Masking - Artful Times Challenge

The new challenge at Artful Times is Masking.  I love to use the technique of masking in my stamping - there is something fulfilling about getting it right - although it is easy to get it wrong with a little bit of overlap of images if enough care is not taken.

I don't seem to have used an Asian stamp in ages so decided to get three of them out for this challenge.  I started off by looking to see what colours I should use to do with China and then realised afterwards that the image really is Japanese.  Phew!  No offence in my choice of colour.

Red - Life (also anger and danger but we won't think of that)
Yellow - Courage, Aristocracy, Cheerfulness, Beauty and Refinement
Green - Eternal Life, Youthfulness, Freshness
Blue - Everyday Life
Purple - Privilege Wealth
White - the white carnation symbolises death (ooh)
Black - Mystery and the Night

If you want to know about other cultures and colour click here.

Right now to get to my Scrapling - remember, the bit left over when you have made a square card - 2.5" x 11" folded in half!  Here is how I made it - step by step masking.

First stamp your main image (the one you want at the front) on your cardstock and again on a Post It Note making sure you have stamped so that as much as possible has the 'sticky' on the back.  Cut out the Post It Note image just on the inside of the black outline.  This is now your "Mask".

Lay the Mask over the image on your card and stamp other image(s) over the top.  These should hit the mask so that it does not show through on your card.

Your image should now look like this with no overlapping images, just the appearance of them in the background.

I then coloured my cherry blossom with my Distress ink Pads by pressing them down on a small acrylic mount, using a larger one to spritz a little water on to make the ink thinner when I used my brush in it.

I did use my Twinkling H2o's for the dress though 
as I wanted it to look sparkly as befits a lovely Japanese lady.

Hope you give Masking a try!

In the meantime why not see what Cathryn has done with this technique and look at Sam's modern twist on the idea.