Hey lovelies! ❤
Today I want to share two cards with you I made using the Spellbinders Shapeabilites “Little Boys at Play” and “First Adventure” dies, from the “Little Loves” collection! These dies really helped me step out of my comfort zone with card making and I really love the end results!
~Tools and products used will be listed at the end of this blog post!~
“Little Boys at Play”
I cut these cute little boys out of black card stock while trying to figure out which direction I wanted the card to go. Deciding against using patterned paper for the background, I threw caution to the wind and decided to try ink smooshing for the first time EVER with my distress inks! There’s no time like the present, right? I decided to go with blues and pinks for that whimsical feel, once everything was dried I splattered white metallic paint on to the background to give it that little extra shimmer (also makes it look a little bit like a magical night sky in my opinion!)
Once the background panel was complete, I had to decide which sentiment to use as I was planning to heat emboss directly on to the panel itself. I placed the die cut of the little boys playing at the bottom of the panel where I planned to adhere them later, and played around with the sentiments I felt would work well and placement. I landed on “Friends are the best gifts of all”, as this die reminds me of childhood, those close bonds you form as kids can help shape who you are throughout your life. Using my stamp platform to line up my sentiment to get it as straight as possible, and to ensure I got a good impression I then stamped my sentiment and heat embossed in gold!
To finish up the panel, it was time to adhere the die cut itself! You can use any type of adhesive for this, but I went with my strong double sided tape to make sure it stayed in place. The little boys really brought the panel to life! (Also how cute is the little dog?!) With the panel being finished, I started work on the card base. The card base itself is 14cm (length) x 11cm (height) while closed, a perfect fit for the panel which is 14cm (length) x 10cm (height). I used smooth white (300gsm) card stock for both! I cut some black paper to use as a mat for my panel, adhered that to the card base quickly followed by the panel (I used my regular tape runner for this!). I added the finishing touches of two gold peel offs to add more definition to the edge of the panel, and that was the first card finished! Let me know in the comments what you think!
“First Adventure”
I was originally planning to make this card a shaker, but as I had did some extra ink smooshing with what was left on my surface after creating the panel for the first card I decided to make these cards a set of two! After all we can’t let the pretty vibrant colours go to waste! I created my card base first this time, (also 14cmx11cm just standing upright this time!) the panel itself is 13cmx10cm out of smooth white card stock. Working on the panel I started by positioning the die towards the top of the panel in the centre, then also cut it out of black card stock for the image of the cute child on their adventure! I moved the image of the child to the side and used my metallic watercolour paints to splatter two shades of light gold over the white panel and let it air dry while I moved on to my sentiment.
I took some black card stock and heat embossed “Life is one big ADVENTURE” on three different strips with white embossing powder, I thought adding the sentiments towards the bottom of the card with a staggered effect added to the design quite nicely!
For me this die represented a child’s imagination, the need to explore and find the beauty. This is why I kept the panel and base pretty neutral and let the pop of colour come from behind the child going on their “First Adventure”! After adhering the inked panel behind the window, I used my multi medium matte glue to inlay the child image where it fit perfectly and that completes the panel! I added a black mat to my card once again, backed the panel with foam tape and adhered it to the centre of the card.
Overall I had a lot of fun playing with these products and being taken out of my comfort zone, these dies are beautifully intricate and high quality. If you haven’t tried them out, I’d definitely recommend snapping some of them up! I’m looking forward to using more of them in the future! ❤
Thanks for reading lovelies! Let me know what you think! Which die is your favourite?! ❤
xo
~Supplies and links!~
**Not all supplies can be listed as they’re from local craft stores, but you can easily find similar things online as they’re pretty common!** ❤
DIES:
Spellbinders Shapeabilites Little Loves “Little Boys at Play” Die
Spellbinders Shapeabilities Little Loves “First Adventure” Die
CARDSTOCK/PAPER:
Hobbycraft White Premium Smooth Card Stock (300gsm)
INK:
Tsukineko Versamark Watermark Ink
Ranger/Tim Holtz Salty Ocean Distress Ink
Ranger/Tim Holtz Picked Raspberry Distress Ink
Ranger/Tim Holtz Peacock Feathers Distress Ink
WATERCOLOUR PAINTS:
Gansai Tambi “Starry Colors” Watercolour Paints
EMBOSSING POWDERS:
Papermania Gold
Altenew Pure White
STICKERS:
Love from Lizi Gold Peel Offs
Brodie Creations 