Hey friends!! I'm super excited about today's new product launch because I get the privilege of helping to support two very dear friends today! Laurie Willison, who I'm sure you guys already know and love, hosted the crafting retreat I went to at the Craft House recently. You may have seen that on Instagram. And, you may remember that Laurie and I worked together several years ago, and she also lives not too terribly far from me, so we got to get together once years ago, to have lunch....back before I'd gotten super sick. I love Laurie!
Also at that retreat, was my sweet friend Taylor (of Taylored Expressions fame) and I hadn't seen Taylor in person for about 12 years, but she and some of my other friends got to come here to our house and have some Kansas City BBQ for dinner, before we road tripped together to the Craft House. Taylor had me laughing my head off the whole weekend. Not only is that girl a dear and a woman runs her business with integrity and who treats her team so well, but she's also so dang funny! Haha! I was still laughing about different things she'd said or done days after I got home! Heehee!
SO, Laurie Willison came up with the concept for a clever new set of masking stencils and Taylored Expressions has produced them and is selling them! My two friends are working together to bring you a really brilliant new product collection and they asked me to help them showcase it for the next few days and I was thrilled to say HECK YES! Happy to help! I love promoting products that I love, and from people that I genuinely care about! So here we go....let's talk about these stencils!
So the idea is that they are four basic shapes - circles, ovals, squares and rectangles, and each shape comes with two stencils - a large and small, as well as the two negative masks from the center of the stencils. So the circles, for instance, come with a large circle stencil, as well as the circle mask that goes in the middle of that stencil, and same with the small circle stencil and circle mask. And it's the same with each of the other three shapes as well. What that means is that you can stencil off the outer portion of the card, and ink up in the circle hole in the stencil. OR, you could place the circle mask in the middle of your card and add ink all around the circle, keeping the center of your card ink free. Does that make sense?
Now, the other thing that makes these stencils so easy to use, is the fact that they've got built in guide lines around the outer edge of the stencils, that allows you to line them up with your card front. This way, you can ensure that your stenciled circle is in the center of your card every. single. time!
I've used them in a few different ways, and I'm gonna show you how over the next three days!
For this first card, I started out with the large circle stencil that blocked off the outer portion of the card, and used my blender brushes to add pink ink (ombre style) to the circle. (Side note: Of course, the Taylored Expressions Blender Brushes make this ridiculously easy!) Before removing the stencil, I grabbed the negative circle mask and placed it in the stencil "hole", covering up the pink ink I'd just blended. By placing the circle before taking away the outer stencil, it makes it super easy to ensure that it's perfectly lined up. Then, I removed the stencil, keeping the circle in the center completely covered up, and grabbed the Majestic stencil and laid it over the top of the circle.
PRO TIP: Use a bit of Pixie spray on your stencils, to keep them from scooching while you blend on your ink.
This way, I was able to add that pretty diamond pattern, without getting any ink on the circle portion!
Next, I stamped and die cut several Simply Stamped-Pinecones and stamped the pine branches from the same set and fussy cut those. I also die cut several flowers with the Layer It-Rustic Florals dies and piled it all on the card front. The sentiment is also from Simply Stamped-Pinecones.
PRO TIP: Don't forget that you can sometimes use your year-round florals in more of a Christmas application, simply by changing up the flower colors and the greenery or leaves you use with them! Here, I swapped out the more summery leaves for pinecones and pine branches and voila! Christmas florals!
{Season's Greetings supplies -- click on thumbnails}
One more for today, using all the same elements as the first card. However, this time, I put the large oval stencil in place with a bit of Pixie spray and then added some ombre pink ink. To do this, you just ink more heavily at the bottom and more lightly at the top. So easy! Without moving the stencil, I added the Majestic stencil into place over the top of the oval stencil (more Pixie spray) and blended red ink right on top of the pink!
PRO TIP: You can layer all sorts of stencils you may already have in your stash, over the top of the large basic shapes in this new Masking Stencils collection!
This time, I stamped the pine branches directly on the card front and then topped it with my die cut florals and pinecones.
PRO TIP: When die cutting flower layers, you can change the look of your flowers, while still keeping them completely color coordinated, simply by flip-flopping the color layers. Notice here, that one flower is red on pink, while the other is pink on red!
{Merry Christmas supplies}
And a fun pic of the pair, just because they're pretty together! ;)
What do you think of these new Masking Stencils so far??? I'd love to hear!
I'll be back tomorrow with more, using some of the other stencils! Can't wait to share!
Be sure to visit the Taylored Expressions website, because they're offering a promotional deal on the bundle of these stencils, as well as a freebie for a limited time only! You'll also want to check out the TE Blog to see all of the inspiration from the other gals participating in this product launch!
Thanks so much for spending a bit of your day with me!
Follow me on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest for all the latest updates.
(Affiliates Disclaimer: Just so you know, I sometimes use affiliate links here on my blog, which means that I participate in several affiliate programs, in which I may receive a small commission when you click one of these links and purchase a product at the corresponding product site (usually within a certain amount of time). There are no additional costs for you as a result of these links, but by shopping through these links, you are not only supporting me and the work I do here, but you're also helping me to continue to bring you beautiful content and inspiration here at my blog, for free! Please know that I share products with you that I use and enjoy and I make every effort to represent those to you honestly. Thanks so much, friends, for your support! I appreciate you!)
