Vintage Look – Kenny's Cards

Whimsical House Mouse stamped card with a cute mouse chilling in front of a fan with a vintage look and Copic coloring.

Hey, crafty friends! Today, I have a super fun and enjoyable cardmaking project to share with you, featuring everyone’s favorite little critters – House Mouse – and the NEW Stay Cool stamp set. This time, we’re creating a whimsical card with the cute mouse chilling in front of a fan, perfect for sending a refreshing message to someone special. What makes this card extra special is its minimalist vintage look, achieved through a limited color palette of blues and tans. So, let’s dive in and get crafting!

House Mouse: Stay Cool (RSC-028)

Masculine House Mouse Stay Cool stamped critter card.

“Stay Cool” is also perfect for creating a good “Man Card” and I plan to give this creation to my husband. Wouldn’t this make the cutest postcard?

My Design Process:

Stamp House Mouse: I stamped my panel with the Stay Cool stamp and my Misti stamping tool.
Color Your Mouse: Now comes the fun part! I used Copic markers but you can also use your colored pencils or watercolors to bring your adorable mouse to life. I found this stamp easy to color because of all the shading detail.
Add the Sentiment: Stamp or adhere your chosen sentiment. I selected “You are the coolest”. This adds a sweet touch to your card and ties everything together. This stamp set also has two other fun sentiments: “take time to just chill” and “I am your biggest fan”.
Finishing Your Card:
- I used a corner rounder on the edges of my background and kraft card base.
- In keeping with the vintage vibe I was going for, I added some subtle ink blending around the edges with Antique Linen Distress Ink.
- I added some Craft Foam and assembled my card.

Products Used on my House Mouse Card:

I really love the House Mouse series and I have past blog posts with a few other charming stamp sets. If you would like to see my House Mouse Valentine, click HERE. And I have three adorable House Mouse cards that you can see HERE.

This House Mouse card with its darling mouse enjoying a cool breeze is sure to bring a smile to anyone’s face. So, grab your crafting supplies and get ready to create something truly special!

Karen

There’s something undeniably captivating about a vintage valentine, where every delicate stroke of ink and carefully chosen sentiment carries a timeless charm. This new House Mouse Candy Hearts rubber stamp had a very retro look to me, so I went with an old-timey mixed media vibe.

Spellibinders House Mouse Candy Hearts (RSC-022) handmade Mixed Media Valentine Card.

Easy One Layer Vintage Look Mixed Media Valentine Tutorial:

I started by creating my background. I masked off a border and then used two shades of tan Distress Ink to ink blend my background. (Antique Linen and Frayed Burlap)
With the masking tape still on the cardstock, I then used the same tan inks to stencil and stamp bits and pieces on the background. Most of the stamping was “second generation” where I stamped first on a scrap and then onto my background so that the pattern would be subtle. I also added light stenciling to the background. Cathe Holden has some great stamps and stencils that I added here and there. I also used a bit of stamping with white pigment ink, but it is hard to see in the photograph. To finish I added a touch of Gold Wax to a few places around the border.
Carefully remove your masking tape. I used Post It Tape, which is the best!
After my background was dry, I stamped the Valentine Mouse with Versafine Black Pigment Ink.
PRO TIP: For a crisp look, keep the stamp in your Misti stamping platform and restamp the image after you are done coloring. You won’t believe how much this one step will elevate your project!
I used Faber Castell Polychromo Colored Pencils to color the mouse and candy hearts.
Remember to restamp the image and let dry.
The cute sentiment is included with the stamp set and finishes off my one layer valentine.