This is my little creative get away spot in a very hectic world. I love to stamp, meet other stampers and share my inspirations. So come and, sit for a while, explore my site and leave a comment when you can.
I've been meaning to create some all occasion cards or other projects with my January 2024 Paper Pumpkin (PP) kit but my mojo just wasn't working enough to actually get started. So, when I came across this week's Freshly Made Sketch challenge that was all I needed to get inspired. I loved the fact that I could use any shape I wanted to create the focal point, I wasn't limited to something oval.
My card design evolved from both the sketch and the little postage square focal point that had been hanging around on my desk for a week or two. It was perfect for tucking some of the leaves and flower images from the Paper Pumpkin kit behind.
It started with a standard A2 size Whisper White cardstock base, followed by a 5 3/8" x 4 1/8" piece of Blackberry Bliss.
I cut one of the PP card bases in half for the dsp mat and then cut the 4" x 5 1/4" mat on an angle to form half of the card front layer. I used a second 4" x 5 1/4" Whisper White card stock piece for the bottom half of the front mat. Before layering the two pieces of the mat, I embossed the full white piece with the Layered Florals 3D embossing folder call. The dimension this embossing folder brings to the mat is so wonderful, I simply love the effect!
I added a 1/4 strip of Blackberry Bliss cardstock on an angle across the join line and snipped off the overlap.
The focal point began with the Perennial Postage square die cut from a scrap of Blackberry Bliss cardstock. The lavender flowers and leaf sprigs from the PP kit were glued to the back of this piece. The square of Whisper White, also a scrap was die cut with a retired Simple Shapes die cut, and the sentiment was stamped in Highland Heather ink.
Once the focal point was adhered with dimensionals across the center of the card I added some of the beautiful Purple Fine Shimmer gems which I got with the Perennial Lavender Suite Collection on page 23 of the Mini Catalogue.
Supplies:
Here is a list of all the supplies used to make this card.
Stamp Sets: Lovely Lavender January 2024 Paper Pumpkin
Cardstock:
Whisper White 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" for base scored at 4 1/4"
2 Whisper White 4" x 5 1/4" mats for the front panel and inside and a 2" x 2" scrap for the sentiment square.
1 Blackberry Bliss mat 4 1/8" x 5 3/8" for card front and a 1/4" strip, and a 2 x 2" scrap for the focal mat.
Paper Pumpkin January 2024 Kit:
One card base piece trimmed to 4" x 5 1/4" and then cut on an angle for the front mat.
Three lavender floral pieces and one sprig of leaves in Lost Lagoon.
Accessories:
Purple Fine Shimmer Gems
Layered Florals 3D Embossing Folder
I hoped you enjoyed my submission to FMS623 and will check out the other submissions Between the designers and the participants there is a bevy of card ideas. Better yet, if you're following or thinking of following my blog why not share what you made with this sketch. That would be fun!
I'm a Paper Pumpkin Subscriber and I have to say I'm thoroughly impressed with the beautiful AUGUST Paper Pumpkin, called Sweet Sunflowers.
This Sweet Sunflowers kit included enough materials to create 9 cards, but I know I'll make far more than that. To start with it has 3 each of 3 card base designs and nine beautiful coordinating envelopes. The Sweet Sunflower photopolymer stamp set has sentiments that will express words of gratitude, friendship and greetings and beautiful wildflower designed images. Also included in the kit are some Vellum honeycomb shape pre-cut pieces and two Classic Stampin’ Spots in Crushed Curry and Soft Suede. I love collecting the Classic Spots as they are great for stamping on the Stamperatus. A free set of 8 Gold Foil Honeycomb Sheets came with this month's kit and I know I'm going to have fun dressing up my cards with these glossy accents.
Paper Pumpkin kits always co-ordinate with Stampin' Up!s vast array of coloured products, and this month's kit is no exception. Here are the colours that will work perfectly with the materials in this kit:Blackberry Bliss, Crushed Curry, Evening Evergreen, Melon Mambo, Mossy Meadow, Night of Navy, Pumpkin Pie, Soft Suede and Cherry Cobbler.
The five cards I've made are my own alternate ideas and I've included the supplies that I used to make them. I hope you'll enjoy them.
Card Number 1:
For this card I started with a Whisper White Base measuring 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" and scored at 4 1/4". Blackberry Bliss mat measures 5 1/4 x 4" and before I adhered it I cut out a large stitched square piece from the center. The dsp panel measures 3 3/4" x 5" and is cut from one of the kits card bases.
The sentiment is stamped in Blackberry Bliss ink on a smaller stitched square and then layered on the Black Berry bliss square. A few rhinestones were added along with a leaf image from the stamp set.
Card Number 2:
Essentially this card has the same dimensions and mat sizes as Card Number 1, however the card base is Blackberry Bliss followed by a Mossy Meadow layer. The dsp layer is simply beautiful in design.
I stamped the sentiment " Wishing You So Much happiness" on Whisper White card stock and then fussy cut all the words. I love how that turned out. The flower is one of the vellum accent pieces in the kit and I added three rhinestones for some glimmer.
In the kit you get several bumble bee images that can be mounted on mini dimensionals. I added two that were flying in the same direction. So sweet.
Card Number 3:
For this card I started with one of the green card bases from the kit and added this beautiful panel, which I mounted on a blackberry bliss frame. The ornate label was die cut from the center of the Blackberry Bliss panel along with the stitched circle used for the label in Card 2. No waste when you die cut elements from your mats. No one is going to see them once they are covered anyway.
Card Number 4:
The dsp in card number four is actually one of the decorative envelopes cut up and used as the layered mats. I used the scalloped rectangle die from the Scalloped Contour Die set to cut from the center of this 3 3/4 x 5" mat. I attached the scalloped mat with dimensionals over the space left when it was cut out.
The card base was cut from Mossy Meadow cardstock and the first mat layer is Calypso Coral. Loved the contrast it added. For the sentiment I once again fussy cut the words, but left the phrase "wishing you so much" in tact and mounted it on one of the small blackberry bliss element strips from the kit. I also added another velum flower and a small piece of the velum honeycomb to the sentiment piece. Love it!
Card Number 5:
This card is made with another of the beautiful honeycomb panels which I mounted on a piece of Mossy Meadow card stock. I cut the card base from Crushed Curry and loved the contrast that provided. The two flowers are from a recently retired stamp set called Friendly Hello and worked perfectly for adding some more dimension to the card.
Well that's it for today's post. I have lots more ideas for using up the products in this kit and I hope you've enjoyed what I've shown you so far. If you don't want to be bothered with having a lot of stamping tools and products kicking around purchasing kits like Paper Pumpkin is really a very simple way of being creative without a lot of material and costs.
Unfortunately Paper Pumpkin kits are always for sale until the 10th of the month, so if you missed out on this kit, you're really out of luck. My fingers are crossed that they'll offer a "refill" kit, and if so I plan to offer a class. You won't want to miss that.
If you'd like more information about subscribing to Paper Pumpkin on a monthly or annual basis, please call and I'd be happy to share that with you. Also I'm planning a Monthly Paper Pumpkin get together starting in September so if you're interested in that call me for the details.
All Paper Pumpkin subscriptions must be completed the 10th of the month to ensure you get the kit for the next month. Click here to set up a Paper Pumpkin subscription:
For all my Canadian friends and family where ever you are, have a happy and safe Victoria Day long weekend. Hope you're getting sunshine like we are. Two days in a row, whoo hoo! Yeah, it's been such a long time.
Speaking of long times, it's been a while since I participated in a card sketch challenge, so I thought I'd dive in with this sketch from Freshly Made Sketches. The moment I saw it I knew what I wanted to create with this fun sketch.
I fell in love with the red rubber cling stamp set called Nuts and Bolts when the January to February 2022 Sale-a-bration (SAB) started. It was so cute and FREE in the SAB. My only problem was I bought so many stamp sets and bundles from the new Mini that I never got around to using it before it retired the end of February. So when I saw the sketch from FMS I thought here's my perfect opportunity.
Stamp Set:
Nuts and Bolts stamp set featured in the January to February Sale-a-bration catalogue. Product # 157650. This item is now retired.
Product #157650 from the 2022 Jan-Feb Sale-a-bration Sale.
Cardstock:
8 1/ x 5 1/4" Marina Mist for Card Base scored at 4 1/4"
5 3/8" x 4 1/8" Misty Moonlight card stock for 1st layer on card front, scrap for sentiment
Cut two 4" x 5 1/4" Whisper White layers for the front and inside of the card. Emboss the front panel.
Additional scraps of Whisper White to stamp the sentiment and robots on. All the robots were fussy cut and coloured with blends.
Designer Series Paper:
2 1/2" x 6" piece of Simply Marbelous DSP from the Jan/Feb 2022
Sale-a-bration catalogue.
Punch out three 1 3/4" circles from Simply Marbelous DSP
Ink:
Momento Black ink for sentiment and stamped images.
Blends - Petal Pink, Pool Party, Smokey Slate and Basic Black light.
Accessories:
1 3/4" circle punch
gemstones
Well that's it for today's post and for this Freshly Made Sketch challenge. I hope you enjoyed it.
HAPPY STAMPING!
PENNY TOKENS STAMPIN SPOT
Penny Hanuszak, Independent Stampin' Up Demonstrator
I'm back today with a rather intimidating sketch by Karen at Freshly Made Sketches. This is definitely a clean and simple sketch, but one that sends shivers down my spine and causes sweat on my brow. Not really, but I do find these plain sketches some of the hardest to do because the sky is the limit in terms of decision making and that field is just too vast for me.
Here's the FMS #461 Sketch:
Since I'm trying to get caught up with making Christmas cards my focus for this card will be on one that's easily mail-able. You know the type, one layer, lays flat without too much dimension and can be mass produced. I chose a cling stamp set from Stampin' Up! called "Don't Stop Believing".Here's My Card:
One of my most loved and used bundles from last year's Holiday Catalogue was the Christmas Gleaming Bundle which included the stamp set, Brightly Gleaming Specialty Designer Paper and two ornament punches. I probably made 45-50 cards using just that bundle. I was so enamored with it I bought two additional packages of paper thinking it wouldn't be around any longer, so imagine my delight when it was part of the Christmas lineup for this year's Stampin' Up! Annual catalogue.
Because I love this paper so much, I started with a designer paper strip which features copper foil stars on a Night of Navy background. I adhered the strip to a 5" x 3 3/4" piece of Very Vanilla card stock. From there I dug out my Copper Foil and made a 5 1/4" x 4" layer, that I adhered to a Night of Navy A2 card base.
Originally I visualized using a cluster of the ornaments from the Christmas Gleaming set for my focal point, but when I was grabbing the set, I spied my "never been inked yet" Don't Stop Believin' stamp set. From there my ideas morphed into this card.
I added some glue to the tassel, hat brim and cuff of Santa's suit and sprinkled Iridescent Ice Glitter over them. Unfortunately because I didn't stamp the Santa in a permanent ink, the Night of Navy ink on the jacket ran a bit into the cuff. Oh well live and learn. The next one of these cards I make I'll use Momento Black Ink - run proof when using blends or glue. The sparkle just brought this card alive. I also added some Nuvo Crystal Drops to Santa's specs so they've got the appearances of glass lenses. The small stars are from the Curvy Christmas stamp set.
Supplies: Stamp Sets: Don't Stop Believing #15332, Curvy Christmas (small stars) Ink: Night of Navy ink, Blends: Night of Navy Light and Dark, Smokey Slate Light and Dark, and Ivory Specialty Paper: Copper Foil, Brightly Gleaming DSP #150429 Card Stock: Night of Navy, Very Vanilla Embellishments: Iridescent Ice Glitter, Nuvo Crystal Drops
This was a fun and super easy card to do. My non-traditional take on Santa worked out okay and I might try him in some other unconventional colours. I know I'll be using the Don't Stop Believin' stamp set a lot now as it's really peaked my interest. So many great images and sentiments, especially Frosty the Snowman.
Don't forget to apply the November Hostess code if you order is under $200.00 before shipping and handling. You'll get a free gift from me. If you place an order over $200.00 before shipping and handling, you will automatically earn Stampin' Rewards and can pick out your own free gifts. Everyone who orders from me will received a thank you card as I so appreciate your orders.
It seems like folks are either coming or going from our neighborhood. Last week I showed you a Farewell Eclipse card made for a neighbor and friend who was leaving our community and this week I'd like to share a "welcome" card I made for a new couple who are moving in this weekend.
I designed this template a couple of years ago when I earned a Hostess stamp set from Stampin' Up! called In To The City. I fell in love with this set because it has so many bits and pieces that designing a card or creating a story book page is so much fun.
This retired Hostess Set called In To the City is photopolymer and has so many pieces it's incredible for creating scenes. The first and second generation stamps make the images easy to colour. Love it!
Here's the original card I made:
This card starts with a base measuring 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" and scored at 4 1/4". I've cut two pieces of Old Olive card stock for the 1st layer on the front and on the inside of the card. They measure 5 1/4" x 4". For the next outside and inside layers I cut two pieces of Crumb Cake card stock measuring 5" x 3 3/4".
I stamped my design on the card and coloured it and then laid out the alphabet dies from my EK Success Alphabet dies set to spell HOME. Once the letters were cut out they were popped up on Dimensionals and then placed back into the negative cut spaces and attached to the card. The little banner was cut from a scrap of Old Olive and the "Welcome To Our Block" sentiment was stamped in Versa Mark ink and embossed with White Embossing Powder.
For the inside of the card I stamped some additional houses and greenery and stamped the sentiment "so glad you're hear" in momento black ink.
Although I may change up the houses I stamp this has pretty much become my template for designing "welcome to your new home" cards. Now that the Coming Home stamp set from Stampin' Up! has arrived I'll probably change up my housing styles using that set.
Here's the card's I made today.
I always like to make duplicates while I have the inks, stamps and card stock out.
As you can see in these photos, I changed up the alphabet lettering arrangement a little bit for each card. This was simply exploring different styles and not for any particular design issue. I really like using these broad and bold alphabet letters because they stand out so well on the card front.
My pledge for 2020 has been to purge and use up retired card stock and accessories from my stash, so I used the retired More Mustard for the sandwich layer and sentiment, and the card base was cut from Real Rust card stock.
For this particular card template I generally choose a neutral card stock such as Natural Ivory, Sahara Sand, Crumb Cake or Very Vanilla for my stamped layers. Sometimes I pre-stamp several image layer scenes and when I have nothing better to do or want to do something relaxing I pull them out and just colour in the images. I usually don't cut out the alphabet letters until I'm ready to finish the card. It's always nice to have extras on hand for when you don't have time to do something from scratch.
I coloured all the houses and trees with Stampin' Blends. When you stamp on craft or Crumb Cake card stock the colours are a little murkier than they would be on Very Vanilla or Whisper White neutrals. I like that look, as it makes the cards look a little more rustic. The blends I used for the newer cards are Pool Party, Old Olive, Mango Melody, Gray Granite, Crumb Cake and Cinnamon Cider. Although you can't see it well in these photos, I did randomly splatter some black Momento ink on the images. If you look at the original card they show up better.
Well that's my post for today. Happy November everyone and happy stamping! With the weather turning colder and more rain in the forecast, I anticipate I'll be stamping more so I'm happy I have a hobby like this to occupy my time.
How about you? I'd love to receive your feedback on these cards and whether you have repeat cards you like to make ahead.
If you want to get a free gift from me, apply the November hostess code to orders under $200 before s&h before leaving my store. If you place an order of $200+ before shipping and handling, don't need to apply the hostess code as you will automatically receive your own Stampin' Up Rewards based on the total of your order.
After several days of rain and being forced to stay in doors, I enjoyed a round of golf last Wednesday at the Surrey Golf Course. It wasn't overly warm but the sun was out periodically and the winds were mild. As the day progressed it got a little cloudy, but nothing could take away from being outdoors with great friends and having fun.
After spending a day in the great outdoors, I managed to fit in some stamping time, and it was a no-brainer when it came to selecting a stamp for today's card. I chose Nature's Beauty a nine image cling rubber stamp by Stampin' Up! and I'm following along with Linda Callahan's great sketch at Freshly Made Sketches #457. *
Note: As sometimes happens, life gets in the way and sadly my card was not linked to the FMS #457 challenge this week. Regardless I hope you'll use the link and visit their site to look at all the great cards by the Design Team as well as the participants. Awesome - some real inspiration.
Here's My Card:
The card I made is a masculine thank you card for a neighbor who gave me a hand with some work the other day. I chose the deer as the main focal image and scattered some trees and grasses in the background. It was stamped in Momento Black ink on a 3" x 5" piece of Whisper White card stock. Very plain and simple. I layered this on a 3 1/8" x 5 1/8" piece of gold foil.
The card base is a 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" piece of Whisper White card stock, scored at 4 1/4". I added a 5 1/4" x 4" layer of Basic Black. For the next layer I decided to stamp the large tree image from Rooted in Nature in Momento Black Ink to create a background. This is not a large layer it measures 3 3/4' x 3 3/4", and so you don't really see a lot, but it seemed to tie everything together.
The sentiment "To Thank You For All You Do" is also from Rooted in Nature and I embossed it with gold Embossing Powder on a 1/2" strip of Basic Black card stock. I fancied up the edges with the new Lovely Labels Pick a Punch.
The inside of the card is finished with a layer of Basic Black card stock that measures 5 1/4 x 3 3/4" and I added a strip of gold and black on the right hand side. I wanted to write a thank you note on the inside panel so left it plain and didn't add a sentiment.
I hope you enjoyed today's card and take the time to leave me a comment. I love to hearing from my viewers and getting your impressions of the cards and projects I make.
