Coming Soon · Gathering Together · Online Exclusives

UnbeLEAFably Thankful

This week is all about fall. I heard on the radio yesterday that we’re just about 6 weeks from fall. And fall just happens to be my favorite season of the year. So naturally, I was pretty thrilled to hear that it’s just around the corner. Annnnnd we’re supposed to get a fall-like front moving through our area this weekend, so we’ll get a little preview of the wonderful fall weather we have to look forward to!

Our featured design product this week is the new Online Exclusive suite by Stampin’ Up! called Gathering Together. And today the diecuts are taking center stage. The fun thing about the large-scale dies in this bundle is the detail die that allows you to add the ribbing to the leaves. In this case, I chose to stitch the ribbing with linen thread, but you could just as easily use a marker to fill in the details or even use a fine-tip Versamark pen and heat emboss. The possibilities are endless!

Our card today gets started with a base of Cajun Craze cardstock. I used a sheet of the foiled plaid as the backdrop for the focal images. The reverse side of the foiled plaid made the perfect detailing at the bottom of the focal panel. And I used a sheet of brushed gold foil to mat the focal panel to add an extra bit of glimmering gold in the background. I used the oak leaf die from the Gathering Moments set to cut two leaves – one from Pretty Peacock and one from Very Vanilla Season of Elegance sheets. I love the look of the gold-foiled leaves. The detail die adds the stitch lines that are then filled in with Cajun Craze linen thread. You could use any color thicker thread you have on hand or simply fill in with a matching marker. The leaves are adhered to the card front with dimensionals. The sentiment from Gathering Moments is stamped on Very Vanilla and die cut using the smaller Traditional Labels die and then a sheet of Old Olive Festive glimmer paper serves as the mat. The sentiment is adhered over a bow of gold trim and then placed in the bottom right corner of the card front and adhered with several layers of dimensionals to ensure it sits proud above the leaves. For a little extra sparkled, I added a few drusy embellishments to draw the eye down and across the center of the panel and down to the sentiment.

Tune in tomorrow to see how we can use this suite to create a fun fold design.

Products used in today’s card:
Cajun Craze, Very Vanilla cardstock
Season of Elegance, Festive glimmer paper (retired), Brushed gold foil, Gathering Together (coming next week) DSP
Gathering Moments stamps & dies (coming next week)
Traditional Labels dies (coming next week)
Cajun Craze linen thread (retired), gold trim
Drusy embellishments
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Coming Soon · Gathering Together · Online Exclusives

Heartfelt Gratitude

It’s another bright & shiny week. Are you ready for it? We enjoyed a nice weekend of family time. It’s always a great start to the week coming off a solid family-togetherness weekend. And with a teenager in the house, I’ll take as many of those as I’m given! *wink*

We’re starting a new design series this week and another week of Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini catalog sneak peeks. This week, we’ll be working with a new Online Exclusive suite called Gathering Together. The suite includes some beautiful foiled fall-inspired paper, coordinating stamps & dies, an embossing folder, linen twine, and embellishments. I personally chose products from this suite because they pair beautifully with other current products, like the Season of Elegance paper pack and Mossy Meadow & Gold ribbon.

I used a clean and simple card sketch to turn out this beauty. We get started with a base of Early Espresso cardstock. I cut a piece of the foiled leaf paper from the Gathering Together paper pack to serve as the backdrop for the focal panel in the center. The sentiment from the Gathering Moments stamp set serves as our focal point and is stamped in Cajun Craze on a piece of Very Vanilla cardstock that is diecut with the Traditional Labels dies. I cut a second panel from gold specialty paper, cut it in half, and mounted it behind the sentiment panel as a mat. The two leaves from Gathering Moments are stamped in Cajun Craze & Mossy Meadow on two different sheets of Season of Elegance paper and then cut with the coordinating Gathering Moments die and mounted on opposing corners of the sentiment panel using dimensionals. Cajun Craze & Gold dots on either side of sentiment bring the eye in to the center. The sentiment panel is mounted on dimensionals over a bow of Mossy Meadow & Gold ribbon in the center of the card. We finish things off with a few Drusy embellishments for a bit of extra sparkle.

I hope you’ll pop in tomorrow to see some cool features of the gorgeous dies in this set.

Products used in today’s card:
Early Espresso, Very Vanilla cardstock
Gathering Together (coming next week), Season of Elegance, gold foil DSP;
Gathering Moments stamps & dies (coming next week)
Cajun Craze & Gold dots (coming next week), drusy embellishments
Mossy Meadow & Gold ribbon
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Online Exclusives

Grateful Heart

Happy Independence Day, everyone! We are certainly thankful to live here in the great U. S. of A. and are looking forward to reflecting on all that makes America great!

This week, we’re creating designs using some of the new Online Exclusives that launched this week. Today’s design uses the Label Me Grateful bundle to create a stunning thank-you card.

We get started with a base of Misty Moonlight cardstock. The tone-on-tone backdrop is created using the detail dies in the Label Me Grateful die set. The leaves and twigs are adhered directly to the card base, leaving space in the center for the focal panel. Our focal panel begins with a backdrop of Thoughtful Designs specialty paper cut with the label die from Label Me Grateful. The sentiment from the coordinating stamp set is stamped in a combination of Cloud Cover and Versamark and then heat embossed for a touch of glossy sparkle. And as an added bonus, I happened to have some glitter embossing powder! The sentiment is cut out using the Everyday Arches dies. I had some Country Flowers white glimmer paper flowers leftover from another project that I chose to use as an accent at the bottom of the sentiment panel. I cut a few leaves from Mossy Meadow with the Label Me Grateful die to make the flower look more finished. The sentiment panel is adhered over silver & white sheer ribbon with dimensionals onto the Thoughtful Designs backdrop panel. The focal panel is then adhered in the center of the card with dimensionals. Drusy embellishments finish things off with a nice amount of sparkle.

We’re going to be putting the focus on embellishments for our next project. Hope you pop in to check it out!

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Online Exclusives

Monster Mash

Happy Wacky Wednesday, as my kiddo likes to say! Part of me can’t believe it’s Wednesday, and then at the same time, it seems like the longest week ever. Funny how short weeks with holidays are always like that. Wacky for sure!

This week, we’re having fun designing with some of the new Online Exclusive products that launched this week. And today we’re playing with the new Spooky Sweet paper and ephemera again because I just couldn’t resist these cute critters all dressed up and ready for a good party! When I first saw the sheet of paper in the pack with all of the Halloween cuties on it, all I could think of was the song Monster Mash. And *voila* that’s how this design came to life.

We get started with a base of Highland Heather cardstock. I used another one of the 4×5 panels from another Spooky Sweet sheet as the background panel. It reminded me of a photo prop. What do you think? Next to the arches of our photo area, we adhere two of the large urns from the ephemera sheet and then place the mummy hippo in front on a layer of dimensionals. I cut two of the cute critters from Halloween cuties sheet in the pack and used multiple layers of dimensionals to adhere them in front of our hippo to give the effect of these little guys being more in front of our hippo who’s striking his best pose. To add to the festive atmosphere, we’ve hung some banners in the back and have some sparkly confetti falling. So simple but so cute!

Tomorrow we’re going to see more of the Label Me Grateful bundle. I hope you drop by and check it out!

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Online Exclusives

Fairy Korn

Welcome in on this fine Tuesday! We’re enjoying a cool front here, which makes it a bit more pleasant to be outside. And anytime you can enjoy a July evening outside is a good one in Texas!

Did you get a chance to see all of the new products that dropped today? There’s a whole new batch of Stampin’ Up! Online Exclusives and 2 new kits. If you haven’t seen the new goodies yet, you should pop over to my store and take a look! This week, we’re creating designs that use some of these new products. Today, I’m showcasing the new Spooky Sweet paper pack and included ephemera. You can easily whip up adorable Halloween-themed scenes like this one.

This card gets started with a base of Basic Black cardstock. I cut one of the 4×5 cards from the Spooky Sweet scene sheet to serve as the backdrop for this scene card, and it’s matted with a piece of the pink/purple pastel ombre shimmer paper for some extra sparkly pizzazz. A handful of ephemera create our focal section, which is a combination of the cute bear dressed up as a fairy, a cauldron and bubbles, some candy corn, and a bat. Dimensionals are the key to giving lots of depth to this scene. Wink of Stella adds subtle twinkle to the fairy’s wings, crown, and scepter, as well as the cauldron bubbles. I also added some rhinestone and shimmer gems to the fairy’s crown, some clear gems to the cauldron bubbles, and finished off the night sky with a few shimmer foam stars. Easy peasy!

Tomorrow we’re headed to the monster mash. I hope you’ll drop in!

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Coming Soon · Online Exclusives

Appreciated

Welcome to a bright, shiny week all full of fun and possibilities! We had a nice lowkey weekend. With things really heating up here in North Texas, there wasn’t much fun to be had outside unless you were up for frying an egg on the sidewalk! *wink*

We’re starting a new design series this week. With a whole new set of Online Exclusives dropping tomorrow, we’re going to be taking a closer look at some of the things that I just couldn’t wait to get my hands on. And first up is the Label Me Grateful bundle, which is a set of lovely scripted sentiments and a set of dies that includes a large label and accent pieces. Today, I’m pairing it up with the Timeless Plaid paper to create a nice masculine card.

We get started with a base of neutral Crumb Cake cardstock. A sheet of the green plaid paper from the Timeless Plaid pack serves as our backdrop. I used the label die from the new Label Me Grateful set to cut a piece of Cloud Cover Flower Garden foil. The sentiment from the Label Me Grateful stamp set is stamped in Secret Sea on white cardstock and then cut with the middle label die from the Mixed Labels die set using the extension method. The sentiment is adhered over a twist of the new Mossy Meadow & Gold trim using dimensionals. I cut a few sprigs of greenery and a flower from pastel ombre glimmer paper and tucked them next to the sentiment. One of the new Secret Sea charming shimmer faceted dots serves as the floral center, while gold flecked gems flank the sentiment panel on either side.

Tune in tomorrow to see what’s cooking up next. *spooky*

Products releasing tomorrow!
Label Me Grateful stamps & dies
Mossy Meadow & gold trim
Charming shimmer faceted dots

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Online Exclusives · Sketchy Fridays

Sketchy Fridays: You Can!

As I mentioned in my earlier post today, my week kind-of got away from me. So we’re having our Sketchy Fridays post today instead. This week, we’re working with a nature theme and with a dreary, rainy day here in North Texas, I’m finding myself leaning into a water theme for our next card design.

For those of you who are new here, Sketchy Fridays is a weekly series where we’re using a card sketch to design our featured card. Right now, we’re working through a full series of designs using the card sketches found in current Stampin’ Up! catalogs.

This week’s card is based on Sketch #7 from the Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog. Today’s design features the Otterly Adorable suite from one of the latest Stampin’ Up! Online Exclusives releases.

I just love the Otterly Adorable suite and was actually just mentioning to my husband how I hadn’t used it much. So as I was looking for a sketch, I had this set on my mind. One of the things we’ve talked about throughout our Sketchy Fridays series is that sometimes your final design follows a sketch to a tee, while other times the sketch was just your jumping off point. And I think for today’s card, my selected sketch from the SU! Annual Catalog was more of an inspiration for the placement of the card elements I had in mind. The beautiful thing about crafting is that there are NO rules!

We get started on this card with a base of Pretty Peacock cardstock. I chose the fish pattern from the Otterly Adorable paper pack as the focal panel backdrop and cut it out using the largest Textured Notes die. For the focal image, I chose the baby otter swimming with its parents because it seemed to work perfectly for the chosen sentiment of “you can do this.” I cut out the otters using the Spotlight on Nature dies. I wanted the focal image to stand out against the backdrop, so I matted it with some Pretty Peacock glimmer paper cut out with a slightly larger circle from the Spotlight on Nature die set. To add a bit more color and visual interest around the otters, I cut the smaller fish from Flirty Flamingo cardstock using the Otterly Amazing dies and then used my glue pen to adhere them. The otters are adhered to the sparkly mat with dimensionals and then adhered directly to the fishy backdrop. The sentiment from Saying Hey (currently on the Last Chance list!) is stamped in Pretty Peacock on a panel of the water paper from the Otterly Amazing paper pack that has been diecut using the Something Fancy banner die. I adhered this over a twist of some gold thread with two layers of dimensionals to be sure the sentiment really stands out. The full focal panel is adhered to the card base with dimensionals and we finish things off with a few Lost Lagoon faceted gems and riverside irregular pearls.

Next week, we’re going to look at some of my favorites that are on the Last Chance list. I hope you’ll follow along!

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Online Exclusives · Pattern of Friendship

Joy & Laughter

TGIF, everybody! We’ve made it to the end of the week. And it’s certainly been a busy one. Finishing up the work week and packing for a trip is no small task, and that completely put me off schedule yesterday. But in between packing and cleaning today in preparation for our family spring break trip, I squeezed in a little time to make this cutie.

This week, we’ve been exploring all of the cute ways that we can use the new Pattern of Friendship bundle from Stampin’ Up! And today, we’re pairing it up with the Bright Skies and Playing in the Rain dies to make this chipper scene. I also tried a new stamp technique to create an ombré effect with the sentiment and I’m pretty pleased with how it turned out!

This design starts with a base of white cardstock. I love how it makes the scene really pop. The scene is built on a base of Balmy Blue cardstock. I wanted the grassy hills to look like they were freshly mowed and so I began by using the Pattern of Friendship die to make the mower lines in the Lemon Lime Twist panel before cutting the hills using the Bright Skies long cloud die. I already had the flowers cut from a previous project — they’re a combination of Mossy Meadow and Pretty in Pink. I adhered the grass and flowers with dimensionals and create depth with different heights. I added a few clouds to the sky that are cut from Graceful Greenery vellum with the Bright Skies dies. The sentiment is stamped in between in Misty Moonlight that is stamped off using different pressure across the stamp to create an ombré look to the stamped sentiment. I finished things off by cutting a butterfly from the pastel ombré glimmer paper using the Playing in the Rain dies and added two tone sparkle gems to the wings to give some definition to the butterfly. A few starburst sequins finish things off with a little detailed sparkle.

I’ll be taking tomorrow off to enjoy some time with the family. I hope you all have a fantastic weekend! I’ll be popping in on Monday to bring you a perfectly festive design. ☘️ I hope you’ll check it out!

Products used in today’s card:
Basic White, Balmy Blue, Lemon Lime Twist, Mossy Meadow, Pretty in Pink cardstock
Graceful Greenery vellum, pastel ombré glimmer paper
Pattern of Friendship bundle
Bright Skies, Playing in the Rain dies
Two tone sparkle gems, starburst sequins
Dimensionals

Online Exclusives · Pattern of Friendship

Let’s Keep in Touch

We’re already halfway through this week, folks! My fellow demos are off to North Carolina for the annual Stampin’ Up! convention. And I’m here at home prepping for a little spring break adventure with the fam in just a few days. Needless to say, I’m actually a little sad that this week is halfway gone!

This week, our designs feature the new Online Exclusive bundle called Pattern of Friendship. I’ve had a lot of fun coming up with different ways to use this fun set. Today we’re pairing it up with the Hot Air Balloon dies and Everyday Skies paper. See if you can spot where the fun texture die comes into play.

We get started with a base of white cardstock. I chose white to provide contrast with the focal panel. Our focal panel starts with a piece of Petal Pink glimmer paper that is diecut with the Textured Notes dies. This serves as the eye-catching mat for our focal sheet of Everyday Skies patterned paper that is diecut with the Perennial Postage dies. I cut two hot air balloons with the Hot Air Balloon dies. And for a fun little twist, I add texture to both balloons with the Pattern of Friendship die and the Painted Texture embossing folder. To give some dimension to the scene, I adhered the balloons on dimensionals of different heights. I added a few clouds that I cut from Graceful Greenery vellum using the Hot Air Balloon dies. The sentiment from Pattern of Friendship is stamped in Cajun Craze on white cardstock and then cut with the small banner die from the Countryside Corners dies. I scattered some shiny sequins across the panel for some eye-catching sparkle.

We’ll look for more fun ways to make patterns as we continue our design series through the week. I hope you’ll stop in and check it out.

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Online Exclusives · Pattern of Friendship

Birthday Plaid

Our featured product for this week’s designs is the new Pattern of Friendship bundle that just released in the Stampin’ Up! Online Exclusives section. This fun bundle comes with a set of stamps and a large-scale pattern die. And today we’re pairing it up with the Timeless Plaid and Wildflower Birthday papers to create a fun birthday card.

We get started with a base of Lost Lagoon cardstock. I used a sheet of Crumb Cake as the mat for the focal panel to provide some structure and stability to the panel. The mat has some detailing on the edges thanks to the Textured Notes die. I chose a sheet of the blue-green Timeless Plaid paper as the focal panel background and added some additional detailing with the Pattern of Friendship die before cutting it down to size with a smaller Textured Notes die. I loved the smaller cupcake panel from the Wildflower Birthdays accessories set and cut it down a little smaller using the Greetings of the Season dies. I ended up deciding not to use the decorative portion with the hole in the center and instead option to make a square with rounded corners instead. The sentiment from Pattern of Friendship is stamped in Misty Moonlight on Very Vanilla and then cut with the Autumn Leaves die using the extension method. I wrapped the ends with gold thread to tie the sentiment and focal image together with their gold elements. I added a few gold low profile dots for a pop of shimmer.

Sometimes our patterns don’t have to be complicated to be interesting. And playing up the plaid pattern was just the ticket for today’s card. I hope you’ll tune in tomorrow for another fun way to have the new Pattern of Friendship set work for you.

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