Shadow Block Tutorial

So about a year ago I got the most awesomest card from my Arizona Mum Marlene, and I just loved it. So last year I did one like it at my Christmas class too, as well as it was my Christmas card. Just using different stamps and colors but basically the same technique.  So of course when I was doing display stamping for Convention I did one again.

I do not know what it is called so Shadow Block kinda makes sense to me. So Ta!Da! Poof! That's its name!

I posted this card a while back… this was the one I did for displays, using the new set "Eastern Blooms" and quite a few people emailed to ask how it was done and I said I would do a tutorial on it.

Today's the day!

Let's get started…

 

 

You will need:

Stamp-a-ma-jig (this is if you are anal picky a perfectionist like me)

Scallop Note Cards (4" x 2 3/4" – this is the finished folded size)

Background paper (I used Urban Garden DSP)

Cardstock Vellum

Black gingham Ribbon

Old Olive, Really Rust, Ruby Red Marker

Stamping Sponge

Sahara Sand and Basic Black Ink pad

Curly Label Punch

Snail

Pocket Silhouettes stamp set (which is on sale 15% off until September 30 - wahoo!!!)

Using your Curly Label Punch – OMG! I love this and there is a stamp set that goes with it.

Yum!

 

Use your Curly Label punch and punch a hole in the cardstock vellum.

This will make a mask for your scallop card.

The poor camera had a hard time taking this picture, cause I think it thought it was taking a picture of the grid sheet through the hole so the picture is a little blurry…sorry bout that!

 

 

 

Lay your vellum over top of your scallop card. Try to center it with your eye…well not really your eye, that would be gross, but just eyeball it till it looks centered. Sticking your tongue out also helps getting it centered just right!

 

 

Lightly sponge Sahara Sand ink through the mask, just take your time and don't have too much ink on the sponge. If you have a foam brayer you could use that too. But since SU! stopped selling the foam brayer attachment, I just use my sponge. So just go back and forth from the ink pad to the paper, back and forth, and back and forth some more…then one more time for good measure.

 

Now you have this, it is a little hard to see.

DO NOT REMOVE THE VELLUM. You are going to be using this as a mask for the stamp now.

 

 

Using this image from the set, ink it up using the Sahara Sand ink.

 

 

 

Stamp this three times, inking it up in between, and stamp it right over top of the hole in the mask.

See how some ink is inside on the cardstock and some is left on the vellum?

This is like reverse masking too. So there I taught you 2 techniques today…whew!! That get's me off next week right?  Right? Uh no, it don't?  Ok fine! Can't blame a girl for tryin'.

 

So when I take the stamp away you can see it a little better.

 

 

 

Now, you can remove the vellum.  I would just store this inside the stamp set box so you can use it over and over again, that is why I like to use the cardstock vellum, it is heftier then the regular vellum, and will stand up to repeated uses. Unless you are teaching a stamp class and 100 people are using it, then you're gonna need a few of them.

 

 

Now you have your pretty little Shadow Block.

 

 

Using your markers color directly on the stamp using all 3 colors in the recipe.

 

 

After it is all inked up, "huff" on it (basically this means to breath on it so that you moisten up the ink before you stamp on your paper.

If you by accident touch your lip while you are huffing on it, please re-ink that spot and wipe off your mouth!

 

Stamp your marked image right over top of your shadow block.  This will stamp outside the block itself and add some color to your card…

…like…

 

 

…this!

Neat eh?

Now let's fancy it up a bit, shall we?

Using your stamp-a-ma-jig transfer sheet or whatever the heck it is called.

I want you to use the sheet to see where you are going to stamp the "shadow" of the flowers, so off-set the image on the transfer sheet just a tad.

You can see it looks blurry here cause it is off to the side a bit of the main image underneath stamped on the cardstock.

 

Put your jig back in place, ink up your stamp in the Sahara Sand ink, remove the transfer sheet and stamp the flower using the jig as your guide.

OMG, I think I am rambling, and will re-read this to see if it makes sense.

 

 

Here I am stamping with the jig in place.

When you take the stamp and jig away, you have this..

 

 

See how you can see the shadow beside the flower, and stem? It is more noticeable when you look at it outside the shadow block.

Obviously I also stamped the greeting using my jig before I took this picture.

Here is the finished card.  I added a piece of Designer Paper off to the side and tied a piece of black gingham ribbon on the other side.

For this card I wanted to use the new punch and Pocket Silhouettes so that is why I did a small card.

The display card on the top is a regular size card, and I just cut out a rectangle with my exacto knife from the cardstock vellum and used it as a mask instead.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial, and you will give it a try, it is a lot of fun, and does not take hardly any cardstock to make a super card.

Thanks for stopping in.

Hugs, Di