Today I have a fun and simple stamping technique to share with you. It’s called the spotlight technique and I have 3 different ways you can use it in your card making. The spotlight technique involves highlighting a portion of a stamped image. Special thanks to my amazing team for the inspiration!
The cards in this week’s video feature the Breathtaking Bouquet background stamp. The technique involves the use of color to highlight part of the stamped image. Simply stamp the background image on white cardstock, using black ink, and then add color to a portion of the stamped image. That’s it! Now the spotlight technique can really be used with ANY stamp set and any colors. The key to this technique is to choose a focal point, a stamped image, and highlight it in some way.
Die Cut Spotlight
The first way you can use the spotlight technique is by die cutting the stamped image. Start with a 5-1/4 x 4 inch piece of white cardstock. Stamp the large background image on the white cardstock using black ink.
Once you have the image stamped, choose the section of the image that you want to highlight or “spotlight.” In this case, I chose to highlight the center of the image by using an oval shaped die cut. I simply cut out the center of the image, with the oval die, and then added color the oval to create the focal point. For this particular card, I am using a variety of different stampin’ blends for the coloring. However, you can use your favorite coloring tools to spotlight your image.
Spotlight Frame
The second way you can use the spotlight technique also involves die cutting. However, in this case we are not die cutting the stamped image. We are creating a die cut frame that will help spotlight the part of the stamped image that is colored.
To create the frame, simply layer together two different sized die cuts. For one card, I used the layering oval dies to create the scalloped frame. The other card features the layering squares but the concept is the same for creating the frame. By layering the two dies together, you will end up with two pieces: the scalloped frame and a solid shape. Once you have stamped the background image, use the solid shape as a template. Trace around the solid shape with a pencil to create the spotlight area on the stamped image that you will be coloring. You can learn more about this by watching the video! Sometimes it’s just easier to see it in action.
Diagonal Spotlight
The third way to use the spotlight technique is to cut a diagonal focal point right into the stamped image. This particular technique was inspired by a design from Denise Mahoney (one of my team members). She created a beautiful card with this design that just reminded me of a ray of sunshine! Thank you for the inspiration Denise!
Now the key to creating this particular design is to start with a slightly smaller piece of cardstock. In this case, I used a 5 x 3-3/4 inch piece of white cardstock. By using a smaller piece of cardstock, you will end up with a quarter inch black matte around each piece of the stamped image when it’s cut. Now I am not going to try to explain how to cut this here, it’s much easier to understand when you see it in action. So watch the video below.
Tutorial
For a complete list of supplies and all of the step by step instructions for creating these cards, feel free to download the printable tutorial. For more fun stamping techniques, check out some of these other card making ideas HERE.
I hope you enjoyed these quick and simple card ideas! So take a look at the stamp sets you have on hand and put this spotlight technique to use today! Have fun with it! And be sure to watch the video to see the designing in action! Have a creative day my friends! ~ Lynn