Lifetime of Love Birthday Card

Hello friends!  Seems like I'm having a hard time keeping up with all the cards I need to send out.  Since I have a bunch of birthdays coming up soon, this is a good time to add another one to my dwindling stash.  I was waiting for my order to come in to make this card, then decided to use papers I already have to get started on my birthday card marathon.  So, today's card uses an Online Exclusive DSP called Naturally Gilded.  I almost forgot I had this.  If you want to recreate this card, check your stash to see what you have that would work for this design.  If you're like me, you've got an abundance of designer paper.  Does that mean I quit buying more beautiful papers?  Ummm, that would be a resounding no!  Sometimes new DSP is just too pretty to pass up, so I don't.  But I do need to break out some of my stash and create with it on a regular basis.  Otherwise, I might end up buried under all the pretty prints and colors that I seem to need to be happy.  So on with today's card.  Hope you'll be inspired to create with what you have.  And if you don't have something comparable, there are always new prints and designs available for purchase!  😄

I couldn't resist the Lifetime of Love Bundle (pg 15 Mini Catalog) when I saw it.  I didn't think I'd need the DSP or the Cards & Envelopes that coordinate with the set.  I think I was definitely wrong about that decision, and I've since ordered those items.  But without them for this card, I went with what I had.

Let's stamp!

Start with a Cherry Cobbler cardstock piece that measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2".  This is scored and folded in half.  Next a piece of Naturally Gilded gold-patterned DSP was die-cut with the largest die in the Scalloped Contours Die set.  This gives it a pretty edge to work with right away.  This gorgeous DSP is one the Online Exclusives you'll want to get your hands on.  So pretty!

Using a Blending Brush and Cherry Cobbler ink, color was added to the background.  The bottom right corner has the darkest color concentration and fades up.  After adding the color, it's important to rub over the paper with a tissue or soft cloth to remove any ink residue from the gold foil areas.  It's then attached to the center of the Cherry Cobbler card base with adhesive.

My idea was to use the flowers in the Lifetime of Love to frame a sentiment for a birthday card.  The larger and smaller flowers were stamped onto Very Vanilla cardstock using Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  A Blending Brush was used with Cherry Cobbler ink to loosely color in the flowers.  The leaves were lightly colored using Shaded Spruce ink and a Blender Pen.  After coloring the flowers, I thought they looked a little 'flat', so the Blending Pen was used to darken around the edges of the flower centers just a tiny bit.  The pieces were all die-cut using the Lifetime of Love dies.

The sentiment layers were cut using the new Thoughtful Expressions Bundle (pg 61-62 in the Mini Catalog).  Oh my, these are really lovely! There are two different label shapes and multiple sizes of each shape to give you lots of options for labels.  The largest 'rectangle' shape was used to die-cut a Cherry Cobbler layer.  The 2nd smallest size cut a Very Vanilla layer.  The sentiment used is from the Heartfelt Hexagon set (pg 12 Mini Catalog).  It's stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink in the center.  The two labels are attached with adhesive, then centered on the card front using Dimensionals.  The flowers were tucked around the sentiment and attached with adhesive just in the centers so that the edges were not flat to the label.

I wanted the inside to coordinate with the outside, so I used another of the Scalloped Contours dies to cut the Very Vanilla layer for the inside of the card.  After cutting, I stamped words from one of my favorite sentiment sets - Charming Sentiments.  It was stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  The little flower from the front of the card is stamped in the bottom corner using Cherry Cobbler ink.  

Upon looking at this card a lot while typing out this post, I think I'll go back and touch up the flower using the Blender Pen to give it just a little more color and definition.

I debated about which style of bling to add to the card.  I thought about the new gold-toned Birds and Dragonflies that are an Online Exclusive, but they kind of got lost.  Next, I tried the Petal Pink & Pretty Peacock Foiled Gems thinking they might blend nicely with my colors.  Nope, neither of those colors were quite what I was looking for.  Next, I tried the Iridescent Foil Gems.  Even though they look more purple-y in the catalog picture and the package, they were the perfect accent when I tried them on the card.  You never know what will work until you give it a try. 

So there you have another birthday card creation that could easily be used for a Valentine or even a wedding card.    If you've got lots of lovely DSP stored, this card would be a good time to get it out and use it!!

Thanks for sharing some time with me today.  I love your feedback and I'm always here to help in any way I can.  Thank you for all the lovely cards that have been coming my way.  I'm so impressed with how creative you are.  Especially when you're thinking outside the box on some of these cards.  You bless me so much with your cards and your kindness.  Love you my friends and miss you so much!

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

Earthen Textures Meets Joy Fold

Hello Friends!  What a crazy bunch of days we've had lately.  Severe storms with heavy downpours followed by bright sunshine and high tempuratures.  That 2" of rain in 12 hours was a little daunting.  I'd like it if things were just a little more even keeled around here.  But I'm so thankful that we don't have the hassles of flooding in heavy rains anymore.  That's something to rejoice about for sure!  Right?  Today's card is a fun fold that I haven't made in a while, so I had to look for my "cheat sheet" for the cutting dimensions for this idea.  I guess I could put this together without the directions, but having some simple directions really does help.  Do you do that?  Make up a sheet with basic dimensions for cutting and scoring with maybe a picture or a card included?  I find this so helpful when I haven't made a card style in months, or maybe even years!  Yes, when you've been making cards for close to thirty years, a lot of ideas seem to show up every so often.  With a change of colors and stamps, the idea looks all fresh and new.

See what I mean?  Does it look familiar?  Same Joy Fold, but a totally new look.  This card started with the choice of using the Earthen Elegance Designer Series Paper for it.  I chose the print, then started checking the cardstock color choice.  When I started, I planned to use Early Espresso, but the colors together didn't really appeal to me.  After trying several color combos, I settled on Pecan Pie.  There are two pieces needed for the card - 5 1/2" x 7 1/4" scored at 3" for the base, and 4 1/4" x 4 1/4" scored at 1" on one of the sides.

There is a layer of Very Vanilla measuring 5 1/4" x 4" for the inside of the card.  Another vanilla piece that measures 3" x 1 3/4" is for the card front.  

A 3" strip was cut from one side of Earthen Elegance 12" x 12" DSP print.  Make sure the print goes up and down if you have a directional print.  This one strip will be cut into all the extra pieces of DSP used on the card.

Here's a quick peek at the inside of the card.  But I'm getting ahead of myself here!

Let's start by getting the two pieces of Pecan Pie scored and put together.  The smaller side piece has the scored flap attached inside the folded card base.  I used Tear & Tape for this because I really wanted it to stay together.

Next cut the DSP to fit on the left flap of the card.  Cut a piece that's 5 1/4" long.  Trim a 1/4" piece from one of the long sides so this piece fits on the left flap perfectly.  Attach with adhesive.  The next piece is cut at 4".  This will be the inside flap layer.  Attach this with adhesive too.  That leaves you with 2 1/2" left to use on the front of the right flap later.

Let's move on to making the pottery.  The front pot is stamped with Pecan Pie onto Very Vanilla. After die-cutting, the Blending Brush and Pecan Pie was brushed top and bottom and in on the sides.  Leave the middle free for a highlight.  The feathery grasses were stamped with Early Expresso.  After die-cutting, a little Pecan Pie was blended onto this.  The grasses were die-cut from Distressed Gold Specialty Paper.  These pieces were set aside to finish later.

Inside pots - tall one is die-cut from Pecan Pie.  The banding design is cut from Very Vanilla.  After attaching together and trimming ends, the Blending Brush and Pecan Pie was added to the sides and bottom for shaping.

Short pot and handles - were die-cut from Very Vanilla then the pot embossed with the wavy lines.  A good amount of Pecan Pie ink was built up on the pot to show the texture.  After attaching the handles to the pot, an extra bit of blending was done to give the handle section some color and shape.  These pots were attached to the inside of the card with adhesive.

The final pot - was stamped with Early Expresso ink onto Very Vanilla.  Some Pecan Pie was blended onto this to give it a mottled look.  The design band was cut from Distressed Gold Specialty Paper and attached to the pot.  On the inside vanilla layer, a sentiment from Charming Sentiments was stamped in Early Espresso ink.  Along the bottom edge, a few feathery grasses were stamped using Pecan Pie that was off-stamped first to keep it really light.  The Very Vanilla layer was attached inside the card with adhesive.  

Cut the 2 1/2" piece of DSP about in half.  Attach one piece to the top and one to the bottom of the flap.  The Very Vanilla piece that's left over has a sentiment from the Lasting Joy set stamped with Early Espresso ink on the right side.  Along the bottom edge, those feathery grasses were stamped with Pecan Pie ink that was off-stamped first.  It's attached to the flap with adhesive.  It will barely overlap either one or both of the DSP pieces depending on your positioning.  Use Dimensionals behind the pot and grasses to attach it to the front flap.

For just a little bling, three of the Neutrals Adhesive-backed Sequins were attached.  I used the brown color that looked sort of bronze-y to me.  The gold tone ones seemed to jump out at me too much.  Going for subtle here.

Whew!  I think it took longer to write this out than it took to make the card!  lol  Hope you like the looks of this fun fold card.  It's really not too hard to make.  And fun fold cards are always fun to make, but even more fun to receive.  So make someone happy and mail a card today.

Thanks for stopping by today.  Hope you're inspired to give this card a try.  If you don't want to do the fun fold, the pottery and DSP together are awesome!  Did you hear me singing that?

Just a quick reminder that Stampin'Up! has kits on sale this month.  There are some that I think are fabulous and a terrific bargain.  Check them out.  And USE YOUR BONUS COUPONS when you order!!  Don't let that money go to waste.

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

ps - just thought you'd like to know we've got another severe storm warning going on this evening, and it's raining softly right now.  We'll see how it goes.

Love Those Daisies!

Hi there!  Couldn't sleep tonight, so here I am at 1:30 working on a blog post.  I must be nuts.  Or at least on a stamping and creating overload.  😁  My sister Connie has been visiting for a few days and oh boy.  We've been so busy stamping that we hardly even take time out to eat.  We've come up with some fabulous cards that I think you'll like.  I'll be sharing them in the upcoming days.  Like after she goes home, so I've got time to think about something besides stamps and colors, papers and inks!  While she's here, I've got to take advantage of the creativity that flows between us and keep creating. 

Before she arrived, I'd made a graduation card for a young lady at church.  I'd heard she likes daisies, so that's what I used.  I'm absolutely loving the new Cheerful Daisies bundle (page 111).  They can be used in so many different ways, and I'm trying them all.  On this card, there are three layers on each daisy so there is a terrific amount of texture.  It's really awesome in real life.  I just keep touching the finished card because it almost looks like frosting layered on.  Yeah, crazy, right?  Let's get to the details.

The card base is made from Garden Green cardstock that is cut to measure 11" x 4 1/4".  It's scored at 5 1/2" and folded in half.  Next a layer of the Fresh as a Daisy Designer Series Paper (page 130) was added.  It measures 4" x 5 1/4".  It's attached with "green glue".

The next step is cutting all the daisy layers.  You'll need about 1/4 sheet of Basic White cardstock to die-cut all the pieces needed.  There is one die that has all three daisies connected along with some leaves.  Cut one of those.  There are three detailed dies that fit on top of the first set of daisies.  Cut one of each of the three sizes.    The sentiment tag was cut with one of the Tailored Tags Dies (page 167).

Next the solid framing layer of each of the daisies was cut.  For this layer, I used the new Wild Wheat 2023-2025 In Color.  One each of these was cut.  I also die-cut a couple of leaves that were part of the large original die I used.  These were cut from Garden Green cardstock.

After all the pieces are cut, line up the Wild Wheat daisy layers behind each daisy and use a small amount of "green glue" to attach them behind the three attached daisies.  Next line up the detail pieces of the daisies and use "green glue" to attach them to the front of each daisy.  Cool, right?

Trim off the extra white leaves that are attached to the daisies.  You won't need them now, but you could always save them for another project later.

Stamp the sentiment onto the Tailored Tag.  I used a sentiment from the Charming Sentiments (page 18) and stamped it with Pebbled Path ink.  This is one of the colors listed in the DSP, but next time I think I would use Garden Green instead.  Or maybe even Pecan Pie ink.  Either would work nicely.

Next, add color to the center of the daisies.  I used Lemon Lolly Dark Blends first.  Then switched to a regular marker in Crushed Curry to add some shading.  Went back to Blends and used Pecan Pie Light to add dots around the flower center.  Just play around until you're happy with the look.

Arrange the tag and trio of daisies on the card front and attach them all with Dimensionals.  The extra leaves I die-cut from the Garden Green were tucked in around the daisies and attached with adhesive.  

The last step on the card was the bling.  After trying a few that I thought would be perfect, I hit a snag.  I wasn't happy with any of them.  Then I thought of the Pastel Adhesive-backed Sequins.  At first, I thought they would get lost on the card, but the gold ones seem to work out fine.  They really bring out the tiny flowers on the DSP.  I did use five sequins on the card.  A few more than I normally would, but that's what seems to work.

Well, here it is, definitely later!  I'm not going to admit how much time I've spent getting this post together.  I certainly hope you love these daisies as much as I do.  I didn't think I needed another daisy stamp set, but I'm so very happy that I gave this one a try.  It's a real winner.  In the coming days, I'll have more ideas for you using this bundle.  Like I said earlier, there are so many different ways to use this stamp and die bundle and I want to try them all!

Thanks for dropping in to see what's new around here.  Be sure to hurry back in a few days to catch the next installment.  Thanks for taking the time to read these posts.  Your interest and comments are really appreciated and keep me motivated.

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

PS - if you find any mistakes, please blame it on lack of sleep   😏😉

Happiness Abounds WV Fun Fold Card

 Hello Friend,  I'm shocked that I haven't made a single post yet this month.  I have to admit it's been a little bit crazy around here, but really!  That's just way too long to go between postings.  I'm sorry I've been off the grid for two weeks.   I do have a nice fun fold for you today.  I've made a similar card to this before, but I never had a name for the fold before.  So that part is new.  Now about the old.  You know it's time for the new catalog to appear very soon, and that means so many of my favorite products are retiring.  Today's card uses some of those items that I'll miss a lot.  As of this moment, the items I'm sharing with you are still all available.  But I really have no idea how long they will last.  So if what I'm using today is still on your wish list, you might want to get a move on to make sure you can still get them!  That said, let's get to the stamping and creating part.

Here's my WV Fun Fold card for you.  As you can see it folds up to fit in regular envelopes, so there's not a problem looking for a different size.  The card starts with a base that measures 5 1/2" x 11".  This is scored at 1 3/4", 3 1/2", 5 1/4", and 7".  This is for the W fold of the card base.  I used Night of Navy for this piece.  There's also a piece of Night of Navy cardstock that measures 3" x 6" and this is scored at 3".  This will provide the V for the card.

Flirty Flamingo cardstock was used for the layers on the card.  These measure (4) 1 1/2" x 5 1/4", (2) 2 3/4" x 2 3/4", and lastly (1) 3 3/4" x 5 1/4".  For the Hues of Happiness DSP, you need (2) of the small print that measure 1 1/4" x 5", and (2) of the floral print with the navy background that measure 2 1/2" x 2 1/2".  Yes, that's a lot of measuring and cutting, but the card is worth it when you've got it finished.  

As you can see, I used another sheet of this awesome DSP to die-cut the additional floral pieces both for the front design and the inside of the card.  The coordinating Blossoming Happiness dies make it so easy to die-cut these images.

This picture gives you a much better look at the WV aspect of the card.

Two of the 1 1/2" x 5 1/4" pieces and the largest piece of Flirty Flamingo cardstock were all embossed with one of the new Online Exclusive embossing folders - Basics 3D Folders that is a set of three.  Each of these embossing folders give you a totally different look and feel to your project.  I chose the one that sort of looks like an overall floral or starfish design depending on what I put with it.

After embossing these, the Flirty Flamingo layers get attached to the card front.  Panel one - embossed, panels two and three - plain, panel four - embossed, panel five - large embossed.  Still with me??  I attached my panels with Multi Purpose Liquid Glue.  Then the two square panels were attached to the 3" x 6" cardstock piece.

Next the Designer Paper panels were attached to the card front.  The two embossed panels have no DSP.  The two plain panels have the tiny print added to the center of the panel.  The two square panels are attached to the 3" x 6" sections.  

I die-cut the rest of the flowers and leaves on my last piece of Hues of Happiness DSP.  They were perfect for the card.  I chose a large Flirty Flamingo pink flower and a small Pool Party flower along with two of the leaf clusters for the focal point of the card.  I also chose a navy and a yellow flower to use inside the card.  The two flowers on the front were positioned then attached with either adhesive or a Dimensional for some depth.  

For the sentiment layer on the inside of the card, I started with a Basic White panel that measured 2 3/4" x 2 3/4".  The sentiment is from the Charming Sentiments set and is stamped with Night of Navy ink.  It's attached to the center of the back making sure that when the card is closed it doesn't show.  The yellow flower was tucked behind the top of the white panel and the navy one is layered on top of the flower and also over a little bit of the white.  This way it shows when the card is closed and just adds to the design on the front.

To add a little bling, three of the Adhesive-backed Pastel Sequins in the gold tone were attached at the bottom right corner on the back layer of the card.  With all the prints here, they are just a small, subtle addition to the card.

Remember, this mini catalog and the big Annual Catalog are only current through the end of April and that time is quickly approaching.  There are so many items retiring and I know I'll miss many of them.  The Happiness Abounds set and coordinating dies are on the retiring list along with the absolutely lovely Hues of Happiness DSP.  If you're interested, the time is running out quickly and they'll no longer be available.

Thanks for stopping by today.  Again, I apologize for not posting for two weeks.  My life really got away from me.  Just a little bit out of control.  lol  I hope you had a blessed Easter and are enjoying some nice spring weather.  Love to you all!

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

Sweet Citrus Lemons

Hello and a happy Sunday to you.  My goodness it's cold around here.  It was only 32 degrees when I got up this morning and I've been chilled ever since.  Brrrr.  My grandsons and family are in Atlanta for a baseball tournament the boys are playing this weekend.  Wish I could be there with them.  They are playing well and have won most of their games so far.  Yay team!!  What's that you said?  You didn't come here to hear about boys and baseball?  Oh, okay, we'll go back to talking card-making, all right?  

It all started when my friend Diane sent me a card last week that was just covered with lemons.  It was so darn cute it inspired me to get out my Sweet Citrus Stamp, Dies, and Hybrid Embossing Folder to create yesterday.  That was so much fun!  That suite of products is wonderfully coordinated, and you can find them all on page 49 of the January - April Mini Catalog.  You can use just part of it, or all 3 parts of it together.  Hope you like the card I made and get inspired to stamp some lemons too!

Here's my citrus-y card I'm sharing today.  I love how it turned out, especially the shine on the cut edges of the lemons.  It really is hard to get a picture of a shiny finish, but take my word for it, it has just enough shine to look juicy.  Almost makes my mouth pucker!!

I remembered one of the prints in the Tea Boutique Designer Series Paper (in the Annual Catalog) has lemons on it.  I thought it would be the perfect backdrop for these lemons I was going to stamp.  The colors I chose are those listed for the DSP, so it was an easy pick.

The card base is Garden Green and measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2".  It's scored at 4 1/4" and folded in half.  The first layer is Basic White that measures 5 1/4" x 4".  I cut two of these, so I'd have one for the inside also.  The piece for the card front is die-cut with the Stitched Greenery Die to give it an all-over subtle design.  When it was attached to the card front with adhesive, the rough side (back) of the embossed paper is face-up.  This is for one of the shut-ins at church that will have her 90th birthday in a couple of weeks.  I've been told most of these shut-ins like to feel the cards, so layers and textures are a big deal.  I guess I'm still learning stuff every day!

The next layer is Garden Green again.  It measures 3" x 4 1/4".  The lemony layer of Tea Boutique DSP is cut at 2 3/4" x 4".  The two pieces are attached together with adhesive. 

Now comes the lemons!!  Since the DSP listed Crushed Curry as the yellow color on the paper, that's what I went with.  The outside of the lemons was stamped first onto Basic White cardstock using the Crushed Curry ink.  It looked kind of dark to me, so the inside of the lemons was stamped with Daffodil Delight to be a lighter color than the rind.  I really like how it turned out.  It's still darker than a real lemon, but the colors worked well with the DSP print.

For the cutting and embossing, I placed the die inside of the embossing folder.  It just nestles in there perfectly.  Then looking through the folder, the stamped images were lined up.  I used some washi tape to hold it in place, then ran it through the die-cutting machine.  I was so tickled when I had those cute little lemons in my hands.  They are so cool!  

After cutting the pieces, they are arranged onto the DSP layer.  After getting them placed how I like them, they were attached with just adhesive.  At this point, I used Wink of Stella on just the juicy areas on the lemons.  Can you get a look at the shininess a little better here?  I love how it shines when the light hits it just so.

The sentiment is from the Sweet Citrus stamp set also.  It's stamped with Garden Green ink on a 5/8" x 3 3/4" strip I had left over from some other project.  The ends of this were punched with the Banners Pick A Punch to finish them nicely.  There are four Dimensionals behind the strip to attach it to the focal layer.  Then this whole layer was attached to the card front with Dimensionals too.

Definitely needed some special bling for this card.  I used three of the Glossy Dots Assortment found in the Annual Catalog.  These are the Daffodil Delight color and look great with the colors on the card.  These dots are not faceted but pack a big shine factor, so seemed just right for this card.

The card is finished off inside with the extra Basic White piece I cut earlier.  I had a 1/2" wide strip of a different print of DSP from the same Tea Boutique pack.  I love that it's the same color as the front, but the loose plaid look is a great contrasting accent piece.  

The sentiment is from the Charming Sentiments on page 38 of the Annual Catalog, but I didn't used the dies that coordinate with it this time.  It's stamped with Garden Green ink to match the card.  And that's it.

I'm so tickled with the way this card turned out.  I hope the lady that receives the card will enjoy it.  And a big thanks to my friend Diane who inspired me to make some lemons into lemonade!  It really hit the spot!!

Thank you for sharing some of your day with me.  It's been a quiet day with not much going on.  These relaxing days are just perfect for me to get a card posted on my blog.  When the days are too crazy, I can't seem to think straight enough to make sense when I write.  And that's when I make mistakes.  If you ever find a mistake, please be sure to let me know so it can be fixed.  And I'll apologize now for any mistakes you may find.  I usually re-read the post 2-3 times to catch any problems.  But you know how those pesky little mistakes like to hide until it's too late.

Have fun stamping and creating,

Sharon

White on White, Sort of

Hi again.  I know I just posted my Friendship Friday cards, but I just had to get this post out right away.  I was strolling around on Pinterest and came across a card that was all white-on-white.  Truly elegant.  But not so much me.  Plus, it didn't use anything I owned.  So, I had some fun turning it into my kind of card.  There's lots of white still, but it's overlaid with some pretty pale pastel shades that just make me happy to look at!  Wish you could see this in person.  My goodness!

The card starts out with a Basic White Thick card base that measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2".  It's scored and folded in half.

Next there is a layer of Basic White that measures 5 1/4" x 4".  This layer is run through my Stamp & Emboss Machine using the Split Card Textures Dies.  I used the one that reminds me of geometric flowers.  The sentiment from the Dainty Delight stamp set was used with Soft Succulent ink to stamp in the bottom right area.  The layer was then centered on the card base and attached by using adhesive.  

I love all the dies in the Meadow Die set.  There are so many lovely silhouette shapes of flowers and greenery to choose from, plus butterflies and a tag and label too.  Lots of goodies!  I chose three of the dies to cut the flower/greenery stems from Basic White cardstock.  Then I cut one of each of the butterflies also.

Using my Blending Brushes and Fresh Freesia, Highland Heather, and Soft Succulent inks, I added color very lightly to the flowers, stems and butterflies.  This color is fairly light on all of the pieces.  The Highland Heather on the carnation(?) and the butterflies ended up a little darker than I had in mind, but I think it works great now that it's finished.

Each of the flower/greenery stems were attached to the card front with adhesive.  All of the stems were a little too long, but they were easily trimmed with my Paper Snips before attaching to the card.

The butterfly on the front is attached with a small strip of the Dimensionals.  This is put on the body area only so the wings are free.

Iridescent Pearls were added to the butterfly body for an accent.  Another three of the pearls were scattered around the card front.

For the inside sentiment on this card, I chose a favorite from the Charming Sentiments set.  It's stamped with Soft Succulent ink to match the front.  The extra butterfly I made is attached next to the sentiment.  The adhesive is only under the body, so the wings are somewhat loose.

Like I mentioned earlier, I wish you could see this card in person.  The soft colors and how they blend together is gorgeous.  I'm so happy with this card.  It's sort of white on white with a blend of soft colors to enhance it.

Thank you for hanging out with me today.  I hope you had a chance to see all the lovely cards that have graced my mailbox in the last few weeks.  If not, check the post that's directly before this one.  It's worth it to see these wonderful cards.

Oh yes, there is a new Host Code available for you to use too.  If you're placing an order, I would greatly appreciate you using the code.  Thank you so much!

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

Two Versions of a New Fun Fold Idea

 Good Morning!  It's always fun to get two for the price of one, isn't it?  Well today, I have two totally different looking versions of the same fun fold for you.  They both use the Rings of Love Designer Series Paper that I think most of you might own since it's free during Sale-a-Bration.  And if it's free, you might as well get it and use it.  Right?  Since today is August 31st, it's the very last day of Sale-a-Bration.  With that said, we needed to use something from Sale-a-Bration to celebrate the past two months.  So here we go...

This is a terrific way to showcase two sides of DSP that you really like and don't want to hide one of the sides.  Come on, I know there are prints in those DSP packs that you really don't care for, so you use only the 'good' side.  Well, on this one, I liked both sides and thought they would play nice together.  And all the bits and the tree ring on the top layer are all fussy cut from a piece of that same DSP.  So I guess I couldn't go wrong here!

To start, you need two pieces of cardstock that measure 5 1/2" x 4 1/4".  That means one half sheet of cardstock, cut in half.  One of those pieces need to be scored at 2 3/4" and folded in half.  For this card, I used Soft Suede for these.  Next you need one piece of DSP that measures 5 1/2" x 5 1/2".  This needs to be scored at 1 3/4" making sure any directional print is going up and down.  Lastly, you need two pieces of Basic White that measure 2 1/2" x 4" - one to go on the front and one for inside to write your sentiments.

After scoring the DSP, attach it to one of the Soft Suede layers lining up the top and bottom.  You should have a 1/4" border on each side.  For this card, I embossed one of the white layers with the Tree Rings Embossing Folder.  Afterwards I very lightly brushed on Crumb Cake and touches of Soft Suede ink with a Blending Brush.  This really did emphasize the embossing nicely without being way too busy looking.  This is attached to the folded Soft Suede layer making sure the fold in on the RIGHT side!  The other white layer is attached inside this mini card.

With all the fussy cut pieces I had done from a corner of the DSP, I chose a tree ring from one side of the paper, and some mushrooms, a berry sprig and butterfly from the other side to enhance the front of the card. The tree ring was added on flat with adhesive, while the other pieces all used Dimensionals to attach them.

The sentiment is from the Charming Sentiments Bundle.  It's stamped with Evening Evergreen ink onto Basic White cardstock.  Then it's die-cut with the coordinating die in the bundle.  This is a great sentiment set as there are so many to choose from.  Plus each of the sentiments has it's own die to match.  If you like the look of sentiments cut out like this, but could never get it cut just right, this bundle is definitely for you!  Here it's popped up on Dimensionals on top of the tree ring.

To attach the sentiment layers, you need to attach the backside to the inside layer.  Again, make sure the fold is on the RIGHT side.  Use adhesive to attach in the center of the card as shown.

To close, fold in the flap on the left, then the top flap from the right.  That gives you the two folds and shows both of the Designer Paper prints.  It's easy to do but fun.  Plus it folds up nice and flat for mailing.  Yay!

You know me, if I try something new, I usually have to make another one right away, so I don't forget what I did.  LOL  Of course, you never have problems like that.  Anyway,  I thought I'd use another of the Tree Rings DSP prints and change things up a little.  Boy did I ever!  I chose to use Poppy Parade cardstock as it was one of the colors listed to match with the paper.  I knew I didn't want to do another floral design because that's always what I do.  So...  Here we are with a cute little ladybug instead!

I think she turned out pretty dog-gone cute.  Mint Macaron was the greenish-color in the plaid so I carried that through to the large leaf.  The little ladybug is punched from both Basic Black and Poppy Parade cardstocks.  The black wing-dots were stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  She is attached to the card front with Dimentionals, with added Dimensionals under her wings to help her take off and fly.  As an added bonus, she has eight Classic Matte Dots added to her wings for some bling.  She insisted it didn't make her wings too heavy to fly.

The sentiment came from the Nature's Prints stamp set.  It's been stamped with Night of Navy ink.

Hope you enjoyed these two versions of a new fun fold.  I don't think I'd ever made one just like this before.  So, it's another one for the Fun Fold File.  Have fun giving this idea a try and let me know what you think of it.  

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon