Stamping In Black

I had been stamping cards for several years before I ever thought about using black cardstock.   As soon as I tried it, I liked how classic and clean it looked.  When I was recently stamping cards for Halloween, I decided to make some non-Halloween cards, using black cardstock as the base.  These cards I'm sharing today are the results!

SIMPLE STAMPING TIP #16 - - - Use black cardstock, paired with a black inkpad for a simple, classic look on your cards.

For many of these cards, I used papers from the Whole Lot of Lovely collection. 

On the card below & the one above, I stamped my greeting directly onto the paper.  Also, on this "Happy Birthday" card, I used my Wink of Stella glitter brush over the words, to match the black shimmer ribbon.  (The camera doesn't capture the subtle bit of glitter.)

This paper is my favorite one from this collection.

I like how the black cat (punched from the new Cat Punch in the Holiday Catalog) stands out against this background paper.

I love this paper from the Spooky Night paper collection!  

I have lots of black going on in this birthday card that I stamped for my friend Lisa.  I like the contrast of the pink against the black & white.

Another common "thread" in all of these cards, is that I used some sort of black trim in all of them.  The Black Vintage Crochet Trim is in the Holiday Catalog.  The Black Shimmer Ribbon and the Black Solid Baker's Twine can be found in the Annual Catalog.  

As you can see, black isn't just for Halloween!  If you haven't used much black in your stamping, give it a try.

You Make Me Smile Card

It's that time of year, for all things PUMPKIN!  I couldn't resist putting this "smile" sentiment together with the jack o'lanterns!  

I used the Spooky Night designer series paper for both of these cards.  The images are simple and classic.  Some of them are specific to Halloween, and others could be used any time.

I cut out the jack o'lanterns from one of the sheets of paper, which is my "simple stamping tip" for this week.

SIMPLE STAMPING TIP #15 - Cut images out of patterned paper to use as embellishments on your cards.

Once I had them cut out and arranged on my card, I adhered them using dimensional dots to lift them up off of the paper, giving a nice 3-D effect.

I used a couple of things to make this card a bit more special.  One is the black shimmer ribbon.  It has just a touch of sparkle to it!  The other thing I did was use a glitter paint brush.  Unfortunately it doesn't show up at all in the photo.  But I brushed it over the smiles of the jack o'lanterns and also I traced over the letters in "smile".  It's just a subtle bit of glitter, and best of all - NO MESS!  I usually stay away from glitter because of the way it goes everywhere.  But there is no mess at all with the glitter marker.  It goes on & it stays on!

The "you make me smile" is from the Colorful Seasons stamp set. This is a great set to have, just for the sentiments!

All of these items are available to purchase from Stampin' Up.  Links and instructions for ordering are along the right sidebar.  Or feel free to contact me at godismydelight@yahoo.com.  Thanks for stopping by here today!