Weeks of Wonder: Return of the Mask!

In an earlier Weeks of Wonder post, I showed you some of the fun layering possibilities that you can achieve with the masking technique. See it here. This week I’ll revisit masking as a way to bring added pattern and dimension to your stamping.

Look at the pattern that has been stamped on the schoolhouse of this card as well as the “I’m so Proud of you!” circle. You’ll notice that the cross-hatch pattern doesn’t go onto the “School” sign, or the door, or even outside the schoolhouse walls. You can stamp patterns on selected portions of any image by using a mask! Here’s how:

Start by stamping your selected image on a piece of cardstock or B&T paper, as well as on a post-it note. Post-it notes make great masks because the adhesive keeps your mask in place without leaving residue on your project.

Use your micro-tip scissors to trim around the inside of your stamped image – not the outside as you would with an ordinary mask. Trim out whatever parts you’d like to fill in with a pattern, but leave the outside of the image and any interior features (like the door or the “School” sign) attached to the mask.

Line your mask up with your original image, and then stamp your texture directly over the mask. The cross-hatch pattern on this schoolhouse card comes from the Tasty Treats stamp set (D1427). Keep the mask in place and sponge in added color for a solid look.

Our schoolhouse still needs a little more color! Use watercolor pencils to fill in any remaining sections.

You can see the same technique put to good use on the stars on the lid of this adorable Math facts box. That looks like some tasty homework, doesn’t it?

The background pattern stamped on the circles in this card was achieved with the same technique. You can see that once you’ve made a mask for an image, you can use it over and over again. Store the mask you’ve created in the same envelope with your stamps and use it on as many projects as you like.

There are hundreds of stamp images you can add patterns to by using this technique – the fun part is getting creative with your image and pattern pairings to bring an extra dash of “you” to your artwork!