Monday’s Are Hard, Stamping Shouldn’t Be
Monday’s are hard, but in this card making series, I will show you that stamping shouldn’t be. In fact, it’s quite easy. And with minimal supplies and minimal efforts, you can get fabulous results!
Today’s Monday card is a little bit different! I am combining the latest fad, Slimline Cards, with easy Monday stamping. And to help me out, I called upon some adorable zebras for my Slimline Zany Zebra Card.
Minimal supplies for this Slimline Zany Zebra Card include one stamp set, Zany Zebras, and one ink pad, Memento Black Ink. The cardstock colors are black and white, and for fun I mixed in lots of colorful scraps. This card is a great way to use up some of your stash in style!
A Monday Card
Slimline Card Recipe
Basic Black CS: 8-1/2 x 7″, score 7″ side at 3-1/2″
Basic Black CS: 5/8 x 2″
Whisper White CS: 8-1/4 x 3-1/4″ x 2 (one for inside)
Whisper White CS: 2-1/4 x 2-1/2″ (x 3), 1/2 x 1-7/8″
Multi Color CS: 2-1/2 x 2-3/4″ (x 3), 3/4 x 3/4″ (x 6), scraps for hats
Slimline Card Base Tips
To create a slimline card base, you need cardstock sized 8-1/2 x 7″. The easiest way to accomplish this is to cut 4″ off the 11″ end of your 8-1/2 x 11″ sheet of paper. That way you won’t need to “open up” your paper trimmer to get past the typical 6″ of measurement.
Next, you will need to fold the base in half. I find it best to keep the paper in my trimmer as oriented and cut above, and score at 3-1/2″. You can also use your bone folder to fold and burnish your card base. Just make sure it is the 7″ side you are folding in half.
Let’s Get Stamping!
This easy Monday Slimline Zany Zebra Card only uses one ink color, black, so it is easy to stamp everything at once. I started by stamping each of the three zebra images from the Zany Zebra Stamp Set onto pieces of 2-1/4 x 2-1/2″ Whisper White CS. The 2-1/4″ width is the top and the 2-1/2″ length is the side.
While the ink is still out, I stamped my sentiment, “kick up your heels!” onto the 1/2 x 1-7/8″ Whisper White CS. There are 4 additional sentiments in the Zany Zebra Stamp Set to choose from.
I also used some colorful cardstock scraps to make party hats. After stamping my hats, I used my Paper Snips to fussy cut them. This is not as hard as it looks, and I was able to do it quickly.
Assemble With Ease
Now it is time for the assembly process. I started by adhering one of the 8-1/4 x 3-1/4″ Whisper White panels to the front of the card base. Next, I adhered my stamped sentiment to the 5/8 x 2″ piece of Basic Black CS, giving it a matted look.
I also attached each stamped zany zebra to a piece of colorful 2-1/2 x 2-3/4″ cardstock. In my sample card, I used Daffodil Delight, Gorgeous Grape and Granny Apple Green. After dry fitting the zebras to the front of my card, I glued them in place.
Enhancing With Color
Because my Slimline Zany Zebra Card is mostly black and white, I wanted to add color thru my use of cardstock. I chose this option rather than a coloring medium like watercolor pencils, markers or even additional ink pads. It is a great way to use up small scraps!
For every 3/4 x 3/4″ colorful scrap, I was able to get 2 perfect triangle corners. I used my Paper Snips to cut directly from one point diagonally to the opposite corner. By cutting in one complete motion, you will have a better opportunity to get straight and even triangles.
I added 2 triangle colors to each of my zany zebra pieces, keeping the same color in opposite corners. It is best to play around and find the color combination you prefer before you start permanently adhering them. And this is good advice in regards to the zebra party hats as well!
The last thing I added to the card front was the sentiment piece. I placed glue adhesive on the triangles it rests on, instead of the entire back of the sentiment surface. Because the sentiment sits up on the triangles, not all of the back of it touches the card base.
The Insider Job
You may know that I like to continue stamping on the inside of my cards, bringing continuity from the front. For the slimline style cards, there is plenty of room on the inside to stamp!
Here, I chose one of the zany zebras to stamp. I also added some small stars in the upper corner, and squiggly ground next to my zebra’s hooves. Earlier, I had cut out quite a variety of party hats, so one of my “left-overs” worked perfectly for my inside zebra.
Don’t forget to give your envelope some love! The slimline cards fit well into a regular business size envelope (the envelope measures the standard 4.13 x 9.5″). This gives great appeal to slimline cards, as the envelopes are so easy to come by. I simply raided my office supplies for mine.
Mail A Slimline Card Today
Slimline cards are really easy to make. Perhaps the allure is the different shape to work with, long and rectangular. As card artists, we seem to enjoy mixing it up whenever we can.
Out of curiosity, and because I like to make a hefty card with lots of layers, I pulled out my scale to weigh my card in it’s envelope. This slimline card just made the weight limit for one first class postage stamp. If you add any additional elements to my recipe above, you may need additional postage.
Slimline Options
There are lots of options when it comes to a slimline card profile. Slimline cards are very on trend right now, so a quick search will yield you tons of ideas. I took this same card recipe and changed it up a bit, myself.
As you can see in my autumn card, the recipe is the same, minus the corner pieces. I swapped out the layer of Whisper White CS for Gilded Autumn Specialty Designer Series Paper (item #153520). I added die cut leaves (Gathered Leaves Dies, item #150662) using Brushed Metallic CS (item #153524), Embroidered Ribbon (item #153554) and Metallic Pearls (item #146282). Finally, I heat embossed the sentiment from the Gather Together Stamp Set (item #150589) in Gold Embossing Powder (item #109129).
Slimline Inspiration
I hope my Monday card (and alternate card) have inspired you to try making a slimline card as well. My video tutorial can be found on my FaceBook page, as well as my YouTube channel.
As always, my online store is open at any time to get the supplies you need to create beautiful projects in your own craft room. Be sure to share what you love to make with others!
And see you next Monday for another installment of: Monday’s Are Hard, Stamping Shouldn’t Be. We will continue to explore easy cards for the hardest day of the week!