Men's Mini Stamps - Timepiece and Golf Swing

For these cards I've been trying out ideas for using Couture Creations Men's Stamps - the Timepiece and Golf Swing mini stamps.

I've used the Timepiece mini stamp to create two card backgrounds - I made one using some sparkly pigment inks and also used stamps from the Gentlemans Emporium collection; and the other by stamping in black onto kraft card.

For the sentiments on these cards I've used cut/foil/emboss dies from the Delightful Sentiments collection but used ink or gilding waxes instead of hot foiling with them.

On the first card the sentiment is cut from black card and then treated with gilding waxes.  It's best to cut 2 layers and glue them together, as it makes it easier to apply the gilding wax without accidentally bending the die cut.

I like to use several different colour gilding waxes and apply very sparingly to gradually build up the effect of worn metal work.  (see video)



On the other Timepiece card, to contrast with the Kraft card, I've die cut the sentiments from white card and used some sparkly pigment ink on the die.






The topper on the other Golf Swing card is made using a die from the Modern Essentials Bracket Frames nesting cut/foil/emboss die set.  I've inked the die before cutting out to get a coloured line around the edge of the die cut.

I made a mask for the stamp by stamping on some plain white card, cutting out and covering the back of the card using a Zig 2 way glue pen.  Make sure the glue has dried thoroughly before using as a mask.

Stamp the golfer using a permanent ink, such as Staz-On.  Ensure the stamping ink is dry, and then place the mask over the top of it.  This will protect the stamped area from the ink used for the background.

To create the hills in the background, I made a mask from some copy paper - just draw a rough zig zag line using a wet paint brush or water brush and tear along the wet line (see video).  Once the paper has dried out use it as a mask and apply a little pigment ink using a blending tool.  Make several rows of hills starting at the top, and come down as far as the golfer's belt line.

Use a water brush to pick up some colour and just paint it on from side to side to create the ground in front of the hills.  Add more colour towards the bottom.

I added a little colour from a black pigment ink pad, mixed with the colour used for the hills to add the impression of trees and shrubs at the base of the hills - I just dab with the brush and add a few vertical lines to give the impression of trees (see video).

Once the background is complete, remove the mask and add colour to the stamped image.  Start by adding colour where the creases in the clothing and shadows are, then colour the rest of the clothing.




For the sentiment on this card I used one of the cut/foil/emboss dies from the Dazzlia sentiment range.  You can either add ink to the die using a blending tool for a subtle effect, or add ink to the die from your pigment ink pads but then pounce (tap) on it lightly with a sponge blending tool - this evens out the ink coverage.

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