Today I have another new card created with one of Becca Feeken's die designs from her new Romancing the Swirl from Amazing Paper Grace for Spellbinders. Out of all of her beautiful designs, this may not be the most fancy or eye catching, but it is definitely one you will want in your collection. It is the perfect accompianmnet to many of her other dies. The Hemstitch Circles adds a sophisticated element to your card design and its geometric design would be great for masculine projects too. 

 I have combined this with the label die from the Giving Occassions die and stamp set. This delicate design balances out the hemstitch circles beautifully. 

 

To add an extra hint of elegance, I lined the large circle with gold cardstock to blend in with the tiny gold border

See Becca's Amazing Paper Grace blog for more inspiration.

Trefoil Crest from Amazing Paper Grace

Here I am again with another card created with another one of Becca Feeken's gorgeous die designs. Romancing the Swirl from Amazing Paper Grace for Spellbinders is a phenomenal collection.  I have combined this with the label die from the Giving Occassions die and stamp set. I love how Becca's dies from different collections work so beautifully together. I also love how the white on gold look together. Just that little touch of gold makes this a really elegant card.

This die set is called Trefoil Crest and although it comes in the two sizes, I used just the larger one this time. I cut it from gold mirror card which adds a special touch. The Giving Occasions label was then cut from white cardstock and mounted to the card first with foam dots. I then added the gold Trefoil Crest over the top and arranged it with some of the design behind the label, and the side sections over the top as if it is holding it in place. 

See Becca's Amazing Paper Grace blog for more inspiration.

Another take on the Ringlet Die

Last week I shared this card using the Ringlet Round die from the Romancing the Swirl collection by Becca Feeken of Amazing Paper Grace for Spellbinders.

This week I wanted to use the same die, but in a different way. For the first card, I die cut the piece and adhered it to the front of the card.  I also tilted inon the side. 

This week however, I die directly into my card base. Being an intricate die, I die cut the patterned paper and the card base separately and then matched them, creating a beautiful delicate window effect.  To do this I simply left off the outer and inner border dies. 

I just love how versatile these dies are. There are so many elements to the die set so that you achieve many different designs. Who doesn't love value like that. 

Be sure to check out more stunning samples from the rest of the design team as well. They blow me away every week witht heir amazing creations. I'm so luck to be in such great company,

Today I have a bit of a background story to tell about how I came up with my design, as people oftern comment "I don't know how you come up with this stuff". Well now you'll know. I'll also give you some desgn tips along the way on how to create a balanced design that is pleasing to the eye.

Sometimes it's a bit funny how ideas for designing come to you. Today I have a card for you where I wanted to try something a little unusual. I've picked up this Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Deco Lattice Panel 1  a few times knowing I wanted to do something special with it, but the idea didn't really come until today. I have some pretty, new 6x6 papers I wanted to use, so I knew I would make a square card today, but when I laid the chipboard over the to pull together a design, it wasn't the right dimension. It was too wide for the card, so I played with it to make it fit, and in the process ended up with this sweet curved lattice garden effect.

Deco Lattice Panel 1

From there I knew I wanted it to look like a vine trellis you might see in a garden where the plants grow in and out of the framework. You can see this idea on my card, where I have adhered my flowers not only on top of the chipboard piece, but also tucked in behind.

In my designs, I tend to create one main cluster and have a smaller supporting cluster for a balanced design.  Even though I have used a large flower on both my clusters, by tucking the top one under the lattice, it gives the effect of a smaller cluster and the eye stays focused on the main cluster on the bottom left of the card.  Notice how the clusters are constructed quite tightly, and each one is anchored to the chipboard frame. This coaxes the eye to travel around the frame to give a cohesive look to the project. Hopefully this is making some kind of sense to you and will help you to create your next design.

To dress my lattice piece, I began by coating the piece in white paint. I almost always do this. next, I sprayed a bunch of different paint sprays until I got the effect I wanted. I was looking for a green to tie in with the garden motif, but didn't want it to be over the top, so I added in some shades of grey and silver. I always dry with a heat tool between 1-2 layers so as to maintain the integrity of the colors and not end up with a muddly mixed mess.

Next I added some Metallic Melts embossing powder in random spots for a little added texture and shine.

Once the piece was adhered in place with the nice concave shape, I just added sentiment pieces and lots of flowers. I also added some tiny buttterflies from the paper pack, and some ribbon and mesh for texture.

I hope this little explanation of my process is helpful  you or at least interesting. Let me know how you come up with your ideas.

Supplies:

Deco Lattice Panel 1

Romancing the Swirl with Becca Feeken

I am back this week with another card created with another one of Becca Feeken's incredible die designs. Romancing the Swirl from Amazing Paper Grace for Spellbinders is a phenomenal collection. In fact they make pulling together cards like this so easy that I almost feel like a cheat as a designer. You can literally do anything with this die and it will look amazing. 

This particular die is called Ringlet Round and comes in 4 pieces, giving you lots of options. You can leave the outer ring off for a cut in effect. The inner ring also allows you to keep the centre intact or remove it as a window piece as I have done.

To make this card a little different, I have die cut the piece with all four dies included. To adhere the die to the front of the card, I applied just a little adhesive under the four corners, and tilted the piece 90 degrees from what you see in the packaging to create mroe of a diamond shape. I then adhered those corners while pushing in from each side creating a domed effect.

The centre accent was adhered directly to the card front and looks recessed compared to the frame. 

A small sentiment tag and large bow off to the side aloows the die cut to take the focus on the card. It's incredible how a technically minimalist card can look so flawlessly elegant. It's a special kind of design magic that Becca has.

See Becca's Amazing Paper Grace blog for more inspiration.