Inlaid Die Cutting

My card today celebrates Valentine's Day and a birthday.  I have a friend born on February 14.  This is one of those subjects that can get a bit touchy.  Do you send one card or two?  Well, since I wouldn't normally send her a Valentine's card I don't feel like I'm cheating her with one card.  And truly it's not a Valentine's card - it only says "Happy Birthday!"  I simply use hearts and the red/pink colors as a theme.  Last year's card had a birthday cake in reds and pink.

The card uses an inlaid die cut technique.  I've done this before and it can get pretty intricate, but not so much this time.  To do this technique, cut your die from the color you'd like as your frame and as many colors as you'd like to inlay.  In this case, just two.  Save all the pieces.

After gluing down the frame, insert the pieces.  It's rather like a jigsaw puzzle.  I did try to keep things somewhat organized when I removed my pieces from the die and put them in piles for the upper part, middle part and lower part of the frame.

I only wanted to highlight part of the die since I thought it would be too busy for the zebra if it was all filled in.  By varying the colors some hearts are in front and others behind.

This was a simple card to make (zebra equals little coloring) and is for the color challenge this week at CAS Colours & Sketches.  I hope you'll find time to join us.

Stamps: MFT Zippy Zebras, MFT Anything But Basic Birthday
Dies: MFT Zippy Zebras, MFT Hearts Entwined
Cardstock: Real Red, Flirty Flamingo, Silver
Ink: Copic markers N0 and N1; Stampin' Blends Flirty Flamingo Dark (ears) and Real Red Dark (flowers)

Thanks for visiting today! Click here to sign up for email notifications of future posts (you will be sent an email to verify your address - don't forget this step).  Follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Bloglovin'.