Fun Folds · L2S Group Instahop

You Can Do This

This week, we’re making our way through the woods as we feature a whole array of woodsy products from the Stampin’ Up! lineup. Today, we’re dreaming of winter with this diamond fold card design featuring the Thoughtful Journey designer series paper and Frosted Forest bundle.

Stampin’ Up! has released some gorgeous watercolored patterned paper packs over the last year, and I think I have loved each and every one. I thought it would be fun to use the snowy scene paper from the Thoughtful Journey paper pack and create a pop-out using Frosted Forest since the evergreens closely resembled those in the paper. So let’s see how it all comes together.

We get started with a base of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. I love how this really pulls forward the purple hues in the patterned paper. Our diamond panel leaves a little of the Blackberry Bliss peeking around the edges and the mat for our panel is a piece of white glimmer cardstock to be reminiscent of twinkling snowdrifts. I used the Frosted Forest masks to create the evergreen using a combination of Blackberry Bliss, Fresh Freesia, Night of Navy, and Misty Moonlight inks and then diecut it using the coordinating Frosted Forest die. I went over the tree with Wink of Stella and added iridescent ribbon for added sparkle on the diamond panel. The sentiment from Saying Hey is stamped in black on white cardstock and then diecut using the Happy Little Things banner die. A few iridescent faceted gems finish things off nicely with an additional twinkly touch.

Isn’t this just a gorgeous scene?! Today’s card is a part of the Luv 2 Stamp Group Instagram Hop, which goes live today at 9 AM Pacific Time (PST).  Click here to head over to my Instagram feed at 11 AM Central and check out what the other demos in our L2S Group have created for you today! Tomorrow we’ll be walking in the woods with another fun fold design using the new Splendid Autumn designer series paper. I hope you’ll pop in and check it out!

Want to see how a Diamond Fold card layout comes together from start to finish? You can watch the full Terrific Tuesdays video where we make one together and snag a FREE printable tutorial to boot. Click here to download the PDF.

Products used in today’s card:
Blackberry Bliss, Basic White cardstock
Thoughtful Journey, white glimmer DSP
Frosted Forest masks and dies
Saying Hey stamps
Happy Little Things dies
Iridescent striped trim
Iridescent faceted gems
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List
Changing Leaves · Fun Folds

Not Without You

Welcome to another bright & shining Monday. I don’t know about you, but it was a busy weekend for us. The kiddo finished up his summer bowling league and took some lessons in preparation for the start of the fall league. So we spent a lot of time at the bowling alley. But given the inferno we’re experiencing here in North Texas, that worked out just fine!

This week, we’re starting a new card series called In the Woods. Each we’ll be using products from Stampin’ Up! that fit our weekly theme. Today, I’m feeling all the fall vibes and thought it would be appropriate to get started with the Changing Leaves bundle paired up with the Splendid Autumn designer series paper that launches next week on September 6th.

To give an opportunity for our gorgeous leaves from the Changing Leaves bundle to take center stage, we’re working with the barn fold today. And we get started on today’s card with a base of Crushed Curry cardstock. We cover each of the front flaps of our barn fold with a strip of paper from the Splendid Autumn paper pack. The pattern is a very subtle brushed, grainy texture that gives some nice depth in our color palette. Next up, we emboss a quarter panel of Blackberry Bliss cardstock using the Changing Leaves hybrid embossing folder and then diecut it into a smaller panel with one of the larger Deckled Rectangles dies. On a quarter sheet of white cardstock, I traced the outside of the trio of leaves from the Changing Leaves die set in pencil to make it easier to stamp each of the leaf images and then diecut all at once. I used a combination of fall colors to ink each leaf from the stamp set, including Copper Clay, Blackberry Bliss, and Crushed Curry, and imitated the look of leaves in a color metamorphosis by going over sections of each leaf with other colors for a subtle two-toned look. I diecut a few additional leaves in gold foil and Blackberry Bliss and then layered everything together to create a leafy focal section behind the sentiment panel. Our hexagonal sentiment panel consists of a white center panel and mat of Peach Pie glimmer paper. The sentiments from Everyday Greetings and Changing Leaves are stamped in Blackberry Bliss. Our focal panel section is finished off with Blackberry Bliss & Gold textured ribbon from the upcoming Holiday Mini catalog, releasing next week on September 6th. A few shiny sequins finish things off with a little extra sparkle and help draw the eye across all the gorgeous design elements on the front of this card.

Tomorrow we’re working with another fun fold design and another gorgeous sheet from the Splendid Autumn paper pack to create a gorgeous peek-through scene. You won’t want to miss it!

Products used in today’s card:
Crushed Curry, Blackberry Bliss, Basic White cardstock
Splendid Autumn (coming soon!), gold foil, In Color glimmer DSP
Changing Leaves stamps, dies & hybrid embossing folder
Deckled Rectangles
Everyday Greetings stamps
Hexagon punch
Blackberry Bliss & Gold textured ribbon (coming soon!)
Shiny sequins
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List
Fun Folds · Terrific Tuesdays

Diamond Birthday

Do you ever see a special fold and think WOW? That’s precisely what happened when a fellow demonstrator shared the Diamond Fold with our team. And I’m glad to finally have the time to sit down and learn this fold. It looks far more complicated than it is, and it is absolutely a perfect way to spotlight beautiful patterned paper!

This week, we’re looking at all the ways we can use traditional holiday products in everyday designs. Today, we’re pairing the Season of Gold & Green designer paper with part of the new Season of Elegance suite to make this gorgeous Diamond Fold card.

We get started on today’s fun fold design with a base of Shaded Spruce cardstock. We cut a standard-sized base but in landscape orientation with a fold in the center and then one to divide the second half. I chose two different patterns from the Season of Green & Gold designer series paper pack, a current Stampin’ Up! Online Exclusive. We’re bringing out the gold foiling by using the gold foil specialty paper as an accent color on our diamond panel. Our focal image is the largest tree from the new Peaceful Evergreens bundle. It’s stamped and diecut from Mossy Meadow with a gold bow diecut and added to the top. The new Peaceful Evergreens die set that will release on September 6th with the Holiday Mini catalog includes a set of dies to make paper bows and it really makes it easy to have perfect bows for your cards! Our sentiment from Adventurous Sky is stamped in black on Very Vanilla cardstock and then diecut using the Peaceful Season dies. This panel is mounted on a gold foil banner diecut with the largest banner from that same die set. I added some drusy embellishments for lots of extra sparkle and to help draw the eye across the card front.

Tomorrow we’ll be using a sketch to create a super fun thank-you design. I hope you’ll stop by and check it out.

Want to know how to make today’s card step-by-step? You can catch this week’s of episode of Terrific Tuesdays to see this card come together from start to finish. I’ve also provided a FREE PDF tutorial here. Please note that some of the products shown will not be available until September 6th.

Products used in today’s card:
Shaded Spruce, Mossy Meadow, Very Vanilla, Basic White cardstock
Season of Green & Gold, gold foil DSP
Adventurous Sky stamps
Peaceful Evergreens stamps & dies (coming soon!)
Peaceful Season dies (coming soon!)
Drusy embellishments (coming soon!)
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Coming Soon · Holiday Mini Catalog

Thinking of You Always

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
Botanicals · Terrific Tuesdays

Busy Florals

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
Product List
Holidays · Winter

Decorate With Happiness

We’re wrapping up our week of winter-themed designs today with a simple fun fold card. This peek-through design uses the Stampin’ Up! Online Exclusive bundle called Sophisticated Sled paired with the Winter Meadow patterned paper. I have to give credit to Create With Christy for the idea to transform the sled into a window pane. Absolutely brilliant! So let’s dive in and take a closer look at today’s card.

We get started with a base of Balmy Blue cardstock. This is a standard sized card base. To create our peek-through panel, we cut a one-inch section from the card front to allow our inside message panel to “peek through” to the card front. A sheet of berry and greenery patterned paper serves as our base panel on the card front, while a strip of Boho Blue luster paper peeks through from the inside panel. Our focal panel sits on a base of snowy vellum from the Graceful Greenery vellum pack that has been diecut using the Deckled Rectangles dies. Our window pane is built from three different papers. The molding is a sheet of white glimmer specialty paper. The paning is blue woodgrain paper from the Country Woods paper pack that has been diecut using the sled die in the Sophisticated Sled die set. The bottom rungs have been removed to give it a truer window pane look. The window pane is mounted over a snowy pattern from the Winter Meadow paper pack, which has been cut to size. These three layers are adhered together and then adhered to the vellum panel with dimensionals. Our decorative wreath from Sophisticated Sled is stamped on white cardstock, colored with Stampin’ Blends, and then diecut using the coordinating die. A few red iridescent discs add some sparkle to the berries on our wreath. A ribbon of gold twine adds the finishing touch. The wreath is adhered to the top of our window pane with dimensionals. The sentiment from Sophisticated Sled is heat embossed in white on a piece of blue woodgrain from the Country Woods paper pack. The sentiment is adhered to the card front with dimensionals and our focal panel is then adhered over it using an additional layer of dimensionals. We finish things off with a scattering of iridescent discs across the card front to help draw the eye across the design.

Next week, we’re heading to the garden. I hope you’ll drop in and check it out!

Products used in today’s card:

Product List
Winter

Warm Hello

I hope you’re having as much fun with the wintery designs as I am this week! Ordinarily, I would be escaping the Texas heat by dreaming of winter, but we continue to enjoy unseasonably cool, spring-like weather here in North Texas and I’m not complaining a bit!

Today, we’re learning a new fun fold to build this super cute snowy scene using Merriest Trees and the new Online Exclusive stamp set called Filled With Cheer. The double easel fold is a cute way to showcase sets that create scenes or just to draw attention to beautiful patterned paper and a sentiment.

We get started on today’s snowy scene with a standard card base of Lost Lagoon cardstock. In this case, we’re cutting the base so that our center fold is oriented at the top of the portrait-oriented design. Our double easel is created with a sheet of Pretty Peacock, which also serves as the mat for our patterned paper on each front-facing panel. The small tree patterned sheet from the Winter Meadow designer series paper pack is our backdrop for this snowy scene. Our tree is diecut from Pretty Peacock cardstock using the Merriest Trees dies, which are designed to layer on top of one another to create the look of a fluffy evergreen tree. Layers of dimensionals help provide our fluffy look even after our card has made its trek through the mail. A dab of Wink of Stella across the bottom of each layer of branches adds some twinkle. The snowman from Filled With Cheer is stamped on white cardstock and is then separated from the remaining portion of the stamped scene with paper snips. A touch of color is added to the hat, scarf, and nose of the snowman using Stampin’ Blends. The snowman is adhered on top with layers of dimensionals to ensure he stands out against the background elements. I chose the “warm hello” sentiment from Filled With Cheer and stamped in Versamark on the snowy vellum sheet from the Graceful Greenery vellum pack. It’s then covered with white embossing powder and heat embossed. I just loved the play on words with the melting snowman. *grin* The transparent dots serve as cover for the dimensionals under the sentiment but also serve as subtle snowflakes across the card front.

Isn’t this just the cutest scene?! 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 and check out what the other demos in our L2S Group have created for you today!

Want to see this card come together from start to finish? You can watch the full Terrific Tuesdays video tutorial. I’ve also added a FREE printable tutorial. Click here to download the PDF.

Products used in this card:
Lost Lagoon, Pretty Peacock, Basic White cardstock
Winter Meadow, Graceful Greenery vellum DSP
Filled With Cheer stamps
Merriest Trees, Spotlight on Nature dies
Embossing powder
Stampin’ Blends
Wink of Stella
Transparent dots
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Product List
Frosted Forest · Fun Folds

Thoughtful Thanks

We are closing out our week of card designs where we’ve been using the new Online Exclusive by Stampin’ Up! called Frosted Forest. And we are doing so in style with one of my very favorite fancy fun folds called the Center Step fold. This is one of my favorite folds when I have a bundle made for scene building, and of course, Frosted Forest is absolutely perfect for that. For this design, we’re pairing it up with some patterned paper from the Thoughtful Journey designer series paper pack.

We get started on today’s fun fold design with a base of Lost Lagoon cardstock, which is cut to the standard size. The panel is then cut and scored to allow for the center standout section. (Click here for the full PDF directions.) I used the sheet of patterned paper with the evergreens from the Thoughtful Journey paper pack to serve as the backdrop for the front scene. The evergreen tree is stamped on Mossy Meadow using the Frosted Forest stamp and then diecut with the coordinating full tree die. The coordinating limbs are then diecut and added on top for additional detail. This is adhered to the left side of the center fold with dimensionals.

Next up is the tall tree, which is stamped on Crumb Cake cardstock and then diecut with the coordinating die. The top of the tree is then also stamped on Mossy Meadow, diecut, and adhered on top. I also diecut a branch portion of the tree from Crumb Cake to be layered on top of the green canopy. I went over the trunk and limbs with a Crumb Cake Stampin’ Blend. The coordinating leaves are diecut from Old Olive and then adhered on top of the branches. This is adhered to the right side of the center fold with dimensionals and made to stand a little higher than the evergreen for greater depth of field. I added some low-lying bushes using the die from the Sending Love set. The squirrel and bunny are diecut using the In the Grove dies, while the deer is from the Grove set. I added some shading detail to the deer and squirrel using my sponge dauber.

The sentiment panel is a simple circle diecut from Very Vanilla using the Everyday Details dies. The sentiment from Changing Leaves is stamped in Lost Lagoon. I added coordinating rainbow dots on either side to draw the eye and some linen thread behind for a more natural attention-grabbing detail.

The inside panel of the card is covered with another patterned sheet from the Thoughtful Journey paper pack. This sentiment from Changing Leaves is stamped on Very Vanilla and then diecut using the Autumn Leaves die. It’s adhered in the centered of the inside panel with dimensionals.

This card is a perfect example of how a great piece of patterned paper and a beautiful scene-building stamp bundle allow you to make beautiful cards without a lot of effort. The patterned paper does the heavy lifting here, while the Frosted Forest just adds the icing on the cake.

Next week, we’re going to dip our toes in the snow and dream of cooler weather! I hope you’ll join me.

Products used in today’s card:
Lost Lagoon, Old Olive, Mossy Meadow, Crumb Cake, Pecan Pie, Smoky Slate, Very Vanilla cardstock
Thoughtful Journey DSP
Frosted Forest stamps & dies
Changing Leaves stamps
In the Grove, Grove, Everyday Details, Autumn Leaves dies
Stampin’ Blends
Rainbow adhesive dots
Linen thread
Dimensionals
Adhesive

Product List
Botanicals · Country Flowers · Fun Folds

Country Flowers Sympathy

Welcome back, everyone! This week, we’re taking a tour of the country — Country Flowers, that is. We’re making an assortment of cards using products from the Stampin’ Up! Country Woods suite. Today’s card is a fun fold that features the Country Woods paper and Country Flowers bundle.

I really love the Barn Fold and once I discovered a little modification where your designer paper covers the center fold so the card front background looks totally cohesive once closed, I was even more sold on this fun fold! The Country Woods designer paper pack includes a whole host of woodgrain patterns and they come in any number of colors and textures. When I ran across the sheet of Petal Pink woodgrain, I knew it would be perfect for today’s card.

We get started with a card base of Petal Pink cardstock that is cut to open front and center, literally. The sheet of Petal Pink woodgrain serves as our backdrop for the front panel. The focal panel in the center has a base of white woodgrain, also from the Country Woods pack, that is diecut using the Spotlight on Nature set. The sentiment panel is diecut from Petal Pink cardstock with the Autumn Leaves die using the extension method. (You can watch a Terrific Tuesdays video tutorial on the extension method here.) The sentiment from Country Flowers is heat embossed in copper. Behind the sentiment panel are layers of iridescent striped ribbon and Petal Pink diagonal trim. And then nestled behind and around the sentiment are flowers and greenery that have been stamped or diecut using the Country Flowers bundle. I used Stampin’ Blends to color the flower bunches, and the greenery is diecut from Soft Sea Foam cardstock. Layers of dimensionals give the center focal panel lots of depth. The design is finished off with Petal Pink foiled gems scattered across the card front to draw the eye up and across the design.

With a simple sentiment substitution, you could easily make this a birthday or wedding design, or even a thinking of you. The possibilities are only limited by what’s in your stash!

Tomorrow, how about some tea? Stop in and join me for a cuppa — with some flowers, of course!

Products used in today’s card:
Petal Pink, Soft Sea Foam, Basic White cardstock
Country Woods DSP
Country Flowers stamps & dies
Spotlight on Nature dies
Copper embossing powder
Stampin’ Blends
Iridescent striped ribbon, Petal Pink diagonal trim
Petal Pink foiled gems
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Botanicals · Country Flowers · Fun Folds

Buckets of Thanks

This week, we are looking at all the ways we can use parts of the Stampin’ Up! suite of products called Country Woods. In particular, we’ve been focusing on the Country Flowers bundle, which includes stamps and coordinating dies, and the Country Woods designer series paper. Today, we continue with a brand new fun fold design.

Today’s fun fold is called the Front Panel Z-fold. What I love about this particular fun fold is that you can make it as simple or as complicated as you want. For this card design, I went somewhere in the middle. This design requires a little fussy stamping and some die cutting but all-in-all comes together pretty quickly once you get the hang of it. You can download the full PDF tutorial for today’s card, which includes a complete materials list and measurements, by clicking here. But for now, let’s take a closer look at how this card comes together.

Our card front consists of the smaller panels of the Z fold. Using the small detail stamp from the Country Flowers stamp set, we stamp a repeating pattern tone-on-tone on Smoky Slate cardstock. I chose a very symmetrical pattern and used a sheet of grid paper along with grid lines on my stamp block to accomplish this. This stamped panel is then cut into two smaller panels that are just a tick smaller than the card base. We cut a second quarter panel of white cardstock to make an identical sized mat that is adhered on the outermost fold to precisely overlay the inside message panel.

We start with a card base of Basic Gray cardstock. Our card base is of standard size and scored to give us our Z panel. The full-sized panel is our inside message panel, while our Z fold serves to give us a look inside with the overlapping front focal panel. For the inside panel, we cut a sheet of the gray woodgrain panel just a little smaller. The inside message panel is a quarter sheet of white cardstock that has been cut to size and then adhered to the center of the woodgrain panel. Be sure you only adhere to the outermost small panel so that your card will open. Next, we diecut a piece of the Pool Party woodgrain pattern from the Country Woods paper pack using the Deckled Rectangles die set. Using a glue dot, a faux bow is adhered diagonally across the front white mat and then the Deckled Rectangle piece is adhered over it using dimensionals. Using the Country Flowers stamps, stamp a bucket in black ink on Smoky Slate. I used Stampin’ Blends to provide shading and shadowing to the bucket, then diecut the bucket using the coordinating die from the Country Flowers die set. The greenery is cut from Old Olive and Mossy Meadow cardstock using the die from Country Flowers. The bucket and greenery are adhered with layers of dimensionals to give realistic visual planes. The sentiment from Something Fancy is stamped in black on white cardstock and then diecut using the Spotlight on Nature die set. The sentiment is adhered over the corner of the image panel using dimensionals. To draw the eye to the sentiment, rhinestone basic jewels are placed in a triangle around the sentiment panel.

Want to watch how this card comes together? You can watch the full episode of this week’s Terrific Tuesdays where we walk through the making of this card:

Tune in tomorrow for another fun fold design that showcases the beautiful greenery in the Country Flowers bundle. You want want to miss it!

Products used in today’s card:
Basic Gray, Smoky Slate, Old Olive, Mossy Meadow, Basic White cardstock
Country Woods DSP
Country Flowers stamps & dies
Something Fancy stamps
Deckled Rectangles, Spotlight on Nature dies
Stampin’ Blends
Linen thread
Rhinestone basic jewels
Dimensionals
Adhesives