Hey Good Lookin' - Stampin' Up! Saying Hey

   My card today is a bright, cheerful hello card that was inspired by the prompt of 'critters' over at Addicted to CAS challenge.  I used 2 stamp sets that you might overlook when paging through the catalog.  The Choose Happy and Sayin' Hey stamp sets are both on page 24 and have mostly word stamps but have a lot of versatility for every day cards for all year round.  If you journal or keep a planner the Choose Happy might be just thing to jazz up your calendars and to-do lists!  

  Since this challenge is a clean and simple one I stayed with a plain Basic White card base and used the rest of the colors pretty sparingly.  I stamped the Hey in Blueberry Bushel and the sun from Choose Happy in Daffodil Delight and then colored it in with Blends markers.  I cut the images out with a Stylish Shape square. Next I stamped the penguin (also in Choose Happy) and fussy cut it and popped it up on another die cut square in Poppy Parade.

  The rest of the sentiment is stamped in Versamark on Blueberry Bushel and then embossed in white and cut into a banner with the Stylish Shapes dies.

  I arranged the squares and banner roughly following one of the sketch samples on page 22 of the Annual Catalog.  And it being a clean and simple card I left off any other embellishment.

  All of the products used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Sayin' Hey, Choose Happy

Ink: Blueberry Bushel, Versamark, Memento Black, Daffodil Delight

Blends: Daffodil Delight light & dark

Paper: Basic White thick, Basic White, Blueberry Bushel, Poppy Parade

Accessories: Stylish Shapes dies, dimensionals

Hey Friend - Stampin' Up! Attention Shoppers

   My card today is inspired by 2 challenges that got the ball rolling for me when I was in a bit of a design funk.  I used the Just Add Ink layout along with a trio of prompts from the Tic Tac Toe Challenge.  The Tic Tac Toe line that I chose is the top left to bottom right diagonal of 'friendship theme, flowers and bright colors.  What a great combo! Look what I came up with!

  How's that for bright colors?  I used Lemon Lime Twist for the card base as well as for stamping the large Leaf Collection background stamp. Before adhering the leaf panel to the card front I wrapped a bit of Lemon Lime Twist ribbon around it and added a knot.

  The Spotlight on Nature circle dies were perfect for making the circle element from the sketch on which I stamped the big 'hey' from the Saying Hey stamp set. I just love the different detailed edges of this set!  I stamped 'I miss your face' on the inside; perfect to send to a friend I haven't seen in a long time. The trimmed circle is popped on dimensionals.

  Next I stamped 3 of the flower bouquets from the Attention Shoppers stamp set and then used Blends markers to color them in.  I die cut the bouquets and layered them around the circle.

 Finally I added some Pretty in Pink 2024-2026 In Color Resin Dots to decorate around the 'hey'.  I love that these resin dots are a bit flatter than some of the other embellishments so I think they will be great for mailing.

  All of the current products used to make this card can be found in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Leaf Collection, Attention Shoppers, Saying Hey

Ink: Lemon Lime Twist, Memento Black

Blends: Summer Splash light, Pretty in Pink light & dark, Flirty Flamingo light & dark, Crumb Cake light & dark

Accessories: Spotlight on Nature dies, dimensionals, Attention Shoppers dies, 2024-2026 In Color resin dots, Ribbon Duo Combo Pack Lemon Lime Twist (retired)

Split Beauty Hello - Stampin' Up! Layers of Beauty

   After being busy all day I'm just now getting around to sharing a card!  I used the Layers of Beauty stamp set to make quite an easy card.  The Layers of Beauty bundle comes with the awesome masks to use to blend color in just the right places but for this card I just used the big floral stamp.  It's so easy and the colors can be changed up to use different color combinations using the same technique.

  The card starts with a Pretty in Pink base.  Next I used Peach Pie and Pretty in Pink ink pads to add ink to each half of a large clear stamping block.  I misted the block/ink with water from my Stampin' Spritzer and then quickly stamped it onto a piece of Basic White. 

  Once the the ink was dry I stamped the large floral stamp over the top using Memento Black ink.  Before adhering the stamped panel to the card front I wrapped a piece of Pretty in Pink bordered ribbon around the lower part.

  The hello from the Simply Said stamp set is stamped in black on a piece of Basic White which I trimmed down and popped up with dimensionals over the ribbon.  A peach Pie In Color Shimmer gem accents the sentiment for the final touch.

  All of the supplies used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Layers of Beauty, Simply Said

Ink: Peach Pie, Pretty in Pink, Memento black

Paper: Pretty in Pink, Basic White

Accessories: dimensionals, Pretty in Pink Bordered Ribbon, 2024-2026 In Color Shimmer Gem

Wildflower Note - Stampin' Up! Wildflower Designs

   It's a hot one here in central Virginia so I'm saying no to any outdoor activities today and will be staying in my stamp room for some inky time and then watching some soccer later this afternoon.  With 2 international tournaments going on right now there are a lot of games to watch!  But first I need to share a card I made a few weeks ago and just haven't gotten around to sharing!

  The Wildly Flowering bundle is a beautiful, classic styled floral set with versatile sentiments in a gorgeous handwriting font.  I've gone with a bright and not necessarily true-to-life color combination and switched out the sentiment for a bit more casual styled one on this design.

  The new/old In Color Pretty in Pink is used for the card base, then a layer of Basic White finally topped with a piece of Coastal Cabana that has been embossed with the Eyelet embossing folder.

  I used a strip of the 2024-2026 In Color DSP in the Pretty in Pink striped pattern right down the center and then added the focal elements.  The Wildflower Designs dies include some label and frame dies so I used one of them and stamped "just a note" in Basic Gray.  This sentiment can be found in the Simply Said stamp set.

  One of the label/frame dies has scalloped edges so I cut one of the frames then trimmed the scallops down to add to the top and bottom of the sentiment.

  The flower which I think looks like an allium is stamped in Basic Gray twice then colored in with Blends markers and then die cut.  They are added to the side of the label.  The final embellishments are a fork bow made with the retired crinkled seam binding ribbon and an Iridescent Faceted gem.

  All of the current supplies used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Wildly Flowering, Simply Said

Ink: Basic Gray

Blends: Pretty in Pink light & dark, Flirty Flamingo light, Summer Splash light

Paper: Pretty in Pink, Basic White, Coastal Cabana, 2024-2026 In Color DSP

Accessories: Wildly Flowering dies, Eyelet embossing folder, dimensionals, Iridescent Faceted gem, crinkled seam binding ribbon (retired)

Retro Vibe Father's Day - Stampin' Up! Tune In

   I needed to get a variety of Father's Day cards made before I left for my trip last week and I hadn't used my Tune In bundle yet and it was high time it saw some ink (this bundle is on sale for an extra 10% off until June 30.  Don't wait to order your set!!).

  I pulled out what I thought worked for a masculine color combination; Azure Afternoon, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Gray and Smoky Slate.  The card front is covered in a piece of Country Lace DSP in a very non-lacy almost twill like pattern in Smoky Slate.

  I used one of the Tune In dies to cut out the accent shapes along the side.  The die cuts out 5 of the shapes so I just cut several times in each color then mixed and matched as I went down the line.

  The tv is stamped in Azure Afternoon ink onto the same paper.  I used my Blends marker to highlight around the screen and fill in the legs for extra detail.  I stamped the antennae in Basic Gray and cut it and the knobs out and added them to the tv.  The screen is cut out and replaced with another one on which I stamped off some of the retro stars from the set.  I stamped the sentiment in Pumpkin Pie right over the top.  The whole piece is then popped up on the card front with dimensionals.

  I like the way you can add a lot of different sentiments to the screen and not just the ones that came with the stamp set; it's a decent size so you probably have a lot in your stash that would work for many different looks.  I didn't really have any embellishments that looked right so I kept it clean; it was for a guy after all!

  All of the products used to make this can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking! Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Tune In

Ink: Azure Afternoon, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Gray

Blends: Smoky Slate Dark, Azure Afternoon light

Paper: Country Lace DSP, Azure Afternoon, Basic Gray, Pumpkin Pie, Basic White

Accessories: Tune In dies, dimensionals

Frames & Flowers Card Making Night

  Last week I met up with my mom, 2 aunts and a cousin in Columbus, Ohio for a girls trip.  Why Columbus?  Because it was kind of a central spot to meet as 3 of the group are from Illinois, one from Connecticut and then me from Virginia.  We rented a house in the super cute Short North neighborhood of Columbus and had fun hanging out, playing some games, lots of shopping and of course craft nights!  

  I thought if we had time and everyone felt like it that they could each make a set of cards using the Frames & Flowers Specialty Designer Series paper.  It's like half card kit and half DSP.  I packed up some card bases, inserts, envelopes, 2 sentiment stamp sets and 4 inks, some ribbon and embellishments and other tools and loaded it into the car.  I actually was able to fit everything that I wanted to bring into the awesome backpack bag that demonstrators received at the Houston OnStage event in March.  Like a card class on the go!

  My plan was for everyone to have 5 card bases and then they could use all of the fun pre-cut floral and leafy pieces and frames to mix and match to make 5 different designs.  I had some die cut circles and labels already made and they just used those to stamp a sentiment and then they added ribbons and pearls as they wanted.  It was so fun seeing all of their different ideas.

  They were all really creative and had fun embellishing.  I even taught them how to make a fork bow.

 None of them had much if any experience with paper crafting but they are all creative with sewing and other crafts so they jumped right in had fun seeing what they could make.

  The Frames & Flowers DSP was perfect for these beginners.  Every card was unique and they could choose the sentiments that they needed.

I loved being able to share my passion with my family!

 20 completely different and unique cards and look at those proud smiles!  We had a lot of laughs too.  We used up all of the die cuts and frames and some of the full DSP sheets.  I was impressed by how many cards we made with this DSP. 

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Simply Said, Heartfelt Hexagon

Ink: Pretty Peacock, Lost Lagoon, Soft Sea Foam, Petal Pink

Paper: Frames & Flowers Specialty DSP, Basic White, Pretty Peacock, Lost Lagoon, Soft Sea Foam, Petal Pink

Accessories: various ribbons, pearls, dimensionals, Heartfelt Hexagon punch, Stylish Shapes dies (circles)

Father's Day Gatefold - Stampin' Up! Gone Fishing

   I was out of town all last week on a family girls trip so I didn't get any new projects stamped but luckily I have a few that I made before I left.  Today's is a Father's Day card but you could easily change out the sentiment and it can be a card for any occasion.  

  I wanted to do a nature themed card for one of my fathers-in-law since he's a big plant and tree guy.  The Thoughtful Journey DSP seemed like a perfect match and I looked around for a fun fold that I could use to really show off a large chunk of one sheet and came across this really easy gatefold that has a large main panel and a skinnier side panel.

  This one takes just 2 scores on the 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" card base.  Score at 1 1/2" and 5 3/4".  That's it!  I cut the panels to match leaving a small border around the edges.  My card base here is Mossy Meadow.

  I used a larger and smaller circle from the new Spotlight on Nature dies.  The larger circle is adhered to the skinny side panel only and then I used some of the Textured Floral dies to add some sprigs.  I used Mossy Meadow, Wild Wheat and Lost Lagoon cardstock as those are colors that are in the Thoughtful Journey DSP.  After adhering the sprigs I topped them with the sentiment circle which is adhered with dimensionals for a nice raised look.

  The only father's day sentiment I had is in the Gone Fishing stamp set so I used that with Mossy meadow ink.

  I dug deep in my retired embellishment stash and came out with a few candy dots from long ago which I added to the edge of the larger circle.

  This is the card opened up.  I added more of the DSP panels to the inside as well as a little stamped flower from the Wildflower Designs stamp set.

  All of the current supplies used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Gone Fishing, Wildflower Designs

Ink: Mossy Meadow

Paper: Mossy Meadow, Basic White, Thoughtful Journeys DSP, Wild Wheat, Lost Lagoon

Accessories: Spotlight on Nature dies, Textured Floral dies, dimensionals, candy dots (retired)

Thank You Cap - Stampin' Up! Cap & Gown

   I used the Global Design Project to get this card started.  They have a CASE the designer challenge and I took the layout to use to make a set of thank you cards for my son to use.  He has quite a few thank you cards to write after graduating high school last week.  

  I pulled together some retired, current and new supplies to make this card.  I made a set of 10 using different black and white papers from the retired All Together DSP.  The black is a great complement to the Summer Splash which is the main color of his high school.

  I used the Cap & Gown stamp set which carried over to the online store from the Jan.-April mini catalog.  I just stamped the cap and colored it in with Blends then fussy cut it.

  The sentiment is from the new stamp set My Small Business and I stamped it on one of the Unbounded Love dies labels.  The cap and label are popped up on dimensionals over some retired twine.

  I dug through my retired embellishments and pulled out a whole assortment of colors that kind of match the Summer Splash.  Some were Bermuda Bay and some are Pool Party and I think a few are even Lost Lagoon.  I'm always happy to use up odds and ends of supplies!

 All of the current supplies can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Cap & Gown, My Small Business

Ink: Memento Black

Blends: Summer Splash light & dark, Daffodil Delight light & dark

Paper: Basic White thick, Summer Splash, All Together DSP (retired), Basic White

Accessories: Unbounded Love dies, dimensionals, twine (retired), gems (retired)

Cluster of Flowers Birthday - Stampin' Up! Country Birdhouse

  I'm still trying to get back into the swing of things so my card today is another one that I made last week before a lot of the graduation madness started and I still had a minute to stamp!  I used the Inspired By challenge to get started on this one.  The inspiration photo of the sweet muffin cups is cute and I loved the ones with the little cluster of flowers as well as the layout they provided.

   One of the best things about Stampin' Up! stamp sets is that they not only rock with the big main images in a set but they always have great supporting images that so often can be used on their own and the Country Birdhouse stamp set is no exception.  Of course the big birdhouse is fun but don't overlook using some of the smaller floral images or the bird to make a birdhouse free card too!

  The little cluster of flowers on the muffin cups made me think of the retired Garden Walk DSP so I wanted to use one of those floral designs in the background.  Once I got going with the design though the floral print was just too busy and the stamped flowers were getting kind of lost so I flipped the piece over to this nice Pretty Peacock striped pattern.  It definitely works better!

  The next layer to follow the layout is a piece of Pretty Peacock embossed with the Eyelet embossing folder which is a nice sweet balance to the more serious stripes.  I tied a bit of bakers twine around the panel before adhering.

  I cut 3 square postage stamps with the Perennial Postage dies and stamped the cluster of flowers on them in Pretty Peacock ink.  I used Stampin' Blends to color in the images alternating between 2 main colors.  They are then popped on dimensionals on the card front.

  The sentiment is stamped and cut apart and adhered with cut down pieces of dimensionals.  I added a few retired gems to give a tiny bit of sparkle as a finishing touch but any current sparkly ones could easily be substituted.

  All of the current supplies used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Country Birdhouse

Ink: Pretty Peacock

Blends: Pretty Peacock light & dark, Poppy Parade light & dark, Calypso Coral light & dark, Wild Wheat light

Paper: Pretty Peacock, Basic White, Garden Walk DSP (retired)

Accessories: Perennial Postage dies, Eyelet embossing folder, dimensionals, bakers twine, Elegant Faceted gems (retired)

Badger Hugs - Stampin' Up! Hearts & Hugs

 I'm back after almost a week long absence!  We have a high school graduate now and were quite busy the last few weeks getting ready for that big milestone! Throw in out of town house guests, planning and hosting a graduation party, a soccer tournament and general end of the school year activities and I'm exhausted! But thankfully I've got 2 years to recover before doing it all over again lol!  

  I actually made the card I'm sharing today last week and just ran out of time to share it but luckily the challenge that was my inspiration is still open!  The CAS on Friday team is challenging us to make a clean and simple "hug" card. The new Hearts & Hugs stamp set is a no brainer for this prompt!

  A Basic White card base is a good starting place for a clean and simple card.  I stamped the badgers on a piece of Basic white scrap and then cut it out with the Stylish Shapes square die just for a little bit of subtle detail along the edges.  Blends markers made it really quick to color.

  After making all of these cards with the Full of Life DSP I ended up with some very small scraps and on the back of the square patterned side is a fun rainbow color wash pattern which I used to die cut a bunch of little flowers from.  I sprinkled them in a rainbow along the side of the badger adhering them with just a bit of glue.

Once the flowers were just right I stamped the sentiment underneath and added a baker's twine bow and a new Iridescent faceted gem for a tiny bit of sparkle because I am trying to keep it CAS after all!

  All of the supplies used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Hearts & Hugs

Ink: Memento Black

Blends: Smoky Slate light & dark, Gray Granite light & dark, Pretty in Pink light

Paper: Basic White thick, Basic White, Full of Life DSP

Accessories: Hearts & Hugs dies, Stylish Shapes dies, white baker's twine, Iridescent Faceted Gem