Sending... Card Set

Hello, hello!  What a week this has been so far.  Weatherwise we've gone from below freezing to the low 70's today.  Plus, there were heavy fog and rainy days too.  It's confusing trying to figure out what to expect and make plans to go out accordingly.  The weather has been really messing with my sinuses too.  Argh!  I feel like I'm falling apart some days!!  But today was a pretty good one and I got a few things accomplished.  Yesterday was a good mail day with several lovely cards delivered.  One in particular really caught my eye and I could easily translate the idea into a sympathy card that I needed.  So that was my plan for today and I had fun playing with the idea.  In fact, it turned into three cards.

Here's the card my friend Jean sent.  It's so pretty and after the foggy days we've been having, it put me in the mood for this softer Winter Meadow Designer Series Paper.  Yes, I know it was from the winter Mini Catalog, but I like it so that's what I used.

Jean used Basic White, Misty Moonlight, and a glossy white cardstock for the white layer on the sending.  It's so pretty, and it really inspired me to do some playing this afternoon.

This is the first card I worked on because I needed a sympathy card.  The first step to making these cards is cutting a 5" wide strip of the DSP from the 12" x12" sheet.  Then a piece was cut at 3 3/4" to be the print layer on this card.  A piece of Basic White cardstock was cut at 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" and folded in half for the card base.  

The Misty Moonlight cardstock layer was cut at 5 1/4" x 4".  The print layer was attached to this with adhesive.  Then these layers were attached to the card base with adhesive also.

The word dies from the Sending Die set were cut next.  The "bubble" layer was cut from Misty Moonlight cardstock.  For the white sending layer, I attached a strip of Adhesive Sheets (pg 138) to the back of a Basic White strip the same size, then cut.  It was so easy to take the backing off the word and layer it onto the blue layer.  I think these adhesive sheets make layering detailed things like this so much easier.

With the leftover white cardstock with the sticky backing, I die-cut several white flowers for a subtle accent on the card.  The die is from the same set.

The sentiment was stamped on Basic White with Misty Moonlight ink.  Then one of the skinny label dies from the same set was used to cut it out.

Both the "sending" and the label were attached to the card front with Mini Dimensionals.

Super tiny pearls from many years ago were added to the flower centers for an accent.

That was fun and I still had more of the DSP already cut, so why not put together another card or two?

This card has Orchid Oasis cardstock for the base layer of the card.  A layer of Basic White was added to frame the DSP.  

The sending bubble layer was Orchid Oasis with the same white layer on top of it.

The birthday sentiment is from the same set and is stamped with Orchid Oasis ink.  It's die-cut just like the first card.  The pieces were attached with Mini Dimensionals.

The gems used are a Berry Burst color from Tinsel Gems Four-Pack.  I liked how they picked up some of the mauve-y tones in the branches.

This card was changed to a horizontal look for fun.  The color layer is back to Misty Moonlight again.  It's used for the bubble layer of the sentiment too.

The words are from the same set.  This time when I die-cut the words, they were tucked over to one side so it's a much smaller label.   The "sending" word is attached flat to the card front, but the label is popped up with Mini Dimensionals.

The accent for this card is three of the Misty Moonlight color gems from the Tinsel Gems Three-Pack.  They picked up the color from the layers and the print.

Here are my three cards together.  Thank you, Jean, for a lovely card for inspiration.  Now I can get that sympathy card in the mail and still have two more cards for my stash.  

Hope you enjoyed this look at using the same piece of DSP and the same stamp set and still get some slightly different cards.  Of course, you can use any DSP you love and have on hand to play around like this.  You can change up the wording to make cards for birthdays, sympathy, thinking of you, or others.  Just enjoy yourself and have fun creating!

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

Landscape Three Panel Card

Hey!  Hope you're getting creative this year.  Yes, I know it's only January 2nd, but it's time to get stamping and creating.  Today's card idea came about because I wanted to make another card like yesterday but realized the pattern on the paper was going the wrong way.  So instead of just putting it aside or coming up with another idea to use the piece of DSP, I figured out the measurements for making the card this way.  I'm not a math person at all, so it was interesting to say the least.  You should see my craft table with the scraps of paper that I was using to measure scattered around.  Yikes, it's time for a clean-up.  But first, the post...

One of the first things I noticed on this card when it was finished and sitting next to yesterday's card was the difference the light color versus dark color on the layering piece.  The first card has very defined strips of DSP on it.  This second card is much softer looking.  I like them both, but there really is a marked difference.

For this card, start with a card base of Old Olive that's cut at 8 1/2" x 5 1/2", then scored at 4 1/4" and folded in half.  There is a layer of Old Olive cut at 5 1/4" x 4".  This was embossed with the Ferns Embossing Folder.  Then I used a Blending Brush and Old Olive ink to darken the edges a little.  Attach this to the folded card base using Tombow MultiPurpose Liquid Glue.

The yellow piece of cardstock for layering is So Saffron that measures 4 1/4" x 3".  The piece of Artistically Inked Designer Series Paper (sorry it's retired - just use something similar) was trimmed to 2 3/4" x 3 3/4".  This was cut at 1 3/4", 1 1/4", and 3/4" to fit across the piece of So Saffron.  I used the Liquid Glue to attach the pieces.  I find that for me the glue gives me a little bit extra wiggle time to get the pieces straight.  You could definitely use any adhesive you're comfortable with using.  This was attached to the center of the card front using Dimensionals to raise it up.

Next up was the sentiment.  I found this sentiment in the Potted Geraniums stamp set.  I love the wording and it fit with what I needed to send out for a friend.  It's stamped on a 1/2" wide strip of Basic White cardstock.  (Love those little strips that I save just for times like this!)  It's stamped with Old Olive ink.  The ends were flagged with the Banners Pick a Punch.  It was attached across the front of the card with Dimensionals underneath.  

I wanted a very subtle sort of bling on this card.  I found the 2022-2024 In Color Matte Dots were just right.  I used the lightest version of the Sweet Sorbet Dots on this card.  It matches quite well even though the colors of the DSP are different.

The inside of the card was finished with a layer of Basic White.  There was a 1/2" strip of the same DSP print just waiting to be used.  It was added to the left edge.  A retired sentiment was stamped on the white with Old Olive ink. Then it was adhered to the inside of the card to finish it.

Seems like I'm back to needing get well and sympathy cards again.  I think this one will work out great for that.  Thanks for stopping in today to see what's been going on.  I've got more cards ready to share with you tomorrow, so I hope you find the time to check back in then.  The cards are featuring the Dainty Flowers Designer Series Paper that is one of the Sale-a-bration freebies.  And it's gorgeous!  You just have to see this in person.

Sale-a-bration starts January 5th.  Are you ready?  I am!!  Woo Hoo!

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon

Pampered Pet Sympathy

 It's so hard to lose a pet that has been part of your family for years and years - sometimes even longer than the kids!  My daughter has a family friend that just lost their little dog who had been a lifelong friend to their children.  So this has been a real loss for the whole family.  So I made her a card to get in the mail.  I had gotten the Pampered Pets stamp set awhile ago, but hadn't done anything with it yet, so this was the perfect opportunity.

When I was working on my last post, I had a few more pieces of the  Forever Greenery DSP cut at the 2 1/4" x 3 1/2" size that I didn't use.  I thought they would make a good background for this little guy to rest easy on.  

I stamped the dog and the food bowl on Basic White cardstock using Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  Then before die-cutting them with the coordinating dies, I did a bit of coloring with my Blends.  I used Light Smoky Slate for a little shading on the dog, and Light Just Jade for the collar.  For the dish, I used a bit of Just Jade and then colored over this with a swish of Wink of Stella.  

To make the card, I started with a base of Just Jade cardstock cut 11" x 4 1/4", scored at 5 1/2" and folded in half.  The layer of Soft Sea Foam cardstock was cut at 5 1/4" x 4" and was attached with adhesive.  The 2 pieces of DSP were attached with with adhesive also to keep it fairly flat.  Both the dog and the dish were attached with Dimensionals.

The sentiment is from the Pampered Pets stamp set and was stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.  The inside of the card has a layer of Basic White cut at 5 1/4" x 4".  This has a 1/2" strip of one of the DSP prints added to the bottom before attaching inside of the card.  That's it.  So simple when you have a card template to work with and you know exactly what you need to put it together.

Well, here it is another month and that means another Host Code for you.  Please use this new one if you're placing an order this month.  

Remember, you can still order the 9 Designer Series Papers that are on sale.  You have until August 2nd to get in on that deal.

And yes, the July - December Mini Catalog is really going to go live on August 3rd!  Woo Hoo!  If you've been patiently waiting, your waiting is almost over.  You can place your first order right away on the 3rd.

One last thing - don't forget about the 2nd round of Sale-a-bration this year!   That also starts on August 3rd!  For every $50 you spend, you may choose one of the $50 Sale-a-bration items for free.  There are also some awesome items in there that need a $100 order to qualify. So many good things going on.  Whew!  I think that's everything.  If you have any questions, you can always call or text and I'll be happy to help you.  Enjoy your summer!

Stamping hugs!

Sharon

Sympathy Butterfly Card

 Oh my, time is slipping away on me again.  After a long day of painting shelves for closets and holding boards for my hubby to screw things together, it seems I only crash each night.  I thought I'd get so much done stamping-wise and posting on my blog, but alas that has not been the case at all.  I needed to make a sympathy card  2 weeks ago and got it off in the mail right away.  It's a good thing I remembered to take a picture before it slid into the envelope!  Now I've finally got the time to post it!

I wanted to use one of the beautiful new butterflies from the Butterfly Bijou 6" x 6" Designer Papers.  They are all so pretty I'm finding I want to add them to everything!  This one makes the perfect focal point as a reminder of new life in Christ after our earthly death.  Just like a butterfly, we will be transformed and made new again.  How appropriate for a sympathy card.

The base of this card is Bermuda Bay cardstock cut at 8 1/2" x 5 1/2" and folded in half.  The Basic White layer was first cut to 5 1/4" x 4".  Then it was die-cut with the geometric die from Eclectic Layers Dies.  (At least that's what I think the name is!  It was a left-over piece I had on hand.)  

 I've always loved the open cut-work look on a white layer with a pop of color showing thru for a nice contrast.  This time I used Granny Apple Green for this.  It was attached to the back of the white layer, which was then added to the Bermuda Bay card base using Dimensionals.

The sentiment is from the Sale-a-bration set called Heal Your Heart.  I love the sentiments in that set and will probably be using set for a good long while yet.

The butterfly was die-cut from one of the sheets of the Butterfly Bijou DSP using the Brilliant Wings Dies that coordinate.  The die cuts out 6 butterflies at once and then you can add them anywhere you like,  This pretty one has 3 Mini Dimensionals tucked under his body to help him soar.

The rest of the card was kept clean and simple to let the card elements stand on their own.  I thought anything else would detract from the beauty and simplicity.  There you have it.  Today's card is very easy and quick to make, but I love the clean lines of it.  Tell me what you think.  

The end of March is coming up soon.  If you're thinking of placing an order yet this month, I would appreciate it if you would choose me as your demonstrator.  And then be sure to use the Host Code to get your goodie from me for ordering this month as a thank you.  You guys are the very best and I love you all!  Thank you for the lovely cards that you've been sending.  I love them all.  What a blessing you are to me!

Inky hugs,

Sharon