Fun with Stencils

 Hi Artzy friends -

Today I have two cards whose backgrounds I created with the Dare 2B Artzy Circle Duo Stencils. this set includes two 6" x 6" stencils that can be used together or separately. 

For my first background I used the more open circles stencil alone, with two very different ink colors. The Picket Fence Paper Pouncers would work great with this delicate stencil. I didn't have my paper pouncers at the time I created this background but I plan to try them out next time!

Other Dare 2B Artzy products used on this card were the Jellyfish stamp and die sets, the Mini Hugs Tag dies, and the Rectangle Framelits dies. I also added a few coordinating Feelin' Groovy Enamel Stickers.

For my second stenciled background, I layered both of the Circle Duo stencils, but kept the colors in one color family. I used the dots stencil first, then the open circles, using the same ink colors on each part of the card for a subtle gradation look. 

Additional Dare 2B Artzy products I used were the Seahorses stamps and dies sets and Rectangle Framelits dies.

I love how the Circle stencils, with the colors I chose, have a very "bubbly" feel and are perfect for water scenes!

I hope you will try out these stencils and  enjoy getting Artzy with them!

Home Sweet Home

 Hi Artzy friends -

Today I am sharing a slimline card created with the Dare 2B Artzy Home Sweet Home stamp set and the Little Village and die set. 

I love how fun it is to color these whimsical houses!

Another awesome thing about the dies that coordinate with this stamp set is that the same dies cut out the images in our Bistro stamps and Candy Shop stamps! How clever is that? And great for our crafting budgets!

Other products I used for this card were papers from the Everything is Blooming collection, and dies from the Wavy Slimline Framelits set. 

Thanks for visiting and have a great day!

Avra

Springtime Hide n Seek

 Hi Artzy friends -

I know it's a little late for Easter but this cute bunny is great for any time, especially as I'm still waiting for spring to really take hold here in Ohio!

All of the images on this card are from the Honey Bunny stamp and die sets, and the paper is from the Home Grown collection.

This card holds a surprise inside! 

The Hide n Seek Card die set is so fun to use to create fun pop out cards! And it comes with many dies to decorate your card, or use on other cards! 

I plan to use this die set  to create a lot of fun hide n seek cards in the future!

Thanks for visiting and have a great day!

Avra

Watercoloring With Stencils

 Hi Artzy friends -

I recently took an online class that was all about techniques with stencils and it inspired me to  get out my stencils and try some of them out.

I chose the Dare 2B Artzy Wacky Boxes stencil for this fun watercolor technique.

I began by taping a piece of watercolor paper to a hardboard to prevent warping. I sprayed the back of my stencil with Pixie Spray and adhered it my paper. Pixie Spray is a slightly tacky adhesive spray that holds your stencil down but does not rip your paper. There are many techniques that crafters use to hold their stencils in place but Pixie Spray is best here so you don't get too much water seeping under your stencil and ruining your design. 

I used Zig Clean Color Real Brush (Watercolor) Markers and drew an outline inside each of the openings in the stencil. (This is a very detailed stencil!) in shades of yellows, oranges, and pinks

I then lifted the stencil, and with a wet paintbrush, pulled the color in to cover each rectangular area.  I didn't love the dotted areas so I painted over those areas into rectangles as well. 

I was left with a panel that looked a little "mixed media" and a little retro - perfect for pairing with the Groovy Van stamps and dies!

I stamped and colored the van on watercolor paper with similar shades of the Zig markers that I used for the background, and I heat embossed the word "hippie." I also stamped the words "don't worry" and "be." I cut everything out and mounted it all on black cardstock and/or black foam. I offset the van on the foam to create a shadow effect.

I trimmed down my background panel and matted it on black cardstock. After assembling all of the parts of my card I added a few sparkly gems to finish it off. 

Dare 2b Artzy has several beautiful detailed stencils that are fun to try with many techniques. Don't be afraid to get Artzy with your supplies! 

Have a great day and thanks for visiting!

Avra

Flower Power

 Hi Artzy friends -

I just love all of the flower images in the Groovy Van and Good Times Roll stamp and dies sets so I wanted to use them all on a card together!

Dare 2B Artzy has a slimline die called Retro Slimline Background die so I thought it would pair perfectly with items in the Feelin' Groovy collection! 

I cut the Retro Slimline Background out of some rose gold mirror cardstock. I then adhered the die cut to some patterned paper from the Feelin' Groovy collection called Stay Wild, that I had cut with the stitched rectangular die included in the Retro Slimline Background die set.

After stamping, coloring, and die cutting the flower images I popped them up on my card front with foam tape. The stamps and dies for the words Peace and Love are also included in the Groovy Van set and I popped those up as well. And finally - the Retro Slimline Background die set includes the heart that I added to my card, as well as a few other shapes that I did not use this time.

Isn't this card groovy? I love finding older Dare 2B products in my stash that pair together well with new products! 

Thanks for visiting and have a great day! 

Avra

I Lava You

 Hi Artzy friends -

Today I have a new-to-me fun fold card called an Impossible Card.  Cindy demoed one on a recent live in the Dare 2B Artzy facebook group. You can also find tutorials on Splitcoast Stampers and YouTube if you're interested. They really are fun and easy to create!

This birthday card was created with brand new products from Dare 2B Artzy. Stamps and dies are from the Good Times Roll and Groovy Van sets. The patterned papers are from the Feelin' Groovy collection.

I also added a sentiment on the back, along with space to write a message and sign the card.

I love that the "I Lava You" and "Love" sentiments have dies to cut them out! 

The fun thing about this card is that it folds flat to fit into an A2 envelope, and "pops up" when the recipient removes it from the envelope! Such a fun surprise!

Do you like creating fun fold cards? What are some of your favorites?

Thanks for visiting and have a great day!

Avra

Growing in Unity Winners

 Hi stamping friends -

Thank you all so much for your lovely comments on my GIU posts last week! I appreciate each and every one!

The two winners of a $20 gift credit are Robin and Linda!

Please email Kelli@unitystampco.com to claim your gift credit within two weeks, and put "winner from Avra's GIU week" in the subject line. Congratulations!

I hope you will all subscribe to my blog so I can continue to share my creations with you!

Thanks for visiting and have a great day!

Avra