A friend shared this fun layout with us at a Shoebox Swap recently and I had to recreate it! It's a great way to show off our pretty Designer Series Papers and quite easy. 

I created a few different layouts to share.  Switching up both the papers used and even the orientation of the design gives you so many possibilities with one idea. 

This is the original card that was shared with us. The County Gingham paper has such great colors that pop when used together. Most of the colors are pastels but adding in the Sweet Sorbet brightens the look up. 

I hadn't used the Begin with a Dream host set yet but thought the saying fit perfectly. This set retires with the catalog next month. Be sure to check out the retiring lists I have attached at the bottom of the post. Both catalogs end at the end of April and items are sure to sell out fast. 

I needed a masculine card layout for a class and decided that the Like an Animal Specialty Paper was a great choice. Both sides are fun and I decided to use some of the foil and some of the plain. I also had a chance to use the Radiating Stitches dies that are part of the Online Exclusives as well. What a fun look! The saying is from the Greatest Journey set. 

These next cards I created with the same sketch but I turned it from landscape to portrait. I love the Playing in the Rain suite and thought it paired so nicely with the Country Gingham paper.

​I'm so excited that the Playing in the Rain is carrying over to the next catalog! 

Coloring with my Blends is always a favorite technique and these were no exception. I will miss Mint Macaron! 

I shared these two as my "This or That" cards this past week on social media.  Which would you pick?  

Here they are together.  Tag or circle?  

That little fox from the Playing in the Rain stamp set is so cute! 

​If you need supplies go here to shop.  Current Host Code is JPAZFNSZ.

Be sure to download the PDF of the card sketch! 

Here at both the retiring lists. Be sure to check them out for both the Annual Catalog and the January-April catalog. All items are while supplies last. 

It's time for a another Monday Montage. Be sure to click next to check out Julie's project and back to see Elizabeth's. Everyone has great stuff to share!

I love the Silly Goose stamp set and was excited to try this idea. Keep reading to see how I did it. 

I used Pear Pizazz for the base. I cut a 3 3/4 x 5 and used a Blending Brush to add Pear Pizzaz ink to the edge.  I love how it adds dimension to the piece and sets it apart from the base. 

I stamped the goose in Pear Pizazz ink all over the small piece and then adhered it to the base with dimensionals.  

I used my Blends to color the sweet goose on the focal point. I used light Smokey Slate around the edge and then used the Color Lifter to pull the color in a little.  Balmy Blue, Daffodil Delight and Flirty Flamingo were the other colors I used for goose. 

Enjoy the whole tour and go get crafty! 

I can not believe that Paper Pumpkin has been around for 10 years already. I've been subscribing from the beginning and can tell you from experience that the kits have gotten so much cooler as time has gone by.  Have I loved every single one over the 10 years? No, but I've loved most of them.!  Even the ones I didn't care for I was able to make alternatives with that I did love.  Plus, did you know that Stampin' Up! offers a guarantee on the kits?  If you truly hate a kit contact them and they will help make it right. 

When I get my kits I usually make one of each project as intended and then I create alternatives. I have a few things I tend to do right away:
1. Cut the card bases into two 4 x 5.25 pieces and keep the strips that are left
2. Cut up an envelope or two if they are printed 
Doing this gives me even more to work with.

For this first card I used Crumb Cake card stock and ink. I blended a little Fresh Freesia with a blending brush and then stamped the leaves over it. The gold leaves are punched from the leftover gold from the happy die cuts. I added a die cut with a sentiment, some linen thread and sequins. 

I stuck with Crumb Cake and again stamped with the same color ink for the background. I did add some Fresh Freesia with my blending brush to the pot for some added color. The polka dot background is cut from one of the original card bases. 

It's pretty light in the photo but I did add some Fresh Freesia to the white base before I stamped the leaves.  These butterfly embellishments were the perfect compliment to these cards.  You'll notice I used them on quite a few! 

Did you catch that we have Small Blending Brushes now?  I love the small size when I'm working with a small space or item. 

Two more very simple alternatives.  Again, the butterflies are a perfect accent. 

Don't forget about using the negative space on the die cut pieces as stencils. It creates a gorgeous background on the card stock. 

I trimmed the bookshelves down for both of these cards.  I thought the vellum was a great coordinating item! I also like the bookshelves matted on color rather than all white. 

A simple but pretty Easter card was the last project I made with the kit. 

If you prefer video you can catch all these on Instagram or Pinterest. 

Interested in getting your own Paper Pumpkin kit?  Check it out here! Be sure to sign up by the 10th of the month to get the next kit.  You can cancel or pause anytime. Contact me with any questions. 

Looking for more alternatives for your Paper Pumpkin kits?  I have a board on Pinterest where I share my designs and pin others. 

It's finally the first day of spring and I am so ready! Bring back the lovely temperatures to go with the later sunsets and I'll be set. 

The adorable Playing in the Rain suite is a perfect spring set. I used the cute turtle to create these two cards which I shared as my "this or that" on social media in honor of St. Patrick's Day last week.  
​
The first card was done in Granny Apple Green. The backgrounds were created by stamping the image in the same ink color as the card stock.  I added strips of Designer Series Paper for a little extra something behind the tag. 

This card was done in Parakeet Party and I chose to put circles behind the tag. I am so glad we are getting circle punches back! If you haven't checked out the new Online Exclusives offerings you need to do so. There are some great offerings. 

I love using the Tailor Made Tags on a card. They don't have to be used only on packaging but look great on a card as well. 

Which card do you pick? 

I'm always looking for ways to get myself, and my craft supplies, more organized. I have so much stuff in my craft studio and if I don't have a "place" for each item I lose it all.  But let's be honest...I still manage to lose things...like my paper snips even though I have six pairs! 

Awhile back I discovered these great adhesive backed 5 x 7 magnetic sheets.  They fit perfectly in the Stampin' Up! stamp storage containers so they were exactly what I was looking for to organize my dies. 

Previously I had them in a storage box on my cutting table, right by my Stampin' Cut and Emboss machine, but I often couldn't find the set I was looking for when I needed it.  I don't always remember the name of the die set and it was taking time to go look up the name. This solution means the dies are in the stamp case so when I need to die cut something to go with the stamped image it is right there. 

Here's a look at the dies and stamps side by side in the storage case. 

I shared a video showing how I put the dies on the magnetic sheets for storage.

How do you store your dies? Would this solution work for you?

Below are the links to order these from Amazon.  *As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Truth be told, I've always been a little intimidated by fun fold cards...or at least ones with lots of scoring or strange cuts! I've been trying to challenge myself to try more of them and recently offered a class where we created four different fun folds.  

I offered the class on Zoom only.  This allowed everyone to be able to participate even if they do not live near me.  I actually had more people in WI on the call than in IL where I live! Pretty cool.  

The first one we created is pretty simple and straightforward. After scoring your card base (11 x 4 1/4) in half you trim off a 1 1/4 inch piece from the bottom.  This allows you to put your Designer Series Paper (DSP) strip on the bottom and have it show. I called this one "peek a boo".  It's a great way to use up 6 x 6 paper as well since you can use the flip side of you paper for the bottom piece. 

My favorite part about this design is that when you cut off the 2 3/4 in piece from the front of the base it is the perfect size to use as the front piece! The card only takes one 1/2 sheet of card stock (cut 11 x 5 1/2 inches) to create. 

I've had a great time using the Greatest Journey bundle lately.  The black stands out so well on the pink card stock and the orange in the Designer Series Paper is the perfect compliment. 

I called this the double fold fun fold! It's another great card idea for showing off both sides of your Designer Series Paper. A 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 square of Designer Series Paper is what you need along with two 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 pieces of solid card stock in coordinating colors. 

This was the hardest of the cards for me but once I made a couple it got easy! Learning to make the angled cuts is what had me nervous. I ended up creating a template (shown below) because I'm a visual learner.  

Here's a look at how the card opens. 

The base is a 5 1/2 x 11 inch piece of card stock scored at 3 3/8 on both sides. Measuring 1 inch down from the top of each side and one inch in on the bottom of each side is how you create your marks for cutting. 

Have you tried any of these before?  If you like videos you can check out all the cards here! Plus many more card ideas on my Pinterest. Be sure to click follow on both. 

Supplies are listed below.  Current Host Code is 9DPN3A3J. 

It's March and time for another Monday Montage Blog Hop.  It's feeling like spring around here and I'm all for it! Our flowers are even coming up which seems so early but I do love to see green.

I've been doing a lot of creating with the Irresistible Blooms and I'm not done yet.  Today I wanted to use it to create some one sheet wonder cards and try out some color combos I shared this earlier.  

We've been talking a lot about colors since Stampin' Up! has let us know we'll be getting a color refresh with the new catalog in May.  I have so  many favorite colors that I'll be sad to see go so I'm keeping my fingers crossed they stay!

Here are the color combos I asked everyone to vote on:
Color Combo 1 is Petal Pink, Calypso Coral, Old Olive, and Balmy Blue
Color Combo 2 is Crushed Curry, Pool Party, Starry Sky, and Crumb Cake

Have you tried the "cross pattern" One Sheet Wonder?  I love this technique because you can create four cards in minutes! Stamps, ink and white card stock is all you need.  

Fill in the middle of the sheet in a cross pattern to create the main images. You can add your sentiments directly to the card stock before cutting as well.  

I trim my white card stock to 8 x 10.5 before I stamp so that when I'm done I can cut in half and have four pieces ready to mount on a base! 

Here are samples of the two different color schemes.  The first is made with ​Petal Pink, Calypso Coral, Old Olive, and Balmy Blue. 

The second is made with ​Crushed Curry, Pool Party, Starry Sky, and Crumb Cake.

Which do you prefer?

Be sure to hop along to see all the great projects this week.  Click next for Wendy or back for Elizabeth. They are sure to delight! 

Creating cards doesn't have to be hard! Choosing a few great products can help you design beautiful cards quickly and easily.  

For these cards I've used the some of the new Basics 3D Embossing Folders paired with the Irresistible Blooms collection.  

Check out this technique idea! Notice I only embossed 2/3 of the piece of white card stock. This left a flat space at the bottom to stamp my sentiment. I cut a 4 x 5 1/4 inch piece of Basic White card stock and ran it through the Stampin' Cut Emboss Machine with a small section outside of the folder.

One thing I really love about this collection is that the dies do cut out some of the flowers and leaves from the Designer Series Paper (DSP). This is always a bonus! I know many do not like fussy cutting. 

Did you catch the two colors that are returning?  Both Pretty Peacock and Lost Lagoon will be coming back in the May catalog.  Stay tuned for even more color changes as Stampin' Up! announces a full color refresh at the end of the month.  Although it will mean saying goodbye to some colors it's always nice to get an update! 

What changes are you hoping for?  Are there colors you won't be sad to see go?  Colors you are really hoping come back? 

I used the same technique with the embossing folder on this card as well.  I left the bottom portion flat so I could add my sentiment. 

I'm always looking for a way to use my scraps and this was an easy layout for that.  Here's a video of me creating this card. Be sure to follow my Instagram page while you are there. 

Another fun idea is to color your ribbon! Using your Blends you can create any color ribbon you want.  I chose to use both the light and dark Soft Sea Foam blends and create an ombre look on this ribbon. 

The new embossing folder really makes this card pop. 

What do you think of this new collection?  It's only available online--you won't find it in any of our catalogs.  Be sure to go check out all the new product that launched in the Online Exclusives section.  There are so awesome new items along with some returning favorites.  Circle punches!!  Can you tell I'm excited about those?

Did you also see these cards I made with the collection?

The new Stampin' Up! Hello, Irresistible paper is beautiful! It is available starting Wednesday and you are going to need it.  

I needed to create my customer thank you cards for March.  When I need a lot of cards at once I like to find a layout that I can use by mixing and matching so I don't get bored! This one was fun and so easy.  

The squares 1 1/2 inch by 1 1/2 inch.  Most of the white card stock pieces are 3 7/8 inch x 5 1/8 inch so that if I wanted to layer them I could put them on a 4 inch x 5 1/4 inch piece of card stock before adhering on the base. 

The sentiment is from the coordinating stamp set Irresistible Blooms.  The flower and leaves were die cut from another sheet of the designer series paper. You are going to want the whole suite! 

The coordinating colors Daffodil Delight, Flirty Flamingo, Lost Lagoon (returning), Petal Pink, Pretty Peacock (returning) and Soft Sea Foam. 

What do you think? 

The Sunshine and Smiles Paper Pumpkin kit is such a cute kit! I haven't had a lot of time to play with it but I've had a chance to make a few alternatives. 

The Cloud Punch is a perfect compliment for this kit. I added some lines with my black Stampin' Write marker. 

I think this will make a perfect baby shower card! I love these umbrellas. 

Remember to cut down your bases to give yourself a lot more options! 

Ready to get your own Paper Pumpkin kit each month?  Sign up here. 

Better yet, get a pre-paid now through Tuesday and you could earn a FREE Sale a Bration reward and possible host rewards as well.  Check out this graphic for details. You can order on an online store order or contact me.  You will receive an emailed code after purchasing.