to create mats and layers or card bases.

For these first cards I used Midas metallic ink pads by Spectrum Noir in Red Garnet and Jade Green and a variety of the leaf stamps from the Layered Leaf Prints stamp set.  I randomly stamped the largest leaf by dabbing ink of one color around the edges of the stamp and then the other color in the middle to create an autumn leaf color changing effect.  Then I filled in the background with some of the other leaves in solid colors.  These metallic inks are so vibrant on white cardstock, a little bit of matting and layering, add a sentiment and my cards were done.

This next card I used the same inking technique but stamped on black cardstock.  The black card shows more of the metallic in the inks and less of the vibrancy which made for a nice soft background to the Cone Head Daisy flower stamp.  I colored my daisy in shades of yellow for a fall sunflower feel and added a simple black and white sentiment.

This time using the Midas metallic inks in Jade Green, Blue Organza and Amethyst, I inked the mandala stencil onto white cardstock.  The inks are pigment inks so they remain wet for quite a while which allowed me time to heat emboss the ink with clear embossing powder creating an enamel look to the mandala.
 
To complete the card I cut the mandala in half and used a scallop edge die to create my focal point, I dry embossed a piece Plum Punch cardstock from the kit using the Studded Leather 3D embossing folder by Crafter's Companion, added a simple sentiment, a few jewels and a couple butterflies.

I hope you've enjoyed a little bit of fall fun and warm colors with me today.  I'm telling you, this kit is packed with lots of great inspiration.  You have to check it out!  

All products used are my own and purchased by me.  My blog posts, videos and opinions are not sponsored, and I am not paid by the product companies to create these posts and videos.   Thank you for visiting.

Until next time, happy crafting!

Dawn