The layering circle technique is quite trendy right now! I have seen several fabulous card ideas on Pinterest that I just had to try this technique out right away! Special thanks to Wendy Lee and LeeAnn Greff for the inspiration! Now as I was playing around with this fun design, I began to realize there is more than one way to use it! So today I want to share two different ways you can use this super fun and simple technique in your card making.
The fun thing about this technique is that you can really use any colors or stamp sets you have on hand to create them. So although I have created a variety of Christmas cards, you can certainly use these card designs to create cards for any occasion. Simply change out the supplies to fit the occasion.
Layering Circle Technique
So first let’s talk a bit about this fun layering technique! Layering is always such a great way to add depth and dimension to cards. Typically we use layers to create a matte either to draw attention to a focal point or simply to add a variety of different colors, textures or images to a card. For this particular technique, it involves layering different size circle shapes together. The key to using the layering circle technique is to choose circle shapes that “nest” together. These cards feature 3 different size circles shapes. Cut each full circle shape in half. So the layering technique actually involves the layering of half circles.
The second tip I have for you is to be sure to “off set” the circles shapes during the layering process. So instead of adhering the layers together symmetrically, you will layer them all together using either the left or right side of the largest circle. It’s also important to note that the you must cut the large and small half circle shapes using the same colors. So if you look at the purple color on the card, you will see that one half circle is very large while the other half circle shape is small. I highly recommend watching this week’s video as I describe exactly what color cardstock to use with each of the different sized circles.
Layering Circle Card Designs
Now there are two different ways you can use the layering circle technique in your card making. The first card features the use of two sets of layered half circles that are “off set” on the card to create a retro style design. Notice how the colors flow and match up across the top and bottom of the circle shapes. The top set of circles layer together on the right side while the bottom set of circles layer together on the left.
The second card features the same layering technique with the half circles. However, there are a few differences. First, I simply reversed the side in which the layers are adhered. So the bottom section layering is on the right side while the layering on the top section starts on the left side. Of course the obvious design change for the second card is that the two layered sections, top and bottom, are adhered symmetrically. So you can off set the sections, as in the first card, or you can adhere them together symmetrically. The concept for creating the layers remains the same. It’s super fun to just play around with the designs to create a different look!
Tutorial and Supplies
The cards feature the adorable Gnome for the Holidays stamp set from Stamping’ Up! This is such an adorable set! This was the very first stamp set I played with, back in July, before the holiday catalog even went live! Just in case you missed it, you can find the gnome card ideas HERE. Besides the adorable stamp set, the card ideas I am featuring today also showcase the beautiful Snowflake Splendor Designer Series Paper. The colors in the DSP are certainly not the traditional Christmas colors but that’s why I love them! If you love these non-traditional colors, then be sure to check out some of my other Christmas card ideas HERE.
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. And be sure to watch the video to see the layering circle technique in action! Have a fun and creative day! ~ Lynn