You've Got This - Sympathy Card using FMS #725 Sketch

Welcome March!  You arrived with beautiful warm breezes and a sunny day.  My bestie Sheri, brought some extra joy to the day by presenting me with this beautiful bouquet.  Such a special gesture, by a dear friend.  Made me smile everytime I went into my kitchen this weekend.  Thanks Sheri!  

I haven't had much time for stamping this week but I did manage to make a sympathy card using the Freshly Made Sketch #725 outline hosted by Cecile.  

I hope you'll visit their blog and check out all the lovely samples from the Design Team and other participants. There are so many good ideas using this sketch: 

Here's My Card: 

This layout was perfect for a sympathy card I needed to make.  I used a couple of old stamp sets for the background and floral images 

Sorry these pictures are so dark, because the card is actually beautiful and bright.  I did sponge around the bottom corner on the inside of the card with Highland Heather ink but this photo doesn't show it that well. 

I used the large splotch stamp from an old retired set called You've Got This and once I inked the stamp up with Highland Heather ink, I stamped off to the next generation to get a softer effect. This is another of my go-to stamps that I keep in mind when I'm doing backgrounds or focals.  

Supplies and Instructions:

Stamps and Dies:

• Friendly Hello #158075 stamp set for florals 
• You've Got This #139575 - background splotch stamp
• Flourishing Phrases for inside verse #141534 
• First Frost #148420 dies for flower spray 
• Three Leaf punch for black leaves 

Cardstock and Designer Series Paper (DSP):

• Card Base Basic White 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" scored at 4 1/4"
• Mattes cut two from Basic White for front and inside 5" x 3 3/4"
• Scraps to stamp floral images on
• Basic Black 4" x 5 1/4" for matte on front and for black leaves 
• Highland Heather matte for card front 4 1/8" x 5 3/8" and 5 1/4: x 4" for inside matte.  Scraps for floral sprigs 

Ink and Blends:

• Momento Black ink pad
• Highland Heather ink pad
• Highland Heather blends light and dark 

Accessories:  

• Greetings for All Mix and Match Ephemera Pack for "Thinking of you" sentiment on front  of card 
• Dimensionals
• Sequins 
• Blending brush

Thanks for stopping by.  Come again ...............

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006 

Click here to visit my 24/7 online shop 

Match Day Birthday using AHSC #670

Happy March Everyone!  It's a beautiful day with sun shining and warmer temperatures expected today and tomorrow in Abbotsford BC.  With blossoms appearing on trees and snowdrops in full bloom in my garden I feel excited for the up coming season.   

Atlantic Hearts Challenge #670

Here's My Card:

Once again I'm using the Wonderful Match stamps, dies and papers to create a masculine birthday card. This sketch from Atlantic Hearts was perfect for creating this fun birthday card which came together in no time at all.    

The Wonderful Match designer papers are really awesome.  They include two half page layouts of tags, so once I checked out the sketch design I was inspired to grab one of these tags to use in the card front focal. After that it was just a matter of choosing a background paper and a circle.  I used a retired stitched circle die from Stampin' Up! to cut out the trophy from the dsp graphics page and added this with dimensionals to the card front.   

I'm still at a loss to as to which photopolymer stamp set in my collection this "Enjoy Your Special Day" sentiment is from. So if you know, drop me a note. 

I used the Wonderful Stars Puffy Stickers to finish the card front, but instead of putting them at the top of the card as shown in the sketch, I added them to the trophy circle and sentiment strip to give some additional pizzazz.  

For the inside of the card I stamped "Happy Birthday" using the long retired Perennial Birthday stamp set.  I never get tired of this sentiment because of it's size. 

The matte is a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of designer paper and matches the strip on the front of the card.  The white matte measures 3 3/4" x 5".  I've added the soccer ball and grass die cuts from the Match Day dies to add some more interest.  Love those  dies. 

Thank you for visiting and for leaving me some words of encouragement if you like this rendering of the AHSC#670 challenge.  I hope you'll visit the Atlantic Hearts Challenge blog to see all the wonderful cards posted by the Design Team and other participants too.  Hopefully these card samples will inspire you to be more creative and to challenge yourself to try new layouts and ideas.  Until next time......

HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Shop 

Valentines Sweet Heart Card - FMS #720

Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and I love sharing my love and appreciation for friends and families with my hand made cards.  Using a great sketch is a wonderful way to build my collection of cards and makes it easy for me to make quick decisions.  Today I'm using this sketch hosted by Jen at Freshly Made Sketches as my guide and inspiration for making this easy to assemble card.  Here's the sketch: 

Here's My Card:

I'm using a mixture of old and new for the design elements on this card.  

Supplies and Instructions:

Stamps and Dies: 

• Bear Hugs sentiment
• Branching Out dies 
• Stitched Hearts (R) 

Card Stock and Designer Paper:

Ink:

• Flirty Flamingo 

Accessories:

• Dimensionals
• Dazzling Red self-adhesive sequins

I hope you enjoyed this card.  Because I had pre-cut papers and elements, this card came together very quickly and made it fun to make.  Let me know if you do any pre-cutting or stamping so you're prepared to make cards without any hassle.  I'd love to hear your technique.  

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up Demo since 2006

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Shop 

Donuts and Coffee for a Happy Birthday! AHSC#663

January is such a busy month with taking down the Christmas decorations and cleaning the house from top to bottom that it's going by quickly.  My house always looks so blah after all the lights and sparkle are put away especially on all the grey rainy days we've been having.  

I was proud of myself because I was able to stick to my decluttering plan and whittle down more of our Christmas decorations.  I still have way too many boxes in storage, but it's less than last year, which is a good thing!   

I had a bit of spare time left in between packing and cleaning, and decided to play with the first sketch of the year at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge blog.  I love this layout and had no difficulty coming up with my own version of the sketch. 

HERE'S MY CARD: 

SUPPLIES AND INSTRUCTIONS:

Stamps and Dies:

• Branching Out #165771 sentiment "Sent With Lots of Love"
• More Than Autumn #164228 donuts, coffee cup and leaves
• Wishing You the Happiest Birthday Yet from Stampin' Up

Cardstock and Designer Papers:

• Basic White card base 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" scored at 4 1/4".  
• Basic White matte for inside card 5 1/4" x 4" 
• Basic White scraps for coffee cup, donuts and 1 1/4" x 1 1/4" sentiment square and for hearts 
• Pecan Pie 5 3/8" x 4 1/8" matte for card front and 2" x 2" scrap for square 
• Old Olive - scrap for die cut leaves 
• A Little Latte DSP # 163453(R) - mattes for front and inside card 5 1/4" x 4" and scraps for strips for front of card and 1 1/2 x 1 1/2" square for front 

Ink and Blends:

• Momento Black Ink for donuts and coffee cup
• Lost Lagoon for sentiments
• Calypso Coral, Lost Lagoon, Daffodil Delight alcohol blends for donuts and hearts

Accessories: 

• Dimensionals
• Nuvo Clear Drops for shiny glaze on donuts
• Lost Lagoon self adhesive faceted gems

Well that's it for this week.  I hope you enjoyed this card, and would love to hear your thoughts on the layout.  Is this design one that you would use in your cardmaking?  

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up Demo since 2006

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Shop 

Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #662

 It's time for Atlantic Hearts first sketch challenge of 2026  digitalized by Michelle.  

Here's My Card:

I decided to make a feminine birthday card using the AHSC sketch.  

The inspiration for this card came from a package of ephemera called Easter Time Mix and Match Ephemera which will be available in the new January to April Stampin' Up! catalogue on January 6th, 2026.  The precut images feature beautiful subtle colours and I was really drawn to the combination of purples and yellow in the floral designs.

Supplies and Instructions:

Stamps and Dies:

• "Wishing You" is from an old Stampin' Up! birthday stamp set, that I can't locate the name for.
• "Happy Birthday" from Perennial Birthday 
• Impressions Abloom Dies for ovals

Cardstock and Designer Paper:

• 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" Basic White for card base
• 3 x 4" Basic White for Oval 
• 5" x 3 3/4" Basic White for inside mat 
• 5 3/8" x 4 1/8" Daffodil Delight for front mat and 5 1/4"x 4" for inside mat
• Oval stitched frame cut from 3 1/4" x 4 1/4" Daffodil Delight 
• 5 1/4" x 4" Highland Heather embossed with Sequin embossing folder for front mat

Ink:

• Gorgeous Grape

Accessories:

• Easter Time Mix and Match Ephemera Pack #166984
• Shiny Self-Adhesive Lemon Lolly Sequins 
• Sequin retired SU Embossing folder 

Thanks for visiting my blog and checking out this sketch challenge.  I try to complete these sketch challenges on a weekly basis, so why not start the New Year off by following along and adding your own rendition.  The linky for this challenge ends on January 4th, 2026.  

HAPPY STAMPING

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006 

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Shop 

Wildflower Birthday card and FMS#717

 Freshly Made Sketches #717

This is the final sketch for Freshly Made Sketches for 2025.  Narelle is the host made a beautiful card using these sketch elements, so make sure you check it out on her blog.  

Since it's Christmas time and everyone is so busy, the Design Team at Freshly Made Sketches are taking a break.  So that's the reason this sketch which would normally run for a week has been running since December 17th and will carry through to January 5th, 2026.  The sketch prince and princess notables will be announced on January 6th and then everything will return to normal with the first sketch challenge for 2026  

Why not add "sketch challenges" to your list of New Year's resolutions for 2026, and start a weekly habit of joining in. And while you're at it, there's still time to play along with Sketch 717.

Here's My Card: 

I don't know about you, but at this time of the year, I'm looking for something new to make, and I'm not wanting to make any more Christmas cards.  When I looked at the FMS sketch I thought it would be a perfect layout for a feminine birthday card, so I decided to let some new designer paper and ephemera I'd purchased, influence the card design. Here's what I came up with: 

The paper I used is called Wildflower Birthday.  I'd admired this papers soft feminine contrasts and designs since it first came out, but couldn't justify getting another birthday DSP until it recently went on sale in the Last Chance products listing.  I was also interested in buying the coordinating dies called Birthday Celebration and got them for half price along with the paper.  

For my card I added some pieces of ephemera from the Wildflower Birthday DSP instead of stamping images.  There were two sheets of ephemera included with the paper, so it was fun trying different pieces to see what would work and what wouldn't while developing my card.

I also tried out a new to me fancy fold that is great for using up paper, for the inside of the card. I have no idea what this fold or design is called, however it involves putting a 10 1/2" x 4" piece of DSP that's scored at 5 1/4" on the inside of the card and then adding a 5" x 3 3/4" piece of neutral cardstock for writing your message on that is adhered to the inside of the DSP.

I added quite a few self-adhesive sequins to the front of the card to add a festive look.  The tag for the sentiment is from another new to me die set that I bought off the Last Chance List called Tags To Go.  Love, love love this tag die for it's shape and simplicity.  I know I'll be using this die set often in the future. 

Supplies and Instructions: 

Stamps and Dies:

• Tags To Go #165576 sentiment tag
• Round We Go #163724 - sentiment

Cardstock and Designer Papers:

• Wildfire Birthday 12 x 12 DSP #164591 
• 10 1/2 x 4" scored at 5 1/4" for inside fold 
• 5 1/4" x 4" matte on card front 
• 2" x 1 1/2 inch stripped piece for rectangle 
• Soft Seafoam Cardstock Matte 5 3/8" x 4 1/8" for front matte
• Basic White 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" scored at 4 1/4" for card base; two 2" x 1 1/2" scraps for sentiment tag and for 2" x 1 1/2" layer 

Inks and Blends:

• Blueberry Bushel for sentiments 

Accessories: 

• Ephemera from Wildflowers Birthday 12 x 12 paper pack
• Purple Adhesive Sequins 
• Dimensionals
• Glue 

Thank you for visiting my blog and I hope you'll return again.  If you liked this card or know the name of the DSP panel I used inside the card let me know, I'd be happy to hear from you. 

HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Shop

Cozy Christmas Paper Pumpkin Alternative

Hi everyone and welcome back.  After recently returning from holidays, I've been wanting to create a few more Christmas cards to have on hand.  

I decided to interpret the clean and simple sketch from  Freshly Made Sketches #715. Michelle F. is the sketch designer and she says although this sketch would work well as a wreath, the circle is open to interpretation. With that, I changed my interpretation of the circle to a classic Christmas ornament.  Hope you like it. 

Here's My Card: 

I had a few supplies left from my October Paper Pumpkin kit called Cozy Christmas so I made an alternative card using them.  For the matte layer I cut an envelope from the kit in half and cut a 5 1/4" x 4" matte.  The sentiment "Deck the Halls" is from the Greetings For You Mix and Match ephemera pack #166208.  The beautiful red self-adhesive sequins are from the Cozy Christmas kit.  

The inside has a 5 1/4" x 4" real red cardstock matte layer and a basic white layer that measures 5" x 3 3/4"  The sentiment is stamped in Real Red ink and is from a retired Stampin' Up! stamp set called More Merry Wishes.  I added some Garden Green star images using a stamp from the coordinating Cozy Christmas stamp set.  

Well that's it for today's card.  I want to thank you for stopping by and checking it out.  

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006 

Click here to visit my online shop 

North Pole Delivery Slimline - AHSC #654

 The Atlantic Hearts Challenge this week is a slimline card.  I don't often make slimlines because I always wind up having to make a coordinating envelope which takes time. Here's the sketch challenge.  I hope you'll join in.  

Here's My Card:

I actually made two cards, one with green sequins and the other with the red and white peppermint dots.  Let me know which one you like more.  

Supplies and Instructions:

Stamps and Dies:

• Traditional Labels #165854 stamps (sentiment on front) 
• Branching Out Dies #165771 - Labels on front 

Cardstock and DSP:

• Basic White slimline card base 8" x 4" 
• Inside Basic White matte 3 3/4" x 7 3/4" and scrap for label 
• Real Red front matte 7 7/8" x 3 7/8" and inside matte 3 7/8" x 7 3/8" and scrap for label
  
• North Pole Delivery 12 x 12 DSP cut to 3 5/8" x 7 5/8"

Inks and Blends:

• Real Red 

Accessories:   

• Dimensionals
• Real Red & White Peppermint self-adhesive dots #164050
• Traditional Sparkling Sequins self-adhesive #165875 - green 
• Ephemera from North Pole Delivery DSP 

Thanks for stopping by and taking a look at this week's sketch challenge.  I hope something about it encourages you to play along. Sketch challenges are not only fun and a productive way to  make cards, but they also encourage you to try new things.  What fun!  Until next time..........

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

Penny Hanuszak,  CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006 

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Shop 

Words of Encouragement - FMS Challenge #708

Freshly Made Sketches #708:

The wonderfully talented Jen T is the hostess for this week's wonderfully basic card sketch on Freshly Made Sketches.  Make sure you check out her own card design, it's stunning!  Also, why don't you play along.  Don't be intimidated by the blank canvas and simple design.  You  can choose any element to replace the circle and make it your own.  

 Here's My Card: 

Clean and simple cards are one of the biggest challenges I face as a papercrafter.  I never know when is enough or if I've done too little on my card designs.  After I finished this card I thought I could have possibly done more by dry embossing the white matte after I stamped the sentiment on it.  However, I didn't because I was concerned it would affect the lettering.  Oh well.  

I love the floral wreath die cut on this card.  Its a bigger image than I was going to use however it worked out well on the card. I die cut the image from a piece of Meandering Meadow Designer paper and then used the cut piece that was left, as a matte.  This combination of matte and design compliments each other quite effectively without having to do blending or other means of adding colour and design.  

Supplies and Instructions:

Stamps and Dies:

• Encircled in Natures stamps and dies #163623

Cardstock and DSP:

• Basic White card base - 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" scored at 4 1/4" 
• Balmy Blue matte  5 1/4" x 4 1/4" 
• Meandering Meadow DSP matte 5" x 3 3/4" - die cut taken from the center of this piece before adhering
• Basic White matter 4 3/4" x 3 3/4" 

Ink and Blends:

• Misty Moonlight

Accessories:  

• Adhesive Backed Shiny Sequins #163484 

Well that's it for this challenge.  I'd love to hear your comments.  Do you use designer paper for mattes?  What are your thoughts? 

HAPPY STAMPING!

PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN' SPOT 

Penny Hanuszak, CDN Stampin' Up! Demo since 2006 

Click here to visit my 24/7 Online Store