Sunshine in my pocket

Hello! Today I have a secret to share with you: it’s my formula for making masculine cards. This is also a part of my FINAL for Level 2 of the Altenew Educator’s Certification Program (AECP).

The Final Challenge was to create 4 Masculine Cards using 3 components of the techniques I learned in Levels 1 & 2 of the AECP. The components I chose were:

1. Stencil Techniques
2. Impressive Heat Embossing
3. Let It Shine

I also pulled together 3 masculine themes (metallic, nature, & geometric) and 3 colors to create all of my cards. I get a lot of questions on how I create Masculine cards, so today in my video I’m sharing my SECRET FORMULA for making Masculine cards (it’s not a secret anymore)! Watch the video below to find out the formula I use, or watch it in HD on YouTube:

For my first card, I used some stencil techniques: inking with Distress Oxide on dark cardstock & offset stenciling. I used the Halftone stencil to ink on some of the new Speckled Egg Distress Oxide ink, then let it dry. Once it was dry, I offset the stencil just a bit to add some Versamark sticky ink and added some Distress Embossing Glaze & heat set that. The embossing glaze is translucent so you can see through to the inking, but it gives a shiny element to the background. (So neat!)

I also created a temporary “holder” to emboss that die cut sentiment three times. This holder was so helpful so I didn’t burn my fingers or get any tweezer marks in my silver embossing!

The sentiment adds a metallic look for the “Let It Shine” inspiration on this card! I love a metallic element on a handmade card. I stamped the subsentiment with the same Speckled Egg Distress Oxide and popped it up with foam tape.

For my second card I die cut a cover die and adhered it to a white card panel…then I filled in a few of the spots with colored cardstock to get that geometric look!

I die cut some monstera leaves in steel gray and silver metallic (for that shine)! Then I popped them up with foam squares. To match with the silver theme, the sentiment is heat embossed in silver. This card turned out to be my husband’s favorite card of them all!

For the third card I’m bringing in some selective stenciling! First I stenciled the entire background in Speckled Egg Distress Oxide, then I added a darker blue to just a portion of the stencil. To the very smallest portion, I added some Glacier Paste in Quicksilver for some shine (it dries to look like foil)!

For the leaves, I heat embossed it TWICE. Once with a silver embossing powder, then I stamped the dots in Versamark and embossed with a gold embossing powder. This is a neat technique, as the embossing powders kind of melt into each other. I think this is a great look!

For my fourth card, I created a geometric background using the Cube Builder Stencil. I spaced the cubes apart just a little and gave them more of a “chevron” appearance, using colors I chose for the theme, but adding in a bit of Antique Linen. It turned out a little more yellow than I expected, but that just added a sunny, happy look.

I die cut some leaves and one hibiscus using black, gray, and metallic papers. This adds a more masculine feeling. (Don’t you want to take a trip to Hawaii now?) I stamped the sentiment on a strip that I inked with Antique Linen Oxide to match.

Now, if the flower is a little over the top for you (my husband does like flowers, but it’s not for every man!), I made a variation of this card omitting the hibiscus flower.

It’s the same stencil background, using only black and gray inks. Then I added a metallic paper focal point with a black frame to the middle. The monstera leaf is popped up with foam squares to give even more dimension.

So there you have 5 masculine cards, using 3 Techniques, 3 Themes, and 3 Colors (mostly)! It’s a fun challenge to take, and I hope you enjoyed the process with me.

I’m often asked what supplies I use to make my cards and projects, so I’ve put together a list using affiliate links when possible. If you make a purchase with these links I may receive a small commission. These help me to keep up with blog costs and continue bringing you fun projects. Thank you so much for your support!

I completely enjoyed my experience with the Altenew Educator’s Certification Program! I highly recommend it to you if you are interested in learning a lot of techniques, getting better at cardmaking, and teaching techniques to others.

Thanks for stopping by & I’ll see you again soon!