Scrap Attack - Bargello

This is a new technique to me (or so I thought) but on researching it,  I found out that it is something that has been around for many years and originally started out as a needlework embroidery technique.  The really embarrasing thing about it is that I made a cushion using this method many years ago but I never knew that this was what it was called.

For those of you who don't know what it is, in the papercrafting world it involves making a pattern using thin strips of paper to form the background. There is a bit more to it than that though.

I made three backgrounds using strips of old Designer Series Paper, stuck onto a piece of white A4 photocopier paper (I did not want to use/waste my Whisper White card stock on this part). Although the minimum length you need is 6",  this is a great way of using up more of those scraps that you really hate to throw away.  The Splitcoast Stampers web-site has a great tutorial on how to make the background,  See the following link, Bargello Card

Apologies for the poor lighting in this photo,
but I think you can still get the basic idea from it.

Once I had made the backgounds I glued them onto Basic Black card stock to form the actual card. I used stamps from the Artistic Etchings stamp set to stamp the various images and the message on the first card came from the Sincere Salutations stamp set.

The second card (below on the left) simply has a message from the Sincere Salutations set on it. The staggered effect was made as a result of using the bottom piece of the background that I had made. I simply tidied it up a little. I think that this is a great effect. 

The third card (on the right) has images from the Artistic Etchings set and the message is from the Notably Ornate stamp set. I used various punches to make the message label.

I hope you like my efforts enough to give it a go yourself.