Squirrely Challenge

The current Squirrely Challenge from Nancy is from the latest Technique Junkies Newsletter. The technique she chose is cascading images:

I chose one of the images as a starting point, masking and stamping the other images. I made this second card as a sample for my upcoming Stencils class:

The little square opens to a little image of a flower and mini butterfly. You can find more examples of this technique at Squirrely Art.

Art Journal Fun

This was a playful double page spread I made. The background on the left was created with strips of various background papers and tapes. On the right page, the inner part of the page is a resist - water soluble Pastel over Glaze pen outline. Both techniques could be translated to a variety of projects, including cards and ATC's.

Tuesday's Tip

I am seeing more and more decorated tapes used in crafting. Regular readers know I have been a big fan for quite some time. I have used them as embellishments and backgrounds. You can also make punched shapes from your favorite tapes. Place them on card stock or paper to add weight, and punch away!

Decorative Tape and Stamp Positioner Usage

For the above card, I used decorative packing tape to provide the background. I have previously shown tape as a striped background and as faux photo corners. This was accomplished with 2 strips of tape on a white background.
The center image was stamped with white ink onto black card stock. Once it was dry, I completely filled in the image with white gesso. This was a technique we did at Club Scrap's Retreat. It is similar to techniques we did years ago with colored pencils.  After the gesso has dried, stamp the image again, using a stamp positioner, in black ink. Using acrylic paints, paint the image. Once the paints have dried, over stamp the image again in black ink, using the stamp positioner for placement.  The image can be stamped several times depending upon how dark you would like the image.
Decorative tapes come in a variety of colors and images, making it easy to mix and match with your stamps and techniques. Have you tried using a stamp positioner? What is your favorite technique?

Washi tape

One of the hot new items I have been seeing used is Washi and other decorative tapes.Some can be found at local scrapbook stores. The main sources that I buy from are on line. (Ranger and Tim Holtz have also issued paper tapes.) My friend, Kelly Kilmer, got me addicted to these tapes several years ago. It is funny how some trends seem to take off after a product has been around for years.

I have previously posted journal photos with decorative tape. I thought I would make up some cards using tape. For the card above, I used 3 complimentary tapes to form the horizontal stripes on the black panel. The stamps and card stocks are by Club Scrap. Next time you see some decorative, pick up a roll or two and try something new.

Easel Card

Occasionally, I get tired of the same old card format. It is fun to try new mechanical techniques in card making. However, there are those instances in which time is not an endless commodity. That is one of the reasons I really like the Easel card (originally appeared on the SplitCoast Stampers Forum). The above photo is of the closed card - 4 1/4 x 4 1/4.

The base card is 2 pieces: one 4 1/4 by 8 1/2; and one 4 1/4 square (all measurements are in inches. Score the longer piece of cardstock at 4 1/4 and 6 3/8 inch marks. Then, fold the card to create a zig-zag. Mount the 4 1/4 square piece on to the shorter area. I used Club Scrap's Passage in Time kit with some spare pieces.

Once you have the basic card shape, you can decorate as you please. Notice the lace above the "Happy Birthday" tag? It is decorative tape! Next time you need a quick card that has a "wow" factor, give this a try!

Decorative Tapes

You may have seen gaffer tapes (7 Gypsies) and scrapbook companies decorative tapes. They are becoming a popular art element with crafters. One of the classes I took from Kelly Kilmer gave us the opportunity to use tapes in collage. In the above collage, the right edge leaves are a tape, as is the script and green vine image.

Tapes can be used with stamping (red dandelion images) for a unique look. I have used them for a quick envelope decoration and for borders on scrapbook pages and card fronts. Next time you are at your local scrapbook, art, or gift shop, take a look at the tapes. The possibilities are endless.