Joyful ephemera

August 15, 2024August 14, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

This week, we’re getting a sneaky peek at some of the upcoming products that will release with the new Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini catalog, which officially goes live on September 6th. Today’s card features some of the new ephemera packs. What are ephemera packs, you might wonder? Well, the packs in the current lineup offer colorful words, images, and/or sentiments that are preprinted and ready to be added to your card. They’re a wonderful way to make beautiful cards when you are short on time.

For today’s card, we’re using a combination of the new Joyful Images Ephemera and Joyful Sayings Ephemera. We’re pairing them up with the new Take a Bow designer series paper pack and Sketch #5 from the Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog. Let’s take a closer look at how it all comes together.

We get started with a base of Garden Green cardstock. Our striped banner background element is a sheet of the new Take a Bow paper that is diecut with the Nested Essentials banner dies using the extension method. The green spotted background element is another pattern included in the Take a Bow paper pack and is diecut using the largest square in the Nested Essentials set using the extension method. This panel serves as the backdrop for the focal images of evergreens and an elk from the Joyful Images pack. These adhered to the background panel with varying layers of dimensionals. Our sentiment comes from the Joyful Sayings pack and an evergreen sprig and pinecone are added to tie everything together. The sentiment is matted with a banner of Festive Glimmer paper and then adhered on the focal panel with dimensionals. A faux bow of Cherry Cobbler & Gold satin ribbon behind the focal panel adds another pop of red. A few Earth Tones shimmer gems add sparkle and draw the eye across our card design.

This card came together in a jiffy and I love having the ephemera packs on hand to make cute cards on the fly. I chose a more neutral theme for today’s card, but the pack has images that would make cute Christmas or winter-themed cards. We’ll take a closer look in the coming weeks.

Tomorrow we’re diving into the Season of Elegance suite, and I think you’re going to love it! Pop in and check it out.

Products used in today’s card:
Garden Green cardstock
Take a Bow, Festive Glimmer DSP (both coming soon!)
Joyful Images, Joyful Sayings ephemera (both coming soon!)
Cherry Cobbler & Gold satin ribbon (coming soon!)
Earth Tones shimmer gems (coming soon!)
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Good Courage

August 14, 2024August 13, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

Happy Wednesday, everyone! Halfway through the week we already are. As I mentioned on Monday, it’s been run-run-run around here as we adjust to our schoolyear routine. On that note, you may have noticed that I haven’t released a new Terrific Tuesdays video the last 2 weeks and that is why. We’ve focused on family time and getting adjusted to the new routine. I’m working on some new fun folds that I look forward to sharing with you in the next episode, so have no fear, new content is coming!

But for now, this week we’re sneak peeking into the new Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini catalog that goes live on September 6th. And today’s card design features a new bundle called Nests of Winter, which includes coordinating patterned paper, stamps, dies, embossing folder, shimmer gems, and linen thread. I really love when the dies and paper can be used together, and our card today showcases that beautifully. So let’s take a closer look.

We get started with a base of Shaded Spruce cardstock. Our background panel consists of two different patterns from the Nests of Winter paper pack. I paired the Garden Green stripe with the white birch pattern. I used the Winterly Treetops dies to diecut the bird elements. One of the patterns in the paper pack includes them both, and I liked the look of them both together on one card. Our sentiment from the Courage & Faith set is stamped in black on white cardstock and then diecut using the Greetings of the Season die. I carefully placed the oriole over the pre-punched hole in the die. I placed a twist of Shaded Spruce satin & sheer ribbon behind the sentiment panel to make our color palette more cohesive and added a few drusy embellishments to add sparkle and draw the eye across our design.

This suite would pair perfectly with the sketches in the Annual Catalog. And BONUS, there’s a whole new set of sketches in the Holiday Mini catalog, too! And I look forward to sharing more of this suite with you so you can appreciate just how wonderful it is.

Tomorrow we’re going wild with ephemera. Tune in to see how you can shortcut your way to beautiful cards!

Products used in today’s card:
Shaded Spruce, Basic White cardstock
Nests of Winter DSP (coming soon!)
Winterly Treetops (coming soon!), Greetings of the Season dies
Courage & Faith stamps
Shaded Spruce satin & sheer ribbon (coming soon!)
Drusy embellishments (coming soon!)
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Coming Soon · Holiday Mini Catalog

A Friend Like You

August 13, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

Well, the kiddo had a great first day of school yesterday and now we’re just working on getting back into the schoolyear routine. Anyone else feel like that gets more challenging as they get older? For now, I’m just trying to stay afloat and keep all of the balls in the air. So things will be a little less predictable here in Song Sparrow land this week.

Speaking of this week, we’re on to a new card design series. Each day this week, we’re going to taking a sneak peek at items that will be offered in the upcoming Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini Catalog. And today, we’re looking at another pack of gorgeous patterned paper called Splendid Autumn. This 6×6 paper pack is another in the line of watercolor paper designs and, just like the packs that have come before it, Splendid Autumn does NOT disappoint! Each and every sheet is just stunning. And today, it’s standing front and center in this clean and simple card design. So let’s get a closer look at how this comes together.

We start with a base of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. I chose the bridal wreath wildflower patterned sheet from the Splendid Autumn designer series paper pack as the focal panel. The sentiment from the new stamp set called Winterly Tree Tops is stamped on white cardstock and then diecut using the new set of dies called Peaceful Season. I added some Blackberry Bliss gems to the center of each design on each end of the sentiment for a little added sparkle. Before adhering the sentiment with dimensionals to the focal panel, I added a faux bow of Cajun Craze and Garden Green linen thread behind. A few extra iridescent faceted gems and a little butterfly diecut from Graceful Greenery vellum diecut with the Painted Lavender die finish things off nicely.

I’ll be showing you more of the newest patterned papers in the coming weeks, but what do you think of this teaser? Is this paper not just beautiful?! Tune in tomorrow as we take a look at another soon-to-release paper pack, along with its coordinating stamp and die set. You really won’t want to miss it!

Products used in today’s card:
Blackberry Bliss, Basic White cardstock
Splendid Autumn DSP (coming soon!)
Winterly Tree Tops stamps (coming soon!)
Peaceful Season (coming soon!), Painted Lavender dies
Natural Tones linen thread (coming soon!)
Regal foiled dots (coming soon!), iridescent faceted gems
Wink of Stella
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Coming Soon · Holiday Mini Catalog

Thinking of You Always

August 12, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

Welcome to a bright, new shiny week, crafty friends! It’s started off a busy one here for sure, hence the lateness of my post. Today is the first day of school in our school district. Don’t you find it funny when you’ve spent weeks with your kid picking out new clothes for school and kid then decides to wear things he’s worn a hundred times?!

This week, I thought it would be fun to tour the box of preorder goodies I just received for the Stampin’ Up! Holiday Mini catalog. So each day, I’ll be bringing you a sneak peek of items that will be available in my online store on September 4th. Ready??

We’re getting started today with some gorgeous designer series paper called Regal Winter. This paper pack is full of gorgeous floral images in hues of Berry Burst, Blackberry Bliss, Cherry Cobbler, Night of Navy, Pretty Peacock, Shaded Spruce, and Wild Wheat. And it’s even prettier in person! I have soooo many ideas running in my head for this paper, and I decided to start simple with one of my favorite fun folds. So let’s see how this barn fold comes together.

We get started with a base of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. This is scored so that our short edges meet in the center of the standard-sized card front. Our focal panel is matted in textured gold paper and I chose a sheet of floral pattern in Blackberry Bliss from the Regal Winter pack. Our sentiment panel is matted in a base of gold mercury vellum that has been diecut using the Greetings of the Season dies. The sentiment from the new stamp set called Winterly Tree Tops is stamped in black on white cardstock and is then diecut using the Unbounded Love dies. I tucked some gold greenery stems behind the sentiment panel, which are diecut from gold foil paper with the Painted Lavender dies. A twist of the new Blackberry Bliss & Gold textured ribbon helps tie things together. I added a few of the new drusy embellishments around the sentiment for extra sparkle and pizzazz, and let me just say, they call these gems drusy for a reason! (drusy: dru·sy zē usually -er/-est covered with minute crystals : containing cavities lined with crystals)

Tomorrow, things are going to feel a little more like Autumn. I hope you’ll pop in and check it out!

Products used in today’s card:
Blackberry Bliss, Basic White cardstock
Textured gold, gold foil, mercury vellum, Regal Winter (coming soon!) DSP
Winterly Tree Tops stamps (coming soon!)
Greetings of the Season, Unbounded Love, Painted Lavender dies
Blackberry Bliss & gold textured ribbon (coming soon)
Drusy embellishments (coming soon!)
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List

Blackberry Bliss 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[133675]

$11.50

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[159276]

$13.00

Textured Metallic 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[163772]

$8.50

Gold Mercury Vellum 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Designer Series Paper

[164142]

$10.00

Gold Foil Sheets

[132622]

$5.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Tear & Tape Adhesive

[154031]

$7.00

Add All to Cart

Back to School · Sketchy Fridays

Sketchy Fridays: Packed for Success

August 9, 2024August 8, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

How is it Friday already?! Anyone else feel this way? Our last week of summer has just flown by. We’ve shopped for school clothes and last-minute supplies, cleaned out the backpack and started fresh for the year, set next week’s lunch box menu, and squeezed in some random fun. What do you typically do with your kiddos for their last week of summer break?

For this week’s Sketchy Fridays, we’re taking a little detour from the Annual Catalog and, instead, are taking a page from my personal sketch book. Our sketch is a little unconventional, but then again, so is today’s card!

Today, we’re continuing our back-to-school theme, and I just love how this card design came out! I knew that I wanted to make a design that included a backpack, but I definitely didn’t have a backpack image in my current product stash. So I started looking at everything a little differently as I sorted through sets again. And that’s when I realized that I could use the sled die from Sophisticated Sled die set to make it happen. Let’s take a closer look!

Our card gets started with a base of Basic Black cardstock. I wanted the focal panel to look like a wall in a classroom. Although difficult to see here, the focal panel is a quarter sheet of black cardstock that has been trimmed slightly on each side and then raised with dimensionals. I used the Bright & Beautiful patterned papers to help me create this look with the bottom of the wall being the striped pattern. And then I wanted the top portion to look like a bulletin board, so the star pattern is serving as the decorative border around the bulletin board and our printed sentiment is the inspirational message from the teacher.

To create our backpack, we’ll start with a quarter sheet of Pretty Peacock cardstock and use the top portion of the sled die to cut our backpack. Be sure to save all of the negative space pieces to serve as backpack pockets, and we’ll trim any portion of the bottom of the sled off to keep the look of a backpack. Using the die itself, I traced around the outside of the portion I used to cut the backpack and then fussy cut on my trace marks to create a base to which I adhered all of my pieces. This also creates a more realistic look of a stuffed backpack. I used my glue pen to adhere the outline portion and then I used several layers of glue dots on each of the “pockets” to adhere them and give them the look of having items inside. Using the letter “i” from the Alphabet a La Mode die set, I cut the handle for the backpack and adhere it using tear & tape. I used the handle for the toolbox from the Trusty Toolbox die set to create the backpack straps. The backpack is adhered to the background with dimensionals. I added a few stars cut from silver foil with the Merriest Trees dies to finish off the design.

Isn’t this the most fun? Our inside sentiment says “reach for the stars” so everything ties together nicely. I just love how it turned out!

I hope you’ll tune in tomorrow where we’ll be making some Lunchbox Lovin’. You won’t want to miss it!

Products used in today’s card:
Basic Black, Basic White, Pretty Peacock, Crushed Curry cardstock
Bright & Beautiful, Silver foil DSP
Sophisticated Sled, Trusty Tools, Merriest Trees dies
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List

Basic Black 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[121045]

$11.50

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[159276]

$13.00

Pretty Peacock 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[150880]

$11.50

Crushed Curry 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[131199]

$11.50

Bright & Beautiful 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[161449]

$12.50

Silver 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Foil Sheets

[163387]

$5.00

Sophisticated Sled Dies

[164133]

$35.00

Trusty Tools Dies

[162722]

$37.00

Merriest Trees Dies

[162047]

$37.00

Mini Glue Dots

[103683]

$7.25

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Tear & Tape Adhesive

[154031]

$7.00

Add All to Cart

Back to School

Color With Greatness

August 8, 2024August 6, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

This week, we’re putting on our creative hats to make back-to-school designs. Why do I need my creative hat? Well, for me personally, my current stash of products (as in, not retired products) doesn’t make it easy to stick to this week’s theme without a little ingenuity. And today, we’re combining the Trusty Tools set with Filled With Fun to create our desktop of color. Let’s see how we can make this one happen.

We get started with a card base of Crumb Cake cardstock. Our focal panel background consists of two layers of patterned paper — the bottom from Take to the Sky and the top from Nature’s Sweetness — and is cut to leave a very small border of the card base peeking around on each side. We cut a focal point out of the top layer of our background panel with the Spotlight on Nature dies and then adhere our two focal panels together with dimensionals. To create the storage box for our paint brushes, we use the wagon fencing from the Filled With Fun die set to cut Crumb Cake cardstock and then tuck the box in the center of the circle. Our paintbrushes are diecut using the Trusty Tools dies. The handles are cut from textured metallic gold while the bristles are cut from Smoky Slate. A dab of paint is stamped in primary colors on the end of each set of bristles. We tuck our paintbrushes into the storage box and adhere with several layers of dimensionals to give the look of multiple planes of view. Once again, I turned to my trusty printer to provide my custom sentiment and diecut it with the Everyday Essentials die using the extension method. The sentiment is adhered with dimensionals, as well. I added a few splatters of paint that were diecut from Real Red and Daffodil Delight cardstock using the Bright Skies dies. A few dollops of rhinestone jewels add just the right amount of sparkle across the card front to help the eye glide easily across the design.

Tomorrow we’ll be packing up some tools for success. I hope you’ll tag along and check it out!

Products used in today’s card:
Crumb Cake, Smoky Slate, Real Red, Daffodil Delight, Basic White cardstock
Take to the Sky, Nature’s Sweetness, Gold textured metallic DSP
Trusty Tools, Filled with Fun, Bright Skies, Everyday Details, Spotlight on Nature dies
Trusty Tools stamps
Rhinestone jewels
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List

Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[120953]

$11.50

Smoky Slate 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[131202]

$11.50

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[159276]

$13.00

Real Red 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[102482]

$11.50

Daffodil Delight 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[119683]

$11.50

Take To The Sky 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[163436]

$12.50

Nature's Sweetness 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Designer Series Paper

[162616]

$16.50

Textured Metallic 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[163772]

$8.50

Trusty Tools Photopolymer Stamp Set (English)

[163274]

$24.00

Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

[147084]

$9.00

Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad

[147110]

$9.00

Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad

[147087]

$9.00

Trusty Tools Dies

[162722]

$37.00

Filled With Fun Dies

[163560]

$32.00

Spotlight On Nature Dies

[163580]

$35.00

Everyday Details Dies

[162864]

$34.00

Bright Skies Dies

[162793]

$34.00

Rhinestone Basic Jewels

[144220]

$6.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Tear & Tape Adhesive

[154031]

$7.00

Add All to Cart

Back to School

New Heights

August 5, 2024August 5, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

Welcome back to a brand new week! I hope everyone enjoyed a restful weekend. We enjoyed watching more of the Olympic Games. Hard to pick a favorite event because we enjoy watching many of them. Have you been watching?

This week is our last week of summer break. School will be back in session on Monday and we’re still squeezing in all the end-of-summer fun. Break felt both short and long all at the same time! Did summer feel that way to you?

In honor of a new school year, this week’s design theme is back to school. And I must admit that I may have bitten off a little more than I can chew with this one. But I promised a week of using our products in surprising ways, didn’t I?! Well, I will certainly have to in order to work within our theme!

Today’s outside the box opportunity is solving a sentiment dilemma when you don’t have a stamp that fits the bill. How did I solve it? Well, let’s talk about our card and find out.

We get started with a base of Pool Party cardstock. After cutting a pice of white cardstock into quarter sheets, I used the Bright Skies dies to cut the two large clouds for the bottom of our front panel scene. Layers of dimensionals give the clouds are more realistic look against our Pool Party backdrop. I used my computer to set up a Word document sized to my quarter panel, sized up the space I would need to fill the medium cloud die, and printed my sentiment on the white cardstock. I then diecut the sentiment with the cloud die. I really wanted large font for the sentiment and that meant orienting my cloud in an unconventional way. But then, when you think about it, clouds come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, so is there really a conventional orientation? *grin* Several layers of dimensionals allow the sentiment panel to rise above the rest of our scene.

For the balloons, I pulled out the Hot Air Balloon stamps and dies set. I really liked the patterns that the Bright and Beautiful designer paper pack had to offer and decided I would layer the balloon shaping stamps on top. I think it turned out pretty neat. Our balloon baskets are cut from gold foil specialty paper. Each balloon is adhered on a different layer to give lots of dimension to our scene and really reinforce the sentiment theme of rising to new heights.

One of the fun things about challenging ourselves with various themes or ideas is that we don’t always have everything we think we need to pull it off. But with a little creative thinking and using tools that we maybe don’t turn to as often in a certain medium, like the printer in this case, we can usually make it work with beautiful results.

Tomorrow, we’ll be trucking along to school. I hope you’ll tune in to see what that’s all about!

Products used in today’s card:
Pool Party, Basic White cardstock
Bright & Beautiful, gold foil DSP
Hot Air Balloon stamps & dies
Bright Skies dies
Rainbow dots
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List

Pool Party 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[122924]

$11.50

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[159276]

$13.00

Bright & Beautiful 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[161449]

$12.50

Gold Foil Sheets

[132622]

$5.00

Hot Air Balloon Photopolymer Stamp Set (English)

[162748]

$20.00

Hot Air Balloon Dies

[162754]

$30.00

Pretty Peacock Classic Stampin’ Pad

[150083]

$9.00

Melon Mambo Classic Stampin' Pad

[147051]

$9.00

Misty Moonlight Classic Stampin' Pad

[153118]

$9.00

Rainbow Adhesive Backed Dots

[162758]

$9.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Add All to Cart

Botanicals · Sketchy Fridays

Sketchy Fridays: Nothing Fancy

August 2, 2024July 29, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

This week has been quite the whirlwind. And how did we get to Friday so quickly?! Whew. The weekend is now upon us and we’ll be closing out our last week of summer break next week. Anyone have any ideas for fun things to do with a preteen?

It’s time for another installment of Sketchy Fridays, where each week we’ll be 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 on page 22 of the current Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog.

This week’s card is based on Sketch #10 and features the Unbounded Beauty designer series paper by Stampin’ Up!. While I have found this paper to be challenging to incorporate into designs, what I have found is that I simply needed to look at the paper differently. Sometimes the paper gives design inspiration on its own, but I work better with this pack when I have a solid design and then work with sheets that fit. That was true with the tuxedo fold and grid designs, and it’s true for today’s sketch where the backdrop of the focal section allows for a busy pattern. So let’s see how this comes together.

We get started with a simple card base of Basic White cardstock. I was drawn to the sheet of Unbounded Beauty designer paper that resembled the lavender stem from the Painted Lavender die set. We pull out the darker pink of the patterned paper in several ways. First, we use a piece of Petunia Pop glimmer paper diecut with the Nested Essentials dies to serve as the banner behind the sentiment panel. Next, we use Petunia Pop cardstock to cut small flowers for our Summer Splash floral stems that are diecut using the Painted Lavender die set. Our floral stems are tied with linen thread to bring a natural element to the design. The sentiment from Something Fancy is stamped in black on white cardstock and then diecut using the Radiating Stitches dies. Our floral bunch is then adhered next to the sentiment. A faux bow of diagonal trim sits behind the sentiment over the sparkly banner. A few carefully placed In Color shimmer gems finish things off by drawing the eye to the focal panel in the center.

Isn’t this the perfect sketch for just about any sheet of patterned paper? No more fumbling for ideas for how to use that busy pattern. Here’s an easy, go-to sketch that will suit even the busiest pattern!

Tune in tomorrow as we close out our week in the garden with a clean and simple zinnia design! It’s a knockout!

Products used in today’s card:
Petunia Pop, Summer Splash, Basic White cardstock
Unbounded Beauty, In Color glimmer paper
Something Fancy stamps
Painted Lavender, Radiating Stitches, Nested Essentials dies
White diagonal trim, linen thread
In Color shimmer gems
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[159276]

$13.00

Unbounded Beauty 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[163372]

$12.50

2024–2026 In Color™ Glimmer 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[163771]

$11.00

Petunia Pop 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[163801]

$11.50

Summer Splash 8 1/2" X 11 Cardstock

[163797]

$11.50

Something Fancy Cling Stamp Set (English)

[160416]

$23.00

Jet Black Stāzon Ink Pad

[101406]

$10.50

Painted Lavender Dies

[162596]

$32.00

Radiating Stitches Dies

[161595]

$30.00

Nested Essentials Dies

[161597]

$34.00

Petal Pink & White 1/4" (6.4 Mm) Diagonal Trim Combo Pack

[163417]

$10.00

Linen Thread

[104199]

$5.00

2024–2026 In Color™ Shimmer Gems

[163781]

$8.50

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Mini Glue Dots

[103683]

$7.25

Add All to Cart

Botanicals

Incredible

August 1, 2024July 29, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

We’re moving right along here in our tour of the garden this week. And today, we’re keeping things simple with a focal image taken directly from the Nature’s Sweetness designer paper pack by Stampin’ Up! Did you know that SU! will often have at least one pattern in a 12×12 pack of paper that can be divided evenly into 6 card front panels? Several current packs that include a sheet like this are Nature’s Sweetness, Perennial Lavender, and Flowering Zinnias. These types of sheets are what I often refer to as one sheet wonders, where one sheet of paper creates 6 cards. I’m sure other stamps refer to these sheets by other names, but that’s how I like to think of them.

For today’s card, we get started with a base of Moody Mauve cardstock. Our background panel is a sheet of Pretty Peacock cardstock that is cut slightly smaller than our card front and is then machine embossed using the Dotted Circles embossing folder. Our focal image mat is the gold-flecked bookprint sheet from the Nature’s Sweetness paper pack that has been diecut using one of the largest circles from the Spotlight on Nature die set. I then pulled the one sheet wonder pattern sheet from the Nature’s Sweetness designer paper pack and cut one 4-inch strip and then cut the two-image panel in half in order to use one image for our card front. The image is colored using Stampin’ Blends and then cut out using paper snips before being adhered to the diecut circle. Our sentiment from Happy Little Things is stamped in black on white cardstock and then diecut with the Everyday Details dies using the extension method. The mat is Moody Mauve luster paper diecut with the smallest Deckled Rectangle die, also using the extension method. The sentiment is adhered over a faux bow of gold trim using dimensionals. A few shiny sequins finish things off with a little sparkle.

The beauty of these one sheet wonder patterned paper sheets is how quickly you can make a whole stack of cards without sacrificing a single bit of ooo-la-la. And speaking of ooo-la-la, you must tune in tomorrow to check out the newest installment of Sketchy Fridays.

Products used in today’s card:
Moody Mauve, Pretty Peacock, Basic White cardstock
Nature’s Sweetness, Moody Mauve luster DSP
Happy Little Things stamps
Spotlight on Nature, Deckled Rectangles, Everyday Details dies
Stampin’ Blends
Gold trim
Shiny sequins
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List

Moody Mauve 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[161723]

$11.50

Pretty Peacock 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[150880]

$11.50

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[159276]

$13.00

2023–2025 In Color™ 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Luster Specialty Paper

[161746]

$11.00

Nature's Sweetness 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Designer Series Paper

[162616]

$16.50

Dotted Circles 3 D Embossing Folder

[163789]

$12.00

Spotlight On Nature Dies

[163580]

$35.00

Deckled Rectangles Dies

[159173]

$30.00

Everyday Details Dies

[162864]

$34.00

Happy Little Things Photopolymer Stamp Set (English)

[163706]

$25.00

Jet Black Stāzon Ink Pad

[101406]

$10.50

Shaded Spruce Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[154903]

$11.00

Pretty In Pink Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack

[163824]

$11.00

Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[154882]

$11.00

Gold & Silver 1/8" (3.2 Mm) Trim Combo Pack

[161633]

$9.00

Adhesive Backed Shiny Sequins

[163484]

$7.50

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

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Botanicals · Terrific Tuesdays

Busy Florals

July 31, 2024July 30, 2024 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

We are already halfway through this week. Every time I get to Wednesday, I feel like the week is just whizzing by! Maybe it’s because it feels like we still have so much to do before the regular routine of school days gets started. Or maybe it just comes with getting older.

This week, we’re tiptoeing through the garden as we make cards inspired by the beauty of nature. And today, I’m going to show you ways to use “difficult” patterned paper. Do you ever fall in love with a pack of patterned paper but then find yourself stumped when it comes to actually using it? That’s precisely what has happened to me with the Unbounded Beauty paper pack by Stampin’ Up! I fell in love with the patterns but then just haven’t been able to find designs where the patterns make sense. Until now.

In this week’s episode of Terrific Tuesdays, we are using two card layouts to showcase that paper that you are finding hard to use. We get started with a card that I like to call the tuxedo fold. We choose two complimentary paper patterns, bearing in mind the backside of one sheet will be visible and must also be considered in our paper choice. And one sheet will be folded to reveal a portion underneath so that it almost looks like the collar of a tux shirt on each end. Then our sentiment panel sits on top as a prominent feature on our card. Suddenly, our overwhelming pattern now fits perfectly in a design — no longer overwhelming but instead a beautiful backdrop.

Our second design literally cuts our busy patterns down to size. I like to call this design a patterned paper or designer paper (DSP) grid since we use strips of busy patterns to build a grid on our card front, leaving the center section for a small sentiment. The patterned paper strips can be of any size from 1- to 2-inches, depending on how large you wish to make your center sentiment. Not only does this design tame some wild patterns, it also allows you to use up scraps of even your favorite patterned papers.

To see the tuxedo fold and DSP grid designs at work, tune in to this week’s episode of Terrific Tuesdays where we made 2 cards from scratch using these two card layouts.

Tomorrow, we’re making things easy with the Nature’s Sweetness paper. Pop by and check it out.

Products used in card above — tuxedo fold:
Summer Splash, Pretty in Pink, Basic White cardstock
Unbounded Beauty DSP
Inspiring Snapdragons, Something Fancy stamps
Spotlight on Nature, Inspiring Snapdragons dies
Pretty in Pink ribbon
In Color shimmer gems, tinsel gems
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Products used in card above — DSP grid:
Basic White cardstock
Berry Burst, Unbounded Beauty DSP
Unbounded Love stamps
Everyday Details dies
Iridescent striped trim
Iridescent discs
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List

Summer Splash 8 1/2" X 11 Cardstock

[163797]

$11.50