Today on Studio SN on You Tube: Simple Mixed Media Cardmaking with Bella Crafts Quarterly!
This winter, the lovely ladies at Bella Crafts Quarterly magazine asked me to contribute a card project and I was happy to participate. I’ve been playing around a lot with what I call “simple mixed media”—mixed media where there’s plenty of texture and design but also embracing the use of white space. This is the card I created for their Winter 2014 issue.
Bella Crafts Quarterly is a free online magazine, and you can download your copy today! In the meantime, you can also watch the video of this project!
We often think of mixed media being heavily layered and richly textured, with lots of color. But it also is possible to create clean and simple designs incorporating mixed media techniques!
After all, mixed media is all about combining different types of materials, like paint, paper and ink. It’s also about mixing textures, like matte cardstock, slick washi tape and the dimension of heat-embossing.
To keep it simple, one idea is to embrace the use of white space—those empty areas on your surface—rather than feeling you need to fill every inch of your surface.
Then choose a focal, like a stamped quote.
And third, use repetition in your design. I’ve repeated elements like washi tape and the stamped circles. Even the paint spatters on my background echo the spatters on my stamped focal.
All these design tricks result in a simple, easy design with plenty of mixed media fun!
Mixed media card—what you’ll need:
- PaperArtsy™ Eclectica³ ESN10 stamps
- Colorbox® Crafter’s Ink, Spiced Plum
- Memories™ Dye Ink, Baby Blue
- PaperArtsy™ Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylic Paint, Spanish Mulberry
- WOW! Embossing Powder, Gold Satin Pearl Regular
- White matte cardstock, 7 3/4” x 5 1/4”, 2 1/2” x 3 1/4”,
- Blue matte cardstock, 8” x 5 1/2”, 2 3/4” x 3 1/2”
- Washi tape, narrow purple, tan stripe, black with dots
- Brayer
- Craft sheet
- Water spritzer
- Stipple brush
- Heat tool
How to make it:
- Squeeze a bit of Spanish Mulberry paint onto the craft sheet. Use the brayer to apply a border of paint across the large piece of white cardstock.
- Use your finger to apply paint along all four sides of the cardstock.
- Spritz water into the paint remaining on the craft sheet. Pick up watery paint on the stipple brush, then run your thumb across the bristles to spatter the color onto the cardstock.
- Let the cardstock dry. Use Baby Blue ink to stamp the script border along the right side. Adhere three pieces of washi tape horizontally as shown, overlapping the painted border. Apply three small pieces of washi tape at the top left side of the cardstock.
- Ink the circles stamp with Spiced Plum, and stamp twice on the cardstock. Sprinkle with Gold Satin Pearl embossing powder. Tap off the excess powder, then heat set.
- Wrap the cardstock with green satin ribbon, securing the ends to the back of the piece. Mat on blue cardstock, then glue to the card front.
- Use Baby Blue ink to stamp the script border on the left side of the small piece of white cardstock. Stamp the corrugated stripe stamp in Baby Blue along the bottom right corner. Use Spiced Plum to stamp “hope is a waking dream”, then heat-emboss with Gold Satin Pearl embossing powder.
- Use Spiced Plum to ink the edges of the white cardstock. Add embossing powder and heat-set. Mat on the small piece of blue cardstock. Adhere to the card front with foam tape.
- Tie a knot in green grosgrain ribbon, then use craft glue to adhere to the front of the card as shown.
So this is how you can use mixed media techniques to create a look that’s clean and simple. I’d like to say a special thank you to Ann Butler, Lisa Rojas and Theresa Cifali at Bella Crafts Quarterly for inviting me to be a part of the Winter 2014 issue. When you get a chance, I hope you can stop by Bella Crafts Quarterly.com and download the magazine—it’s always free and packed with projects!
Want to watch the video tutorial? Just stop by Studio SN on You Tube to watch the Simple Mixed Media Cardmaking with Bella Crafts Quarterly video!
