Hi folks! Kim here again (twice in a week…WooHoo!) to share a clean and simple card that I created using a stencil, some Distress Stains, gesso, and dies. I’m a die hard card making fan, which is how I started designing and teaching, and combining my love of stencils and card making is a perfect way to spend an afternoon. Let’s get started!

I started with a piece of cardstock, cut to 4.25″ x 5.5″ and the Overlapping Stripes stencil. This technique is best to use with small design stencils. You don’t want to use a design with a lot of open space. I used heavy white gesso from Prima, and applied it with a sponge dauber. You’ll want to be careful when applying the gesso so that it doesn’t seep under the edges of the stencil.

Next, I grabbed some of my favorite Distress Stain colors, a water mister, and a mica spray. Be sure to do this technique on a non-stick craft sheet!

Apply some of the stain to your craft sheet, being careful not to put colors that will get muddy, i.e. purple and yellow, next to each other. Spray with a few mists of water and/or mica spray, and lay your gesso covered cardstock into the ink. You can gently move the cardstock around or add more water to add some drips.

Here’s the finished and dried card…yummy! The gesso resists the stains so the stenciled design really pops against the bright colors.

Once my paper was completely dry, I grabbed some circle dies and went to town cutting out as many circles as I could. Then the circles were glued onto another piece of plain white cardstock, cut to 4″ x 3″. My sentiment was stamped in VersaMark Ink on black cardstock and embossed with white embossing power. Ta-da! Here’s the finished card again…
I love the bright colors and the pattern against the white card….One of my favorite looks, and such a quick and easy design that is easy to reproduce when you’re in a rush for a card. You could produce a similar card with any stencil design…the sky’s the limit! Hope you enjoyed today’s project. Happy Crafting!

Overlapping Strips – TCW600