Brightening a rainy day

It's a bit of a dreary, rainy day today (which is good because we really need the rain), so I wanted to make something bright and fun. I think getting one of these cards would brighten anyone's day!

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^® unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Circle Circus
Card stock: Whisper White, Basic Black, Crushed Curry, Almost Amethyst, Regal Rose, Real Red, Lucky Limeade
Ink: Crushed Curry, Almost Amethyst, Regal Rose, Real Red, Lucky Limeade, Jet Black StazOn
Accessories: Corner Rounder punch, Boho Blossoms punch, Greetings Ice Dots (KI Memories)

I chose my color combo from the colors in the pack of "ice dots" I used for embellishments. (One more old supply used up! Yippee!) It's more colors than I might normally use at once, but I really like them together. I stamped Whisper White card stock with the Circle Circus set (one stamp for each color), cut a 2-1/2" x 5-1/2" piece for each card and then rounded the corners. I matted each piece with a 2-3/4" x 5-3/4" of colored card stock and then adhered them to the 3" by 6" cards. And In my slightly obsessive compulsive way, I made sure that the same two colors of card stock weren't used together on any of the cards.

For each card, I punched the largest flower from the Boho Blossoms punch in the same color card stock as the mat and glued it in the middle of one of the black circles on the card. Then I glued on the ice-dot embellishment that matched the color of the main card. And that's it! Definitely quick and easy.

I like how placing the embellishments inside the stamped black circles helps them stand out a little; otherwise they could have become lost on the relatively busy background. And I like how that puts the embellishment in a different spot on each card -- it gives them each a bit of personality.

I also stamped the envelopes so they coordinate with the cards. I don't always do that when I make a card (generally because I just don't think of it), but it really is a nice finishing detail. And while it's always awesome to get a handmade card, it's even better when the envelope is pretty, too!

Thanks for stopping by!