Today's card features one of my favorite interactive design techniques—creating a window that offers a peek at the beautiful scene hidden inside. Using the Gentle Escape collection, I created a peaceful lakeside view that's revealed through a die-cut opening on the front of the card.

This design is surprisingly simple to create, but the layered window adds wonderful depth while naturally drawing your eye to the colorful scene beyond. Let's get started!

How to re-create this card:

1. Cut a 4 1/4" x 11" piece of white cardstock and score at 5 1/2" to create a top-folding A2 card base.
2. Using the second-largest Dotted Nested Deckled Rectangle Die, die cut a window from the front of the card base.
3. Stamp the Gentle Escape image onto white cardstock using Detail Black ink.
4. Color the stamped image using the coordinating stencils:
   1. Stencil 1: Slumber (light-handed)
   2. Stencil 2: Doe (oar); Sage and Stargazer (grapes); Sage and Spruce Tips (leaves)
   3. Stencil 3: Rocky Slope (boat); Fruit Punch (picnic blanket), adding additional ink for shading
   4. Stencil 4: Doe (basket and dock); Sweet Mustard and Fruit Punch (boat)
   5. Stencil 5: Continue coloring the basket, dock, and boat using Doe, Sweet Mustard, and Fruit Punch.
   6. Stencil 6: Sage and Eucalyptus (greenery); Sage (bottle); Fruit Punch (fruit); Doe (boat); Slumber (water)
5. Die cut the finished scene using the largest Dotted Nested Deckled Rectangle Die.
6. Create a stencil using a large circle punch. Position it in the upper right corner of the scene and ink blend a sun.
7. Adhere the completed scene inside the card so it is visible through the window opening.
8. Stamp a sentiment onto a Basic Banner die cut using Detail Black ink. Lightly ink blend the banner using the leftover Sage ink on your blending brush.
9. Align the banner with the greenery in the background of the scene and adhere it to the left side of the window opening using liquid glue.

I love how the die-cut window gives just a glimpse of the peaceful lakeside scene inside the card. It adds so much interest while keeping the design clean and simple, and the bright sunset colors against the cool blues create a beautiful balance. This is such a fun layout that can easily be adapted to so many scenic stamp sets.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope this project inspires you to create your own peek-through scene. I'll see you again soon with more inspiration!