Fall is one of my favorite times to stamp — the colors, textures, and cozy tones of the season are simply irresistible! In today’s post, we’re exploring techniques for stamping fall leaves that capture the beauty of autumn using just a few simple supplies. Each of these three methods adds unique color and depth to your images, making them perfect for seasonal cardmaking, scrapbooking, or any paper-crafting projects.
For this class, I used the Autumn Whisper Bundle by Altenew along with Fresh Dye Ink and Re-Inkers in warm fall shades. This combination is perfect for achieving rich, layered color and crisp stamped impressions with every technique we’ll explore.
Technique #1: Baby Wipe Technique — Create a Custom Ink Pad
The baby wipe technique is an easy way to create a stunning multicolor effect on your stamped leaves. Start by folding a few layers of a baby wipe onto a flat surface to form a temporary “ink pad.” Drop small amounts of reinker in fall shades — think Chamomile, Terracotta, Raspberry Sunset, and Fresh Leaf. When you stamp onto this custom pad, your leaf images will pick up a natural blend of colors that mimic real autumn leaves. Every impression looks different, which makes this technique both fun and unpredictable!
Technique # 2: Inking and Daubers — Add Soft Color Transitions
If you love smooth, hand-blended color, inking with daubers is the perfect technique. To start, ink your stamp with a primary color. I chose to use Altenew’s Chamomile. Next, use small sponge daubers to apply ink directly to your stamp, adding darker shades around the edges. Here, I chose to add one or more of Terracotta, Raspberry Sunset, and Fresh Leaf. This method gives you full control over where the colors fall and creates the soft transitions found in nature. Try blending yellows into reds or adding a hint of brown around the edges of your leaves for added realism.
Technique #3: Ink with Spritzing — A Watercolor Effect
The ink and spritzing technique gives your fall leaves a soft, watercolor appearance. Ink your stamp as usual, then lightly spritz it with water before pressing it onto cardstock. For this technique, I inked my stamp and added color around the edges with daubers. The added moisture lets the colors bleed just enough to create a natural, organic effect. For even more dimension, stamp onto watercolor paper and let the ink flow a bit before drying with a heat tool.
As a second example, I paired the Autumn Whispers Bundle and Garden Friends Stamp & Die set to create this darling fall card. Don’t you just love this little squirrel. He looks so real…
Pulling It All Together: Watch the Video Tutorial
Each of these techniques for stamping fall leaves offers something unique — from the colorful marbling of the baby wipe technique, to the smooth blending of daubers, to the dreamy watercolor look of spritzing. Try combining them for extra dimension or use them individually to create simple yet striking fall cards.
If you’d like to see these techniques in action, watch my video tutorial on YouTube where I demonstrate all three methods and finish with a beautiful handmade fall card using the Autumn Whisper Bundle by Altenew..
Supplies
I do not have any affiliate links at this time. These links are posted to help you find the supplies used should you be interested. Happy crafting!
- Autumn Whispers Bundle (also sold separately, see below)
- Autumn Whispers Stamp Set (Altenew)
- Autumn Whispers Dies (Altenew)
- Nested Postage Labels & Tag Etched Dies from Bayfair Collection (Spellbinders)
- Itty Bitty Pumpkin Dies (Honey Bee Stamps)
- Dotty Circles 3D Embossing Folder (Altenew)
- Altenew Fresh Dye Inks
- Altenew Fresh Dye Re-Inkers
- Sponge Daubers (Scrapbook.com)
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