Creating with Layers ft. Just Breathe

Today I’m sharing something a little more outside of my usual comfort zone. This beauty has A LOT of layers and is a bit more on the shabby chic side, but I truly had a great time creating it! There is something very freeing about “grabbing this” and “grabbing that” and putting it all together in little vignettes or collages, if you will.

I started this card by stamping the large bird and rose image from Just Breathe onto Distress Watercolor Cardstock in Warm Wool ink. This little guy really is the star of the card. I used several Distress Stain Sprays and Inks to very loosely watercolor the image. I sprayed or smooshed my ink pads onto a craft mat and then used a wet brush to pick up the colors and paint. If I needed the colors to be lighter, I just diluted them with water on the mat. I then hand cut my image using a pair of scissors. For even more dimension, I stamped another one and colored the rose so that I could cut it out and pop it up.

I decided to create a little collage focal point and started by cutting a few postage stamps using our Postage Layers Die. I stamped out some custom “stamps” using Vintage Ephemera and distress inks and oxides. I added a bit of water here and there to match the mood of the rest of the card. I used a tag to anchor the ephemera and the bird and tucked a large leaf cut from gray cardstock. The contrast helped to separate the foreground from the background.

Speaking of the background, I layered a few sheets of patterned paper, a mat cut using the Postage Layers Die, a watercolor stamped piece and sewed them all together using my sewing machine. Fair warning, I’m back into adding machine stitching to my cards again. I don’t use anything special though, just my Singer sewing machine, the needle that came in it and regular thread. Very basic. But it just adds so much, don’t you think?

I heat embossed my sentiment – also included in Just Breathe – in gold and then added some splatters using WOW! embossing powder in Perissa. To finish it off, I tucked a few buttons here and there. I am pretty sure these have been in my stash for like 10 years, so there’s really no telling where they came from now.

Although this one is fussy, I do love it so much. Sometimes it’s nice to get your grunge on in a more soft and feminine color palette.

I hope that you enjoyed this one as well. You can find all of the supplies listed below. As always, thanks for stopping by!

Featured Supplies

Some of the products used in this post were provided to me for free. I am not under any obligation to use or review these items unless otherwise noted. The following is a list of the featured supplies used in today’s project(s) along with links to purchase for convenience. Please note, this list contains affiliate links. Use of these links when shopping provides me with a small referral commission at no additional cost to you. Use is never expected, but always appreciated. Thank you for your support! ❤️

Tsukineko Versamark EMBOSS INK PAD Shop at: SSS	Simon Says Stamp EMBOSSING POWDER GOLD Ultrafine Detail Shop at: SSS	Precision Heat Embossing Tool Gun Hero Arts Shop at: SSS	MINI MISTI PRECISION STAMPER Stamping Tool Kit Shop at: SSS | HBS	Warm Wool PURE COLOR Dye Ink Shop at: WP9
EK Success CUTTER BEE Scissors Shop at: SSS | HBS	Tim Holtz 4.25 X 5.5 DISTRESS WATERCOLOR CARDSTOCK Shop at: SSS | HBS	Tim Holtz Distress Sprayer Shop at: SSS | HBS	Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Bundled Sage Shop at: SSS | HBS
Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Hickory Smoke Shop at: SSS	WOW! Embossing Glitter Perissa Shop at: SSS	PURE Color Spray Mist Silver Lining Shop at: WP9	Vintage Ephemera stamp set Shop at: WP9
Honey Bee Creative Precision Glue Shop at: SSS | HBS	Tonic Easy Clean Mat Shop at: SSS	Tim Holtz Distress Spray Oxide Fossilized Amber Shop at: SSS | HBS	Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stain Forrest Moss Shop at: SSS | HBS
Wplus9 Postage Layers Die Shop at: WP9	Spellbinders Platinum 6 Shop at: SSS | SPB	Just Breathe Shop at: WP9	Heat It Tool Shop at: SSS | HBS
Distress Spray Stain – Speckled Egg Shop at: HBS	Distress Spray Stain – Tattered Rose Shop at: HBS	Distress Spray Stain – Saltwater Taffy Shop at: HBS	Lovely Layers Greenery – Honey Cuts Shop at: HBS
Bee Bliss Paper Pad – 6×6 Shop at: HBS	Terrific Tags – Honey Cuts Shop at: HBS