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TUTORIALSTENCILSTRETCH YOUR PENNIES

4/22/20233 min read

Would you like to experiment with a design like this? You'll find a supply list below, including a link to the stencil I used from A Colorful Life Designs . Follow the link and use discount code ChrisFan10 to save 10% on your entire order! (Master Creator Bundles are excluded as they already have a 20% discount built in.)

Getting Started:

Card Base: 5.5 x 8.5, scored and folded at 4.25

small scrap of cardstock to stamp and colour the mouse

Card Face:

On this card, the card face is the front flap of the card base.

I placed the Joyous Cup stencil onto the card face, and secured it with Mint Tape. I masked off the cup to protect it from ink (again with Mint Tape) , and then brought in my blending brushes and four colours of ink: two purples and two aqua tones. I allowed the colours to move through the splash randomly, brushing the lighter shades on first and then coming back with the darker tones selectively to add depth and visual interest.
When the splash was complete, I moved the Mint Tape so that it covered the bottom of the splash. The cup was now exposed and ready for ink: I brushed on a light green with a lot of yellow in it.
I had stamped and coloured the mouse on a separate piece of paper. I fussy cut him out, not worrying about the whiskers : I cut close to the edges and cut them completely off.
I experimented with the mouse, moving him around until I decided where I wanted to place him in the image. Then I put the card into my stamping platform and some black ink and stamped the mouse exactly where I wanted him The fussy cut version of the little guy was lined up carefully and glued directly onto this . In doing it this way the whiskers on the stamped image lined up perfectly with the fussy cut image and no one would ever know that they were cut off.
While the card face was in the stamping platform I placed the sentiment and stamped it in black pigment ink. I immediately sprinkled it with clear embossing powder, and set this with my heat gun.

Other:

I used a microliner to draw in the small black lines below the mouse.
I used a light grey alcohol marker to create a shadow below the cup, grounding the scene.
I used the same grey marker to trace around the mouse, to separate him from the background.

Stretch your Pennies: This is a single layer card. When a design supports this (and many of my designs don't!) you will save money not only on materials but perhaps also on postage when your project hits the post office.

Final Thoughts: I'm happy with the end result here - that little guy dancing in the splash is so joyful that he is sure to bring a smile to the person who receives this card in the end.

Supplies:

stencil: Joyous Cup, A Colorful Life Designs

stamps

mouse: Coffee House , Colorado Craft Company - Simon Says Stamp,

sentiment: Coffee House, Colorado Craft Company - Simon Says Stamp

dye based ink: Stampin' Up

blending brushes: Picket Fences, Amazon, LDRS, Scrapbook.com, Simon Says Stamp

Memento ink: Amazon, Simon Says Stamp

alcohol markers

Stampin' Blends, Stampin' Up!

Copic Markers: DeSerres, The Papercrafters Workshop, Simon Says Stamp

black pigment ink: Altenew, Versafine Onyx, Scrapbook.com, Hero Arts Intense Black, Simon Says Stamp,