florals

You Mean So Much

This week we’re tiptoeing through the garden as we use beautiful floral products from the Stampin’ Up! lineup. Today we’re featuring part of the Lovely Garden suite using the diamond fun fold. I love this particular fold because it gives lots of opportunity to showcase beautiful patterned paper.

We get started with a base of Crushed Curry cardstock. I used two different patterns from the Lovely Garden paper pack as the backdrops for the inside and outside card panels. The diamond panel is a combination of textured gold specialty paper and a sheet of foiled paper from the Nature’s Sweetness paper pack. The focal image from the Thankful Garden stamp set is stamped in black on white cardstock and then colored using the decorative masks and a combination of Shy Shamrock and Daffodil Delight inks before being diecut with the coordinating die. For a little added visual interest, I stamped, colored, and diecut the smaller flower a second time and then popped it up on the full floral stem. The stem is adhered to the diamond panel with dimensionals. The sentiment from the Enduring Beauty set is stamped in black on white cardstock and then diecut with the smaller sentiment die from the Mixed Labels set. I tucked a twist of gold thread behind the sentiment panel before adhering it at the bottom of the diamond panel with dimensionals. A few gold textured dots serve as floral centers and eye-catching sparkle in opposing corners.

Tomorrow we’ll be stopping to smell the roses. I hope you’ll plan to come by and sit a spell.

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florals

Truly Deeply Grateful

Welcome to Monday! I hope everyone enjoyed a blessed and restful Easter weekend. While Holy Week is always busy in the life of a church singer, it’s still one of my favorite times of the liturgical year.

This week, we’re starting a brand new design series. We are all about the flowers this week. I don’t know about your area, but here in North Texas, the spring showers are certainly perking up all of the flowers that have been planted.

We’re starting off our design series this week with the Enduring Beauty bundle by Stampin’ Up! This bundle includes coordinating stamps, dies, and decorative masks. If you’ve been around a minute, you’ve heard me talk about decorative masks before. But for those of you who are new, I was a total decorative mask hater in the very beginning — just straight up refused to buy them or even try them. And in hindsight, I can’t give you a single good reason why (other than just plain stubbornness) because decorative masks make it SO easy to create beautiful colored images with terrific detail every single time.

Today our card gets started with a base of white cardstock. I’m using a sheet of the retired designer series paper from the Regal Winter pack as the backdrop for our focal panel. I tied some gold stripe ribbon (coming soon!) around the bottom before adhering to the card base. The focal panel gets started with a circle base of Nature’s Sweetness paper diecut using one of the largest Spotlight on Nature dies. I stamped the focal image from the Enduring Beauty set in black on white cardstock . I also stamped the center portion of the florals a second time to be able to cut out a flower and pop it up for some realistic dimension to the flowers. I used the decorative masks to color the images with a combination of Real Red and Shaded Spruce. Hint: you don’t have to use different shades to create the darker detailed areas; use the same color for all of the subsequent layers of color and it will have the same effect as using a different shade. I cut out the full image with the coordinating die from the Enduring Beauty set and then used my paper snips to cut out the single flower that I adhered on top with dimensionals. I added gold textured dots as the flower centers. The full image is then adhered to the circle panel with dimensionals. The sentiment from the Hope You Know stamp set is stamped in black on white cardstock and then diecut with the Something Fancy angled banner die and adhered under the ribbon. I added a few rhinestones in between the words of the sentiment and some gold low profile dots around to draw the eye.

We’re going to continue our tiptoe through the garden tomorrow with one of the new Online Exclusive bundles. I hope you’ll drop by and check it out.

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Holidays

Happy Easter

Hallelujah! Christ is Risen!

Happy Easter Sunday, everyone. As we find the grave empty today, we begin the season of Pentecost which calls for a little update to our family prayer.

If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you have heard me talk about our daily family prayer. In the last six months or so, I introduced a new prayer traditional where we recite a chosen scripture as our prayer over dinner. And as the seasons on the church calendar change, we have changed our scripture to recite over dinner. So as we move into the season of Pentecost, I’ve selected a new prayer and have updated our table display.

I’ve been using the same simple 6×6 frame that I picked up on Amazon and simply changing out the insert as we’ve moved along. I copy and paste a scripture into my Word file on my computer and print it out on a 4×6 sheet of white cardstock and then use a die to cut it out. Here I’ve used a sheet of the Thoughtful Journey designer series paper as my background and cut out the scripture using the Textured Notes dies. I adhered the prayer to the bottom of the patterned sheet with dimensionals and then scattered some of the purple sequins for some extra pizzazz. So all in all, a super simple design that packs just the right punch.

Next week, we have a new design theme. We’re going to tiptoeing through the flowers, and I hope you’ll come along!

Products used:
6×6 frame (Amazon)
Thoughtful Journey DSP
Textured Notes dies
Purple sequins
Dimensionals

Holidays

He Is Risen!

This week, our design theme has centered on the Holy Week holiday and we’ve been using the Online Exclusive bundle called Faith Collection by Stampin’ Up! to create our designs. Today is the culmination of the Holy Week series with the Easter card that pairs the Faith Collection set with the Enduring Beauty bundle to create this design celebrating Christ’s victory over death.

We get started with a base of white cardstock. The backdrop of our focal panel is a quarter sheet of white cardstock that is cut with the Pattern of Friendship die. This panel is cut down to size and then matted in a sheet of Petunia Pop glimmer paper. Our focal panel has the cross in the center that is cut from a sheet of white woodgrain paper from the Country Woods paper pack using the extension method so that the cross is a little taller. Our cross sits atop a floral spray created with the Enduring Beauty bundle. I kept the color scheme very simple and stamped the main floral image in Smoky Slate and used a combination of Shy Shamrock and Petunia Pop to add color to the leaves and floral centers and then cut out the image using the coordinating die. We’re matting the floral spray in gold mercury vellum and use the die extension method to cut the mat for our florals a little larger than the original. I’ve cut an assortment of leaves from Shy Shamrock cardstock using the individual leaves in the Enduring Beauty die set and then tucked them behind the florals. I added some Easter lilies around the cross. They’re stamped on white in Smoky Slate and have Petunia Pop centers, as well. The sentiment from the Faith Collection stamp set is stamped in Blackberry Bliss and then cut with the smallest banner die from the Countryside Corners die collection. The sentiment is mounted in the center of the cross over a sash of iridescent striped ribbon. I used some gold thread to help the sash keep its shape, making it easier to adhere to the cross underneath the sentiment. I finished things off with a gold butterfly cut from textured paper using the Beautiful Butterflies dies and also added a few purple sequins on either side of our focal image.

We’ll be closing out our Holy Week design theme with an update to the family prayer that we keep on our dinner table. I hope you’ll pop in later to see where our post-Easter scripture will lead us as we make our way to Christ’s ascension.

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Holidays

Love Never Gives Up

Happy Good Friday! While that may seem like a strange thing to say, given the historical significance of this day in the Christian faith, this day is indeed good when all is said and done. Today is necessary for the ultimate victory over sin and death and our full reconciliation to God in eternity. Thank goodness “Love never gives up!”

This week, we’re using the Faith Collection bundle to create designs to honor this Holy Week holiday. And today we pair the dies with several patterned paper packs, including Everyday Skies and Country Woods, and the Unbounded Love stamps. I used fellow demo Jackie Bolhuis’ easy step fun fold to create this Good Friday scene.

We get started with a base of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. I used a sheet of moody skies from the Everyday Skies paper pack as the backdrop for our scene. The illusion of hills is created with Thoughtful Journey papers and both of the Grove die collections. I cut three crosses from two different woodgrain patterns from the Country Woods papers using the Faith Collection dies. For Christ’s cross in the center, I used the extension method to make this cross taller than the rest. The hills are adhered to the backdrop with differing levels of dimensionals. The two darker crosses are tucked behind the grass on either side of Christ’s cross in the center. The center cross is adhered to the center panel with dimensionals so it stands above the others. The sentiment from Unbounded Love is heat embossed in black on a lighter woodgrain sheet and then diecut with the smaller banner from the Autumn Leaves dies. A few two tone sparkle gems around the crosses draw the eye across the scene and the twist of gold thread behind the panel draws the eye down to the sentiment.

We’ll be rounding out Holy Week with a design honor Resurrection Day. I hope you’ll stop in to check it out.

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Holidays

Believing in a Brighter Tomorrow

We are midway through Holy Week. For me, this is the point where things get a little hectic as my musical obligations for this special week pick up between rehearsals and services. While it may be busy, I really do cherish this special season and am always blessed to be able to share musical settings that celebrate God’s ultimate sacrifice to reconcile us to Him for eternity.

This week’s design theme centers squarely on the Holy Week celebrations and, in particular, is focusing on the new Online Exclusive bundle by Stampin’ Up! called Faith Collection. Today we are pairing it with the Thoughtful Journey designer series paper and the Unbounded Love stamps and dies bundle in a double easel fun fold design.

I tried several different layouts with this double easel design before settling on the one you see here. In my mind’s eye, I originally saw the cross on the smaller easel in the front, but visually it just didn’t accomplish the look I was hoping for. But when I moved the cross to the back, on what is essentially the card front, it completed the illusion of walking up the hill to the lone cross. And I just love how this ultimately gives the feeling of a contemplative walk to the cross at Calvary.

We get started with a base of Mossy Meadow cardstock, which is cut to standard A2 size. A sheet of the Thoughtful Journey patterned paper is the backdrop for our fun fold sunset scene. A sheet of Pretty Peacock cardstock serves as the mat for the patterned papers and the second easel section. Using the Faith Journey dies, a cross is cut from an Early Espresso woodgrain patterned sheet from the Country Woods paper pack and then adhered in the center of the card front panel with dimensionals so that the base of the cross is just below the front easel fold when the card is closed. A strip of Thoughtful Journey also covers the front easel panel. The sentiment from Unbounded Love is stamped in Early Espresso ink on Thoughtful Journey paper and then diecut with the decorative banner die from the Unbounded Love die set. Two greenery bunches, which to me look like palm branches, are cut from Mossy Meadow cardstock using the Winterly Treetops dies and are then adhered with glue dots behind the sentiment panel. Linen thread is wrapped around the small easel panel before the sentiment is adhered with dimensionals. A few In Color shimmer gems on either side of the sentiment panel add a little glimmer of color to draw the eye to the center focal section.

I’ll be taking a little break tomorrow but plan to be back with a Good Friday fun fold.

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Holidays

Golden Faith

This week’s design theme centers on the celebration of Holy Week, and in particular, I’m focusing on the new Faith Collection bundle that recently released as a Stampin’ Up! Online Exclusive.

Today’s design is based on Sketch #7 from the current Annual Catalog. This simple layout allows our focal image to sit front and center. And in the end, I decided it stands so well on its own that I chose not to include a sentiment on the card front. This opens up this design to not only the current Holy Week holiday, but also to a whole host of other religious celebrations throughout the year, including baptisms, weddings, and confirmation celebrations.

We get started with a base of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. The focal panel backdrop is a sheet of vanilla foiled Season of Elegance paper that is cut with the middle Textured Notes die. Our focal image is stamped in Shaded Spruce on white cardstock using the Faith Collection stamps and then diecut with the coordinating die. I stamped the lilies in Versamark and then heated embossed with gold to give a more realistic look of Easter lilies. They’re adhered around the cross on dimensionals. The cross is adhered to the focal panel with dimensionals. I added a few extra lilies to opposing corners of the focal panel background to tie all of the focal elements together. A few purple shimmer gems near the cross bring a touch of purple to the focal panel.

This super simple design lacks nothing in the wow factor department and really shows how a sentiment isn’t always needed to convey a message. I hope you’ll pop in tomorrow to see what other products can be paired with the Faith Collection bundle to create stunning designs.

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Retiring

Blue Skies Friend

We’re closing out this week’s series of card designs using some of my favorite products from the Stampin’ Up! Last Chance list with this clean and simple design. We’re pairing up the Saying Hey stamp set with the Friends for Life dies to create this friendly hello.

We get started with a base of Azure Afternoon cardstock. The focal panel is a sheet of the Everyday Skies patterned paper matted with Pretty in Pink. A strip of Pretty in Pink bordered ribbon is tied around the bottom of the panel before it’s affixed to the card base. The sentiment panel is a piece of white cardstock punched with the Heartfelt Hexagon punch. The sentiment from Saying Hey is stamped in a combination of Balmy Blue and Blueberry Bushel so that there’s a small shadow effect. A combination of Everyday Skies and pastel ombre glimmer paper are cut with the Friends for Life dies to create the second portion of our Hey Friend sentiment. Dimensionals are used to give height and dimension to both portions of the sentiment so they stand proud above the ribbon. The dragonfly is cut from a combination of purple silver foil and pastel ombre glimmer paper and adhered with a dimensional above the sentiment panel. I love how the small dragonfly breaks up the sky and really draws the eye down to the sentiment. A scattering of pink sequins from the sequins trio give us some subtle twinkle across the clouds.

Last Chance items are quickly disappearing from the shelves. Did you see any sets this week that need to be in your stash? Don’t delay or you might miss them for good!

Next week, we’re going to be looking toward Easter with our card designs. I hope you’ll hop along!

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No Stamp Design

Holy Week Scripture

If you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you may remember me mentioning our daily family prayer. Our daily family prayer is a selected scripture that is appropriate for the season on the church calendar or even just the time of year. I rotate these scriptures periodically, in particular as we enter different seasons in the church (liturgical) calendar. What I love most about this is that we ultimately memorize the scripture because we’ve said it each day. So as I’m choosing scriptures, I try to bear that in mind and choose scriptures that I think are important for us to take with us each day.

As we enter Holy Week, it’s time for a new family prayer and that means a new layout for our prayer frame. The 6×6 frame is from Amazon.

For the Holy Week prayer, I chose a darker backdrop that felt most appropriate for the significance of this upcoming week. This happens to be a sheet of the Everyday Skies paper. I printed the scripture on a quarter sheet of white cardstock and then cut it out using one of the Countryside Corners dies. I trimmed it slightly to reduce the white space on top and bottom. I then used the same die to cut the mat from a sheet of the purple Silver Foil specialty paper using the die extension method. I wrapped some Blackberry Bliss & gold metallic ribbon and linen thread around one end of the mat before adhering the sentiment on top with dimensionals. I used dimensionals to adhere the sentiment panel to the patterned paper and then added a few two tone sparkle gems for just a touch of moody sparkle.

Do you do anything special to mark the seasons?

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Retiring · Take to the Sky

Flying By

The Take to the Sky suite has officially hit the Last Chance list. If you’ve been eying this fantastic set, now is your chance to add it to the crafty stash before it’s gone! I know that I’ll be sad to see it go and fully intend to keep it in my stash even after it’s gone from the shelves.

The stamps and dies offer you a variety of plane sizes to use on your designs. Earlier today, I wanted a larger-scaled plane to take center stage, but for this card, I wanted to scale things back a little and so I chose the larger biplane stamp for this fun card.

We get started with a base of Basic Black cardstock. A sheet of the grey plaid paper from the Take to the Sky paper pack serves as our backdrop, and I decided to mat it with a sheet of textured silver specialty paper for just a hint of twinkle in the background. I wanted it to look as though our focal image is bursting through the clouds, so I began setting up the focal scene by cutting clouds from Azure Afternoon cardstock using the Bright Skies dies (also a set that is retiring!). I cut the map background panel with the Countryside Corners die and arranged the clouds and map so that our plane would sit front and center and look as though it’s mid-flight.

Our plane is stamped in black on Smoky Slate cardstock and then colored with the Night of Navy Stampin’ Blends. The propellers are cut from silver foil and an industrial trinket serves as the hub. Wink of Stella helps give our propeller the look of spinning. The sentiment from the Adventurous Sky stamp set is stamped on a smaller cloud cut with the Bright Skies dies. A few of the iridescent white sequins from the sequins trio pack further the illusion of being in the clouds and help draw the eye to the focal panel and sentiment.

The combination of products in the suite offer endless possibilities for so many fun designs — from super simple to detailed. It’s perfect for all the flight enthusiasts in your life.

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