The past week has been quiet. I’ve been working on birthday cards and thinking about doing some fall and Halloween ATCs. I also worked on my second Altenew Educator Certification Program homework assignment. This lesson was also focused on layering stamps.
Honeysuckle Layering Stamps
One of my recently purchased stamp sets is the Build-A-Flower: Honeysuckle Layering Stamp Set. The images are large and beautiful. Using my stamp platform, I stamped one of the big, full flowers on white cardstock with Altenew Jet Black ink, along with three of the bud images and a few leaves. I used Altenew Crisp Dye ink in Warm Sunshine, Chamomile, Snapdragon, and Marigold for the layers of the flower and buds. The foliage layers were stamped in Limeade, Fresh Leaf, and Hunter Green. Next, I cut them out with the matching dies. I stamped the “Thinking of You” sentiment from the Oriental Poppy stamp set in Jet Black on white cardstock, and fussy cut around the phrase.
Creating the Background
I love background stamps. The size is perfect for A2 cards (4 1/4″ x 5 1/2″), so you get a big return for little effort. I used the image from Altenew’s Whimsical Herringbone Outline Stamp Set, stamped in Silver Lake. I layered onto a medium gray panel from my stash.
Finishing the Card
Onto assembling the card! I cut a piece of 110 lb Classic Crest Solar White Card stock to 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″, scored it at 4 1/4″, and folded it in half to make my card base. Then I attached the herringbone background to the card base. The stamped images were next. It’s always either fun or frustrating figuring out the best arrangement. These images simply fell into place for me this time. The foliage provides a cradle of sorts for the large flower, and the geometry of the herringbone background is interesting to the eye.
What I Learned About Layering
With this project, I tried different layering techniques. First, I followed the instructions on Altenew’s layering guide. The second time, I stamped the solid color areas of the florals and foliage, then stamped the black outline. I achieved good results with both techniques, but found I prefer stamping the outline first.
If you missed it, you can find my first homework assignment here.
