Cardmaking, EBE by Brandi Kincaid, Essentials By Ellen, Stamping

Celebrating National Puppy Day with Guest Artist: Anika from Shrugs and Hugs

Today we’re happy to welcome guest artist, Anika from Shrugs and Hugs to the blog. Her clean and simple style with sprinkles of whimsy caught our eye on Instagram, and we think you’ll love her fun style as much as we do.

Hi, friends! I’m Anika from Shrugs and Hugs and I am absolutely thrilled to be a guest on the Ellen Hutson Blog. Today I am here celebrating National Puppy Day with the Essentials By Ellen, Leading Ladies – Dog Lady stamp set.

My best friend and her husband just got a gorgeous black Goldendoodle and I adore him. Oliver is very playful and the inspiration for this project. This fun slider card is almost as active as Ollie is.

To make this card, I first stamped out my images using Versafine Onyx Black ink on to 110 lb Neenah cardstock and another set of images onto scrap copy paper.

Pro Tip: Instead of tossing your Neenah scraps, set them aside and use them for small die cut images. This way your scraps don’t go to waste and you don’t have to use up a full sheet to cut out a couple of small images each time you start a new project.

Next, I die cut a medium-large square using the Essentials By Ellen, Essential Squares die set to use as the background for the focal point of my card.

I arranged by copy paper images on my die cut square to map out where I wanted to place my images and which ones I wanted stamped directly onto my background panel. I even use the negative piece from the slider die to plan where I wanted my slider track to be.

I decided I wanted the Dog Lady’s hand, the sentiment, and the bowl to be on the panel. I use my super awesome (not so special) masking skills to mask off the lady’s body so I could stamp just her hand.

Side note: The first time I stamped the lady’s hand, it didn’t go well. Luckily I decided to stamp the hand before die cutting or stamping the other images. When I flipped the panel around, I saw that where I planned to place the dog would cover up my mistake. So I just went with that instead of starting over.

After figuring out where I wanted my images to be and cutting out the slider track, the fun part came next. I used copic markers to color in all of my images. I used a mini glue dot to attach the tennis ball die cut to the spinner disk. I placed a second glue dot a to adhere the back portion of the spinner element.

Pro Tip: If the die cut image you are using as the spinner element is smaller than a coin, die cut the image three or four times then glue the pieces together. The backer will not only be the same side as the front, but it will provide the necessary weight for that perfect twirly spin.

To allow my spinner element to work, I popped up my panel. I double stacked some 3M foam tape and cut it into skinny strips. I placed the strips at the edge of the panel and in the center of the panel. I made sure to leave plenty of room for the tennis ball to move.

I placed my panel onto my cardbase using my grid mat and a T-ruler. I partially peeled off the foam tape backer on all four sides. This created handles and allowed for some wiggle room if I needed to adjust the placement of the panel.

Once I secured my panel to the card base, I added my last die cuts. I use the frame portion of the Essential Squares die to die cut a metallic gold frame. I stacked the frame onto three layers of Neenah cardstock to raise it off the cardbase a bit. I finished off the card by adding Wink of Stella to the dog bowl and black Nuvo drops for the nose and eyes of the paper puppy.

And that is it! I hope this card inspired you to get crafty. I want to thank Ellen Hutson for having me today. I always reach for my Essentials By Ellen products first. And I had a blast showing you all another way to use yours.