Happy Work-i-Versary - Stampin' Up!® Reason to Celebrate

  One of the perks of being married to a card maker is having access to their card stash and/or the pull to ask for a custom card when needed.  Since my husband is so wonderful I'm always happy to make any card that he needs and honestly I never turn down an opportunity to have more stamping time lol!  My husband recently asked for a work-i-versary card for his administrative assistant and I was happy to see what I could come up with!

  After looking through my stash of current DSPs nothing really jumped out as right for the occasion so I dug into some retired papers and the leftover pieces from the Turtle-y Sweet scrapbooking kit seemed perfect.  The dotted pattern in the Turtle-y Sweet DSP was perfect for the background and I pulled the rest of the colors from there.

  A banner cut from Two-Toned Poppy Parade was stamped with the chair from the long retired Welcome to the Team stamp set and the I sanded the edges for a worn look.  A bit of Pool Party baker's twine was tied around it before adhering the banner with dimensionals. 

 Next I added another piece of Turtle-y Sweet DSP in a Crushed Curry pattern across the center of the banner and cut 2 wonky circles with the retired Around It All dies.  The Pool Party circle is also Two-Toned and is sanded along the edges.

  I used the Reason to Celebrate stamp set to stamp the sentiment and then fussy cut.  The chair from Welcome to the team is stamped again this time in Memento black.  It's colored then fussy cut.  Both the sentiment and chair are popped on dimensionals.

  Lastly, some Dots for Days in Crushed Curry are sprinkled on the banner.  This was a fun one to design and put together and of course it always feel nice to use some supplies that I've kept "just in case"!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Reason to Celebrate, Welcome to the Team (retired)

Ink: Poppy Parade, Memento Black

Blends: Pool Party light & dark, Basic Black light, Smoky Slate dark

Paper: Poppy Parade Two-Tone, Pool Party Two-Toned, Basic White, Turtle-y Sweet DSP (retired)

Accessories: Party Banner dies, dimensionals, Around It All dies (retired), Pool Party baker's twine (retired), Dots for Days

Foiled Coastal Adventure - Stampin' Up!® Sunset Coast

   While we might be thinking ahead to fall and winter projects don't sleep on making a few more warm weather inspired cards!  The Sunset Coast bundle along with the Scenic Coast DSP are still hot products for gorgeous cards and scrapbook pages.  I combined these products with some foiling for another fun water sunset/sunrise scene!

  The card front is a piece of the lovely Scenic Coast DSP.  It's out of stock at the moment so be sure to put your email address in to be notified when it's back in stock!  I wrapped a bit of retired Iridescent ribbon around the layer before adhering. Next I used gold foil and the Flourish & Frames hot foil dies to make the frame shape.

  The Sunset Coast stamp set is then used to stamp the scene right onto the frame.  Two of the clouds as well as the sailboats were stamped on scrap cardstock then die cut and added to the scene with dimensionals for a nice layered effect.  The whole frame is then popped on the card front with dimensionals.

  The sentiment is stamped in Blueberry Bushel and then fussy cut and added to the edge of the frame.  I didn't want to cover too much of the foiling or scene!  The final touch are a few Sunset Sparkle Sequins added to opposite corners.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Sunset Coast

Ink: Balmy Blue, Timid Tiger, Blueberry Bushel, Crushed Curry, Strawberry Slush

Paper: Scenic Coast DSP, Basic White

Hot Foil: gold foil, Flourish & Frames Hot Foil Dies

Accessories: Sunset Sparkle Sequins, dimensionals, Iridescent ribbon (retired)

You Did It Crew - Stampin' Up!® Cutest Crew

   I realized yesterday that I needed to do a card for the customer challenge I put up in my Facebook customer group.  It was a color challenge and I only realized after the fact that 2 of the colors listed have retired.  Oh well, that's what I get for planning challenges out too far.  It at least it gave me a chance dig through my DSP and see what I had!  And I have to tell you I was so surprised the the Florals in Bloom DSP is still available!  And even better it's currently on sale for the month of August so don't wait to order it if you don't already have it!  I used one of the sweet flower patterns for this simple congrats card.

  Who wouldn't want to be celebrated by these little cuties from the Cutest Crew stamp set?  I pulled the layout from the SUO Challenge which is to CASE one of the samples on page 13 of the Stampin' Up! May-August catalog.  They are all great samples and I had a hard time deciding!  

  I started with a piece of retired Petunia Pop for the card base, then used a panel of Basic White to stamp the sentiment from Balloon Festoon towards the top in Gray Granite ink.  Since I don't have the Rounded Rectangle punch I made do with cut rectangles and a corner rounder punch to get approximately the same shape.  I made 3 DSP rectangles and then added them to the card front and trimmed off the overhang at the top and bottom.

  The birds from the Cutest Crew stamp set are stamped in Gray Granite then colored with Blends.  I fussy cut them and popped them up on dimensionals.  A few pink adhesive sequins finish off this super simple design.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Balloon Festoon, Cutest Crew

Ink: Gray Granite

Blends: Petunia Pop (retired), Pretty in Pink* (retired)

Paper: Petunia Pop (retired), Basic White, Florals in Bloom DSP

Accessories: dimensionals, corner rounder punch (retired), pink sequins (retired)

*currently on the Last Chance list

A Better World - Stampin' Up!® Nature's Symphony Dies

   I've neglected using the Natural Hues Specialty paper since I got it back in the spring but it works perfectly on today's card!  I made another card for my stamping book club series and this paper is a pretty close match to the background of the book cover!

   The book that inspired this card is The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris.  This book is set in Georgia shortly after the end of the Civil War.  Soldiers are returning home from war, newly freed slaves are trying to build a life away from the plantations and people are struggling with the changes in their way of life and in the middle of it all is George Walker and his wife Isabelle.  Longtime citizens of Old Ox, Georgia they've never quite fit in and when George decides to hire former slaves Landry and Prentiss to work on his farm an unlikely friendship forms and trouble comes to all of them.  

  I loved the bold colors of the cover and wanted to pull those in as well as the the texture of the background.  I used a piece of the Natural Hues Specialty paper for the card front.  Then used a slightly smaller piece and then lightly drug my Crumb Cake ink pad across it to highlight some of the texture in the paper.

  To make the leaves I blended Real Red, Cajun Craze and Timid Tiger in a random pattern on a piece of Basic White.  Next I flicked drops of water (a tie in to the title!) across the panel and let it dry before cutting out the leaves with the Nature's Symphony dies.

  I think this sentiment from the Fern & Flora stamp set goes well with the book theme because we definitely see some of the characters strive to make the world a better place despite all that is against them. The sentiment is stamped in black on a label from the Filled with Sweetness (also a book tie in lol) die cut label.  The label is popped on dimensionals with a length of copper ribbon tucked underneath.  A sprinkling of copper sequins is the final touch.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Fern & Flora

Ink: Real Red, Cajun Craze, Timid Tiger, Crumb Cake, Basic Black Hybrid

Paper: Natural Hues Specialty paper, Basic White

Accessories: Nature's Symphony dies, Filled with Sweetness dies, dimensionals, copper ribbon (retired), Neutrals Adhesive-backed Sequins (retired)

Lighthouse Congratulations - Stampin' Up!® Sunset Coast

   The Sunset Coast bundle along with the Scenic Coast DSP were highlighted at my new catalog open house a few weeks ago and it did not disappoint.  Sometimes you just need to let the dies and DSP shine (literally!) and let them do the heavy lifting for a design!

    This one starts with a Balmy Blue card base, then a 3" wide piece of Scenic Coast DSP is added to the middle of the card front.  Using a 3" piece gives you 2 cards from one of the 6x6 pieces and let me tell you you want to use larger pieces of this DSP because you want to get the gorgeous shine of the pattern in all its glory.  The iridescent details on the these papers is beautiful and really gives the effect of the water shimmering.  

  The next element is the Gorgeous Grape die cut lighthouse.  The big circle opening and the fact that I made this panel shorter really lets more of the DSP show through.  It's popped up on dimensionals.

  A few well placed die cuts in the fencing and seagulls completes the scene.  And a simple stamped sentiment keeps the attention on the lighthouse.  A few Sunset Sparkle Sequins adds some some shimmer for the finishing touch.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Sunset Coast

Ink: Blueberry Bushel

Paper: Balmy Blue, Gorgeous Grape, Basic White, Blueberry Bushel, Scenic Coast DSP

Accessories: Sunset Coast dies, Sunset Sparkles Sequins, dimensionals

Panther Graduation - Stampin' Up!® Cap & Gown

 It's still graduation season and I have another card from the giant stack that I have made lately.  When you have a kid graduating you tend to know a lot of other kids graduating and that requires a lot of cards lol!  I try to customize the colors for the school to change things up.  This red and blue was a nice change of pace from the teal of previous cards!

  I again used my trusty retired set Cap & Gown along with the current set Sending Salutations.  I started with a Blueberry Bushel base then a layer of Basic Black topped with a stamped panel of Real Red.  The graduation cap is stamped in a random pattern for the background.

  A Blueberry Bushel band added a but of detail behind the Basic White Spotlight on Nature die cut circle.

  The cap and gown are both stamped in Versamark on Basic White then embossed with black embossing powder.  I fussy cut them and popped them on the circle with dimensionals.

  The sentiment is stamped in Versamark and then embossed in gold.  The four corners are embellished with Gold Low Profile Dots.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Sending Salutations, Cap & Gown (retired)

Ink: Real Red, Versamark

Paper: Blueberry Bushel, Real Red, Basic Black, Basic White

Accessories: Spotlight on Nature dies, dimensionals, black embossing powder, gold embossing powder, Low Profile Dots (retired)

Biggest Fan Father's Day - Stampin' Up!® Match Day

   The CAS Colours & Sketches team is back with a new challenge for you!  This time we are working with a sketch from Rachel that has so many possibilities with the fun tag element!  

 Since the World Cup is about to start and we are a soccer family and Father's Day is coming I decided to combine the two with this great sketch!

  So I originally had the elements right on a Basic White thick card base but I realized after I had adhered everything that the card opened the wrong way!  Duh!  So I cut the front off and trimmed it down a bit and added it back to a Basic White base that opened the correct way!  What can I say, sometimes my card base creases are just too good lol!

  For my tag elements I layered a Basic Black one behind the A Wonderful Match DSP tag.  Some black baker's twine is used for the string.

  The jersey and sentiment are both stamped in Memento black.  The jersey is colored with Blends then die cut and added to the card with dimensionals.  The sentiment is fussy cut and also popped on dimensionals.

  I couldn't resist using a few retired black Adhesive-Backed Sparkle Gems to add a little bit of shine.  

  I can't wait to see how you use this great layout for your CAS designs.  Remember to keep it clean and simple, minimal layers and patterns with a clean look and lots of white space.  

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

 Stamps: Match Day (Online Exclusive)

Ink: Memento Black

Paper: Basic White thick, Basic White, Basic Black, A Wonderful Match DSP

Accessories: Match Day dies, (Online Exclusive), dimensionals, baker's twine, tag punch (retired), Adhesive-Backed Sparkle Gems (retired)

Father's Day Fern - Stampin' Up!® Fern & Flora

   The Fern & Flora bundle is a great pick for making Father's Day card for those nature loving dads out there.  Grab a masculine color combo like this one and start layering elements!

  Crumb Cake is a great neutral base for these masculine colors; Cloud Cover, Night of Navy and Peaceful Pine.  I pulled out my pack of Florals in Bloom DSP for the subtly striped piece in the background.  I was kind of surprised this one hasn't hit the Last Chance list yet as it has a lot of the recently retired In Colors but it's perfect if you want a mix of florals and simple patterns on the B side.  

  I embossed a piece of Peaceful Pine with the Fern & Flora embossing folder and backed it with a Basic White panel.  It's popped on dimensionals and then the stamped and die cut ferns are layered on top.  The stamped fern uses Peaceful Pine ink and then is colored in with the Soft Sea Foam Blends markers.  The stamped fern is also popped on dimensionals.

  The sentiment is from the Balloon Festoon stamp set and is stamped in Night of Navy and then trimmed down.  It's adhered over a strip of retired ribbon.

  The final touch are some retired Boho Blue dots.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Fern & Flora, Balloon Festoon

Ink: Night of Navy, Peaceful Pine

Blends: Soft Sea Foam light & dark

Paper: Crumb Cake, Basic White, Night of Navy, Peaceful Pine, Soft Sky, Florals in Bloom DSP

Accessories: Fern & Flora embossing folder, Fern & Flora dies, dimensionals, Night of Navy Bordered ribbon (retired), Boho Blue dots (retired)

Enjoy the Balloons - Stampin' Up!® Balloon Festoon

 The Balloon Festoon bundle is perfect for all kinds of celebration cards.  I've used it mainly for birthday cards lately as I have done on this card today.  The color combo is a pretty pastel one using two of the new In Colors; Hydrangea Hue and Crisp Cantaloupe along with Lemon Lolly.

  No crazy techniques or anything on this one.  I used the Forever Plaid embossing folder for texture on the background in Basic White so that the colors would really pop.

  The balloons are 3 different sizes with the 2 largest in cardstock and the smaller Crisp Cantaloupe one cut from 2026-2028 In Color Painted Pattern DSP.

  Dimensionals are used to pop the 2 top balloons and Basic Black cardstock is used for the string die cuts.

  The sentiment is stamped in Hydrangea Hue and backed with a bit of black and white polka dot Paper Medley DSP.

  A few Pearlized Faceted Circles bring a bit more of the Crisp Cantaloupe to the card as a finishing touch.

Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

 Stamps: Balloon Festoon

Ink: Hydrangea Hue, Lemon Lolly

Paper: Basic White, Basic Black, Hydrangea Hue, Lemon Lolly, 2026-2028 In Color Painted Pattern DSP, Paper Medley DSP

Accessories: Balloon Festoon dies, dimensionals, Forever Plaid embossing folder, Pearlized Faceted Circles

More Jaguar Graduation - Stampin' Up!® Cap & Gown

   The week of graduation activities has concluded and we have a high school graduate on our hands and summer has officially started!  I have to say I won't be sorry to delete all of the school related apps and notifications!  I ended up making several more graduation cards that I thought I would share all together instead of individually as you'd probably get sick of seeing them across multiple days!  I won't go into 'how to" details but the supplies are listed below each card.

Stamps: Cap & Gown (retired), Sending Salutations

Ink: Bermuda Bay (retired), Versamark

Paper: Basic Black, Basic White, Gold Glimmer (retired), 2024-2026 In Color DSP (retired), All Together DSP (retired)

Accessories: Party Banner dies, Forever Plaid embossing folder, dimensionals, gold embossing powder, star punches (retired)

Stamps: Cap & Gown (retired), Reason to Celebrate, Balloon Festoon

Ink: Memento Black, Bermuda Bay (retired), 

Paper: Basic White, Basic Black, Sunshine & Rainbows DSP (retired), Gold Glimmer paper (retired)

Accessories: dimensionals, star punches (retired)

Stamps: Cap & Gown (retired), Sending Salutations

Ink: Versamark, Memento Black, Bermuda Bay (retired), Summer Splash marker (retired)

Paper: Basic Black, Basic White, Sunshine & Rainbows DSP (retired), Bermuda Bay Glimmer paper (retired)

Accessories: Deckled Rectangle dies (retired), black embossing power, Sunny Day Iridescent Dots (retired)

Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Masculine Balloons - Stampin' Up!® Balloon Festoon

   The CAS Colours & Sketches challenge team is back with a new challenge to get you inspired for clean and simple designs.  This time is color combo!  Rachel has given us Night of Navy, Gray Granite and Balmy Blue.  Perfect colors for a masculine card if you need a place to start for the men in your life!  As you can see that's how I used them!  

  I always need a little help getting a guy card started so that's what I went with so I could beef up my stash of birthday cards.  And the Balloon Festoon bundle was a great pairing!

  I simply cut a few balloons in graduated sizes in the challenge color, added a little bit of stamping to the blue ones and embossed the Gray Granite one with the Beautiful Pattern embossing folder.

  I adhered them to a Basic White panel with the top two being popped on dimensionals.  I trimmed off the over hang and then hand drew the string with a marker.

  The sentiment from the Banner Sayings stamp set is stamped in Night of Navy at the bottom.  The whole panel is then adhered to a Basic White thick card base.

  Head over to the see the CAS Colours & Sketches design team inspiration and add your creation using these colors to the gallery.  Make sure to keep it clean and simple with minimal layers and patterns and lots of open space.

Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Balloon Festoon, Banner Sayings

Ink: Balmy Blue, Night of Navy

Paper: Night of Navy, Gray Granite, Balmy Blue, Basic White, Basic White thick

Accessories: Balloon Festoon dies, dimensionals, Beautiful Pattern embossing folder

Jaguar Graduation - Stampin' Up!® Cap & Gown

   With a graduating high school senior in our house this year I'm going to be making my share of graduation cards and I'm glad I held on to the retired Cap & Gown set.  Not only did I hold onto the stamp set I held onto my retired Bermuda Bay ink pad because it's a perfect match for the school colors!  I ran out of Bermuda Bay cardstock when my oldest graduated a few years ago but the ink pad is going strong and the just retired Summer Splash is close enough if needed (and I have a few sheets left thankfully!).

  I started with a Basic White thick card base then dug around in my retired DSPs and pulled out a black and white pattern from All Together and a Bermuda Bay pattern from Sunshine & Rainbows.  I backed them with opposite colored cardstock and then added the fun stuff.

 The larger sentiment is from Reason to Celebrate and the smaller sentiments are from Banner Sayings.  I tucked a bit of Bermuda Bay glimmer paper under the layers to jazz it up.

  The cap and gown are both stamped in Versamark on Basic White and then embossed in black.  I fussy cut the images and popped them on dimensionals onto the rectangle.

  The 'congratulations' from Sending Salutations is stamped in Bermuda Bay and then fussy cut.  It's popped on dimensionals as well.

  Finally a few Adhesive-backed Sparkle Gems and Adhesive-backed Sequins Trio are added for the last detail.

  Thanks for looking.  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Reason to Celebrate, Banner Sayings, Sending Salutations, Cap & Gown (retired)

Ink: Memento Black, Versamark, Bermuda Bay (retired)

Paper: Basic White, Basic White, Basic Black, Summer Splash (retired), All Together DSP (retired), Sunshine & Rainbows DSP (retired), Bermuda Bay Glimmer Paper (retired)

Accessories: black embossing powder, dimensionals, Adhesive-backed Sparkle Gems (retired), Adhesive-backed Sequins Trio (retired)

Fern Congratulations - Stampin' Up!® Fern & Flora Dies

     I'm continuing to pull out the Fern & Flora bundle for a lot of my stamping lately and I whipped this one up this afternoon for the current Freshly Made Sketches.  It seemed like the perfect time to use a piece of paper that I had set aside back in March.

  I participated in the Stampin' Up! OnStage After Hours event back in March and as part of the supply packet for the projects there was this 12x12 sheet in the front of the packet and it had a wide panel of one of the Moonlit Flora DSP patterns and I thought it was too nice to recycle after I was finished with the projects.  I cut it off and it's been sitting on my stamping desk ever since so today was the day to get some of it on a card!

  I started with a Golden Glow card base, then a layer of Golden Glow embossed with the Fern & Flora embossing folder.  Next I backed a panel of the "DSP" with Basic Black and popped it on dimensionals.

  Then a Peaceful Pine die cut fern is added to a Basic White rectangle die cut.  I added some of the fussy flowers in Golden Glow to bring more of that color to the front.

  To follow the sketch I needed to find a skinny sentiment and the Congratulations from Sunset Coast was perfect.

  3 Gold Glow In Color Dots are the only embellishment to finish off this "scraps" card.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Sunset Coast

Ink: Memento Black

Paper: Golden Glow, Basic Black, Basic White, Peaceful Pine

Accessories: Fern & Flora dies, Fern & Flora embossing folder, dimensionals, 2026-2028 In Color Dots, Stitched Rectangle dies (retired)

Good Things Ferns - Stampin' Up!® Fern & Flora

   Today's card is another one that features the Fern & Flora bundle.  If I haven't convinced you yet to add this bundle to your next order (if you don't already have it!) then keep stopping by to see what else I'm using it for because I think this versatile bundle should be in your stamp collection and I'm going to continue to show how I've been using it!

  This design came about after I saw the colors over at the Inspired By challenge and paired it up with some flowers and ferns!  I started with a Peaceful Pine card base, then a layer of Barely Blush.  On top of the Barely Blush I added a layer of Peaceful Pine embossed with the Fern & Flora embossing folder.  I added some Peaceful Pine ink along the edges using a blending brush.

  The sentiment from Banner Sayings is stamped on a band of Basic White in Secret Sea ink.  Next I cut out a fern in my 3 card colors and tucked them behind a Secret Sea die cut circle.

  The flower image from the Fern & Flora stamp set is stamped in Secret Sea ink and then colored in with Blends markers.  It's die cut then popped on dimensionals on the circle.

  A few 2026-2028 In Color Dots in Barely Blush are added as a final touch.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Fern & Flora, Banner Sayings

Ink: Secret Sea, Peaceful Pine

Blends: Peaceful Pine light, Barely Blush light & dark

Paper: Peaceful Pine, Barely Blush, Secret Sea, Basic White

Accessories: Fern & Flora embossing folder, Fern & Flora dies, Stylish Shapes dies, dimensionals, 2026-2028 In Color Dots

Retirement Sailing - Stampin' Up!® Sunset Coast

   I am trying to stock up on some cards for occasions besides the main ones like birthday, thank you and thinking of you so I pulled out the new Sunset Coast bundle and made a retirement card.  The front sentiment could be for a new job, graduation, moving/goodbye card or other occasion but my inside sentiment is a happy retirement one.  The blue and yellow prompt over at The Color Hues Challenge gave me the color combo. 

  I haven't done any ink techniques lately so I thought it would be fun to use some watercolor paper and a water painter to make my own background using blues and yellows.  I started at the top with Darling Duckling then Azure Afternoon and finally Night of Navy on the bottom.  I wet my water color paper first by spritzing it and then used the wide water painter and drops of reinker to spread the color all the way down. After I dried it with my heat tool I added it to a Basic White thick card base.

  Using the very cool Sunset Coast dies I cut the sailboat scene out of a panel of Night of Navy.  I wanted to jazz up the waves beneath the sailboat so I cut just that section out of some Peaceful Garden Glimmer paper (currently on the Last Chance list at a discount!) and inlaid the shimmer pieces to the openings in the big panel.  And to add a bit more shimmer the sails are covered with Wink of Stella.  The Sunset Coast bundle is available tomorrow when the Stampin' Up!® May-August 2026 catalog goes live.  

  A Darling Duckling band anchors the sentiment label and a few die cut shells out of more Peaceful Garden Glimmer paper are nice accents to the side.  

  I pulled out some retired Adhesive-Backed Milky Dots in Night of Navy to add to the 4 corners.

Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All of the current items used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE.  Items marked with a * will be available on May 5, 2026.

Stamps: Sunset Coast*

Ink: Darling Duckling, Azure Afternoon, Night of Navy

Paper: Basic White thick, watercolor paper, Night of Navy, Darling Duckling, Peaceful Garden Glimmer Paper

Accessories: Sunset Coast dies*, dimensionals, Wink of Stella, Adhesive-Backed Milky Dots(retired), Tasteful Label dies (retired)

All Occasion Nature - Stampin' Up!® Nature's Symphony

   I'm sharing the third and final card my stampers made at my last class.  I do a lot of seasonal cards at class for upcoming holidays so it's nice to add in one that can be an all occasion card for whatever my stampers might need that isn't associated with a season or holiday.  We used the Nature's Symphony bundle for this one and used the Reason to Celebrate stamp set to add a sentiment of their choice or they could add one at home if they'd rather.

  I had noted down this color combo a while back and I'm not sure where it's from but I thought it was a bit different and would work for an all occasion card.  The card base is Secret Sea, then a layer of Soft Sea Foam embossed with the Soft Waves embossing folder which is currently Last Chance and on sale as of today.  Don't wait if you haven't gotten this one yet!  A narrow strip of Calypso Coral is added to the Soft Sea Foam layer.

  The branch is stamped in Soft Sea Foam and is die cut along with another branch in Fresh Freesia.  The branches are tucked together then adhered with dimensionals then added to the card front.  Using dimensionals to put the two branches together eliminates or reduces the need for glue or snail adhesive which can be hard to apply to the small leaves and the leaves with the die cut details.  The sentiment is stamped in Secret Sea and then the end is flagged before it's popped on a dimensional.

  A Secret Sea Bordered Open Weave ribbon knot is added to the stems with a glue dot. And finally a few Flat Pearls in Secret Sea are added.

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Nature's Symphony, Reason to Celebrate

Ink: Secret Sea, Soft Sea Foam

Paper: Secret Sea, Soft Sea Foam, Fresh Freesia, Calypso Coral, Basic White

Accessories: Nature's Symphony dies, dimensionals, Soft Waves embossing folder, Secret Sea Bordered Open Weave ribbon, 2025-2027 In Color Flat Pearls, dimensionals

Big Celebration - Stampin' Up!® Balloon Festoon

    My birthday (or celebration/congratulations) card today is another sneak peek at the upcoming Balloon Festoon bundle which will be available on May 5.  I zeroed in on the die set as soon as I saw it in the catalog.  The are balloon dies from small to large!  Think of the Party Banner dies but in balloon shape!  The largest is almost 6" tall by almost 4 1/2" wide so that's a nice big size for banners or scrapbook pages or any other project you want balloons for, not just cards!  I used the largest one on an angle for this card.

  My colors today are from another closed challenge; the Color Hues fuchsia and navy which I translated to Berry Burst and Night of Navy in Stampin' Up! colors.

  The card base is Night of Navy then I cut the large balloon from Berry Burst.  The spots are stamped in Versamark then embossed with clear embossing powder which doesn't show up well in the photo but just stamping with colored ink would give a similar look.  I angled the balloon and trimmed off the overhang from the edges.

  I used the balloon stamp and stamped it in Night of Navy with a Basic White string.

  The 'celebrate' is stamped in Night of Navy with the Simple Alphabet stamp set and then the letters were fussy cut and popped on dimensionals.  

  I added a bakers twine bow to the large balloon and then a single retired Iridescent Adhesive-backed Disc to the last 'e'.  It gives a little bit of shine to go with the shine of the embossed dots.

 Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All of the current products used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE. Items marked with a * will be available on May 5, 2026

Stamps: Simple Alphabet (Online Exclusive), Balloon Festoon*

Ink: Night of Navy, Versamark

Paper: Night of Navy, Berry Burst, Basic White

Accessories: Balloon Festoon dies*, dimensionals, white baker's twine, clear embossing powder, Iridescent Adhesive-Backed Disc (retired)

Balloon Bunch Birthday - Stampin' Up!® Balloon Festoon

 I send a lot of birthday cards throughout the year and I like to have a variety of stamp sets that I can use to create them and the new Balloon Festoon bundle which will be released in the May-August 2026 catalog fit the bill!  I love the sentiments and the fun confetti and banner stamps as well as the great dies which are small to large balloons that will be great for a lot of projects!  I paired this new bundle with the bright colors of the current TGIF Challenge; Strawberry Slush, Timid Tiger and Lemon Lime Twist.

  I started with a Strawberry Slush card base, then a layer of Basic White that is embossed with the Beautiful Pattern embossing folder (get it now!  It's on the Last Chance list at a discount right now!). 

  Since this is my first time inking this set up I kept it pretty simple just stamped the balloon in each of the 3 colors but stamped off for a lighter look.  Then I went back and added the different patterns in full strength ink over the top.  The balloons are die cut with a matching string.  They are added to the card front with the Lemon Lime Twist balloon popped on dimensionals.  

  The sentiment is embossed in black on a strip of Strawberry Slush with banner ends added.  The banner is popped on dimensionals over the balloon strings and a black baker's twine bow.  

  Finally a few embellishments that match the card colors for a bit of sparkle.

  I'm looking forward to exploring all the different ways to use this bundle and making some really fun projects with it!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All of the current products used to make this card can be purchased in my ONLINE STORE. Items marked with a * will be available May 5 in the Stampin' Up!® May-August 2026 catalog.

Stamps: Balloon Festoon*

Ink: Strawberry Slush, Timid Tiger, Lemon Lime Twist, Versamark

Paper: Strawberry Slush, Basic White

Accessories: Balloon Festoon dies*, Beautiful Pattern embossing folder, dimensionals, black embossing powder, gems, sequins

Cutest Birds Hello - Stampin' Up!® Cutest Crew

   

Today the New at SU! blog hop team is back with a brand new round of projects showing off products from the recently released Stampin' Up!® March Online Exclusives.  We've got stampers from around the world showcasing these new products and showing you all the fun ways you can use them in your own crafting.  Be sure to hop around to see everyone's project and leave a little love for all the creativity!  The hop list is at the bottom of my post!

  My projects use the Cutest Crew bundle which I fell in love with as soon as I saw it in the preorder.  And I must not be the only one to love it because it went out of stock several times just in the demonstrator preorder!  I have a card and a little treat item using this fun bundle!

 Look at how cute these little bird die cuts are!!  This is a super simple card to put together and a great way to use up bits of scrap cardstock!  I'm using a Misty Moonlight card base and then a wide panel of Basic White embossed with the Beautiful Pattern embossing folder.  

 

  I die cut the birds out of a variety of cardstock colors (you'll see why with the second project!) and I used Adhesive Sheets with the cardstock so that each bird is a little sticker to make it mess free for adhering.  I just lined them up in rows then added the stamped sentiment below accented with a few gems.

  Now why did I have so many of these little birds?  This is why!  I made little mini wrapped Hershey chocolate bars to bring to Stampin' Up!® OnStage in Long Beach, CA last week.  I like to be able to exchange info with other stampers and they are a bit more fun than a business card!  

  I used the February Product of the Month, Painted Illusions DSP (which is still available) and pulled my bird colors from that and just made easy little sweet treat "business cards".  I handed these out to new stamping friends I met the whole time in Long Beach as well as hotel and airport staff.  All the leftover birds went onto the card.

  And I have to tell you that I'm lucky I made this card before leaving for CA last week because I had planned to do a card with each of the animals for this hop when I got home but as the travel gods would have it that was not to be because my connecting flight through Dallas back to Richmond on Sunday evening was cancelled and I didn't make it back home until Tuesday so I would have been hard pressed to get any project done at all!  

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

All of the current supplies used for these projects is available in my ONLINE STORE.

Stamps: Cutest Crew (Online Exclusive)

Ink: Misty Moonlight (card), Pretty Peacock (candy label)

Paper: Misty Moonlight, Lost Lagoon, Petal Pink, Pretty Peacock, Flirty Flamingo, Darling Duckling, Granny Apple Green, Basic White, Painted Illusions DSP (Feb. POM)

Accessories: Cutest Crew dies (Online Exclusive), Beautiful Pattern embossing folder, adhesive sheets, faceted gems (retired)

Game Day! - Stampin' Up!® Match Day

   A week or two ago I shared a soccer card that I made for encouragement for my 17 year old when he was trying out for the high school team.  I'm happy to report that he made the team and today's card is one that I'll give him before their first game tomorrow!

  I loosely used the SUO Challenge layout.  I flipped the sketch to accommodate the size of the net and I also didn't tuck the soccer balls behind as shown in the sketch but I wanted to definitely give credit for my inspiration.

  The background is a piece of A Wonderful Match DSP, then the net die cut in Basic White.  Next I added the die cut soccer balls on the corners.  The sentiment is stamped in Summer Splash and is trimmed to flag ends.  It's popped on dimensionals.

  The flags are stamped but the one facing to the right done with the mirror image stamping technique. This is a great technique to use when you have an image that you want to duplicate and have it face the opposite way.  Check out this video to see how it's done.

After the flags were stamped I colored, die cut then added them to the card by the soccer balls.  the final detail which I think is really fun and gives a nice bit of shine are the tufts of grass that are popped on mini dimensionals at the base of the goal.  I used some retired Festive Glimmer paper which was a perfect match!

  Hopefully the Jags can come away with a win the first game to set them up for a great season going forward!

  Thanks for looking!  Did you stamp today?

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

Stamps: Match Day (Online Exclusive)

Ink: Memento Black, Summer Splash

Blends: Summer Splash light & dark, Crumb Cake light & dark

Paper: A Wonderful Match DSP, (Online Exclusive), Basic White, Basic Black, Festive Glimmer Paper (retired)

Accessories: Match Day dies (Online Exclusive), dimensionals