In our current credit-crunch climate, saving money is important and every penny counts (in the case of these cards, quite literally!). Now is the time to dig all of your old stamps out of storage and use them in a new way on your cards. You will not only save money by not buying new ones, but you will also feel inspired and excited about revitalising something you perhaps had forgotten about.

I only recently discovered this technique for making something called a "tilt card" and it has really spiced my old stamps up. There are so many possibilities - my creative thinking has kicked in overdrive! It's a really simple technique with a really effective result.

Supplies:

• white cardstock
• stamp of your choice (I have used one by Gary Patterson)
• a craft knife
• a pair of scissors
• 3D foam (circles work best)
• glue stick / adhesive
• ink for your stamp
• two pennies
• something to color and decorate your card

Step One

Start by stamping your image twice onto cardstock. The first image should omit the piece you would like to "tilt" - in my case I have not stamped the mouse hanging across the computer screen. (I have left a faint imprint on it so you can see what I mean for the purposes of this tutorial.) The second image should focus on the piece you would like to "tilt."

Step Two

Cut out the piece of the second stamped image you would like to "tilt." Here you can see I have cut around the mouse.

Step Three

On the first image you stamped, using your craft knife cut a small square out of the cardstock in the center of where you would like your image to hang. This should be big enough to push 3D foam through but not so big that a penny will fall through.

Step Four

Using one of your pennies, stick 3D foam directly on top.

Step Five

Place your first image (with the cut-out square) over the top of the penny so that the 3D foam sticks through the square space.

Step Six

Take the second penny and place this onto the topside of the image ensuring you cover the hole. Your pennies should be sandwiching the cardstock and 3D foam and should be able to move around freely like wheels. This will form the base for your tilt action.

Step Seven

Take the cut-out piece of your second image and stick this onto the top of the penny to cover it. You should now be able to move your tilt piece around freely.

Step Eight

Now color and decorate your image as you wish. In the card I have created, I colored the cat in with pencils and attached some thread to the mouse to make it look like it was dangling. I then attached the image with 3D foam pads to a backing paper. It's important you ensure your image is raised from the back of the card slightly to allow the pennies to still move freely. When you move your card from side to side part of your image will tilt accordingly.

This technique works great with all kind of stamps. Autumn Leaves has a great animal stamp set - you can make the lion's head tilt from side to side, the giraffe's body waddle from side to side or the monkey swing back and forth on the tree. What about this great little stamp from Imaginisce. You could make the hula skirt swing from side to side on the cute penguin - that would look amazing. Take a look to see what stamps you have in your collection and see how they would translate into a tilt card. Don't forget to upload your creations to the gallery and have fun!