The nature of masculine cards

I don't know about you, but I always seem to need to replenish my stash of birthday cards, especially the masculine ones. And I know that many cardmakers (myself included) sometimes struggle with making masculine cards. So today I am going to share some guy-friendly cards featuring different nature images.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: A Touch of Ink
Paper: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso card stock; Wood Textures Designer Series Paper (DSP) Stack
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Pumpkin Pie, Cajun Craze, Pear Pizzazz, Old Olive, Mossy Meadow, Crumb Cake
Accessories: Halloween Night Enamel Dots, Natural Trim Ribbon, Burlap Ribbon, Birthday Cheer dies (Honey Bee Stamps), Happy Birthday die (Avery Elle), Tiny Attacher (Tim Holtz), foam tape (3M)

I know butterfly images are often associated with feminine cards, but that seems silly  -- butterflies are just insects, after all. So I challenged myself to make a couple of masculine cards with butterfly images. I think the style of this stamp set worked well for that challenge because the images aren't too delicate or ornate.

For the stamped layers, I used one half-sheet of white card stock and covered it with the butterfly, leaves, and splatter images. When I stamped the "filler" images for the leaves and butterflies, I used markers to apply the ink so I could get some shading. It's hard to tell on the leaves (the lighter part of the leaves is actually part of the stamp, so I probably could have just used one color with those), but you can definitely see the two shades on the butterfly wings.

For the rest of the cards I focused on neutral colors, woodgrain patterns, and word dies that didn't have a lot of flourish. I think all of those elements work together to create a couple of great masculine cards.

Supplies:
Stamps: You're a Fungi (Hero Arts)
Paper: River Rock, Very Vanilla card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: River Rock (Stampin' Up!), Chocolate Truffle amalgam ink (Gina K Designs)
Accessories: Wonky Stitched Circles dies (My Favorite Things), Burlap Ribbon (Stampin' Up!), Tiny Attached (Tim Holtz), Neutrals Candy Dots (Stampin' Up!), sponge (Stampin' Up!), foam tape (3M)

I love these mushroom images, and paired with the punny sentiment "You're a fungi!" they're perfect for a masculine card. Here are a couple of tips and tricks for this card:

-- To make the background, I positioned several of the mushroom images on a large acrylic block. Then I stamped all the images together a few times, rotating the block to change the orientation of the mushrooms. Much quicker than repeatedly stamping each individual image.

-- I love using a mini stapler to attach burlap ribbon for a couple of reasons. A) Regular adhesive can be visible between the fibers because burlap doesn't have a tight weave, and B) the metal adds an extra bit of texture and a masculine feel. On this card I used two staples crossing each other on each end of the ribbon; on one of the cards above I placed the staples parallel to each other for a different look.

Supplies:
Paper: Crumb Cake, Whisper White card stock (Stampin' Up!); On the Bright Side 6" x 6" paper pad (My Mind's Eye)
Accessories: Paper Layering Feather die (Hero Arts), Woodland Silhouettes I dies (Taylored Expressions), Layering Ovals dies (Stampin' Up!), Neutrals and Regals Candy Dots (Stampin' Up!), linen thread (Stampin' Up!), foam tape (3M), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute Glitter)

I made these two cards a long time ago, so I'm a little fuzzy on the exact details. I know I started with a paper pack that had this fun chevron print in several colors. I cut strips of each color and then did my best to line up the different strips so the chevrons appear continuous. (I think I was a little more successful with the card on the left.) I attached the strips of patterned paper to a piece of copy paper so I was able to just trim the edges and adhere it to the card base instead of trying to get the proper placement directly on the card.

For the card on the left, I used a die to cut an oval out of the patterned papers, and then I glued a white die-cut oval inside the opening. For the card on the right, I just adhered a Crumb Cake die-cut oval on top of the patterned paper. Then I added a die-cut deer silhouette to one card and two feathers to the other and finished each card with a few enamel dots.

I had a bit of the patterned paper "mash up" left over, so I added a strip to two panels of white card stock. I stamped sentiments on the panels and then adhered them inside the cards. (Unfortunately I didn't jot down where these sentiments are from, so I don't have that in the supply list. Sorry!)

Supplies:
Stamps: Stunning Silhouettes (Raisin Boat), Field Notes (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Early Espresso, Old Olive card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Early Espresso (Stampin' Up!), Distress Oxide inks (Ranger)
Accessories: Beautiful Wings Embosslit (Stampin' Up!), Stitched Frame Stacklets dies (Taylored Expressions), Clear Drip Drops (Taylored Expressions), Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute)

This card started with the background layer, which I made at least two years ago and found in my box of bits and pieces. It was one of my early creations when I first tried using Distress Oxide inks. I don't know which exact colors I used, but it seemed perfect for a nature-y masculine card.

I wanted a silhouette image, so I stamped a few cattails along the bottom of the panel using Early Espresso ink. I die cut an Old Olive stitched frame and glued it to the panel. Then I stamped the sentiment in the upper right quadrant and attached the piece to an Early Espresso card base. To add just a bit of embellishment, I added three clear droplets (I like to think of them as rain or dew on nature-themed cards) and a tiny die-cut/embossed butterfly. (Hey! Look at that -- another butterfly on a "guy card"!)

I hope these cards give you some ideas for masculine cards. And I hope to be back soon with another post. Lately it seems like whenever I think I'll be able to get back to a more regular blog-posting schedule, something happens that throws everything off. So thanks for sticking around and stopping by today!