Simply Succulents

 Hi there!  Here it is, Saturday already.  This week has flitted by so fast, and July is easing toward the end.  We've had several of our families birthdays this month.  So many cards have been going out in the mail to all of the birthday people.  Today's card I'm sharing was one of those many cards that went out this month.  Hope you like it.  I wish I had better pictures of the whole card, but it was in the mail before I realized some of the pictures I took were all blurry and ugly.  I also figured out that I never took down measurements either.  Oh nuts!  (for those of you ladies at Guardian, you can ask Barb for the dimensions.  I think this card went to her.)  So this is what you get today...

This card marries two different Designer Paper packs from two different catalog years, but they look like they were made for each other.  At least that's what I thought when I was digging around in my papers looking for something to go with the alcohol ink look of the Expressions In Ink Designer Series Paper.  You know how it is when you know you want to use a certain paper on a project and it takes awhile to find just the right piece to coordinate with it?  That's what happened here.  I was so excited when I came across a bit of the Forever Greenery DSP from last year's catalog.  The colors went together perfectly and I was able to get this card made.

The card starts with a base of Shaded Spruce cardstock cut in half.  I'm guessing that I cut off about 1 1/2" from the right edge.  There's a layer of Basic White attached to the inside of the card with adhesive.  The inside sentiment was stamped with Shaded Spruce ink.  Now for the front of the card...  

The pretty leafy print from the Forever Greenery DSP was cut to 5 1/4" tall, and a 1/4" smaller in width than the front flap of the card.  The print has leaves in Soft Seafoam on a Shaded Spruce background.  It was attached using adhesive. 

The focal point was made using the Simply Succulents stamp set and dies.  The flower pot was stamped on Pumpkin Pie cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and lightly shaded with Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends.  I was trying to get the look of a clay pot.  The cactus flower was stamped on Basic White with Soft Succulent ink.  The coloring was done with Stampin' Blends also, Soft Succulent and Fresh Freesia.  Then these pieces were die-cut with the Potted Succulents die set.  The 'aloe plant' was die cut from Shaded Spruce cardstock.

The Expressions in Ink was cut at 2 1/2" x 4".  I used the backside of the paper with no gold on it.  This is layered onto a Shaded Spruce piece of cardstock cut 2 3/4" x 4 1/2".  Both the aloe plant and the flower pot were attached flat to this.  The little cactus flower was attached with a Dimensional.  This was attached to the card front lining up the edges so a little of the Basic White layer inside the card shows nicely on three sides.

The sentiment comes from the Sharing Sunshine stamp set and was stamped onto a Basic White strip using Shaded Spruce ink.  The ends of this were trimmed with the Banner Pick A Punch.  This is one of my very favorite punches and very handy to have around.  If you hate cutting those banner ends by hand and can never get them straight, then this is a must have tool.  The banner was then attached to the card front using Dimensionals.  

That's it for this card.  It's fairly simple, but because of the cut section on the front flap, it has a little more interest than a regular card.  Hope this gives you an idea for making little differences in your cards to make them just a little bit different and memorable.

If you'd still like to place an order in July, the Designer Papers are still on sale til the end of the month.  It's always a smart idea to pick up your designer papers on sale when possible.  They are so versatile and can be used for the main focus on your card, or just a snippet to add some interest.  Remember too that the new July - June Catalog will go live on August 3rd!  Woo Hoo!!  If you do place an order, please use the Host Code shown here.

July Host Code

73KERJRP

Thanks for stopping by today.  Hope you have a fabulous Saturday and can find some time to be creative, whether it's stamping, cooking, or gardening, etc.  It's good for the soul and makes you happy.

Hugs,

Sharon