Here for You

January 5, 2026January 4, 2026 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

Happy Monday, friends! Did you have a productive weekend? We ticked quite a few things off the to-do list. And then there’s still quite a bit left to do. Isn’t that how it always goes? A never-ending to-do list, it seems.

Even with all of the household to-dos, I still found some time to play in the studio with new stampin’ goodies. I’m really digging into the new releases that will go live in the shop tomorrow (1/6). You guys are going to love them! This week, we’re going to playing with the Lovely Blossoms suite. This gorgeous suite of SU! products includes patterned paper, stamps, dies, an embossing folder, ribbon, and embellishments. I love the cool hues of this suite! And *bonus* one of the patterned papers includes a side of mixed-size images that make quick work of a card front. And we’re using one of those today.

Today, we’re keeping things pretty simple. We get started with a base of Secret Sea cardstock. The background layer is the striped pattern from the Traditions of Christmas paper pack. I cut apart the image sheet in the Lovely Blossoms paper pack and used one of the large images. To make things interesting, I decided to cut it down with the Everyday Arches dies and cut a mat from a sheet of the silver Peaceful Garden glimmer paper with the next-up arch die. The sentiment is from the new (coordinating) Lovely Arrangements stamp set and is stamped in Secret Sea right on top of the focal image panel. The whole panel, including mat, is adhered to the card front with dimensionals. And we finish everything off with a bow of Misty Moonlight & Silver ribbon and some of the new Misty Moonlight sparkle dots.

This card comes together in a jiffy thanks to the ready-made card front panel. We’re going to use another panel tomorrow but in a dressed-up version. I hope you’ll pop in and check it out!

Product List

Secret Sea 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[165624]

$14.00

Traditions Of Christmas 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Designer Series Paper

[165853]

$16.50

Peaceful Garden 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Glimmer Paper

[165929]

$10.50

Everyday Arches Dies

[164629]

$29.00

Secret Sea Classic Stampin' Pad

[165285]

$9.00

Misty Moonlight & Silver Edged 1/2" (1.3 Cm) Ribbon

[165931]

$10.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Add All to Cart

birthday

Peaceful Birthday Wishes

September 10, 2025 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

After a day like today, it has never seemed more appropriate to be working with a peaceful product line. This week we’re restocking our birthday card stash using a variety of products in the crafty stash. And today’s design pairs the beautiful Peaceful Garden products with the Simply Said stamp set to create this lovely botanical birthday card. The super classy and versatile layout is inspired by Sweet Stampin’.

We get started with a base of Secret Sea cardstock. The background panel is a floral sheet of the Peaceful Garden patterned paper that is matted with a sheet of Misty Moonlight glimmer paper from the coordinating glimmer pack. Our focal panel is a trio of elements starting with an arched backdrop cut from Secret Sea using the Everyday Arches dies. I fussy cut the hydrangea bloom from a sheet of the Lovely Garden patterned paper and affixed it to the arch panel using dimensionals. The sentiment from Simply Said is stamped in Secret Sea on Cloud Cover cardstock and then cut with the smallest Peace on Earth dies using the reverse-extension method, making it smaller than the standard die size. It’s tucked under the hydrangea bunch. The full panel is adhered to the card front with dimensionals. We add a knot of Misty Moonlight & silver edged ribbon over the sentiment, some Wink of Stella to the hydrangea blooms, and two bunches of silver Drusy embellishments opposite one another on the focal panel.

I feel like this card imparts a lot of warmth with its hues of blues and subtle sparkles. It certainly makes me smile anyway! Pop in tomorrow and see what we can pair together next to create a cheery birthday design.

Product List

Secret Sea 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[165624]

$14.00

Cloud Cover 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[165621]

$14.00

Peaceful Garden 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[165917]

$12.50

Peaceful Garden 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Glimmer Paper

[165929]

$10.50

Lovely Garden 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[165524]

$12.50

Everyday Arches Dies

[164629]

$29.00

Simply Said Mix & Match Photopolymer Stamp Set (English)

[163756]

$17.00

Secret Sea Classic Stampin' Pad

[165285]

$9.00

Peace On Earth Dies

[165924]

$24.00

Misty Moonlight & Silver Edged 1/2" (1.3 Cm) Ribbon

[165931]

$10.00

Drusy Adhesive Backed Embellishments

[164223]

$9.00

Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush

[141897]

$9.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Mini Glue Dots

[103683]

$7.25

Add All to Cart

florals · Florals in Bloom · Free Shipping

Lovely

July 23, 2025 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

Lovely certain seems a fair way to describe this Wednesday. Would you like to know why?

It’s that time of year…where Stampin’ Up! is offering FREE shipping on any order of $75 and above. I’ve had some items hanging out in my cart for a little while now, and I used this opportunity to save big on shipping since quite a bit of it was paper and other weighty items. Now is the perfect time to buy that paper or anything else in your shopping cart because you’ll save BIG on shipping. But better act fast because this deal won’t last long – July 23 through July 25! Check out my online store to learn more!

And that brings us to our card design for today. This week, we’ve been giving the Florals in Bloom suite a bit more attention and pairing it with other items in the crafty stash. Today’s combo includes the Country Woods patterned paper and brushed silver specialty paper. Let’s check it out.

We get started with a base the new In Color cardstock called Cloud Cover. The background panel is a piece of the lovely Florals in Bloom paper that is matted on brushed silver and adhered directly to the card front. I cut a piece of the blue woodgrain pattern from the Country Woods paper pack using the Everyday Arches dies and adhered this focal panel to background panel. Using the Pretty Florals dies, I cut stems and florets from a combination of Shaded Spruce, Pretty in Pink, and Strawberry Slush cardstock. The flowers are assembled with glue dots and each is adhered to the focal panel with dimensionals of varying heights. Using the Sweet Blooms dies, I cut the sentiment from a combination of brushed silver and a piece of pink shimmer paper from my retired stash bin. You could easily get the same shimmery effect by cutting from any shade of pink and then covering with Wink of Stella. I used my glue pen to adhere the two parts of the sentiment together. The sentiment is adhered over the flowers with extra dimensionals to be sure it stands above. We finish things off with the pink gems across the card front.

What do you think of this pretty simple design?

Product List

Cloud Cover 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[165621]

$14.00

Pretty In Pink 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[163793]

$14.00

Strawberry Slush 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[165625]

$14.00

Shaded Spruce 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[146981]

$14.00

Florals In Bloom 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[165175]

$12.50

Country Woods 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[163393]

$12.50

Brushed Silver And Gold Foil 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[164861]

$10.00

Pretty Florals Dies

[165178]

$37.00

Sweet Blooms Dies (English)

[165186]

$33.00

Everyday Arches Dies

[164629]

$29.00

Strawberry Slush & Pretty In Pink Gems

[165615]

$8.50

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Mini Glue Dots

[103683]

$7.25

Fine-Tip Glue Pen

[138309]

$7.25

Add All to Cart

Botanicals · Florals in Bloom

Coming Up Flowers

July 21, 2025 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

It’s been a crazy couple of weeks around here in Song Sparrow land. Between completely redecorating my son’s room (minus the paint – that’s still on the to-do list!) and then prepping to go on vacation, let’s just say I was chasing my tail and had zero brain cells left for creative work!

But in the end, the kiddo was over the moon with his new room setup and we had a fabulous time on vacation. The vacation was, of course, the highlight for the adults because we traveled to a place we’ve been to many times (and love) that provides oodles of things for the kiddos to do without a screen. And for people who love to be outside fishing and enjoying the great outdoors, it was heaven! So all in all, I would call the hiatus from designing a win.

I don’t really feel like I did the last design theme a lot of justice with only 3 designs using the Florals in Bloom suite. So this week, we’re going to continue creating with this beautiful combination of products. And to spice things up, because you know that’s how I roll, we’ll be bringing in other sets as we go to keep it all interesting. For today’s design, we’re pairing the Florals in Bloom paper with The Right Words stamp set and the Beautiful Butterflies and Everyday Arches die sets.

We get started with a base of Highland Heather cardstock. The background panel is a combination of the small purple floral pattern from the Florals in Bloom paper pack and a mat of Highland Heather glimmer paper that I’m fortunate enough to still have in my stash. I tied a bit of Petunia Pop iridescent ribbon around the bottom of the background panel to help bring out the subtle shades of pink and lighter shades of purple. The background panel is adhered to the card front with dimensionals. The focal panel is cut from white cardstock using the Everyday Arches dies and turned on its side. I’ve then stamped the sentiment from The Right Words set in Gorgeous Grape on the side up and adhered the panel against the far edge of the background panel. A beautiful, dainty butterfly cut from pastel ombre and silver foil paper using the Beautiful Butterflies dies adds the perfect pop of sparkle and bit of visual interest that draws the eye directly to our focal panel. It’s adhered to our focal panel with a double-dose of dimensionals for an extra boost. A few purple sequins scattered about the card front in strategic places give the bits of sparkly interest so your eye moves across the design.

This design is clean and simple and comes together in a snap but lacks nothing in the drama department – which is just my style!

Product List

Highland Heather 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[146986]

$14.00

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[166780]

$14.00

Florals In Bloom 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[165175]

$12.50

Three Color Glimmer 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[162813]

$10.50

Pastel Ombre Glimmer 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[164851]

$12.00

Silver Foil 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Pack

[163096]

$10.00

The Right Words Cling Stamp Set (English)

[165316]

$26.00

Gorgeous Grape Classic Stampin' Pad

[147099]

$9.00

Everyday Arches Dies

[164629]

$29.00

Petunia Pop 1/4" (6.4 Mm) Iridescent Ribbon

[166203]

$9.50

Purple Adhesive Backed Sequins

[164970]

$8.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Add All to Cart

Florals in Bloom

The Right Words

July 10, 2025July 10, 2025 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

Our design spotlight for this week is the Florals in Bloom suite by Stampin’ Up! Aside from the fact that this suite is gorgeous in every conceivable way, it’s been the perfect spot of sunshine in a week that hasn’t been the happiest here in North Texas. Whether you are personally impacted by the flooding in the Texas Hill Country or not, there seems to be a universal feeling of sadness as we all come to grips with the innocent lives lost in the blink of an eye.

Today’s card design is inspired by those difficult moments where we simply don’t have any words to say. We simply hope that a hug will do. And for cardmakers, sometimes we have to send a hug in the mail. This card pairs the Pretty Florals bundle with The Right Words stamp set for the perfect hug in the mail.

We get started with a base of Coastal Cabana cardstock. The focal panel backdrop is a simple piece of white cardstock diecut with one of the larger Textured Notes dies. I wanted to create a window look and so I used the Everyday Arches dies to create a window frame of white cardstock and then cut a backdrop of Pretty Peacock that is machine embossed with the Distressed Tiles embossing folder to give the look of a paneled wall in the background. Our window is mounted over gold striped mesh ribbon for a subtle bit of twinkle that spans the card front. I loved the idea of a flowering fine climbing outside the window to add that touch of happy color. The flowers are stamped in various shades of pink, yellow, orange, and red-orange on white carsdtock using the Pretty Florals stamps and then diecut with the coordinating dies. The vine is cut from a sheet of the green ombre glimmer paper in the pastel ombre paper pack. The vine and flowers are adhered next to the window using a combination of glue dots and dimensionals to create a layered look. We add little pops of sparkle across the card front with a combination of foil gems in a variety of colors.

The dies in the Florals in Bloom suite offer a lot of opportunity for beautiful designs. We’ll explore more of what the dies can do in our next design. I hope you’ll drop by and check it out.

Product List

Coastal Cabana 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[131297]

$14.00

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

[150880]

$14.00

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[166780]

$14.00

Pastel Ombre Glimmer 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[164851]

$12.00

The Right Words Cling Stamp Set (English)

[165316]

$26.00

Pretty Florals Bundle

[165179]

$50.25

Textured Notes Dies

[165555]

$31.00

Everyday Arches Dies

[164629]

$29.00

Countryside Corners Dies

[161471]

$28.00

Distressed Tile 3 D Embossing Folder

[162189]

$10.00

Pretty In Pink Classic Stampin Pad

[163807]

$9.00

Strawberry Slush Classic Stampin' Pad

[165286]

$9.00

Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad

[147094]

$9.00

Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad

[147087]

$9.00

Peach Pie Classic Stampin Pad

[163810]

$9.00

Timid Tiger Classic Stampin' Pad

[165278]

$9.00

Flirty Flamingo Classic Stampin' Pad

[147052]

$9.00

Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad

[147101]

$9.00

Cloud Cover Classic Stampin' Ink Refill

[165279]

$5.50

Gold Striped 3/8" (1 Cm) Mesh Ribbon

[165599]

$8.00

Strawberry Slush & Pretty In Pink Gems

[165615]

$8.50

Iridescent Foil Gems

[162842]

$8.00

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Mini Stampin' Dimensionals

[144108]

$4.25

Mini Glue Dots

[103683]

$7.25

Add All to Cart

Online Exclusives

Grateful Heart

July 4, 2025 susanfoxbowenLeave a comment

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!

Product List