Floral Heart Valentine Double Easel - Stampin' Up! Country Bouquet

   Today's card is another one that we made at my last class.  This is a really easy fun fold that looks way harder than it is!  My stampers had a good time learning how to make this card and I did a video for them to refer to for measurements and I hope you enjoy it too bloopers and all!  See the YouTube link below and stamp along with me!

  I used the Country Bouquet bundle and Country Floral Lane DSP.  I'm going to list the measurements for the paper and the scores and then all of the supplies at the end like usual.  The measurements are also listed in the video.  To see details on how to put the card together definitely check out the video.

  Paper:

  

  Basic White thick base - 4.25" x 11"

  Sweet Sorbet - 4" x 10.25"

  Large piece of DSP - 3.75" x 5

  Small piece of DSP - 2.25" x 3.75"

Score Measurements:

 Basic White thick - score at 5.5"

 Sweet Sorbet - score at 2.5" & 5"

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Country Bouquet

Ink: Sweet Sorbet, Mint Macaron

Paper: Basic White thick, Sweet Sorbet, Mint Macaron, Basic White, Country Floral Lane DSP

Accessories: Country Bouquet Builder punch, Stylish Shapes dies, dimensionals, Real Red & Burlap ribbon combo

Guacamole Engagement - Stampin' Up! Taco Fiesta

  I needed an engagement card recently so went with a silly one to celebrate the happy couple.  The Taco Fiesta stamp set continues to bring a smile to my face!

  I struggled a bit initially with this idea as the avocados are small and I couldn't get the scale of the rest of the card to work.  Finally I changed a few things and ended up here.  

  This one starts with a Parakeet Party base, then the avocados are stamped on Basic White and colored in with Blends.  I added a glimmer paper heart in the center as well as a strip of heart paper from the All Together DSP which is on sale now in the clearance rack!  Check out all the great deals HERE.

  To make the sentiment banner I inked up the 'Holy Guacamole" with my Basic Black regular marker and stamped it on Basic White.  Then I inked up the retired "you're engaged!" sentiment from Itty Bitty Greetings and stamped that underneath before using the Stylish Shapes dies to cut the banner.  A bit of black baker's twine behind the sentiment is the last piece of this card.

  Super quick and easy once I got the design scaled correctly!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Taco Fiesta, Itty Bitty Greetings (retired)

Ink: Memento Black

Blends: Parakeet Party light & dark, Mossy Meadow dark, SU400

Paper: Parakeet Party, Basic White, Real Red Glimmer paper, All Together DSP (retired)

Accessories: small heart punch, dimensionals, Stylish Shapes dies, black bakers twine

Blended Birthday - Stampin' Up! Best Day

   My stampers made this design at class on Tuesday and I think they all had fun using the new small blending brushes to color in this fun cake.

  After looking at the samples for the Best Day stamp set in the catalog you can clearly see where I got my inspiration from lol!  I didn't even realize I was inspired by the sample until I took a closer look at the page!  So all the credit for the idea goes to the Stampin' Up! concept artist who did these samples!

  We started our cards with a neutral base in Sahara Sand, then we embossed a piece of Flirty Flamingo cardstock with the new Cane Weave embossing folder.

  Next, the cake is stamped onto a piece of Basic White then using the new small blending brushes Daffodil Delight, Flirty Flamingo and Soft Sea Foam inks were lightly blended over the image.  The new brushes work the same as the larger version they just cover a smaller area so are perfect for getting color into areas that need a bit more precision.

  The birthday banner is stamped again on a piece of scrap and then using Blends markers in Flirty Flamingo it is colored in with some shading and then fussy cut and popped onto the larger cake. Using Blends makers in the other ink colors we added some extra color and shading onto the cake.

  The cake layer has a bit of Soft Sea Foam ribbon added and is backed with a piece of Soft Sea Foam cardstock.

  A Wink of Stella pen is used to add a bit of sparkle to various parts of the cake and then a few Pastel Adhesive-backed sequins finish the details.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Best Day

Ink: Memento Black, Daffodil Delight, Flirty Flamingo, Soft Sea Foam

Blends:  Daffodil Delight light & dark, Flirty Flamingo light & dark, Soft Sea Foam dark

Paper: Sahara Sand, Basic White, Flirty Flamingo, Soft Sea Foam

Accessories: Can Weave embossing folder, Wink of Stella, sequins, dimensionals, Soft Sea Foam ribbon (retired)

Pink Petals - Stampin' Up! Petal Park

   I had my monthly stamp club class yesterday and we had such a good time creating with new items from the January - April mini catalog.  I don't know how I'm going to be able to squeeze all those wonderful new products into just 3 months of classes!  If you like a lot of stuff in this new mini definitely plan ahead since it is only lasting through May 1!

  We made this card using the Petal Park bundle as well as a few more items from the larger suite.  The layout was inspired by a recent challenge at Freshly Made Sketches if you think it looks familiar!

  We started with a Balmy Blue base, then a layer of Night of Navy topped with a layer of Basic White where all the stamping actions happens.  The sentiment from Sentimental Park stamp set is stamped in Night of Navy to one side of the panel and the flower stem is stamped in Shaded Spruce on the other side.  The stem is two step with the outline being in full strength ink and the fill in stamp with the same color ink but stamped off once for a lighter version.

  The trio of flowers is stamped on another piece of Basic White in Night of Navy and the fill in stamp is stamped in Petal Pink ink.  The flowers are punched out with the Petal Park Builder punch and a second medium flower is punched out of a piece of Regency Park DSP.

  The larger blossom is adhered to the card front, then the DSP flower is added with a dimensional and then the smaller punched flower is added with another dimensional. 

  A strip of the fabulous Textured Shimmer Paper in Balmy Blue is added underneath the stamping and a piece of Night of Navy Bordered ribbon is adhered with a bit of tear and tape to ensure it holds tight!

  Remember that middle-sized stamped flower that was punched out? Well you didn't think we were going to forget about it did you? It's added to the shimmer paper strip with a dimensional to bring some of the Petal Pink color to that side of the card.

  Final touches are the Adhesive-backed Milky Dots added to the flower centers.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Petal Park, Sentimental Park

Ink: Night of Navy, Shaded Spruce, Petal Pink

Paper: Balmy Blue, Basic White, Night of Navy, Textured Shimmer paper, Regency Park DSP

Accessories: Petal Park builder punch, dimensionals, Night of Navy Bordered ribbon, Adhesive-backed Milky Dots

Rainbow Hearts - Stampin' Up! Country Bouquet

 I have tons of paper to cut for an upcoming class as well as prepping a big personal project that I'll share whenever I get it finished but I wanted to share this quick Valentine's Day card that I made the other day.  I think this one is perfect for a guy without a lot of fussiness and a nice bright color palette.

  This is really easy to put together!  Basic White thick card base, layer of Starry Sky, then a layer of Basic White embossed with the Brick & Mortar embossing folder.

  Then using 5 ink colors I stamped the 2 hearts from the Country Bouquet stamp set and added them to the card front with dimensionals in a circle.  The smaller hearts were added with a dab of glue and then the sentiment is stamped in Memento Black and added with more dimensionals.

  So easy!  You could swap out the ink colors for 5 pastels or all shades of pinks, favorite team colors; lots of possibilities.  

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Country Bouquet

Ink: Sweet Sorbet, Mango Melody, Mint Macaron, Balmy Blue, Starry Sky, Memento Black

Paper: Basic White thick, Basic White, Starry Sky

Accessories: Brick & Mortar embossing folder, Country Bouquet punch, dimensionals

Wow Geese - Stampin' Up! Silly Goose

   After several attempts to create a card for the current Global Design Project sketch I finally came up with a design that stuck to the layout.  A few others that I tried just ended up morphing into something not terribly close. 

  I ended up with a Well done! Congrats! Wow! kind of card by combining the fist bump geese from the Silly Goose set with the "wow" sentiment from Conversation Bubbles set.  Pulled the bright colors straight from the strip of Dandy Designs DSP.

  

  The geese are stamped in Memento Black, colored in with Blends markers and then fussy cut.  I popped them on dimensionals onto a Stitched Rectangle.  I had drew the little fist bump lines as the ones made with the stamp were trimmed off during fussy cutting for a cleaner edge.

  

  The sentiment is embossed in white on Fresh Freesia card stock then cut with the coordinating die.  I cut a Coastal Cabana banner and trimmed it down a bit to better fit the word bubbles.

  I found some very old Pool Party baker's twine (remember when it used to come on the cardboard?? thats how old it is!!) and added a large bow underneath the sentiment.

  I stamped 2 small stars in Coastal Cabana and then added a few Opaque Adhesive-backed gems to finish the details on this card.

  I'm glad I was patient and kept trying this sketch even though the first few tries weren't so hot!  

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Silly Goose, Conversation Bubbles

Ink: Coastal Cabana, Memento Black, Versamark

Blends: Daffodil Delight dark, Gray Granite light

Paper: Granny Apple Green, Basic White, Fresh Freesia, Coastal Cabana, Dandy Designs DSP

Accessories: Stitched Rectangle dies, Conversation Bubbles dies, Stylish Shapes dies, dimensionals, baker's twine, white embossing powder, Opaque Adhesive-Backed Gems

Zesty Birthday - Stampin' Up! Sweet Citrus

  I made a bright birthday card today to play along with the TGIF Challenge.  I haven't used the Sweet Citrus bundle much and wanted to get a few more samples made to show my local stampers next week at class.  I love this color combo which I had jotted down in my notebook a few months back.  It seems like a great set of colors to shake up the dreary winter days!

  I first embossed a piece of Coastal Cabana with the Sweet Citrus hybrid embossing folder and added it to my card front.  Next comes a banner made from a piece of Regency Park DSP.  The label is made with the Sentimental Park dies and I stamped the sentiment in Night of Navy.

  The lemons (in this instance) are 2 step stamps and the peels are stamped in Daffodil Delight full strength ink.  The centers are stamped next in stamped off once Daffodil Delight ink.  I lined the images up on the hybrid embossing folder with the die so that I could cut and emboss the lemons at the same time.

  Next, I stamped the leaves in Parakeet Party and then added everything to the card front with dimensionals.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: Sweet Citrus

Ink: Daffodil Delight, Night of Navy, Parakeet Party

Paper: Coastal Cabana, Basic White, Regency Park DSP

Accessories: Sweet Citrus Hybrid Embossing folder/dies, dimensionals, Sentimental Park dies

Love a la Mode - Stampin' Up! Alphabet A La Mode Dies

   I've finished all my boring Monday chores so now it's time to 'work' in the stamp room!  My card today actually has no stamping on it!  Hard to believe but yes, you can make a card without ink or stamps!  I don't do it very often but my card today is an example of letting punches, dies and paper do the work!

  I used the Color Hues challenge to create this love themed card.  I love the red and pink combo and it's the perfect time of year for those sweet colors in preparation for Valentine's day.

  I started with a Sweet Sorbet base topped with a piece of Basic White panel embossed with the retired Subtle embossing folder. Using the Heart Punch pack I punched 2 hearts from Country Floral Lane DSP and one from Country Gingham DSP and then backed them with either a Sweet Sorbet or Blushing Bride scalloped heart.  

  Once i had the hearts adhered to my card front I went to work with the Alphabet a la Mode dies which I hadn't used yet even though I received them way back in the beginning of December.  I really like the style of these dies as they are tall but skinny so you can still fit a good amount on a regular A2 card so you can spell quite a few things.  

  So I did learn a few things using these dies for the first time which will make it easier for me (and maybe you!) in the future.  First, they are very skinny so getting them out of the die if they stick you need to be careful not to rip them.  Definitely use your die brush or a toothpick/paper piercer to help you out.  

  Second, I used Basic White for my letters and I think the next time I will use Basic White thick just to have them be a little bit sturdier.  

  Third, since I wanted the letters to stand out from the hearts I backed the die cut letters with a second letter die cut with the the dimensional adhesive sheets.  In the past it hasn't been a problem to line up letters or other shapes onto the adhesive sheet die cuts.  Let me tell you, with these super skinny letters I had quite the time and had to do a bit of trimming around the edges as I wasn't quite as exact as I'd like to be.  So next time I'll suck it up and attach my card stock to the dimensional adhesive sheet first and then just cut with the dies so the letters come out with the dimensional piece already attached.  I think wasting a bit of the dimensional sheet will be worth the aggravation of trying to line up the letters.

  After I lined my letters up and adhered them I cut a few hearts out of red glimmer paper using the Conversation Bubbles dies and added those to the card front.

  I think this card will end up being for one of my boys for Valentine's day so I didn't want to add any ribbon or extra fluff because that might be seen by a teen boy as sappy or some such thing lol! So a bit clean and simple is where it ended up.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

Stamps: none

Ink: none

Paper: Sweet Sorbet, Basic White, Country Floral Lane DSP, Country Gingham DSP, Blushing Bride, Red Glimmer paper

Accessories: Alphabet a la Mode dies, Conversation Bubbles dies, Heart Punch pack, dimensional adhesive sheets, Subtle embossing folder (retired)