Mother’s Day

Mother’s Meadow

Welcome in, friends! It’s a very exciting day here in the studio….why, you might ask? it’s new product release day! There are new kits, new Online Exclusives, a brand new catalog, and the new batch of SU! in Colors. Talk about exciting!

And we’ve got a new card in this week’s celebratory design series. It’s another tribute to mom with a special fold out in the middle! And we’re showcasing new flocked paper, new shimmer vellum, new dies, new stamps, and new ephemera on this one. It’s just a red letter day all around!

We get started with a standard base of Melon Mambo cardstock. Our front focal panel features the new Velvet Meadow flocked paper and is matted with the new pink shimmer vellum. Both are cut with the Perennial Lavender die set in nesting sizes. The panel is wrapped in Berry Burst shiny ribbon before it’s adhered to the card front with dimensionals. The sentiment from the retired Heartfelt Hellos stamp set is stamped in Melon Mambo on white before being cut out with the new Sweet Words die. The sentiment panel is adhered over the ribbon with dimensionals. I pulled a retired paper butterfly from the stash and covered it with Wink of Stella before attaching with dimensionals at the top of the sentiment panel. We add a little extra twinkle to the sentiment panel with Strawberry Slush dots—also recently retired.

The inside of the card dresses up a gift card with a coordinating pocket panel on the inside left panel. The backdrop for our gift card fold out panel is a sheet of pink Garden Foil paper. A sheet of the pink shimmer paper gives us our foldout base. And we use additional pieces of our Velvet Meadow paper to cover each panel and make the pocket for the gift card. The new Saying Something ephemera give us our sentiments for this foldout. The Heartfelt Hexagon punch makes a nice notch to make the gift card easy to slide in and out. The sentiment on the message panel is from the new Words & Wishes stamp set.

While this particular design might be a little heavy for mailing, it’s definitely perfect for surprising mom at Mother’s Day brunch! We’ve got other celebrations in store this week. I hope you’ll drop back by and check them out!

Product List
Fun Folds · L2S Group Instahop · Online Exclusives

Flippin’ Awesome Father’s Day

Happy Thursday, everyone! It’s been a wild week so far here in North Texas as we’ve had a string of daily thunderstorms. And it just happens to be the time of year when thunderstorms turn nasty in a hurry. So needless to say, we’ve been on our toes this week!

Today’s card, on the other hand, is an ode to sunny weather that is perfect for grilling in the backyard. In particular, we’re looking ahead to Father’s Day when, ironically, most dads grill a meal in honor of their own special day! And the new BBQ Master bundle of stamps & dies is perfect for this tribute to dad. We’re revisiting the side step fun fold to create this backyard bbq scene for dad.

Our fun fold base is created with Cloud Cover cardstock. We use our instructions to cut and fold to create the 3 step folds on the side of our card and then we start building the scene. We create the tree using a sheet of the medium-shade woodgrain from the Woodgrain Wonder paper pack and cut the trunk using the Gliding Garden Swing die and then adhere it to the larger left side panel, allowing the branches to overhang freely over the step panels on the other side. Using the bush dies from the Garden Swing set, I cut out Shy Shamrock and Summer Splash bunches to create the tree canopy on the overhanging branch, layering the bunches with glue dots and dimensionals to create realistic dimension.

Now we get started with the real meat & potatoes of our scene. The grill image from the BBQ Master stamp set is stamped in Secret Sea on Cloud Cover cardstock and then cut out with the coordinating die. The grill flames are stamped on Peach Pie with a combination or Real Red and Timid Tiger ink and then cut with the coordinating die from BBQ Master die set. The tongs are stamped in Smoky Slate and Gray Granite on Cloud Cover cardstock and then cut with the coordinating die. Dimensionals give us our depth of scene and a little extra snip of the tongs allow them to hang on the side of the grill in a more believable way. The sausages and hamburger are created with the BBQ Master dies and a collection of paper scraps to create realistic-looking grilled yummies. I used some leftover pieces of white picket fence cut using the Notes & Toes die to create the picnic table. The table and food are affixed to the middle side panel to give the look of the tail being more under our shady tree branch. The sentiment is front and center on the bottom right and is heat embossed in black and we use a few moody palette dots to finish things off with an equal amount of glossy sheen.

Isn’t this fun fold perfect for creating this dad’s day bbq scene?! If you’d like to try it out yourself, you can snag the pdf side step fun fold tutorial here.

Today’s card is a part of the Luv 2 Stamp Group Instagram Hop, which goes live at 9 AM Pacific Time (PST).  Click here to head over to my Instagram feed at 9 AM Pacific/11 AM Central and check out what the other demos in our L2S Group have created for you today! 

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Coming Soon

The Right Words

Welcome back, friends! I’m glad you decided to stop by. Do you ever have days that just get off on the wrong foot — with one snafu after another? It started out as one of those days for me, but thankfully, everything was a bit more uphill after lunch. I’ll definitely be glad to see this week in the rearview!

We’re slowly but surely going to work our way through a patterns & textures design series. And today I’m sharing a sneak peek of some new paper that literally has texture — velvet, to be precise. The new Velvet Meadow patterned (and textured) paper is taking center stage in this fun fold sympathy card, along with a few other new products.

We get started with a base of Berry Burst cardstock. It’s scored to give a standard size panel inside but with offset folding panels for the card front. I really love to use this fun fold with busy patterned papers. It allows the sheet to sit front and center while also breaking up the pattern for some eye relief. The sheet of new Velvet Meadow patterned paper is matted with Pretty in Pink soft shimmer paper, which really helps the softer details in the paper pop. The sentiment from The Right Words stamp set is stamped in Secret Sea on a panel of white cut with the More Messages die. (Hint: I usually cut a quarter sheet of cardstock with the More Messages die to create a stash of sentiment panels for easy grab-and-go sentiments.) its mounted with dimensionals on a sheet of new pink Sunset Shimmer vellum and Berry Burst Garden Textures paper that are both cut with the new Sweet Words & Labels dies. I made a big twist of Berry Burst shiny ribbon and adhered it to the back of the sentiment panels for before adhering it to the left panel of the card front with dimensionals. Pearlized faceted circles and frosted iridescent dots finish things off with pops of color.

Although not pictured (because I completely forgot to photograph it), the inside is decorated with leftover strips of the Velvet Meadow paper. And the message panel includes a coordinating sentiment from The Right Words stamp set.

Sympathy cards are always hard, but combining products in a way that feels like a paper hug is always worth the extra effort!

Products used:

Berry Burst, Basic White cardstock

Garden textures, pastel shimmer DSP

Velvet Meadow DSP, Sunset Shimmer vellum, Sweet Words & Labels dies (May releases)

The Right Words stamps

More Messages dies

Secret Sea ink

Pearlized faceted dots, frosted iridescent dots

Berry Burst shiny ribbon

Dimensionals

Easter

He is Risen! Alleluia!

Sunday’s here; hope has arrived — Happy Easter! What a blessing to know that we serve a God who walks with us every step of the way — from the highest mountains to the lowest valleys. He knows every joy, every victory, every tragedy, every defeat. And when we don’t have the strength to take another step, God is there to carry us through.

We’re finishing up our Easter-inspired card series this week with another version of the cross fun fold honoring Easter Sunday. We’re pairing the Splendid Autumn paper with the new Easter Joy ephemera to create this stunning Easter sunrise celebration.

To add some detail to the cross, I used the recently retired Distressed Tiles embossing folder. The floral ephemera is layered behind the cross to create a beautiful spray of color. And the sentiment from the Faith Collection stamp set is stamped on a banner cut with the Words for the Season dies.

We’re headed into the great outdoors this week as we explore some nifty new goodies in the crafty stash. I hope you’ll drop in and see where we go on our outdoorsy adventure.

Product List
Easter · Fun Folds

It’s Friday…Sunday’s Comin’

Happy Good Friday, friends! While today is one of the hardest days in the Christian calendar, it’s pivotal in the journey to our eternal destination. As a church musician, it happens to be one of my favorite services to sing. The music just pierces the soul.

We’re continuing our Easter-inspired card series. And today, I decided to try the cross-covered z-fold, combining the beautiful retired Everyday Skies paper with the Faith Collection and Prayers & Promises stamps.

We get started with a base of black cardstock and score to crest our z-fold front panel and a portion of the cross. Panels of the Everyday Skies dark & cloudy patterned paper cover the front and inside of the card to create the backdrop for the cross.We use a sheet of the Country Woods woodgrain pattern to form our cross. The front sentiment from the Faith Collection set is stamped in the center of the cross and heat embossed in black.

The cross is wrapped in retired Blackberry Bliss ribbon and affixed it with glue dots. We stamp the inside sentiment panel with the Prayers & Promises sentiment is heat embossed in black. We finish off the card front with some metallic dots to serve as nails and a few moody palette dots for a subtle pop of additional color in the sky.

It may seem like all is dark and hope is lost, but remember this, Sunday’s coming. And Sunday changes everything. The Light will shine, the birds will sing, and the tomb will be empty — our victory forever won! Tune in tomorrow to see how we’ll celebrate.

Fun Folds · January Mini Catalog

Grateful Forever

Welcome in, crafty friends, on this frigid Saturday! We had a brief warm-up yesterday with temps well above freezing and today we’re back down in the low 20s. We’re thankful for the brief period of time we had to thaw out from all of the ice and snow Winter Storm Fern left us. And we’re praying for all of those in the areas that are still in the midst of the freeze and are without power and basic utilities. Having been there during Winter Storm Uri back in 2021, we personally know all too well what that is like!

We’re continuing our design series using the new Days Like This Memories & More card pack from Stampin’ Up! I love having at least one set of Memories & More cards on hand for those times when I need to make a quick card for a specific occasion. Today we’re using the Beautiful Butterflies dies and Lovely & Beautiful paper to make a fun fold card. Our Memories & More cards are perfect for the finishing touches on the inside of our card. Let’s see how this one comes together.

We get started with a base of Lemon Lolly cardstock on a standard A2 card base. We’re using a sheet of the Lovely & Beautiful patterned paper as the backdrop for our card front. The front panel focal panel is a fold-over panel of Lemon Lolly shimmer paper cut using the Beautiful Butterflies dies. This fold-over panel is cut just large enough to give us our butterfly shape for the front with about a half-inch strip to adhere to the inside panel of our card. Our butterfly details are made from vellum and black cardstock cut with the Beautiful Butterflies dies. The vellum is colored with the black Stampin’ Blend and then a layer of Wink of Stella is added to both pieces for some nice subtle twinkle. The detail pieces are adhered to the butterfly panel with glue dots. The front-facing part of our sentiment is the word grateful from the Unforgettable Times ephemera pack and is adhered at the base of the fold-over butterfly panel with several layers of dimensionals. I added some clear opal rounds on either side of the butterfly panel to draw the eye in to our front focal section.

When you lift the butterfly panel, lots of extra detail is revealed, including the second portion of our sentiment. I used the hybrid embossing folder to cut a detail butterfly from the Lemon Lolly glimmer paper and adhered it to the back of the fold-over panel. I love this hidden detail and it makes the butterfly more realistic because there’s a front and back view to their wings, after all. I cut a smaller butterfly from the hybrid embossing folder panel and used gold foil to add the details to coordinate with the gold foil forever sentiment from the Unforgettable Times ephemera pack. A small bow tied from the black & gold baker’s twine ties the two sentiment panels together.

We open our card to reveal our sentiment panel — complete with additional butterfly detailing. Here we’re using our Memories & More cards to add the finishing touches to the inside of our card. A larger 4×6 card from the pack serves as the patterned panel for the left-hand side of the message panel. I had a scrap of one of the smaller 3×4 butterfly cards left in my stash, and I cut out one of the butterflies to add to the corner of the patterned sheet. We use half of the more subtle butterfly-patterned 3×4 card to decorate the message panel. A few Peach Pie pearls finish off the opposing corners of the inside panels.

I love how each of the panels of this card reveals a fun surprise. And while it looks like a super complicated design, it really comes together quickly thanks to beautiful paper and Memories & More cards. I have a super quick & easy bonus card to bring you this evening once I knock out today’s around-the-house to-do list. I hope you’ll drop back by to check it out.

Product List
Fun Folds · January Mini Catalog · Online Exclusives

All Good Things

Howdy, friends, and welcome back on this bright & shiny Tuesday. We’re still frozen in under a pretty thick layer of ice here in North Texas, and it’s Day 2 of no school. That may sound a little strange to anyone who lives in a colder climate, but we don’t get very many days of ice or snow in winter so we’re not prepared to handle it. And we have a blanket of solid ice without any associated traction, so roads are a mess at best. But the goodness is that we’re finally expected to get above freezing this afternoon and should experience some thawing. Will it be enough to get us all back to work & school tomorrow? Well, that remains to be seen. But for now, I’m enjoying a beautiful sunrise out my craft room window.

This week, we’re using the new Days Like This Memories & More cards to create our projects. This pack contains a combination of 3×4 and 4×6 decorative cards that could be used for scrapbook pages or for cards and other projects. And today we’re using the smaller cards to create a double Z fun fold card.

I’m using a standard A2 card base (4.25 x 5.5-inch card front) for today’s card because I prefer to keep things sized so they’re easy to mail, but you might decide to size up to have the scale of the smaller Z-panel be more in line with the overall card size. We’re getting started with a base of Cloud Cover cardstock. We’re going to score as usual in the center to create a standard card base and then score again in the center of the front panel to create our base Z-fold. I used a scrap of Lovely Blossoms patterned paper to create the two 2-inch panels for the smaller front Z-flap and inside peek-through panel.

Then we start working on our focal Z-panel, which is a little smaller. I sized the Cloud Cover base so that none of the small cards from the Days Like This card pack had to be cut down. I wanted to preserve all of the pretty details of each of the patterns selected — the front sentiment panel, middle pattern, and inside butterflies. Caveat: this does impact how much you’re able to open the card — it will not lie flat when open. (Side note: I need to work on some kind of sliding mechanism for the next one I make like this.) To preserve all of the pretty card details means that our message panel — a blank card with tiny butterfly detail on the bottom — is a hidden, pull-out element. I used a piece of the Secret Sea bordered ribbon and stabled it in place to serve as the pull-out tab for the message panel. Some Wink of Stella on the smaller butterflies in each of the panels adds some twinkly interest, along with the Cloud Cover baker’s twine from the 2025 Advent Calendar and a few iridescent foil gems.

Today’s design is definitely a craft on the fly design, and there are a few things that I would change if I had taken more time. But sometimes the fun part of the creative process is just following an idea all the way through and seeing how it turns out. Do you ever just let yourself run with idea?

I hope you’ll tune in tomorrow for another look at the Days Like This Memories & More cards.

Product List
Botanicals · January Mini Catalog

You Can Do Anything

Happy Saturday, crafty friends! It’s a cold and icy day here in North Texas, just as the weathermen predicted. The kiddo has had fun sliding down the steep driveway, and I’ve puttered around sweeping off the porch and setting up makeshift shelters for the cat food bowls and temporary potty box so our (very spoiled) outside cats don’t have to leave the back porch. Hubby made us all a big breakfast and we’ve been enjoying loafing around since, which leaves me time to play in the craft room!

I got a brand new box of goodies earlier this week that I’ve been dying to take out and make some projects. Today, I decided to make another project with the new Lovely & Beautiful patterned paper pack and Fabulous Sentiments Product of the Month stamp set. I flipped through my trusty fun fold template book put together by fellow demo Jackie Bolhuis over at Klompen Stampers to source the card layout.

So this design gets started with a quarter panel of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. I love the contrast that this small panel provides and the stability it lends to the overall card design. Our folding panel is a sheet of Fresh Freesia that is scored to give us a tick-smaller standard quarter panel in the center section. The top and bottom flaps of our folded section then open to reveal the inside message panel of our card. I chose a sheet of the smaller foiled floral pattern paper from the Lovely & Beautiful paper pack as the patterned sheet for the card front panels. The top fold is just slightly larger than the bottom so that it overlaps slightly, and so we build our overhanging focal panel on the top panel. Our focal section gets started with a scrap of Blackberry Bliss cut with the Nested Essentials die. The sentiment from the January Product of the Month Fabulous Sayings stamp set is stamped in Fresh Freesia on white cardstock and then cut with paper snips. The sentiment is adhered over a bow of white & gold ribbon with dimensionals onto the Blackberry Bliss panel. This panel is adhered to the bottom of the top flap with dimensionals. A flower and leaves from the Covered in Flowers accents serve as our floral accents, and they’re colored with small blending brushes using Fresh Freesia and Mossy Meadow before being covered with Wink of Stella. They’re tucked behind the sentiment and adhered with a combination of dimensionals and glue dots. I added a gold drusy embellishment as the flower center to coordinate with the foiled paper and added a group of In Color pearls on the sentiment panel for a pop of twinkly color contrast to draw the eye to the sentiment.

I’m planning to bring you some more designs this weekend. I hope you’ll drop back by and see what I have in store for you!

Product List
Fun Folds · January Mini Catalog

Because You’re Amazing

Welcome back and welcome to the midweek! With most of us going back to work and kiddos returning to school, this is either the first full week for some or simply feels like the longest short week ever for others. *wink*

But how about some new product inspiration to give a little bright spot in this week for you?! Did you know that a whole bunch of new stuff hit the online store yesterday? Yep — there are 3 new kits, a whole new batch of online exclusives, PLUS all of the products in the new January Mini catalog. Soooooo many goodies. And this week, we’re getting a good look at the brand new Lovely Blossoms suite that includes paper, ribbon, embellishments, stamps, dies, and an embossing folder.

Today’s featured fun fold card puts another one of the ready-made card panels on display. The new Lovely Blossoms paper pack includes a full sheet of these panels of varying sizes. Today’s panel is a little smaller, which lets some of the other cool goodies in this suite get a chance at the spotlight. Let’s take a closer look.

Our card front starts with a base of Cloud Cover cardstock. For this fun fold, we’re using a standard A2-sized base. The backdrop for our front focal panel is a combination of two patterned papers. The mat is from the Traditions of Christmas pack and our floral panel is from the new Lovely Blossoms pack. Our focal panel base is white cardstock that is embossed with the new Lovely Stripes embossing folder. This folder gives a nice, deep impression in the paper making the details really pop. I used my paper snips to cut closely around the focal image from the ready-made panel I cut from the Lovely Blossoms paper. The little detail of the overhanging leaves just added a nice soft touch to the card front. The because sentiment is from the Words of Beauty set and is stamped on vellum with Secret Sea ink and then set with clear embossing powder before being diecut with the coordinating outline die. It’s adhered to the focal panel with glue dots to keep the adhesive invisible. The focal panel is adhered to our embossed panel with dimensionals over a twist of the new Cloud Burst ribbon and we finish off our focal panel with a dash of subtle twinkle with the new Moody Palette glossy dots.

When we open our small front focal panel, we reveal the other portion of our sentiment I think you’re amazing from the Words of Beauty set. Our sentiment panel sits atop a beautiful backdrop of some of the smaller ready-made panels from the Lovely Blossoms paper. We add some interest to our backdrop using the Stylish Shapes dies and the set of postage stamp dies in the 2025 Advent Calendar.

The sentiment is stamped on vellum in Secret Sea and heat set with clear embossing powder before being cut with a smaller banner die from the Stylish Shapes die set. It’s adhered over a faux bow of Cloud Cover baker’s twine from the 2025 Advent Calendar. And we finish off our sentiment panel with a little pop of twinkle with some Secret Sea Moody Palette glossy dots. The card opens up to a blank white message panel which covers the anchor portion of our smaller front focal panel.

Tomorrow we’re going to let the stamps & dies from the Lovely Blossoms bundle take center stage. I hope you’ll drop in and see.

Product List
Botanicals · Fun Folds · January Mini Catalog

Thankful Blossoms

Welcome in, friends! I hope your week is off to a good start. This is the first full week I will have had since the flu and the holidays. And I’m still not sure what day it is! *snicker* All of the kiddos in our area are returning to school today so the roads are back to being busy.

This week, I’m playing with some of my new January Mini Catalog goodies with an up-close look at the new Lovely Blossoms bundle by Stampin’ Up! This terrific bundle includes it all — stamps, dies, embossing folder, paper, embellishments…the works! And one of my favorite things about the paper in this set is the sheet of ready-made card elements. With a pretty tight schedule these days, it’s nice to have ways to still make handmade smiles without hours in the craft room.

Today’s fun fold card starts with a base of Secret Sea cardstock. I’m using the barn fold here which places the flaps opening squarely in the center of the card front. But I used an overly large overlay panel to give the look of a traditional cohesive card front. Isn’t that such a fun twist on this barn fold?! I used one of the largest ready-made panels from the Lovely Blossoms sheet and cut it down just a smidge with the largest Textured Notes die. The panel is then matted with Secret Sea glimmer paper and the full panel is adhered just to the left flap of our barn fold. The sentiment from the Lovely Arrangements stamp set is stamped in Secret Sea on white cardstock and then diecut with the Words of Beauty middle-sized sentiment panel die. The sentiment is adhered over a twist of the new white with gold ribbon in the bottom corner of our front focal panel. And we add bits of sparkle with some of the brand new Secret Sea sparkle dot essentials.

Now comes the fun part — the inside of our card. The message panel has a flower image from the Lovely Arrangments set stamped in the bottom corner. Each of the flaps is covered with a coordinating lighter floral and vine patterned sheet from the Lovely Blossoms set. And then we cover the exposed part of our front card panel with a coordinating Secret Sea patterned sheet from the Lovely Blossoms paper pack.

I just love how this one comes together. You could even add an inside sentiment on the left inside panel. That would be a really nice variation actually. *making note to self* Tomorrow we’re going to be making another fun fold with this suite and getting a sneak peek at a few more new products. I hope you’ll drop in and see!

Products used:
Secret Sea, Basic White cardstock
Lovely Blossoms, Peaceful Garden glimmer DSP
Textured Notes, Words of Beauty dies
Lovely Arrangements stamps
Secret Sea ink
White with gold ribbon
Sparkle dot essentials
Dimensionals
Adhesives