words that matter | DREAM & SPEAK + Pop Art Faces Card Fronts with Stephanie Severin

Happy Wednesday, STAMPfriends! We're back with another installment of our Words That Matter series, where our STAMPgirls pair Simple Expressions stamps with STAMPlorations paper goods to show just how easy it is to create cards that are quick, stylish, and meaningful.

Today, STAMPgirl Stephanie S. pairs two Simple Expressions -- DREAM and SPEAK -- with our bold and colorful Pop Art Faces Card Fronts. And these pairings couldn't be more perfect: DREAM big dreams and SPEAK beautiful things give each expressive face its own message and personality.

Stephanie is always showing us fresh ways to let paper goods take center stage. Here, the artwork does most of the visual heavy lifting, while those Simple Expressions provide exactly the right finishing words.

DREAM Big Dreams

For her first card, Stephanie chose one of the dramatic faces from the Pop Art Faces Card Fronts and layered it onto black cardstock before mounting it on a bright turquoise card base. She stamped the outline version of DREAM then stamped the solid version in red, pairing it with the scripty big dreams sub-sentiment. The strong black mat helps both the artwork and sentiment pop, while the turquoise card base picks up the vibrant color running through the face. The result is bold, graphic, and wonderfully encouraging -- exactly the kind of card that doesn't need a lot of extras to make an impact.

SPEAK Beautiful Things

Stephanie's second card turns up the color with another Pop Art Faces Card Front, this time featuring a fabulous sunglass-wearing face against a vibrant collage-style background. She paired it with the outline SPEAK and beautiful things sub-sentiment, stamping the solid version in purple to coordinate with the artwork and card base. A black mat around the sentiment gives it just enough definition against all that glorious color. It's a simple combination -- Card Front + sentiment -- but the personality of the artwork makes the finished card anything but ordinary.

Creative Takeaway

When you're working with a bold patterned card front, you don't have to compete with it. Let the artwork establish the color, style, and focal point, then use your sentiment to reinforce the mood.

Stephanie's cards are a great example of how Simple Expressions stamps and paper goods can become their own little cardmaking system. Start with a card front you love, pull a color from the artwork for your sentiment or card base, and let those few coordinated choices do the work.

And because Simple Expressions gives you both solid and outline versions of the main word, you can easily change the personality of your sentiment simply by changing how you stamp or color it.

Discover What's Possible

Our Simple Expressions stamps were designed to make it easy to pair words that matter with the paper goods already in your stash. Pair any Simple Expressions stamp with a qualifying Paper Goods Pack and the paper goods are 40% off, making it a great time to create your own combinations.

Stephanie's projects are another peek at just how versatile our paper goods can be. If you love having fresh designs to create with, check out our Paper Goods VIP Subscription -- you choose your favorites, so there are no mystery products showing up at your door.

Until next time, keep creating with words that matter.