Product of the Month Plus Extras

Hello friends!  Coming to you from a very damp and chilly South Carolina today.  A gray and rainy 48 degrees feels way colder than it really is.  A good day to stay inside and get another post done.  Right?  Maybe that's why I've been making cards lately that have a lot of blue and gray going on.  Must be something to do with the weather!  I've been trying to figure out how I wanted to present these card ideas in a coherent fashion and here goes.  Instead of breaking this down into several different posts, I've got a main card idea plus 2 extras.  Hope this all makes sense to you as it unfolds.  The main focus on today's post is using the Product of the Month from last December.  I just checked and it's still available at this time.  You need to purchase $75 worth of merchandise to be eligible to buy the True Blue Designer Series Paper Product of the Month which is available only while supplies last.  That means it's not too late to get one of these DSP packs for $5!  Since it is still available, I thought I'd share a couple of card designs I made using this lovely paper.

This is the first card I made with the True Blue DSP.  I love the prints on this piece, so I was looking for a layout that features both sides of the DSP.  This card does it so well.  Since the DSP has a combo of Night of Navy, Balmy Blue, and Basic White, I chose Night of Navy for the card base.  It measures 5 1/2" x 5 1/4" and it's scored at 4 1/4" which gives you a front flap that's only 1" wide.

Next, a piece of the True Blue DSP was cut that measures 5 1/2" x a scant 4 1/4" so it fits inside the folded flap.  Put adhesive inside the flap but not quite to the score line then attach the DSP to this.  Make sure you line up the outer edge with the back of the card so they're even.

I wrapped a Frayed Edge White Ribbon around this and tied into a loose-ish knot.  I really like how the white ribbon stands out against the navy and enhances the design.

The Basic White label on the front of the card was die-cut with the smaller label in the Peace on Earth die set.  I thought the shape and size worked well here.

The sentiment comes from the Hope You Know stamp set.  It's stamped with Night of Navy ink right near the top.  

Both the larger and smaller greenery dies used here are from the Charming Day dies.  They blend in with the print on the DSP but aren't quite the same.  They are cut from Night of Navy cardstock and Balmy Blue cardstock to match the card.  After cutting, they are attached to the label.  The navy one is flat with just adhesive.  The Balmy Blue one has adhesive on the bottom of the stem area and has Mini Dimensionals under the 3 top leaves to hold in place.

The label was then attached to the card front using Dimensionals.

For a little added bling, three Iridescent Pearls were added to the design.

With this fun fold design, I mentioned you can see both sides of the paper.  This is the inside of the card.  Yes, the ribbon goes right around the layers and ties in front.  This way you can enjoy it both inside and out.

The inside layer is Basic White that is cut at 5 1/4" x 4".  The sentiment is from the Comforting Thoughts set and is stamped in Night of Navy ink.

The little branch in the bottom corner is from the Charming Day set and is stamped in Balmy Blue ink.  Isn't it a nice touch?

Ok, this is the first card I'm sharing.  Next is a card using the same layout but using different colors and DSP.

Here you can see them together.  The upper card uses Cloud Cover for a card base and a print from the Peaceful Garden DSP.

I don't remember what cut the white label.  It was just in my stash of left-over die-cut pieces.  It fit the card, so I used it.  The sentiment on this one is from the Friendly Foliage stamp set.  It's stamped with Secret Sea ink.  

I'm not sure where the die for the Cloud Cover branch is from, but the Secret Sea leaf is from the Charming Day dies.

The ribbon is a sheer Secret Sea ribbon that is currently available.  The touch of bling on the card is from the Iridescent Pearls just like the other card.  The inside is the same except for the ink colors used.

This last card reverts back to the True Blue DSP.  The card base is Balmy Blue that measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" scored and folded in half.

The Night of Navy layer measures 4 3/4" x 3 1/2".  The three DSP prints measure as follows:

2 1/4" x 3",  7/8" x 3",  and 1 3/8" x 3 1/4"

These three prints were attached to the navy layer with adhesive.  As you can see, it was a little off and I should have used "green glue" to have that extra wiggle time to get it where I wanted it.

After glueing these pieces on the navy layer, I wrapped a Balmy Blue/white ribbon around this and tied it into a knot in the center.  

A Basic White circle die-cut and stamps from the Unbounded Love set was used to stamp the sentiment with Night of Navy ink.  This was attached right at the knot in the ribbon with Dimensionals.

For bling on this card, I used the white dots from the Moody Palette Glossy Dots that will be a new Online Exclusive item on January 6th.

I hope you liked these ideas I've shared.  There is a template for cutting DSP for a card front along with a fun fold that's so easy to use but really makes the pretty DSP prints take center stage.  Give these ideas a try with other Designer Series Papers that you have in that pile you're hiding 😏 and see what lovely cards you can make.

Thanks for taking the time to stop in today.  Let me know what you think of these ideas.  I love to hear from you.

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

Another Fun Fold

Hey peeps!  Hope you're staying warm wherever you are.  We've been having overnight freezing the last few nights and it really hasn't warmed up a whole lot during the day.  Brrr!  Even our goldfish pond has been skimmed over with ice the last two days.  What happened to our nice, warm, Southern weather??  We certainly haven't had any around here lately.  Thought I'd freeze my fingers off getting some outside decorations up.  We're not finished yet, but we're waiting for warmer weather next week.  At least, that's what is being predicted.  Fingers crossed!  Anyway, on to the stamping reason for this post.  I found another Fun Fold that I really like and thought I'd make a bunch for different uses.  Well, it's taken me a couple of weeks to get back to working on these, but they are well worth the wait.  I have six cards made with this Fun Fold to share with you, so hang on tight.  We've got a lot of ground to cover here.  First things first - this Fun Fold came from Lisa Freeman.  She is a talented stamper that has a slightly quirky sense of humor.  When I watch her videos, I always find myself chuckling at some silly story she relates.  If you have time, look her up and enjoy yourself.

This is my favorite card of the bunch I made so we'll start with it.  The first order of business is deciding which DSP print to use.  On all of my cards, I used the DSP print that had a scene that spans across 6" to fit the card.  This card uses the Nests in Winter Designer Series Paper which measures 12" x 12".  I cut across the 12" wide paper at 5 1/4" for the height of the card.  Then it's cut in half at 6" to fit this card design.  So, from each piece of scenery print that is 6" x 6" you get one card.  Always cut 3/4" from either the top or bottom of the print, whichever looks better.

When you have your piece that measures 6" wide and 5 1/4" tall, it needs to be cut into sections - 3 1/2", 1/2", and 2".  Make sure you keep these in order.

The card base measures 8 1/2" x 5 1/2.  For this card, I used Copper Clay which matched nicely with the Nests in Winter DSP.  Scoring on the base is at 4 1/4" and 1 7/8".  After scoring, make sure the largest piece (5 1/2" x 4 1/4") is on the right side when you're working on it.

Fold the card base.  Then attach the largest piece of DSP to the front of the folded card.  Make sure you only put adhesive on the fold-back area on the front to attach the DSP so it's loose on the right side.

This picture does a good job of showing both the folds on the card base and also the placement of the 1st piece of DSP.  While the card is open (above pic) attach the little 1/2" piece of DSP just to the left of the score line.  Attach the 2" piece of DSP just to the right of the score line.  Make sure all three pieces of DSP are even on both the top and bottom of the card.

Cut a 2" x 5 1/4" piece of Basic White cardstock for the inner panel.  Stamp a sentiment on this using Copper Clay ink.  Attach inside the card lining up the edges with the other pieces.  This sentiment and the one on front are from the Comforting Thoughts stamp set.  I really like the choice of sentiments available in this set.  

The front sentiment was stamped on Basic White cardstock 1/2" tall using Copper Clay ink.  It was trimmed to 2 3/4".  It's layered onto a piece of Copper Clay that was trimmed tight to fit it.  After layering together, it was attached to the card front using Dimensionals.

A double strand of Linen Thread was tied into a small bow and trimmed.  This was added to the corner of the sentiment with a Mini Glue Dot that was rolled tiny.  

Three of the Adhesive-backed Textured dots were added as an accent.  These dots kept the look more masculine and country in my opinion.

Now on to the rest of these cards.  I'm not going to go into the dimensions for cutting and folding as they are the same as this one.  Just sharing a few highlights of each card.

This design used Melon Mambo cardstock and ink along with the Simply Zinnia DSP.  Big change in the look, isn't it?

I used the same sentiment outside of the card but chose a different sentiment for the inside.  I love these Comforting Thoughts sentiments for any health-related cards I need.  So special.

The pearls on this card are from the Adhesive-backed Pearl Trio.  The plummy-rosy tones of the pearls really blend nicely with the zinnias.

Another zinnia card but using Blackberry Bliss cardstock and ink on this one.

Sticking with the same sentiment for this card.  I've been needing so many of the get-well style of cards lately, so several of these are to replenish that stock.

The gems on this one are different.  These are the Purple Fine Shimmer Gems in the medium purple color.  Think they go nicely here accenting the purple flowers.

I also added a ribbon bow.  It was Fresh Freesia in color which didn't match.  So, I used the Blackberry Bliss Blends in the Light color to darken the ribbon color.  Make sure you let the ribbon dry for a minute or two, so you don't end up with inky fingers!  (Ask me how I know...)

 

This card uses Balmy Blue for the card base and Meandering Meadows 6" x 6" DSP.  Love the look of this wildflower meadow.  And the skies are so gorgeous!  

The sentiment is from the Changing Leaves stamp set.  It was stamped on a 1/2" tall strip of Basic White cardstock using Shaded Spruce ink and trimmed smaller when finished.  The little tag was edged with just a little of the Shaded Spruce ink on the edges.

There are several die-cut leaves tucked in behind the sentiment for interest.  

This time little golden birds from the pack of Adhesive-backed Dragonflies and Birds were used as an accent.  The print looked like it needed the birds flying around instead of gems.

The card base on this one is Moody Mauve.  This gorgeous print is from the Splendid Autumn 6" x 6" DSP.  Love this print!

The sentiment from Changing Leaves is used again.  This time stamped in Moody Mauve ink.  It has a large loopy bow of Linen Thread attached behind the sentiment to accent it.

Sneak Peek Alert!  I tried to stick with the current products, but I just had to use these darling new golden bee accents on this card.  They were the perfect size for flying around this field.  They are NOT adhesive backed, so each one was attached with a Mini Gue Dot to hold them in place.

OK, just one more and I quit!

This is another Balmy Blue card base.  I love it with this Queen Anne's Lace design which is another from the Splendid Autumn DSP pack.

The same sentiment as the last two cards was used here.  It's stamped with Mossy Meadow ink this time.  This one also has the loopy Linen Thread tucked under the tag.

And more bees!!  Can you tell I love these little bees?  Not sure if I'd love them as much if they were real and flying around my head.  But these are just right!

Whew!  I see you stuck it out with me right to the end.  I'm impressed with your determination.  As you can see, this is a wonderful Fun Fold and so easy to make.  Just by changing the color of the card base to match whichever DSP print you want to use; you now have a totally new card to share.  And I'm sure these cards will brighten someone's day!

Wow, that took me a good long while to write out and make sure I had all the products listed that were used.  Of course, you can always use something different with your creations, but I like to give you all the information you might need.  Remember, all the dimensions are listed with the first card.  The rest of the ideas are just frosting on the cake.  Or something like that anyway.  Thanks for spending time with me today.  Hope you enjoyed this new Fun Fold technique.  (At least, it's new to me!)  I'd love to hear/see what you make with this idea.  Keep in touch!

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

p.s. Just a note to let you all know that my "piles of stuff" as hubby calls it is now pretty much gone.  Yay!  Wonder how long it will take me until those piles are all over the place again?  😉😂