Arched Doors Layering Die Set Gives REAL LIFE Inspiration!

Hi Altenew friends and fans! Are you all enjoying the inspiration with the April release? I must say I'm going slightly gaga over all the gorgeously detailed layering die sets. I have an itty-bitty confession about layering dies: when they first started taking off, I was a bit meh about them in all honesty. It looked fiddly and not worth the hype in my mind. I have zero issues reporting that I was 100% wrong about layering die cuts, they are BRILLIANT!!! 

• Layering die sets are powerful design tools for visualization and creativity
  The Arched Doors and Pom Pom Trees sets helped the creator experiment with color schemes and design ideas—especially for real-life inspiration like updating her own front door.
• Color flexibility matters. Don’t be afraid to substitute and explore
  While Altenew provides suggested color combos, mixing in alternative shades and cutting extra pieces allows for more options and often leads to even better, personalized results.
• Thoughtful details (texture, dimension, sentiment) elevate the final project
  Embossed backgrounds, foam tape for added dimension, and a well-chosen sentiment all work together to create a polished, cohesive card without needing extra embellishments.

If you have followed me on Instagram, you might remember a little series I did called 'Door Of The Day' and no shade if you have no idea who I am, because why would you, really? I'm just a craft, dog, snack, door and plant obsessed weirdo living in the south of Spain. We do have a ton of amazing old and interesting doors here though, and this Arched Doors Layering Die Set is right up my alley!! Oooooh, I practically squealed with delight when I saw it in the flip book we get to browse the new releases coming. I knew I had to have it and would put it to good use, because doors and layering die cuts combined? It was made for me! 

My house is a really, really old village house in the mountains of Andalucia, right outside of Granada. Walking around in the old city you will find amazing door after amazing door, and I really want my own door to be just as stunning and welcoming at the same time. I have big ideas but not the finances to match, so my idea now is to paint my current door and update some of the hardware. This Arched Doors layering die set is going to be a huge help when it comes to finding colours that I like, and as I am partial to blues, I thought two shades of blue Crafty Necessities Colored Cardstock will do nicely. 

If you have no idea where to start when it comes to colour picks for your layering die sets, Altenew always provide inspiration in the packaging. That's so nice of them, isn't it?? The colours suggested for the blue door, as seen on the packaging, uses Azurite and Ultramarine. The sample idea looks fabulous with this colour combo and the layering dies so I picked those out from my Crafty Necessities Colored Cardstock stash. As I like options, and I can not lie, I also grabbed Starlight and Tide Blue. I do like cutting out extra pieces when I use layering diecuts, one reason is for options and another is because sometimes a different shade can make all the difference in the look that you want to achieve. 

I just so happen to want a couple of big pots of olive trees, or maybe wisteria, or some other kind of climbing vine with flowers and with the help of the Pom Pom Trees layering die set I can really visualize how my front door might look one day. On the packaging there is a beautiful pink pom pom tree, and I really wanted to get the same look. Alas, I didn't have the exact colors needed, so I had to make some substitutions for the layering dies on this one. However, I really like the colors I picked out and once the layering die-cut pieces were all puzzled together, it looked so pretty! 

If you turn over the Pom Pom Trees Layering Die Set packaging, it says the colors used for the sample are Blush, Rouge and Coral Bliss. I only had Coral Bliss, so I decided to use three different colors instead as I didn't like any of the combos I tried finding using the Coral Bliss. The colors  I ended up using are Sandy Blush, Frosty Pink and Pink Diamond. When I first started cutting out all the layering diecuts, I was a little... concerned might be the right word, I wasn't sure about that Sandy Blush, BUT once I actually puzzled the layering diecuts together, that concern was gone.

I also ended up using the 3D embossing folder from the Crafty Your Life Project Kit Fruits and Flowers, it looks enough like a brick wall that I thought it would be a fab background for the Arched Doors and Pom Pom Trees Layering Die sets. The texture is perfect, and with that texture on the piece of white card stock I didn't feel like it was "naked" which is something I struggle with when it comes to plain white backgrounds. 

I glued together all the layering die cut pieces, which by the way is super easy thanks to the clever Key Hole System. It's so brilliant and makes even the most complicated layering die cut set a breeze to use, even for beginners. If you get a chance to watch the video, unfortunately you will not see any of this as apparently I forgot to press record for that part. What a rookie mistake! 

I really wanted a sentiment that said 'my door is always open for you' or something along those lines. On the back of both the Arched Doors Layering Die Set AND the Pom Pom Trees Layering Die Set there are sentiments exactly like I pictured! I got overly excited as I thought I had that stamp set. It's the Craft Your Life Project Kit Flower Arch Stamp Set. It was perfect! Imagine my disappointment when I realised that the set I did have was indeed called Arched Foliage... That 'ARCH' bit really got me. So naturally I have added that Craft Your Life Project Kit Flower Arch Stamp Set to my wishlist now. 

So, what's a girl to do? Well, turns out there was a sentiment that was just as perfect in the Wholehearted Sentiments: Mother's Day Edition. It is also from the April release and it's the name is making it sound like every sentiment is mom/mum based, but there are actually only two in the whole set that are mom/mum specific. The rest work really well for other loved ones, and as an extra plus is has a coordinating diecut too!! I stamped it up with Permanent Black ink and then cut it out, stacked it with two more pieces of diecuts for a bit of height. 

Now you might think that the layering die cuts have enough height and texture on them, seeing as they are layering dies after all, BUT I decided to add some Instant Dimension Foam Tape to the back of them for extra height. Why not, right? On this card I have no added a single gem sparkle or sequin though... *shocked gasp* but yeah, I didn't think it would make sense to have a sparkly door. Or does it? Well, now I have all sorts of ideas for my own door so I'm going to go. Thank you so much for hanging out with me today, and I hope you get time to watch the video too! 

With love and light from your layering die cut loving gal, Erica 

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