Three card sets

I'm back to squeeze in one more blog post for July, and today I'm sharing three card sets (two of which I made quite awhile ago). Card sets are a fun way to try a card layout in different color combos or with different sentiments -- and they're a great item to have on hand for gift giving.

For this first set of cards, I used a rainbow-themed kit from Taylored Expressions. I know the kit is no longer available, but some of the individual products still may be around. I've also noticed that several stamp companies have similar rainbow stamps, dies, and/or stencils, so there are lots of options out there.

I started with light blue card bases and added a subtle background using a cloud stencil and the same color ink as the card stock. (I believe it's the retired Soft Sky from Stampin' Up!, which is one of my all-time favorite colors. It really is the perfect soft color for a sky, and I wish it was still available.) Then I die cut the rainbow out of six colors of card stock; I chose bright colors rather than the more traditional rainbow colors. I sorted out the different pieces, arranged them into six rainbows, and glued each rainbow to a card base.

I die-cut the clouds from white card stock and adhered one to each end of the rainbow using foam tape. Some of the clouds have a pierced border because the kit came with two different style cloud dies. I used both dies to cut my die-cutting time in half.

The sentiment stamps were shaped to fit over the top of the rainbow, so I just picked one sentiment for each card and stamped it in black ink. The final touch for each card was three clear droplets, which were perfect since they look like little drops of rain.

 

If you're looking for something a little more all-occasion, check out the second set of cards:

The starting point for this set was actually the washi tape (the colorful strips on the focal panels), which you could easily substitute with strips of card stock or patterned paper. I made this set for a friend who really likes washi tape, so I wanted to include it on these cards. I chose three styles of washi tape: a wide, colorful pattern; a narrow solid color; and a medium-width gold polka dot. For each focal panel, I placed a strip of each tape on a piece of white card stock and wrapped the ends around to the back. I stamped a sentiment above the strips and then tore off the top and bottom edges of the card stock.

For the card bases, I used thick white card stock and added splatters with gold watercolor paint. The paint does need a little time to dry, so you may want to create the bases first then set them aside and make the panels.

Using foam tape, I attached a focal panel to each card base near the right edge and slightly lower than center. To bring in one more metallic element, I finished off with a few gold sequins on each card.

 

The third card set I made on a when I was playing with watercolor paints this spring:

The colorful butterfly background on these cards was made with a watercolor resist pad from Brea Reese. It's an 8" x 8" pad of watercolor paper preprinted with white designs. When you apply paint to the paper, the design resists the paint and stays white. It's a fun and easy way to play with watercolor. You could even make your own resist paper by embossing a design on watercolor paper using embossing or watermark ink and white or clear embossing powder.

I used three colors of liquid watercolor and applied them very loosely, letting the colors do their thing and blend together in some spots. I blotted up the excess water and paint, and when the paper was dry I cut it into four 4" x 4" pieces and mounted each on a bright yellow card base. (The finished cards are about 4-1/4" square.) I added black die-cut butterflies (Stampin' Up!), a small strip sentiment (Simon Says Stamp), and a few sparkly sequins (Gina K Designs) to finish off each card.

 

 I used to make card sets often, and I always seemed to have a few on hand. I need to get back to making them regularly so I can replenish my stash.

Thanks for stopping by!