Featuring the Gentle Berries dies from the Kristina Werner line at Concord & 9th.

This is another edition of “The card I started to create is not the one I ended up with.” That happens often as part of my process. That initial idea will still be coming, but first I have some other cards to share here.

Approach:

• These recent holiday products have been waiting for me to give them some attention. I’ve felt a bit off track recently and needed to get back to my flow. After spending some time with these my table is covered with in-process projects and I have more ideas.

• I wanted to play with some different color palettes for Christmas theme. I like color and variety, and I like to show options beyond the obvious with card designs

Techniques:

• The idea I started this card with was layering the outline die cut from the Gentle Berries die set on a background of the same color cardstock. This gives it a contrast thanks to the shadow and dimension, but it is a much more subtle contrast than if it were a different color. I layered two die cuts together for more dimension. It also adds a detail of texture to the card, which is another way to step up the design and make it more interesting.

• I love the bold sans-serif type style of the MERRY. I did that in silver embossing on the Poppy cardstock, and cut that strip down to have just a little margin above and below the greeting.

• The secondary sentiment I stamped & embossed on the background for the Gentle Berries die cut.
  TIP: I don’t adhere my layout elements together (other than layers of die cuts) until I get the design fully planned out and elements created, because I know I change my mind as I go. I do lay them out on the card base as I go, so I see how it comes together. For example, I’m glad I hadn’t glued my leaf & berry die cut to the background yet, because it made it easier to stamp and emboss on.

• I decided the background needed some subtle interest, so I chose a cover die that added texture. Bonus that the small dot pattern ties in with the round berries in the die cut. That kind of repetition is one of the principles of good design.

• As a final detail, I filled in a few of the berries of the die cut with other colors used on the card. That helps with the flow, by leading your eye through the card as well as connecting the elements together by use of color repetition.

Colors:

• cardstock: Concord & 9th Ballet Slipper, Poppy, and Tidepool.

Techniques:

• This card spun off because I had a die cut from the Gentle Berries outline die that I was going to use on the first card and didn’t. I wanted to add it over some texture or dimension, since I’d used it on a smooth background for card 1. (I really do enjoy trying all the variations…) Both the die cut and the embossing folder have detail, but by differentiating the colors (and not the values of them too much - both are softer, less saturated colors) it stands out just enough, without being too busy and creating a focal point.

• I did some subtle ink blending of Sea Glass ink around the edges of the embossed Sea Glass panel. It isn’t bold or very noticeable, but it does define the edges just a bit and provide a good foundation for the card.

• Both the die cut and the embossing folder have detail, but with different line and pattern styles. By differentiating the colors (and not the values of them too much - both are softer, less saturated colors) it stands out just enough, without being too busy and creating a focal point. I want to save the focal point for the fun greeting.

• I stamped & embossed the greeting in white on Watermelon cardstock. This adds a bold brightness to the card for a strong focal point, and the embossing adds a touch of shine.
  TIP: I’d first stamped this in embossing ink as I usually do, but didn’t get a good clean embossed result. I even repeated the stamping and embossing for a second layer. Then I remembered the tip (probably from Jennifer McGuire) to stamp with white pigment ink for white embossing, and that was a big improvement.

• To carry through the bit of shine (repetition) and add detail I added a few clear dew drops. Those dew drops and the pieces of the Gentle Berries die cut all flow together to create a sense of flow through the layout.

• Additional note: Cutting was involved on some of the products to make it all work.

  • I cut apart the large Gentle Berries die cut, because otherwise a lot of it would have been hidden behind the greeting. I wanted pieces to show out the other sides for that flow and continuity.

  • I also cut the large stamp that I used for the greeting. I used it before with partial inking, and the letters are close enough that gets tricky, but I didn’t want it to cover as much of the card background as it would have with the “& cheer” and I liked the simpler use of those first three words for a clean bold impact. I carefully trimmed it off so I can use it all together or separately.

Colors:

• cardstock: Concord & 9th Ballet Slipper, Watermelon, and Sea Glass.

Techniques:

• This is a very simple card, but it makes me very happy. I love the clean lines, shapes and energy from the color. It uses two outline die cuts from the Gentle Berries die. I took care to fit the two together so the leaves fit well between the two colors.
  TIP: Always pay attention to the negative space between things when tucking them together like this, so it doesn’t leave awkward holes or tension of things being too close or not-quite perfectly aligned.

• I tucked in that clean little sentiment stamped in Mushroom ink between the leaves and the greeting. It is a subtle connection between the two Poppy elements, and adds variation between the die cuts.

• The JOY greeting is small, but it fits in perfectly with a similar line weight to the leaves and also similar clean, open design. This all creates a sense of repetition that can help create a cohesive design. I stacked a few die cuts together to provide additional depth variation.

• As a final detail, I filled in with some enamel dots to enhance the flow through the red leaf die cut to the greeting. Placing some white ones higher up on the card adds balance (through the distribution of color), and the Lemongrass ones add to that flow in a more subtle way. The small touch of shine these all add is a nice contrast to the matte cardstock that makes up the rest of the card.

Colors:

• cardstock: Concord & 9th Poppy and Lemongrass. Neenah Solar White.

• ink: Concord & 9th Mushroom.

• enamel dots: Concord & 9th Lemongrass and White.

Thank you for visiting! I hope you get some time to create something soon.

Links are below if you’re interested in any of the products I used.

(Listed by company, with links to Simon Says Stamp and others. Simon Says Stamp links are affiliate links*.)

*Affiliate links do not cost you any more when you shop, but it is beneficial to creators when you use them, so thanks in advance!