One Wreath Stamp, Two Very Different Cards

I have always liked finding ways to use a stamp set for something other than its most obvious purpose, and this is the same principle I use even on my own stamp designs.

This wreath stamp was originally designed with Christmas in mind, but when I started playing with it, I realised the individual elements could take it in a completely different direction.

So I made two cards using essentially the same layout and background - one with a floral birthday feel and one that leans into its original winter theme.

It was a useful reminder that sometimes you don't need a completely different stamp to make a different card. Changing the colours, the elements you emphasise and the way you layer them can completely change the feel of a design.

When a bauble becomes a flower

One of the things I particularly like about this stamp set - and actually a design feature I wanted to incorporate when I originally designed it - is that the individual elements don't necessarily have to be used in the way they were originally intended.

The small bauble shapes, when stamped around the wreath, can take on the appearance of flowers. Add the separate flower and leaf images and you can build over some of the original details completely.

That's the sort of thing I enjoy discovering when I'm playing with stamps - looking at an image and asking, “What else could this be?”

Floral Birthday card idea

One of the things I really wanted to achieve when designing this stamp set was that the sentiments included gave a subtle nod that the design could be used for more than one occasion. 

That was the starting point for this card - using the warm wishes for you sentiment to create a background down one side of the card. The background I have stamped on, was made using Pretty Gets Gritty Explosion Powders, on to cream card - which pushed me a little outside my comfort zone as I normally prefer to work on white or ivory card. 

Using the main stamped image, I stamped over the words with Versafine Clair Nocturne. When you do this, it can be a bit scary as suddenly everything looks messy but this was just a placeholder for the next part of the design.

On a separate piece of card, which was a mop piece from a previous project, I stamped, coloured & cut out a few more flowers & leaves. These were layered on to the wreath design to cover the baubles. As a finishing touch, I stamped out the Happy Birthday sentiment and added to the card front. That simple change suddenly shifts the whole feel of the design – and, more importantly, the occasion it can be used for. A few faux pearls were also added to draw the eye towards the sentiment and reinforce the birthday theme.

Winter/Christmas card idea

My background was created in the same way as the card above but I swapped the sentiment to "Peace, love & joy" - Again, the sentiment helps shift the feel of the card and makes the intended occasion clear. I also changed the card to a mixed media white rather than cream.

Again, on a separate piece of card - another mop piece from a previous project - I stamped, coloured & cut out a few more flowers & leaves. However this time I also stamped & cut out some extra baubles images too - I was not trying to shy away from this being a Christmas card. I layered all the images up and stamped the sentiment on to a strip of card, which I added with 3D foam pads.

Looking at the two cards side by side, a wee bit of pride came over me – not in a show-off way, but as a little reassurance that the design ideas I had in my head when I created this stamp set really did work.

Until next time, take care,

Lou

xxx