This weekend is the Easter long weekend and it will definitely be different than previous years. With everyone staying home families are getting together online using different platforms. We actually used ZOOM earlier this week for a big family dinner and are thinking we might use it more often just to check in with everyone.

Even though we won’t be getting together and having our usually Easter family dinner, I still wanted to make a card to celebrate. I’ve made easel cards before, but this one’s a bit different. It was inkspired by another demonstrator, Janice McIntyre.

For my version I used the Timeless Tulips bundle and the See a Silhouette Designer Series Paper (I’m really loving the pack of DSP!). I also used Night of Navy as my card base and a few images from the Beauty Abounds cling stamp set.

I used Night of Navy, Blackberry Bliss and Pear Pizzazz to stamp the tulips and Blackberry Bliss for the butterfly and phrase.

For two of the tulips I simply used the punch with the See a Silhouette DSP and popped them up using Stampin’ Dimensionals. I also stamped the floral flourish with Versamark so that I could heat emboss it with White Stampin’ Emboss Powder.

Here’s a basic template for you to create your own Twisted Easel card…

2020 Twisted Easel Card Sheet

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I loved this technique as soon as I saw it! It’s so simple, looks beautiful and is a great way to use your Designer Series Paper. Bruno Bertucci, a demonstrator in Australia, came up with this and it’s one that I’ll definitely be using again.

For my take on this technique (#scrappystriptechnique) I used the Magnolia Lane Designer Series Paper and Mossy Meadow for my card base.  I love that you can see the different designs of the DSP with this technique and with the Mossy Meadow card base the colours really pop!

“Happy Birthday” as well as the images came from the Magnolia Blooms stamp set from the Beginner’s Brochure. The phrase and large bloom on the inside of the card were stamped using Petal Pink, while the leaf on the front of the card was heat embossed using Silver Stampin’ Emboss Powder. I wanted to pull in the silver from the Silver Metallic-Edge Ribbon and I think it turned out nicely.

I also used the Stitched Nested Labels dies to frame the phrase which I popped up using a few Stampin’ Dimensionals.

I’ve been having fun creating some cards featuring DSP, I’m going to have to remember these! Here’s the other card I created recently using DSP.

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These days I’m trying to craft as much as I can. Stamping and paper crafting are totally my happy place and we all need to spend as much time in our happy place as possible given what’s going on in the world right now! So I was happy when this sketch challenge showed up in my inbox.

This week’s Paper Craft Crew challenge (PCC375) is a horizontal sketch challenge. Here’s the sketch…

The inkspiration for my card started with the Timeless Tropical cling stamp set. From there I decided to use Daffodil Delight and Crumb Cake as my main colours with Very Vanilla for stamping and Pool Party for an extra splash of colour. For the Crumb Cake card mat I also wanted to add a bit of extra texture and so I used the Coastal Weave 3D embossing folder.

Here’s my card…

I popped up the phrase using Stampin’ Dimensionals and added a few Pearl Basic Jewels. The flower and leaf I fussy cut, not as bad as you might think, and then I coloured the flower using the Pool Party Stampin’ Blends.

As a little something extra behind my popped up phrase and images, I stamped the paint splatter image from the Beauty Abounds cling stamp set using Crumb Cake ink.

I also stamped and blended a flower on the inside of the card. I’ve been doing a lot of colouring lately with my cards, that’s another go to for me when I’m stressed or upset. I’m actually starting to wonder if all this colouring I’ve been doing has been to help keep things in check.

Either way I had fun creating this card and if you’d like to check out the other entries to this week’s challenge head over to papercraftcrew.com/pcc-375.

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As soon as I saw the Lily Pad suite of products in the Sale-a-bration catalogue back in November I knew I had to have them all and I was lucky enough to be able to do just that. Ever since I have been creating with the stamp set, dies and/or Designer Series Paper whenever I get the chance.

The inkspiration for this card came from another demonstrator, Tracy Helman Held. I just love the look of the Designer Series Paper being folded back like this and it’s so easy. This is definitely something I will be recreating with some of my other DSP!

You don’t need much for this card. I used Whisper White cardstock, Blackberry Bliss ink, the Lily Impressions Designer Series Paper and the Lily Pad dies.

For the phrase I used one from the Timeless Tulips stamp set and the small lily from the Lovely Lily Pad stamp set was stamped on the inside of the card. I also put a strip of the same DSP on the inside.

I also added a few Pearl Basic Jewels on the outside of the card because I always like to add a bit of bling. The DSP is really pretty though, so you don’t have to.

I love how quick and easy it is to create this beautiful card and it’s a great way to showcase the DSP, plus you can see both designs at the same time.

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Colouring and crafting has been my go to when I’m feeling stressed and upset for a long time and so with everything going on in the world right now I thought that we could all use some art “therapy” (so to speak). Which is where this card came from… out of my desire to just pop onto my Facebook page and do some crafting with whomever hopped on with me.

I decided to use the Free as a Bird cling stamp set because I wanted to use my Watercolour Pencils and these images work really well for that. Plus I wanted to do something that had a Spring feel to it.

That’s actually also why I went with Bermuda Bay and Crushed Curry for the colours of this project. I also decided to throw in a little bit of Old Olive ink for the leaves.

For the birds I used colours from both sets of Watercolour Pencils; Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Old Olive and Early Espresso. I also used the Layering Circles dies to frame the birds, wrapped some Crushed Curry seam binding ribbon around the card front and added a Gold Faceted Gem for my little bit of bling.

I also added an extra piece of Whisper White cardstock and stamped a simple flower using Bermuda Bay ink on the inside of the card.

This was a really fun card to make and I enjoyed creating it with those who joined me on my page! If you like this card then make sure to follow my blog so that you can get notified whenever I post.

I’m back with another project for this month’s Fancy Fold Blog Hop! This month we were asked to create a Teepee Fold card and while this fold is totally new to me apparently this fold has been around for a while, as I learned from Tina Zinck’s video.

I love the Lily Impressions Designer Series Paper and Lily Pad dies that you can get right now as part of Sale-a-bration and so I couldn’t resist using these as my jumping off point for my card.

From there I decided to use Blackberry Bliss cardstock as my base for the teepee. I also used Blackberry Bliss ink for the phrases that came from the Strong & Beautiful and Timeless Tulips stamp sets as well as for the paint splatter behind the lilies which came from the Beauty Abounds stamp set.

I also used Bermuda Bay ink to stamp the small lilies on the inside of the card and Bermuda Bay cardstock for the die cut lilies on the outside of the card. Finally to add a bit of bling I added a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels around the outside of the card.

This card was really fun to make and so I decided to create a simple instruction sheet to share with you. It has the measurements you’ll need and the step by step instructions to make your own Teepee fold card.

I didn’t add a list of supplies as I wanted to leave that up to you. Of course you’ll want your paper trimmer, SNAIL Adhesive, maybe some Stampin’ Dimensionals and whatever stamps, ink, colours of cardstock and Designer Series paper you want.

2020 Teepee Fancy Fold Sheet

If you enjoyed this card make sure to follow my blog so that you’ll be notified whenever I post. You can also check out the next project on this blog hop on Nadine Schwema’s page.

With everything going on in the world right now I am very thankful that I am fully stocked up on stamps, ink and paper (along with a lot of other embellishments, etc.) and can easily re-stock without leaving my house. Art, colouring and stamping is so enjoyable and relaxing for me which is totally what is needed right now, I can’t imagine my life without it! I’m also thankful for the monthly #simplestamping challenges from Stampin’ Up!, while I love challenging myself and trying new techniques and folds, I really enjoy getting back to basics.

This month’s #simplestamping challenge is to create a birthday card using stamps, ink and paper, especially Designer Series Paper. Immediately I thought of using my See A Silhouette DSP… I had gotten this pack of DSP back in the fall and with all my holiday crafting and cardmaking I hadn’t had the chance to create anything with it yet.

I paired the DSP with the Broadway Birthday photopolymer stamp set and pulled the colours for stamping from the DSP; Night of Navy, Real Red and Daffodil Delight. For the cardstock I used Night of Navy and Whisper White.

To attach the “Make a Wish” to the front of the card I decided to stick with SNAIL Adhesive (you can pop it up with Stampin’ Dimensionals if you like). I also added an extra piece of Whisper White cardstock on the inside of the card and decided to stamp a little something on the inside as well.

As I was creating this card for the challenge I got hit with some more inkspiration and decided to step things up a little bit and make another card. I used the same Designer Series Paper and stamp set as the foundation, but added a few simple extras.

Even though I wanted to step this card up, I still wanted the DSP to shine through. So I kept the cardstock for stamping fairly small.

In addition to Broadway Birthday and the See a Silhouette DSP, I also used phrases from the Itty Bitty Birthdays cling stamp set, some Whisper White Solid Baker’s Twine, a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels and I popped up both stamped pieces of cardstock with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

Here’s the inside…

I really love how both of these cards turned out and as I kept creating with this one sheet from the See a Silhouette pack of DSP it started to remind me a bit of the universe and all the different colours and patterns, etc. that are out there. I can’t wait to create some more with this pack of DSP!

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I have always loved to colour! Crayons and pencil crayons have been my go tos for decades, with markers only being used on occasion. That was of course before I started using Stampin’ Blends! My favourite is still pencil crayons, especially Stampin’ Up!s Watercolour Pencils, but the more I use the blends the more I love them… the colours are so vivid and you can create so much depth with them!

So with a class coming up featuring these great alcohol-based markers I’ve got a bunch of ideas floating around in my head. This card is not one for my class, but just one of those ideas.

The images come from the Forever Blossoms cling stamp set which I stamped on Very Vanilla cardstock using Tuxedo Black Memento ink. Once the ink dried I pulled out my Daffodil Delight and Old Olive Stampin’ Blends to colour the blossoms and leaves. The darker blends help give the “shadows” on the images.

The phrase came from the Beautiful You cling stamp set and I used the Stitched Nested Labels dies to cut that out as well as the layer beneath it. I then popped that up using Stampin’ Dimensionals and added one of the larger Rhinestone Basic Jewels to add a bit of bling.

I love how simple and beautiful this card is and I can’t wait to create more for my upcoming class.

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I can’t believe that March Break and the first day of Spring is next week! My munchkins of course are counting down the days til they’re off from school and so am I a little bit. I’m looking forward to taking some time off, but in the meantime I’m busy getting ready for the Spring is in the Air craft show that’s taking place at the Milton Sports Centre this coming Saturday.

One of the things that I’ve been busy making for the craft show are these cute little baskets filled with chocolates to celebrate Spring and Easter, which is a month away.

I originally saw this basket in a demonstrator group on Facebook and more recently made a similar version at my team meeting. These baskets are so cute and so easy to make and so I had to share them with you!

The measurements I used for my baskets are as follows:

• 2 3/4″ x 2 3/4″ for the base of the basket
  • score all sides at 3/4″
  • cut two of the score lines on two sides that are opposite each other
• 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ for the strap

For all of the baskets I used the Timeless Tulip bundle. I stamped the large tulip first, then used the punch and adhered the tulips to the basket using the Tear & Tape Adhesive Then I stamped either “Happy Spring” or “Happy Easter” on a piece of Whisper White cardstock which I cut out with my Paper Snips and adhered with some Mini Dimensionals.

The green and blue baskets were made with Granny Apple Green and Bermuda Bay cardstock and inks along with the Bermuda Bay Mini Stripped Ribbon for the bow. For the other baskets I used Calypso Coral cardstock and ink with Lemon Lime Twist cardstock, ink and ribbon.

I love how these little baskets turned out and I’m hoping they’re a hit at this weekend’s craft show. Wish me luck!

If you like this project make sure to follow my blog so you’ll get notified whenever I post. I also share projects like this as well as cards in my weekly newsletter which you can sign up for here.

It looks like I’ve got embossing on the brain or something this week as there have been a few projects that have involved heat embossing! This project actually was sparked by one of the alternative cards I made from the February Paper Pumpkin kit – Lovely Day.

This one though features the blooms from the Magnolia Blooms stamp set from the Beginner’s Brochure and while I was initially thinking of just embossing one large bloom, I ended up embossing them all.

I wanted to keep the colours for this card neutral to really help the embossed blooms stand out. So for the card base I used Basic Black cardstock, Crumb Cake for the card mat and then Whisper White for all the stamping.

So for the blooms I started by wiping the whole large piece of Whisper White cardstock with the Embossing Buddy (I DO NOT emboss without this anymore… it really helps keep your embossing contained to where you want it). Then of course I stamped the blooms and leaves using Versamark ink, sprinkled on the Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder and set it using my Heat Tool.

The “Congratulations” for this card came from the First Frost stamp set. I liked this font much better and felt like it went more with the blooms than the font from the Magnolia Blooms stamp set. This was simply stamped on a small piece of Whisper White cardstock using Tuxedo Black Memento ink, framed by a slighter larger piece of Basic Black cardstock and then popped up with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

I debated about adding a piece of metallic edged ribbon, but I ended up just adding a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels right under the word for a little extra bling.

I love how simple and pretty this card is!

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I think I’m finally done with winter and it probably doesn’t help that I have a Spring craft show coming up in a couple of weeks. Needless to say I’m creating a lot with the Timeless Tulips bundle right now and so I wasn’t surprised when this design popped in my head for this week’s Paper Craft Crew Challenge (PCC372).

Here’s this week’s sketch…

I used Crumb Cake cardstock for my card base as well as for the little strip of cardstock behind the tulips. Pear Pizzazz was for the card mat as well as the mat behind the tulips.

For the words I used Crumb Cake ink and for the tulips I used Daffodil Delight and Calypso Coral.

I also punched out the large tulip in front, to give an additional layer, and a few Pear Pizzazz leaves using the coordinating punch from the bundle.

To finish it off I added Wink of Stella to the tulips, popped up the “frame” using Stampin’ Dimensionals and then added a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels to add even more bling to the card.

Here’s the link to check out all the cards for this week’s Paper Craft Crew Challenge.

And if you liked this card make sure to follow my blog so that you’ll be notified whenever I post!

This past week has been one of those weeks where my creativity is running a bit low. I think after all my crafting for Valentine’s Day and a recent craft show my brain has needed a bit of a break! So instead of a project, I thought that I would share the measurements that I use whenever I’m creating a card.

Over the years I’ve been asked this question a few times and so I know it’s a question that lots of you are wondering about, especially those of you that are just starting out.

For the most part I generally use the same measurements for my cards; each layer is 1/4″ smaller than the layer before. It makes it quick and easy since I don’t really have to think about it anymore, plus it gives a nice border and some nice layers to the cards.

• Card base: 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″
• Card mat: 4″ x 5 1/4″
• Card front: 3 3/4″ x 5″
• For a layer on the inside of the card I use the card mat measurements.

I also use this 1/4″ measurement whenever I need a layer behind a word/phrase or an image. It really helps pull in the different colours of the project, but isn’t too overwhelming.

There have also been times when I’ve wanted an even smaller border than this, to just give a hint of a border, and have used an 1/8″ as the difference between my layers. Here’s one example…

For something larger like a scrapbook page layout, I’m more likely to use a 1/2″ to create my layers/borders. Mainly this is because the area that I’m working with is much bigger than my cards and I don’t want the layers/border to get lost on the page. Also becasue when I’m using specialty or designer series paper I want to really see the colours and patterns of the paper.

I hope that this has been helpful!

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It’s been a hectic couple of weeks for me and it seems to have caught up with me this week. Originally I was hoping to pull this project together for a sketch challenge earlier this week, but life/the universe had other ideas.

Initially I considered using Pigment Sprinkles for this project, but decided I would do something a little simpler and easier to control instead. I also decided to stamp some images and then use my Aqua Painter to blur/blend them so there was still a certain amount of form to the ink splotches.

I really wanted to highlight the colours for the background so I kept everything else neutral; Whisper White and Basic Black. I even White Heat Embossed the word “celebrate” to keep with the neutral theme.

For the ink colours I went with Flirty Flamingo, Bermuda Bay and Gorgeous Grape and I love how these pop against the white of the Watercolour Paper and Whisper White cardstock.

To create the ink splotches/splatter I started by stamping images from the Beautiful You and Beauty Abounds stamp sets; the small bubbles and splatter from Beauty Abounds and the smaller squiggle from Beautiful You.

I did one colour at a time so I could very quickly use my Aqua Painter to blur/blend the images. If you wait too long the ink will start to dry and then you may not get as much smudging of the images as you’d like.

I also flicked the tip of the Aqua Painter with the lid to add some random ink splatter in the different colours.

For the central image I wanted something that went with the bright colours of the background, so I chose the dancing woman from the Beautiful You stamp set and cut it out using the largest circle from the Stitched Shapes Dies.

To finish it off I popped up the woman using Stampin’ Dimensionals (to adhere the embossed word I just used snail) and then added a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels for some bling.

I really love how this card turned out and if you like this card make sure to follow my blog so that you’ll get notified whenever I post!

I’ve taken the plunge and joined a blog hop!

Over the last year now I guess (wow, time flies!) I’ve been really enjoying participating in different sketch and stamping challenges and so I’d started digging around looking to possibly join a monthly blog hop. Not too long after I started my search one of my best friends, and also my upline, was telling me about a Fancy Fold blog hop that she was a part of. I asked if there was room for one more and here I am!

This month’s Fancy Fold is the Joy Fold. Chris Twina has a great YouTube video on how to do it and after watching it it didn’t seem nearly as intimidating (which is sometimes how it goes for me… seems complicated, but in fact it’s not).

Here’s mine…

I started first with the idea of using a butterfly to keep the card closed because I just LOVE butterflies. Next came the Designer Series Paper and I went with the Lily Impressions DSP, which comes from this year’s Sale-a-bration catalogue, because I liked the idea of having a simple design on the smaller flap and then something with a bit more colour and design for the larger piece inside the card.

From there I got my colours and went with Pretty Peacock for the card base and for the phrase and images that I wanted to have stand out. I also liked the idea that Chris used in her card of having a subtle design in the background and then having the phrase stand out on top.

I ended up using 3 different stamp sets for this card. The Strong & Beautiful cling stamp set gave me the phrase, I used Beauty Abounds for the design behind the phrase as well as the butterflies around it and the one on the inside of the card (which was all stamped with Pool Party to give a bit of contrast to the darker Pretty Peacock) and then for the two butterflies on the smaller flap I used Butterfly Wishes.

To top it all off I added one of the large Rhinestone Basic Jewels right next to the phrase. I always like to add a bit of bling to my cards and I thought it fit so well with the phrase.

I really love how there are so many layers to this card and how you can see all the layers! Now I did end up tweaking Chris’ measurements a bit. For the Designer Series Paper I used 4 1/4″ x 2 3/4″ for the smaller piece and 4 1/4″ x 5 1/4″ for the larger piece. The rest was the same; 8 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ (scored at 5 1/2″) for the large card base, 8″ x 3″ for the smaller “card base” and the two pieces of Whisper White were 2 3/4″ x 3 3/4″.

If you like today’s card make sure to follow my blog so you’ll be notified whenever I post! Also make sure to check out Mary Ann Rossiter’s card from the Fancy Fold blog hop as well as the others! I know I will be!

Another month means that there’s another #simplestamping challenge from Stampin’ Up! This month the challenge is to create a card using the theme “just because” and there’s no extras allowed this time; just stamps, ink and paper.

I’ve been having a lot of fun with these challenges and some of them have turned out really nicely! While I love looking at the more elaborate card designs out there, I’ve always tended to be a bit more simple and straight forward with my designs. Even with that though sometimes it’s been challenging ONLY being able to use stamps, ink and paper. I’ve had to stop myself on a couple of occasions from adding a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels which is a go to for me because I LOVE adding a bit of bling to my cards!

For this #simplestamping project I was able to resist the urge to add extras this time by using the Butterfly Wishes cling stamp set. This stamp set is a distINKtive stamp set which means your stamped images will come out with more depth and detail.

Here it is…

For the colour combination I went with Seaside Spray, Crumb Cake and Whisper White. (I’ve been creating a lot lately using pinks and reds for Valentine’s Day, so while I love pink I definitely needed a bit of a change!)

I also love to create a next level up card when I participate in these #simplestamping challenges and this month is no different. I think I was actually planning out this design as I was planning and creating the original.

The colour combination and the foundation is the same, but to kick it up a knotch I added a strip of the Seaside Spray 1/4″ Metallic Ribbon (I’m so glad that they decided to carry this ribbon over!), a Rhinestone Basic Jewel (of course) and popped up the smaller square using some Stampin’ Dimensionals.

You can also see that I switched up one of the images for this card and I did this because I wanted to use the coordinating Butterfly Duet Punch. I got this for Christmas and I have been dying to use it!

What you can’t see though is that I also added some Wink of Stella to the two larger butterflies as well as to the smaller punched out butterfly. It’s such a great way to add some sparkle to your projects without having it end up absolutely everywhere!

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