Sending Smiles to You

 Hello there!  Hope your day is going well and you're getting lots accomplished.  That would mean that one of us is!  😁  And not so much me.  Guess that tells you that I'm not doing as much as I should be doing right now.  Hopefully I can change that and get this blog post published today.  At least I'll have accomplished something worthwhile today then.  I made this card a couple days ago, but never got around to posting it.  I certainly don't know why not.  I really like how it turned out.  I was going for a look of lavender growing in big patch, and the wind blowing gently through and picking up the scent.  I can almost smell the lavender scent in the air.  Can you?

For my lavender fields card, I thought some of the new In Colors would be a great match for the new Sending Smiles Bundle.  The card base is the new Parakeet Party.  Isn't it a fun bright green that just makes you want to smile?   I like it so much more than I thought I would.  Often the really bright colors sort of intimidate me.  On this card, Parakeet Party is teamed up with another new In Color - Orchid Oasis.  Don't they match up perfectly on the card? 

Let's dive right into the dimensions.  The card base is cut at 8 1/2" x 5 1/2".  This is scored at 4 1/4" and folded in half.   I wanted more of a green edge on the card, so the layer of Orchid Oasis is cut at 5 1/8" x 3 7/8".   The Basic White layer is cut at 4 7/8" x 3 5/8".  Yes, I know, it's a little harder to measure, but it was worth it to have a bit more of the Parakeet Party cardstock showing on the edges.

For the stamping, I chose the stem with only two leaves and stamped it with Parakeet Party ink.  I stamped a row of them going across the card varying the height a bit on each stem.  I also stamped a few stems much higher to fill in but made sure to off-stamp first.  This kept the greenery full, but not too crowded.  I went in with the lavender-type of flower and stamped them in Orchid Oasis ink.  Some flowers were stamped on the lighter stems by off-stamping the Orchid Oasis ink on these flowers.  Some are even third generation stamped.  After finishing with this, the bottom of the card looked too blah, so I used the single leaf from the set and stamped a few leaves in on the bottom with Granny Apple Green ink.  The darker stamping seemed to anchor the flowers a little better.

The more detailed 'sending' word was die-cut from Basic White cardstock 1 1/2" x 4" that had a piece of Adhesive Sheets attached to the back.  The bolder 'sending' word was cut from a piece of Orchid Oasis cardstock cut at 1 1/2" x 4" also.  After die-cutting the two pieces, the backing was peeled off the back of the white word and it was attached to the center of the Orchid Oasis piece.  The rest of the sentiment was stamped with Orchid Oasis ink onto a 1/2" strip of Basic White cardstock then trimmed on the ends to fit. 

It was time to put all the parts of the card together.  First, the stamped layer was attached to the Orchid Oasis layer with adhesive.  This was then attached to the folded card base using Dimensionals.  The sentiment strip was attached near the bottom right of the card using adhesive.  The 'sending' layers were attached at an angle over the sentiment using Dimensionals.   

Lastly, the card needed some bling.  I still have my favorite 2021-2023 In Color Jewels that I totally love.  Yes, they are now officially retired, but I couldn't resist adding them here.  They seemed like the perfect touch.  Two of the smaller ones were added to the sentiment strip.  Then three more of the jewels were sprinkled on the stamped area.  Love it!

Thanks for stopping by today.  Hope you enjoy the lavender fields.  Aren't the new In Colors pretty?  I think I'm going to enjoy using these new colors.  I have been using the new Sending Smiles stamps and dies lately.  I love the double-cut 'sending' word.  It adds so much having that popped up on the card.  And there are eight sentiment phrases in the set to choose from that cover a lot of needs.  Very versatile.  I know I'll be using this set often in the coming months.  I have to admit that it's loads of fun getting and using new products.  It's always a challenge to look at something new and figure out what I want to do with it.  Sometimes that's harder than at other times.  For this card, I pretty much had an idea in my head, and it actually turned out the way I envisioned it.  Isn't that surprising?  Usually, I end up going off on a tangent and end up with something totally different than the starting plan.  Either way, I'm having fun creating.  Hope you do too.

Blessings and hugs,

Sharon

Sending Sunshine Card

 Hello friends!  Hope your day is going well so far.  I just found out a good friend is in the hospital again and having a rough time of it.  Since I'm too far away to pop in to visit, I felt I needed to send her a cheery card.  That was the plan behind this card I'm sharing today.  It's bright and cheery and hopefully it will brighten her day when she receives it in the mail.

I did say bright, didn't I?  You can't get too much brighter than yellows and oranges, right?  The focus for the card was the lovely Flowering Fields Designer Series Paper that's shown in the January - June 2022 Mini Catalog.  This is just one of the many tulip prints in the paper pack.  And all these gorgeous tulip prints just make me happy.  So it was a good place to start.

The Flowering Fields DSP sheet was cut into 4" x 6" pieces.  This card is made with just one of those pieces.  The piece was then cut down to 3 3/4" x 5", making sure to save the pieces thar are trimmed off.  The large piece is attached to a piece of Mango Melody cardstock that's cut to 5 1/4" x 4".  It's attached with adhesive.  Then this is attached to a folded So Saffron card base.  These are both colors that are listed for the Flowering Fields DSP so you know they match up nicely.  The 1" x 4" piece of DSP, that you already trimmed off, is flipped over to the back side.   It's then attached across the card front near the middle using adhesive.

Moving on to the focal items on the card, I have a new stamp and die bundle that I used here.  It's the Sending Smiles stamp set and Sending Dies.  The dies from the set that I used are the two "Sending" layers.  The detailed die cut some Basic White cardstock.  The framing die cut some Mango Melody cardstock.  I used MultiPurpose Liquid Glue to attach the white onto the Mango Melody die cut.  Then added Mini Dimensionals behind the Mango Melody to pop up the wording and attached at an angle across the card front.

TIP - in case you lose the little dot for the i, just do what I did.  Add one of the small Classic Matte Dots in white where the dot would be.  Just a special added touch and no one knows it was to fix an oops.  Well, I guess you do now!   😀

The sentiment used here is from the Sending Smiles stamp set.  There are eight different sentiments included in the set that all work with the "sending" stamp and dies.  There are also flowers, stems, and leaves included in the set, so it has it all.  This time the sentiment was stamped in Mossy Meadow ink onto a 5/8" x 3 3/4" strip of Basic White cardstock.  It was popped up with Dimensionals then attached to the center of the contrast strip on the card front.  It's barely tucked in under the s on the die-cut words to sort of connect them.

As an accent to the sentiment strip, I took two more of those small white Classic Matte Dots and a Mango Melody Dark Blending Pen to color them.  Then they are attached to the ends of the sentiment strip.  Such a pretty touch.

Do you remember that last little strip of DSP that was cut off the 4" x 6" piece?  It's 1/4" x 5".  I added it to the right edge of a piece of 3 3/4" x 5" Basic White cardstock.  It's just a small addition, but it feels like a big impact when you see it finished.  This piece was then attached inside the card to write my own sentiment.  Or you could always stamp a sentiment of your choice if you didn't want to write, but you know I like to write notes.

That's it for today.  I need to get this note written and in the mail.  Thanks for stopping by to see what I've been creating lately.  It doesn't always need to be a total masterpiece.  Just something homemade by you to share with your loved ones and friends.  It really blesses the recipient - I know!

If you're still planning on ordering from the retired list, please do that soon.  Items are selling out and I really would hate to have you miss out on what you really want.  Have fun going over the retired list and check on all the items that are even discounted!  Can't miss there.

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

Sneak Peak Happiness Abounds

Hello friends!  Hope y'all had a very blessed Easter spent with family and friends.  We enjoyed a great day spent with some family, despite the ups and downs we've had lately with my hubby's health.  The doctor tried another procedure today, but it didn't work.  So it's back to deciding the next step for him to take.  We really take our health for granted until there's a problem.  Thanks to all of you that have been keeping him in your prayers.  You are a true blessing to us!  

Now on to the projects I'm sharing with you today.  I think most of you have your new catalogs in your hot little hands already.  These cards are a sneak peek of a new stamp bundle called Happiness Abounds, and a new DSP called Hues of Happiness.  Oh  My  Goodness  This is such a gorgeous new set!  And one of the awesome points of this is that the dies will cut out some of the flowers in the DSP.  Can I just say awesome?!

Here's the Happiness Abounds stamp set and coordinating Blossoming Happiness die set.  And you see all of those lovely flowers and leaves down there?  That's most of just 2 sheets of the Hues of Happiness DSP - one sheet in pinks and yellows, and one in purples and blues.  This is what's left after making 3 cards already!  It's just a gorgeous garden of roses.  The colors are so rich and beautiful.  I'm ready to go out and buy a big bouquet of roses in a glorious rainbow of colors like this!

To maximize the Designer Paper, I cut it into three 4" wide strips.  Then one of the strips was cut at 3" intervals to give me a nice amount to work with.  Looking at the two cards, it's hard to imagine they are made from the same strip of DSP.  A third card that sort of "marries" the two pieces together will be shared with you tomorrow.  

Both of these cards started out with the same idea of using the Scalloped Contours Dies to cut a piece of Basic White cardstock to frame up the DSP.  I used the 2nd largest die for this.  To get the DSP to fit just right, I needed to trim it down to 2 5/8".  This way the tiny stitching lines show all around the edges of the DSP.

The first card started out with a base of Melon Mambo which is one of the colors listed on the DSP.  It's cut to normal A2 size of 8 1/2" x 5 1/2", scored and folded in half.  

 

The piece of DSP is attached to the die-cut frame using adhesive.  A strip of the White Glittered Ribbon is wrapped around this and attached in the back.  (I'm so happy this ribbon is carrying over to the next catalog!)  This is all attached to the center of the card front using Dimensionals.  

At this point I had fun going through all the die-cut roses to see which ones I'd like on the front of the card.  I chose he largest rose in the Melon Mambo shades, one of the smaller Daffodil Delight flowers, and three of the leaf clusters.  The large rose was attached to the card front with Dimensionals.  Then the leaves and yellow flower were all tucked in underneath the rose.  

A sentiment from the new Sending Smiles stamp set was stamped on a skinny strip of Basic White cardstock using Mellow Moss ink.  This was flagged on the right end, then tucked under the rose also.

A bow made from the White Glitter Ribbon was added to the card with Mini Glue Dots.  I actually added five 2021-2023 In Color Jewels to give it some extra sparkle.  Unfortunately, the jewels are retiring soon, but last I looked, they were still available if you needed a few more of these awesome jewels.

This next card started with a base of Coastal Cabana cardstock cut 8 1/2" x 5 1/2", scored and folded in half.  I added a 1" x 4 1/4" strip of another print from the Hues of Happiness DSP to give a darker anchor to the side of the card.  I think it added a nice touch.  The 3"x 4" DSP piece was trimmed down again to fit the Scalloped Contours die-cut piece and attached with adhesive.  This was layered onto the card front using Dimensionals.

Now for the flowers, I chose one of the Fresh Freesia ones and two leaf clusters.  I also stamped one of the flowers from the Wildflower Path stamp set using Fresh Freesia ink, because I wanted a tinier flower to add.  This was cut out with Paper Snips. 

The sentiment is from the Wildflower Path stamp set also.  It's stamped with Night of Navy ink, then trimmed up close with the Paper Snips.  This was added to the left of the layer with the leaf clusters tucked underneath.  Both of the Fresh Freesia flowers were attached with Dimensionals.

Lastly three of the jewels from the 2021-2023 In Color Jewels were added.  For this card I chose to use the Soft Succulent jewels which blended nicely.

Whew!  What fun that was getting all those flowers die-cut and then playing with them.  I'll have another card tomorrow that starts out somewhat similarly, but has a fun fold added to the mix.  Did I happen to mention just how much I'm enjoying this new Happiness Abounds Bundle and coordinating DSP?  Oh yeah.  It's definitely going to be one of my very favorite things to use in the upcoming catalog.  Whether you use each part of the bundle by itself or put them all together on one card, I think it's all fabulous!  Just saying...

Hope you're as excited as I am about getting your favorite items from the new May 2022-April 2023 Annual Catalog.  There are some really wonderful new ideas, colors, and layouts to get your creative juices flowing and put you in a stamping mood.  I'm looking forward to hearing what's your favorite new item in the catalog!  I'm sure there's going to be something that is just perfect for you. 

If you need to pick up any retiring items from the catalog, please use the Host Code shown in the upper right corner.  Try to get your order in as quickly as possible.  There are a good number of items that are already sold out, but still many more that are available.  Good luck shopping and get them while you still can!!

Happy stamping and creating!

Sharon