Inspire Me Monday: Look at your stamps in a new way

Hello Friends, How are you today? My name is Kathy Racoosin and I am super excited to be back today for another “Inspire Me Monday” feature. 

Working with Power Poppy stamps is always a pleasure but, the hard part is deciding what to use because all of the stamps are so beautiful. Today I mixed two different stamp sets and I will be sharing a few masking tips and showing you that it’s ok to ignore some mistakes. 

Before we get started I wanted to tell you why I am using the hands. I was hoping that my hands on the card would resemble a vase .... according to my niece not so much lol. 

After I finished my card I decided to google images of "hand vases". (I tend to do things in reverse)  In retrospect I could have cut a hand out and popped it on top of the other hand and I might have a achieved the look I was going for?

Or... I could have drawn a simple vase in the stamped hands inspired by this vase.  

Flipping the hand would have made a cool vase. If you take anything away today maybe it will be to look at your stamps with a different eye and to google for some images first :)

I used the Folk Heart and the Planning for Magnolias stamp sets. 

I know some of you like to see the colors that are used so this photo is for you. 

The hand was stamped with a Copic friendly ink and slightly off center. (I am using the mini Misti)

The images was stamped again on some masking paper and placed on the left hand. A “post it” was placed down to mask off the thumb. (note: see the part of the thumb peeking over the post it paper.)

This is what happens when you don’t pay attention when masking off an image.... a partial thumb and a lovely smudge BUT, that's ok you won't notice these things on the final card.

Using the acetate sheet that your stamps are on can guide you for placement when using the misti.

After stamping the magnolia branch I decided to add some more greenery.  I tore up some of the sticky side of a “post it” note paper to mask off any petals that might get in the way of stamping more greenery. 

 Stamping an extra image and cutting it out will hide most mistakes. The magnolia in the vase will be cut out and used to hide the lost half thumb. 

I have shared this before and thought I would again in case you missed it. For a quick and easy background add some quick color with your alcohol marker. This technique is also a great way to disuse any smudges. 

Use an old rag with a pile on the rag. Take some Copic blending solution to add texture and to get rid of the lines when you colored the background. Add just enough solution to damped the rag. Blot the damp rag on the background. Fluff up the pile on the rag and blot again. Repeat. Use the heat gun to dry your paper before you start coloring. If you are using light colors use a "0" to “erase” or remove any purple that may have bleed onto the image. Otherwise you can color on top of the color if you are using bolder colors. 

That’s it for today and I hope that you picked up a tip or two. Thanks for your visit and have a wonderful week.

Kathy