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AECP Third Course: Clean and Simple Boutique Cards

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This course is a blast from the past - tools, in particular, are from earlier times and many have since been replaced by Altenew with newer versions.  The stamp-a-ma-jig was a real walk down memory lane! Having been stamping for many years, I have seen supplies come and go.  I sometimes feel the urge to buy the newer tools, even when my existing older tools are still perfectly serviceable. Stamping can be  expensive and I am forever figuring out ways to stay on a budget (Thank you, Altenew, for your sales and reward points).  These days I am particularly focusing on using older supplies.  Hence - today's card, Soar (Altenew stamp copyright 2021)! Soar is an older Altenew mini stamp set that I have always loved. I've used it for home decor, graduation cards and birthday cards, especially for younger people. It's always been part of a much more elaborate card.  This course was my opportunity to make it clean and simple and yet still convey the same message. ...

My Gardenia Layering Stamps Challenge: My Altenew AECP Second Course

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Onward to the second AECP course - Layering Stamps 4.  Although I thought that I developed much better skill with layering stamps in the previous course, I still found this second course on layering stamps to be extremely challenging. I used an older stamp set, Build-A-Flower Gardenia, that I had always wanted to do well but I never felt satisfied.   So I gave it a try, using what I had been learning from the first two courses. I found it very difficult and I was very very close to quitting working with this stamp set and trying another one. However, I had promised myself that I would hang in there, so hang in there I did. And, in the end, I did get an image I liked. Below are a small sample of my early attempts.    Much of my frustration was that I couldn't quite get the colors on the paper that were in my mind.  In the end, I used the image third across from the left on the top of this image. The main stamp is Altenew's Build-a Flower Gardenia (an older stamp ...

Layering Stamps for my first Altenew AECP project

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I have been accepted into the Altenew Educator Certification Program (AECP) and I am excited. This is the card I created for my first  AECP class -  All About Layering 3.  The class is about layering stamps.  I have a history with layering stamps and it's not pretty. I have tried lots of layering stamp sets from Altenew over the years. Altenew is known for how beautiful and realistic their layering flower stamps are, and there have been times when I've created something beautiful with them - but I always felt that I had to work way too hard and it was difficult.  Eventually I decided that layering stamps was just not my strength and I passed almost all of my layering stamp sets on to others.   Now I am faced with wanting to do a good job for my very first AECP class. I started by finding a layering stamp set that remains in my stash. It's an Altenew orchid stamp set, Laelia.. My first tries were horrid but then I had an important insight: I am used to being...