Hello crafty friends! Today I’m sharing a card that I made after participating in Altenew Academy’s For The Guys course.

I send cards to guys, and in general I try to pick more “masculine” colors, but not all of the time. I don’t think most cards are gender specific, but I do understand the idea of more of a masculine theme. I had seen and purchased the new Altenew Fresh Dye Inks. When I first saw them together, a blue violet set, brownish pinks, and sage greens, I got a masculine vibe. I also loved how they coordinated together. So, I chose to use all three Fresh Dye Ink mini cube sets for this card. I wanted to use flowers, but incorporate the tips and suggesions that were shared in the course. I was inspired to go with a geometric theme, and used the lovely String Panel cover plate die from Altenew. To add more of a masculine flair, I cut the die out of wood veneer cardstock. I think using lots of texture or different mixed media can help give a card a masculine feel, and this wood veneer cardstock seemed perfect. It’s surprising to me how well it cuts, and how well it stays together, even when using fine detail dies. I cut the die twice, and turned one piece 180 degress to get more of a pattern.

For the flowers, I chose the Jumbo Garden Picks Layering Die Set. I made all of the four flowers, but in the end, decided to use two of them, with one leaf sprig, sticking to the idea of three elements.

I cut the flower pieces out of Neenah Classic Crest Solar White 110 lb. cardstock, as I like to blend on this paper. After I cut the pieces, I placed them back into the paper, and held them in place with low tack tape on the back of the paper (that’s the green). This helped hold the pieces so I could use domed blending foam to apply the ink. It’s very helpful when you are trying to color the smaller pieces especially.

I had the idea of added the sentiment to one of the leaves instead of cutting a strip of paper for it. I think it turned out well. The “BE FEARLESS” sentiment strip in all caps seemed on the masculine side to me. When I was arranging the flowers and leaves on my cardfront, I thought it would look cool to layer some of the String Panel over and under the flowers. I played around with it until I liked it, then applied low tack tape to the top of all of the pieces to hold everything in position, flipped it over, and added glue and foam squares to the back. Then, when I flipped it back over in place onto my card base, everything stayed where I wanted it. After the glue sets, you can carefully peel the tape off the top of your card.

The course inspired me to use geometric elements, color combinations that had a masculine feel, and interesting paper (wood vaneer) to create this card. Thanks for stopping by my blog, I appreciate you!

Altenew products used:
Jumbo Garden Picks Layering Die Set
String Panel Cover Die
Sentiment Strips 3 stamps
Fresh Dye Ink mini cube set in Blue Mountains, Woodland Escape, Frosted Foliage
Sequins in Satin White