Hello & welcome.
My name is Alison & I live in beautiful Melbourne, Australia.
For those of you who have previously visited my blog & are now returning, thank you. For those of you who are here for the first time, welcome!
Here's a little bit about me. I love creating cards & gifts for my loved ones & this blog will show you how to create something special for those you love. I blog twice a week, once on a Sunday where I mainly showcase a stamp set or dies, embossing folders, projects & sometimes special DSP and Wednesday evenings when I highlight a technique, fun folds or tools & tips. I would love to hear from you if you have any questions or suggestions & my email address for that is craftedbyalison@gmail.com.
Today I am sharing how to use masking to create something unique in your projects.
There are 2 cards, one technique which you may have seen before where you stamp one image then stamp that image again on post it notes, masking paper or other removable paper. This is then cut out & placed over the original image so that the second or subsequent stampings will appear to be behind the original image. It works great when you need a bouquet or if you want trees or mountains behind a building or tent.
The second card has two circles (or other shapes as needed) punched out of cardstock which is layered over your card front so that you can blend only where the circles are. This is perfect if you need a sun or moon or a halo effect behind a focal image. I hope you enjoy them both.
Card 1 - Step 1.
Choose your stamp set, stamp some of the images on removable paper such as post it notes & fussy cut them out. A tip when stamping - make sure that you stamp at the top of the 'note' where the adhesive is as you need the sticky part for this technique to work.
Step 2.
With your choice of inks, stamp those that you want to appear in the foreground of your finished image.
I chose Timid Tiger, Peach Pie & Petal Pink.
Step 3.
Using the fussy cut images, place them directly over the images that were stamped on the cardstock & stamp more images as desired.
Step 4.
I was happy with the number of blooms so stopped, leaving enough space for the leaves to be stamped.
Step 5.
The leaves were stamped in Granny Apple Green around the blooms using the same technique. Note: I stamped an additional image on the post it note as I was adding leaves on two blooms that were the same size but different colours, in the bottom right of the card.
The next step was to stamp a sentiment. I chose Secret Sea & "happy" from Everyday You & Me and Timid Tiger for "birthday" from Beautiful Butterflies.
The matte was then added to a Secret Sea base.
I stamped a few extra blooms & leaves on scrap Basic White & diecut them, adding dimensionals to raise them over the bouquet.
The final additional are some 2025-27 In Colour Flat Pearls.
I love it!
So, onto card 2.
Step 1. Using a piece of Basic White (or other scrap cardstock) that is larger than the card matte I punched 2 circles using the 2" punch.
Using this template I used a blending brush to apply Bubble Bath, Berry Burst & Blackberry Bliss starting at the top of the left circle then graduating the darker colours down to the bottom right circle.
After removing the template I stamped some butterflies from Beautiful Butterflies in Memento Black & some spots using Blackberry Bliss. Some retired Blackberry Bliss Striped ribbon was wrapped around this layer & a bow was added before adhering to a Basic Black & Berry Burst double matte.
The sentiment comes from Mixed Labels & is stamped in Memento Black & matted on Basic Black with both layers dovetailed & raised on dimensionals. Here's a closeup of the blending...
Well, that's if for my creations. I hope you've enjoyed the first look at this gorgeous suite. Now it's time to share some news & information from Stampin' Up®.
Stampin' Up® 's Annual Catalogue was released last year with a very different format & it was a beauty! It was set out quite differently to previous catalogues but there are benefits to that. They now have sectioned it to have beginners, which is a
step by step collection of materials in kits, then there is
quick & easy where you select base materials & packs of pre-printed or diecut materials plus some stamp sets then there is
create your way where you choose all the materials, stamps etc yourself &
create your way! In the
quick & easy section Stampin' Up® have also provided some inspiration with a colour wheel & information of various ways to use colour combinations. I explored this in a bit more detail in my
1/1/25 mid week blog & also in
30th April blog. The other cool feature is that they provide card sketch ideas for you. This is great for any times that you need a little inspiration.
If you'd like to browse the new catalogue online then click
here. If you'd like a copy to hold in your hands, leaf through & put little notes all over it of what's on your wish list then shoot me an email at craftedbyalison@gmail.com or message me on my facebook page at craftedbyalison.
The mini catalogue was launched on January 7th and has now retired so there is only the Annual catalogue & the Online Exclusives until the next Mini catalogue is launched in September.
Stampin' Up® also have loads of additional products available only online. These are called Online exclusives & have no end date, when the stock is sold out, that's the end of it.
Stampin' Up® have a great range of Kits including crafting, card making & gift giving. There were brand new kits added to the collection every month. Click here to check them all out in my online shop. As Stampin' Up® have so many beautiful kits available I feature a different kit in each blog so that you can see the range. This week's featured kit is called Sweet & Spooky & is for all those who love to celebrate Halloween. The kit has enough supplies to create 15 treat boxes. Perfect to have on hand for any little Trick or Treaters that might knock at your door!
Here's how Stampin' Up® describe it...
Make Halloween gifting extra special with the Sweet & Spooky Kit! This kit makes 15 treat boxes (5 each of 3 playful designs) featuring cute ghosts, bats, pumpkins, and more in a fun palette of black, pink, orange, and iridescent. With matching tags and ribbon included, these sweet boxes are perfect for party favours, classroom treats, or spooky surprises.
If you feel that you need to add this to your list then click here to purchase one from my online store.
If you
shop with me then there are some new changes to the rewards program that you should know about. In the past we were able to create a host code & group together individual orders & pass on the 'hostess' benefits to customers with qualifying orders. This has now been replaced with a 'Rewards' program that gives
all customers who place an order with a
qualifying amount a credit of 10% of their order to use on future orders. This will be displayed during the checkout process or your order. Stampin' Up® feel that this is a fairer way of rewarding all customers.
Lastly, there have been lots of great items added to the clearance rack which is now called
Last Chance items so make sure you check them out using
this link to my online store.
If you would like to purchase any of my creations that I feature in my blogs they can be found in my FaceBook shop at craftedbyalison or you can order something unique.
I hope you've enjoyed today's post. It's great to create something totally unique to you & this technique allows you to do just that.
That's all I have for you this week.
My next blog is on Wednesday & I have some lovely cards that feature heat embossing & the Inspiring Inspirations stamps from the Kintsugi Inspirations suite. This is the final in a series of posts with this suite but there will be more creations with this gorgeous suite in future posts.
In my next Sunday blog I will be creating a scrapbook page layout to share with you.
I hope you can join me for both of them.
Well, that's it for another week. I hope you enjoyed this post & come back for more.
Til next time, take care & keep creating! XX Alison.
Here are some links to the products that I used today & some craft room essentials.
Stamps, Dies, Embossing folders & punches
Cardstock, DSP & paper goods
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