AECP-Level2-With A Twist

 I have completed another fantastic class in the Altenew classroom!  These classes are wonderful and each one is filled with techniques and tips to take your cardmaking and crafting up a notch.  This class is named With A Twist and was such a delight.  Therese Calvird is the instructor and so easy to follow. 

My first example is using a stamp in a slightly different way than it's designed use.  I started by stamping the Ranunculus outline stamp with Versa Mark ink and heat embossing it onto a blue cardstock.  For the second layer, I used only one of the shadow stamps and stamped it in Sapphire Ink. For the background, I ran two pieces of cardstock (one silver and one white) through my die cutting machine using the Dotted Scales Debossing Die.  I adhered these to my card front and attached a matching cardstock strip for added detail.  I then popped my flower and added a sentiment from the same set heat embossed in silver as well.

Here is a close up of the Ranuculus bloom.  I really like how this turned out and have another one in my stash for another card.

The above card used a different cut from the normal A2 design.  I have had this Ornamental Bliss stamp set for awhile and only used the sentiments.  That is really the reason I purchased it, but decided to use it for this design.  I think it worked well.  It is very easy to line up the layers.  The most difficult part is deciding which colors to use!  My color choices were Vineyard Berry, Amethyst, Caramel Toffee, Maple Yellow, Sweet Leaf and Galactic Stream. A few of my colors were not bright enough for my liking, so I brightened them up with Prisma Color Pencils.  After die cutting my stamped pieces, I adhered them to my circle card front.  The card front is ink blended in Sweet Leaf and the sentiment is stamped in Galactic Stream. I also added a few gems.

My final card used the twist of "inside out".  The front of the card depicts an indoor scene and the inside of the card is an outdoor scene.  I used five different stamp sets for this card and some of them are discontinued.  I mix and match my sets and I encourage you to try it as well. I did place a piece of acetate in the window for my glass.

I used Kraft cardstock for my window and lightly ink blended a darker brown for added detail.

After stamping the inside, I colored my images and used a Versa Mark Pen to the trees. I then heat embossed some white for snow.  The sentiment is from the Holiday Flower set and the Altenew ink colors used were Hunter Green, Just Green and Heart Beat.  If you would like the details of this card, please email me and I will give them to you.

Happy Stamping!

AECP-Level 2-Polychromatic

 

I can't say enough about the Altenew Classes!  Each one is filled with tips and techniques to help you with all your crafting.  The cards below were inspired by the Polychromatic class.  Polychromatic is defined as using 2 or more colors. The class consists of 6 different lessons, each using a different technique.

This technique is called Faux Watercolored Effect.  I really enjoyed this technique and made 3 different cards using it.  I colored my stamps using waterbrush markers, spritzed with water and then stamped onto watercolor paper.  You will get a slightly different look each time.  The stamps used were from the Coneflower set and the Stunning Cosmos set.  I wanted the emphasis to be on the flowers so I opted to not use sequins or jewels.

As you can see in the above photo, each flower is slightly different as well as the leaves.

I used the Gardenia set for this card and did add a few black splatters.  The sentiment is heat embossed with black embossing powder and is from the Coneflower set.  I ink blended my card front with Kitch Flamingo Distress Oxide Ink and also added a die cut using the Garden Trellis Die.  I mounted my stamped piece onto a slightly larger piece of black cardstock, added a few gems and mounted it to the card front.

This card was made using the same technique.  The stamp set for the flower is Antique Roses.  The sentiment is from All The Hearts set as is the sentiment.  This stamp set has a matching die that cuts out several small hearts. I attached several to my stamped piece and used the stamp to stamp the edges of my card front.  The edges are also LIGHTLY ink blended with a green ink that matches the leaves.

As you can see from the picture, I used Heart Beat, Honey Drizzle and Azurite inks to watercolor my background piece. The inks are lighter when spritzed with water and added to the watercolor paper. I used the same technique on another piece of watercolor paper and die cut the balloons using the Birthday Greetings Die.  I added 2 more balloons to the back of each one for added dimension. The sentiment and balloon strings are from the Faithful Feathers set.  The balloon strings are the center stamp for the feathers.  This is a way of stretching your stamps! I added Glossy Accents and tiny stars to the balloons as well.  To finish them off, I added some white twine knots.

Happy Stamping!

AECP-Level 2-Masking Unleashed

 The Altenew Educator Classes are some of the best around!  Each class is full of wonderful tips and tricks.  The instructors are varied and each has so much to offer. My latest class was no exception! Masking Unleashed is all about using different masking techniques on your cards. 

The steps for this card are simple but do require a little time.  Start by cutting a circle out of a piece of masking paper and using the outside piece for masking. Adhere it to your card front, align your stencil over your circle opening and lightly ink blend a light ink color over the area.  Keep the area that you plan to place your flowers lighter than the rest.  Remove your mask and decide on your flower placement.  After stamping the main image, mask it off and continue stamping and masking until your image is complete.

The ink colors on this card are Altenew Misty Moor, Marshland, Sea Forest, and Mangrove Root. The flowers are from the Always There stamp set and the sentiment is from the Faithful Feathers stamp set.  I heat embossed the sentiment in gold onto a matching color of cardstock.  I also added a tiny gold piece of cardstock on either side of the sentiment strip and a few gold sequins.

These cards use die cuts from the Just Leaves die set as masks.  I cut 2 of each one from masking paper, adhered one to white cardstock and began ink blending.  After a light coat of ink, I then attached the second mask, off setting slightly from the first and ink blended a little more. I white heat embossed the sentiments and finished the cards as shown.  The card on the left uses the Leaves Frame die with one cut from brown cardstock and another cut from vellum.  Adhere the 2 frames with the leaves turned in different directions.

For this card, die cut the You Are Loved die out of masking paper and place it on your card front.  Ink blend over your card front.  Without removing your die, stamp your flowers and leaves.  Remove your mask, adhere some jewels and your card is finished!  I used Altenew inks for this-Teal Cove, Vineyard Berry, Coral Bliss, Citrus Burst, Sea Forest and Pink Pearl(for the blending). The flowers are from the Stunning Cosmos set and the leaves are from the Always There set.

When masking, always start with your top layer first, the pink flower in this card. Mask it off after stamping and stamp your second layer-the blue and purple flowers.  Mask this layer off and stamp your third layer-the leaves.  After my stamping was done, I colored the image using various alcohol markers.  To finish the card, I added some black splatters, the sentiment(white heat embossed on black cardstock and fussy cut) and adhered my piece to an A2 black card.  The leaves and flowers are from the Perfectly Perfect set and the sentiment is from the Coneflower set.

Happy Stamping!

Altenew-November Challenge

 Just a quick note today to spotlight the Altenew November Challenge.  I ink blended the colors for the challenge onto a piece of white cardstock and then ran it through the Cloud embossing folder from Altenew.  I cut one of the leaves die 3 times from black cardstock and glued them together.  I then adhered all to the ink blended piece. I added a heavy dose of Wink of Stella to the die cut, white heat embossed my sentiment and added some silver splatters.

AECP-Level 2-Magical Marker Techniques

 If you are like me, you have had alcohol markers for awhile and only use them for occasional coloring.  If so, then this is the class for you!  I learned so many techniques and have a few samples to show you.

I recently received the Just Leaves die set from Altenew.  I was so excited when I saw it and knew I wanted to try it for this technique.  After cutting ALL of the dies in the set out of white cardstock, I colored them with several of my green alcohol markers.  I just pulled out the shades I wanted to use and randomly colored the leaves.  The wonderful thing about this technique is there is no order-just randomly color, experiment and have fun with it. After all my colors were applied, I then spritzed slightly with alcohol to achieve a slightly mottled effect.  I only used one of the leaves for this card as it is a mini slimline card and one was enough.  The sentiment is from the Faithful Feather set and is stamped in black ink.  For added contrast, the sentiment strip is backed in a matching green cardstock. Below is a close up.

Since I had so many leaves ready, I decided to make another mini slimline card with the orientation going the opposite direction.

I mounted these leaves on a small square of white cardstock that I dry embossed with a woodgrain folder and then attached them to a piece of green cardstock.  The stripes on either side of the sentiment were made using one of the green alcohol markers and a ruler.  The sentiment is stamped in black and is part of the Amaryllis stamp set.

This card was fun and easy.  I stamped the images from the Darling Rose stamp set on Vellum and then heat embossed them in black.  I colored the rose using R301, R206 and R217 Altenew Alcohol Markers. I spritzed them with alcohol to achieve a stippled effect similar to the leaves. The result is slightly different using Vellum rather than cardstock. I then fussy cut the pieces. One tip from this class was to look at your stencils differently.  Although I didn't use my stencil with my markers, I did angle it on my cardstock and ink blended only a portion of it. I adhered the rose and leaves to this piece and then adhered that to an A2 card front.

Here is a close up of the mottled effect.  I did color the Vellum on the back side so that I wouldn't damage the tips of my markers.

One of the first techniques in this class was using your alcohol markers to color metal.  Sara used some metal sheeting she had.  I wanted to give it a try but had no metal sheeting.  This card and my next one were experiments and I love the way they turned out!  I adhered double sided adhesive to a piece of card stock and then adhered Aluminum Foil to the cardstock. This technique works best using dark colors, so I looked for my darkest blue marker and scribbled it on my aluminum foil.  Then I spritzed the area with alcohol.  After this dried, I cut it into strips of varying sizes and attached it to my card using double sided tape.  I also used the same marker to color white pearls. Now the colors on my card match perfectly!

The sentiment is from the Japanese Mum stamp set. I really like the shading and variation you get with this technique.  I may invest is some dark colors of alcohol markers just for this technique!

This is actually my favorite card from this class!  Most of the products used are discontinued, but I have them in my stash. I colored a piece of aluminum foil with a dark red alcohol marker, spritzed with alcohol, let it dry and then die cut the ornaments.  The sentiment is from the Holiday Flower stamp set. 

I hope this inspired you to try new techniques with your alcohol markers.

Happy Stamping!

AECP-Level 2-In The Mood for Color

 These cards are inspired my my latest Altenew class- In The Mood for Color.  Did you know that your color choices relay a message to the recipient?  I had never considered this when card making.  This class was another good one in the Altenew lineup.  

My first card uses blue as the main color.  Blue is calming and tranquil. I think this is a good color for a sympathy card and this one is going to my cousin in North Carolina who recently lost his wife.

I stamped each of the blooms in the Wallpaper Art set and colored them with various blue Copic markers.  After stamping the leaf stamp from that set onto my cardstock using Hunter Green ink, I ink blended Arctic blue ink around the edges. I then arranged my blooms.  I attached my cardstock piece to a black piece of cardstock slightly larger.  My sentiment is stamped in black and is from the Starry Flowers stamp set.  This piece was also backed with black cardstock.  All were then adhered to an A2 card base.  The blooms were trimmed as they were hanging over the edge in places.

The color red signifies love, passion or energy.  The Watercolor Blooms stamp set if full of blooms and is easy to stamp.  I stamped several of the images using a base layer of pink with the second layer in red.  The foliage is stamped using Just Green ink.  The sentiment is from the Paint A Flower Anemone set and stamped in red.  

The circle of black and white is preprinted vellum from my stash backed with a white piece of cardstock.  I dry embossed my card front with an embossing folder in my stash as well.  I thought the tiny dots continued the theme of my card.  After die cutting and attaching all of my pieces, I adhered my card front to an A2 card base.

Yellow is a color that can demonstrate energy, optimism, or cheer.  I think this card does that.  It utilizes a partial die cut technique that I have been wanting to try.  The bloom in the Ranunculus set is perfect for this. I used Mocha, Citrus Burst, Maple Yellow, Honey Drizzle and Caramel Toffee for the flower.  The foliage was stamped using Galactic Stream, Dew Drops and Aqualicious inks. I then ink blended the edges using Maple Yellow.  The sentiment is stamped in Galactic Stream, then in Versa Mark and then heat embossed with clear embossing powder. To finish off the card, I added tiny gold splatters.

The next two cards are quick and easy ones using embossing folders.  Altenew has some amazing folders.  I received this one in my last order and love it!  This is the Floating Foliage embossing folder.  I used a very light green cardstock from my stash.  After the panel was embossed, I lightly ran Cracked Pistachio Distress Oxide Ink over the raised portions.  I used Lucky Clover Distress Oxide ink to darken the centers of the leaves. I cut a 1 1/2" strip off one end of my panel and after white heat embossing my sentiment, I attached it to black cardstock.  I then attached the top portion, added a few pearls and attached to an A2 card base.

Words associated with the color green are growth, soothing and natural.  This embossing folder seems to use those words as well.  The card below uses the same technique as above with a slight color change.  I used Mowed Lawn and Luck Clover Distress Oxide inks.  I completed the card using the Fancy For You die cut out of some gold card stock in my stash. I did add a few matching gems from my stash as well.

Two slightly different looks using the same embossing folder.  I hope you enjoyed today's cards.

Happy Stamping!

AECP-Level 2-Impressive Heat Embossing

 Hello! Another wonderful Altenew class is the inspiration for today's cards.  Impressive Heat Embossing is another must take class.  After finishing the lessons, I pulled out ALL of the embossing powders in my stash.  And of course, there were quite a few.  But what fun it was to play with them all.  The card below is the first of my Christmas cards for this year.  I embossed the Amaryllis outline in Gold.  The second layer was stamped using a dark red ink.  The third layer was embossed using an Iridescent Embossing Powder and the fourth layer was embossed using Gold Embossing Powder. I opted to not use the stamen for this flower.  The greenery die cuts were embossed using a Green and Gold Embossing Powder.  I die cut all the pieces along with a Gold foil frame.  For added interest, I die cut the Garden Trellis Cover Die out of white cardstock and used this as my background. All pieces were adhered to an A2 card front.

Below is a close up spotlighting all that glitter and sparkle!

The card below uses several colors of embossing powders-Gold, Silver, Copper, Clear, and Holographic. I heat embossed each color separately.  It wasn't hard, just a slow process.  I think it was worth the effort.  

I used several stamp sets as well.  The sentiment is Copper embossed on Vellum and from the Ornamental Bliss set.  The leaves are from the Darling Rose set and the small branches and dots are from the Watercolor Blooms set.  I enjoy mixing stamp sets to get more out of them.

Here is a close up of all the different colors on this card.  I added a few matching gems, adhered the piece to a copper foil cardstock and then to an A2 cardfront.

This technique turned out to be a 2 for 1 card.  Using my stamp positioner was a great help.  Using 2 pieces of cardstock (one white and the other colored) cut to the same size, I stamped the white cardstock in an ink that matched my colored cardstock.  I then stamped in VersaMark Ink and heat embossed in Clear Embossing Ink. I then stamped my colored cardstock in VersaMark Ink and heat embossed using Silver Pearl Embossing Powder.  I die cut the center out of the colored cardstock and die cut a sentiment to match. A few clear gems were added to the front as well.

The close up shows how the stamping is continuous on the colored cardstock.  I also added some liquid glitter into the flower centers.  I really like how this card and the next one turned out.

This card uses the leftover frame from my previous card and is a very simple card. I stamped my flower in matching ink and Clear Embossing Powder as before. The flower images are from the Starry Flowers set and the sentiment is from the Always There set.

I added color to the flower centers and blooms.  The tiny butterflies were in my stash and just matched my flower centers.  I hope you enjoyed today's post.

Happy Stamping!