Hot air balloon Crazy Z Fold card

After all the fun I had making my first two Crazy Z Fold cards, I had to make one more:

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Lift Me Up
Paper: Mint Macaron, Night of Navy, Whisper White card stock; Carried Away Designer Series Paper (DSP)
Ink: Mint Macaron, Night of Navy, Peekaboo Peach, Watermelon Wonder
Accessories: Up & Away Thinlits dies, Iridescent Sequin Assortment, Dimensionals, Art Glitter Glue (Art Institute Glitter)

I hadn't used my Lift Me Up stamp set in awhile, so I pulled out that one and the coordinating Carried Away DSP. I thought the two would make a fun scene for this card, and I think it turned out pretty cute!

Note: If you want to know the measurements I used for my card, check out my previous blog post.

I used Mint Macaron card stock for the base Z fold and added a piece of DSP to the bottom panel that looks like a view of the ground from a hot air balloon. On the middle and top panels I used Night of Navy DSP with a scene printed in white. I like how the whole piece flows from the ground at the bottom up to the sky at the top.

For the inner Z fold, I used Night of Navy card stock. The top two panels have Mint Macaron DSP patterned with white clouds, and the bottom panel is Whisper White card stock stamped with a birthday sentiment.

To decorate the panels, I stamped and die cut several hot air balloons and clouds. The multi-color balloons are made by coloring directly on the rubber stamp with markers and then stamping on white card stock. I adhered the pieces to the top two panels on the inner Z fold, letting some overlap the edge of the panel and attaching others with Dimensionals. I also added a couple of clouds to the sentiment panel to continue the theme.

And for the finishing touch - sequins! I added several coordinating sequins on the different panels, and I love how they look -- they remind me of glints of sunshine.

I think I'm hooked on the Crazy Z Fold cards. I haven't made anymore yet, but I know I'll go back to them. Thanks for stopping by!

Crazy Z Fold masculine cards

I don't really consider myself a "technique stamper." Of course different techniques and types of card folds can be really fun to try -- I often enjoy reading tutorials or watching videos about them -- but in my day-to-day crafting, I tend to stick with basic stamps, ink and paper (and, of course, sequins!) for most of my card making. But recently I'd been seeing quite a few Crazy Z Fold cards on the Endless Creations blog, and since it didn't look too complicated, I decided to give it a try.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Traveler, Essential Messages (Hero Arts)
Paper: Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Lost Lagoon card stock; Going Places Designer Series Paper (DSP) Stack
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Lost Lagoon
Accessories: Black striped washi tape, 2014 - 16 In Color washi tape, adhesive gold stars (I think these were left over from a Paper Pumpkin kit)

The verdict? I love them! It's really fun to have multiple panels and layers to decorate -- the possibilities are endless! You could also alter the size and placement of the inner Z fold portion to fit the theme or images you want to use. Here are the measurements I used:

Outer/base Z fold:
- Cut card stock to 4-1/2" x 11"
- Score at 2-3/4" and 5-1/2"
- Layering pieces measure 4" x 5-1/4" (one piece) and 4" x 2-1/2" (two pieces)

Inner Z fold:
- Cut card stock to 3-1/4" x 9"
- Score at 3" and 6"
- Layering pieces measure 2-3/4" x 3" (three pieces)

For the two cards I'm sharing today, I focused on masculine birthday cards. The first card has a travel/adventure theme with a blue, black and cream color palette. I used the Going Places DSP for the base Z fold, choosing a different pattern for each panel.

For the inner Z fold I used Very Vanilla card stock for the layers and embellished them with stamped images and a bit of washi tape.

The sentiment on the top panel -- "In life's adventures, may happiness be your destination" -- is one that I normally associate with graduation cards, when one is looking forward to exploring the world, embarking on a career, or settling in a new home. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that every day can be (or maybe should be!) something of an adventure. And a birthday seems like a great time to wish someone a year of wonderful adventures.

I skipped the sequins on this card, but I did use three dimensional gold stars to add a little bling.

Here is a side view of the card. To attach the two panels, I first put adhesive on the back of the bottom inner panel (with the "happy birthday" stamp). I decided where to place that panel and attached it to the base of the card. Then I folded the panels together and attached the top panels. (Be sure to only apply adhesive to the top half of the top inner panel!) Because the middle panels are different sizes, the card won't open all the way so it's flat. It does, though, fold closed to a standard A2 size (4-1/4" x 5-1/2") to fit in an envelope.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: All the Fixings stamp set and die combo (Taylored Expressions)
Paper: Mellow Moss, Very Vanilla, Sahara Sand card stock; Going Places DSP Stack; silver foil; cork (unknown)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Pegboard die (Taylored Expressions), mini silver brads, Pinewood Planks embossing folder, Mono Multi liquid glue

For the second card, I went with a tool theme. I used the Going Places DSP Stack again, but this time chose patterns using Sahara Sand, Very Vanilla and Mossy Meadow.

I die cut a pegboard out of a thin piece of cork and adhered it to the top inner panel. To make the tools I die cut the pieces out of silver foil and Mossy Meadow card stock. Then I cut apart the Mossy Meadow pieces to add the handles to the silver pieces. I used liquid glue to attach the tools to the cork and then added mini silver brads in some of the hole to create the look of pegs.

It's hard to tell in the picture, but for the middle panel on the base Z fold, I embossed a piece of Sahara Sand card stock with the Pinewood Planks embossing folder. It adds a bit of subtle wood-like texture.

For the middle panel of the inner Z fold, I used a piece of Mossy Meadow DSP. I debated whether or not I should add any embellishments or stamped images, but in the end I decided I liked the look of just the grid, especially next to the cork piece, which has the holes in a grid pattern.

For the bottom panels, I used a piece of striped DSP for the base Z fold and a layer of Very Vanilla card stock for the inner Z fold. I stamped the sentiment on the vanilla card stock and embellished the panels with the remaining die-cut tool pieces.

If you haven't made a Crazy Z Fold card yet, I recommend giving it a try. (If you're looking for more ideas online, you may also want to search Double Z Fold to see similar cards.) I made a third one that I'll share in my next post. Thanks for stopping by!

Masculine sea-themed cards

It's always fun to play with new stamping goodies, which I've been doing a lot lately. But it's also great to pull out a well-loved, oldie-but-goodie stamp set. That's what I did -- with the From Land to Sea stamp set -- when I needed to make some masculine birthday cards last week.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: From Land to Sea, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Paper: Tip Top Taupe, Lost Lagoon
Ink: Tip Top Taupe, Lost Lagoon
Accessories: Know the Ropes embossing folder (Taylored Expressions), clear droplets (Pretty Pink Posh), sponge, Dimensionals

This is a pretty basic card in terms of layout and technique. But I love the animal images from this stamp set, so I wanted to let them be the focus. I did sponge around the edges of the card base and focal layer to add some depth, and the embossed strip of card stock provides a bit of color and texture. My favorite detail, though, are the three clear droplets, which look like bubbles coming from the turtle.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: From Land to Sea, Teeny Tiny Wishes, Artisan Textures
Paper: Tip Top Taupe, Ruby Red, Naturals Ivory card stock
Ink: Tip Top Taupe, Ruby Red, Crushed Curry
Accessories: Helm die (Taylored Expressions), Scalloped Tag Topper punch, linen thread, twine, cranberry grosgrain ribbon, Aqua Painter, Dimensionals

I used two different images from the set for my second card. To make the tag, I stamped the lighthouse on Naturals Ivory card stock using Tip Top Taupe ink. I wanted to add color to the image, so I used an Aqua Painter to carefully paint on some Ruby Red, Crushed Curry and Tip Top Taupe ink. I used a light hand so the outline didn't smear too much, but a little bit of blurring was fine with this image style.

To continue the nautical theme, I stamped the helm image repeatedly on a panel of Tip Top Taupe card stock and adhered the piece along the bottom of the card base. I did sneak in one new product -- the Artisan Textures stamp set -- to add some texture to the top of the card base. The twine on the tag and the perfect die-cut helm are the finishing details.

Thanks for stopping by!

May's Christmas card

Hey, look at me - I'm posting my May Christmas card design with more than a week left of the month. Woohoo! And I actually made these cards on the May 12. Definitely the best I've done with my monthly Christmas cards so far this year. The best part, though, is that I really like the clean and simple design.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Time of Year
Paper: Whisper White note cards and envelopes, Whisper White card stock
Ink: Soft Suede, Real Red, Emerald Envy
Accessories: Bunches of Banners Framelits dies, Red Berry gloss Crystal Nuvo Drops (Tonic Studios), gold striped washi tape, Dimensionals

I love that giant "thinking of you" as the focal point for a card. The "at" and the "Christmas" banner are separate stamps, and there are several others in the set (as well as a few different accent images) so you can customize the saying for many different holidays or occasions. It was a host set in the Stampin' Up! catalog last year that, believe it or not, I still hadn't used. (How does that happen? It must mean I have too many stamps. Is that even possible?)

Anyway, back to the card. I used a piece of Whisper White card stock that was 3-1/4" x 4-3/4" for the main layer. I stamped the sentiment in Soft Suede ink and added the holly leaves with Emerald Envy. I used Crystal Nuvo Drops for the berries to add a little texture. I stamped the banner with Real Red, die cut it and attached it to the layer with Dimensionals.

The card still needed "something," so I made a border by placing a strip of gold striped washi tape along the top and bottom of the card stock layer, folding the ends around to the back. Then I attached the layer to the note card base with Dimensionals. I thought about adding sequins, but I decided against it because I didn't want to distract from the holly berries. What do you think: add sequins or leave it as is?

I'm curious to see if I can complete my June Christmas card even earlier in the month. I guess we'll see what happens. Thanks for stopping by!

Black-and-white dogwood

I'm a little late sharing the card I made for my mom for Mother's Day. But it's a pretty floral design that would be great for almost any occasion by just changing or omitting the sentiment.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Dogwood (Hero Arts), May Good Things Grow (March 2018 Paper Pumpkin)
Paper: Whisper White, thick Whisper White, Blushing Bride card stock
Ink: Blushing Bride, Memento Tuxedo Black
Accessories: Clear and gold Wink of Stella glitter brush pens, 1-3/8" circle punch, Blushing Bride twill ribbon, clear faceted gem, Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers), Metallics sequin assortment

A few months ago I ordered this dogwood stamp from Hero Arts. I hadn't had a chance to use it yet, so I decided that Mother's Day would be the perfect occasion.

I started by repeatedly stamping the image with black ink on a white card base to create a toile-like background. I "flicked" my gold Wink of Stella brush pen over the card stock to add some gold glitter and then rounded the two bottom corners.

For the focal flower, I stamped the dogwood image using Blushing Bride ink twice: once on Blushing Bride card stock and once on white card stock. I cut out both flowers and adhered the pink flower directly onto one of the same images on the card base. I painted clear Wink of Stella glitter on the white flower, curled up the petals a bit and glued just the middle to the pink flower. A clear faceted gem finished the flower.

To add the sentiment, I stamped "Happy Mother's Day" on white card stock and punched it out with a circle punch. I adhered the circle in the lower left corner and added a strip of Blushing Bride ribbon. A few scattered gold sequins add a little extra sparkle.

Thanks for stopping by!

Summery fruit-themed card set

I've been running low on sets of cards for gift giving, so last week I decided to make a couple of card sets using some mini fruit images and bright summery colors.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Fruit Basket
Paper: Tutti-Frutti cards and envelopes; Whisper White, Night of Navy, Peekaboo Peach, Basic Black, Soft Suede card stock; Tutti-Frutti 6" x 6" Designer Series Paper (DSP)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Soft Suede, Daffodil Delight, Lemon-Lime Twist, Calypso Coral, Night of Navy, Real Red, Peekaboo Peach
Accessories: Itty Bitty Fruit punch pack, Tutti-Frutti adhesive-backed sequins, 1-1/4" and 1-3/8" square punches, Mono Multi liquid glue, Mini Dimensionals

Aren't they fun? I was inspired by a note card made by Stampin' Up! demonstrator Mary Fish. Mary's design was simple enough to repeat for a set of cards, and I love that it featured both the fruit and the pattern images on the DSP. I think these cards are fairly self-explanatory, so I won't go into the how-to details; but as always, if you have any questions, just leave a comment below.

I used a set of pre-printed Tutti Frutti cards and envelopes for my card bases. There were sixteen cards in the pack, so I went ahead and made two sets of these cards: one to put in the mail right away to a good friend and one to have on hand for later.

The hardest part of making this card set was deciding how to combine the sentiments, card bases, fruit images and DSP. There were so many possible combinations that all would have worked to create adorable cards.

I did have one minor disaster when I was finishing up these cards. As the last step, I stamped a "hand-stamped by" image on the back of each card and then stacked the cards in a pile. As I was doing it I told myself that I probably shouldn't stack them just in case the ink smeared. But I did it anyway, and sure enough, a bunch of those "hand-stamped by" images smeared on the fronts of the cards they were sitting on. Sigh.

I was so annoyed I had to just walk away from my craft table. It's so frustrating when you mess something up at the very end. Once I calmed down, I managed to find eight cards that were OK. For the rest of them I had to pull off the punched fruit shape, make a new sentiment banner, adhere it over the current banner and punch out new fruit shapes. So in the end they still turned out okay, it just took me a lot longer to finish them than it should have.

Thanks for stopping by!

Bubbling-over birthdays

What a week! A bunch of little things just seemed to pile up, with the result that I couldn't find time to sit down and write a blog post. As it is I'm managing to squeeze this one in before the stroke of midnight, so it's just one post this week. But I suppose one is better than none! And without further ado, here are two birthday cards made with the Bubble Over stamp set and Bottles & Bubbles Framelits dies.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Bubble Over, Sentimental Birthday (Winnie & Walter)
Paper: Soft Sky, Whisper White, Bermuda Bay, Lemon Lime Twist, Calypso Coral, vellum card stock; Bubbles & Fizz Designer Series Paper (DSP)
Ink: Bermuda Bay, Lemon Lime Twist, Calypso Coral
Accessories: Bottles & Bubbles Framelits dies, Layering Circles Framelits dies, 4mm and 6mm clear droplets (Pretty Pink Posh), clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen, Mono Multi liquid glue, Dimensionals

For my first card with this set I wanted to make a colorful kid-friendly, but not "kid-ish," birthday card. I chose one of the patterns from the coordinating DSP, cut off a strip and determinded my color palette from there.

To make the pop bottles, I cut each bottle out of colored card stock and vellum card stock. I also die cut a matching straw for each bottle. I adhered the stamped and die-cut labels to the vellum bottle shapes and glued the straws to the colored bottles. Then I adhered the vellum bottles to the colored ones, placing the glue mostly behind the labels, with just a drop at the top of the bottles. Around the top of the bottles I stamped a cluster of bubbles and added a few clear droplets.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Bubble Over
Paper: Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Whisper White, vellum card stock; Bubbles & Fizz DSP; gold foil paper
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Real Red
Accessories: Bottles & Bubbles Framelits dies, Stitched Shapes Framelits dies, Itty Bitty Accents punch pack, clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen, Dimensionals, Mono Multi liquid glue

For my second card I went with a more masculine design. I stamped the bottles with Chocolate Chip ink to make them look like beer bottles. You can't tell in the picture, but I also painted the stamped bottles with clear Wink of Stella glitter to make them glisten like glass. I made the labels, adhered them to the die-cut labels and added gold caps.

For the card base I used Chocolate Chip card stock with a strip of DSP and a strip of Real Red card stock. (Looking at the card now I think I should have added something to the card base, maybe embossing or tone-on-tone stamping. I was trying to keep it simple, but I think it's a little boring.) I added a vellum stitched oval as a mat for the bottles and finished off with three gold stars.

That's it for tonight. Here's hoping that next week I'll be back on track. Thanks for stopping by!

Early release: Share What You Love product suite

In less than one month the 2018-19 Stampin' Up! catalog goes live. Yippee! But if you don't want to wait that long for new goodies, then you're in luck. Through May 31, the products from the Share What You Love product suite are available to purchase in three early release bundles.

The suite, which was designed to celebrate Stampin' Up!'s 30th anniversary, features two photopolymer stamp sets, an embossing folder, specialty Designer Series Paper (DSP), coordinating card stock and several wonderful embellishments. I didn't order everything in the suite, but I bought plenty to make cute cards!

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Love What You Do
Paper: Blackberry Bliss, Whisper White card stock; Share What You Love Specialty DSP
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, So Saffron
Accessories: Rich Razzleberry velvet ribbon, Share What You Love artisan Pearls, clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen, Dimensionals

One of the nice things about two-sided patterned paper is that if you don't care for one pattern, you can flip the piece over and use the pattern on the other side. But when you like both patterns, it can be hard to cover one of them up. Well, one of the presenters at the OnStage event I attended had a brilliant solution: use the DSP as part of your card front so you can see the other pattern when you open the card. And the Share What You Love Specialty DSP is perfect for this idea because it is a heavier weight than traditional DSP.

I cut a 4" x 12" piece of DSP and then cut that into two 4" x 5-1/2" pieces (with a 1"strip left over). For the card bases, I

cut a piece of Blackberry Bliss card stock in half to make two A2 (4/14" x 5-1/2") cards. I trimmed off the front of each card 1" from the fold and attached a piece of DSP to the back of that 1" "flap." For the rest of the card I stamped and cut out one of the images from the Love What You Do stamp set. The full image actually has three flowers (see card below), but I only wanted two of them. I also stamped one of the sentiments on a strip of white card stock and tore the edges to add some texture. I finished off with a piece of velvet ribbon and three yellow pearls.

Here's a look at the card inside. I love the fun surprise of the pattern.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Love What You Do
Paper: Blackberry Bliss, Whisper White card stock; Share What You Love Specialty DSP
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Old Olive Blendabilities marker, Rich Razzleberry Blends markers
Accessories: Stitched Shapes Framelits dies, white polka dot tulle ribbon, Share What You Love artisan pearls, clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen, Dimensionals

For the focal image on this card I stamped the three flowers and added the small stem with leaves and the branch with berries (so this image is actually three separate stamps). I colored them with Blends/Blendabilities markers and added Wink of Stella on the purple flowers (see the photo below to get a better view of the shimmer). I cut out the image with a stitched oval die and attached it to the card with Dimensionals. behind the oval are a piece of polka dot tulle (not in this suite, but it will be in the new catalog) and the leftover strip of card stock from cutting the two panels. I also added three of the artisan pearls.

For the next two cards I kept going with the stamp sets in the suite, but switched to some fun summery colors. I've found that when a stamp set has coordinating DSP, it's easy to get stuck in a rut using the same colors. A new color palette can help you look at a stamp set in a whole new way.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Love What You Do
Paper: Whisper White, Coastal Cabana card stock
Ink: Coastal Cabana, Old Olive, Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight
Accessories: Lovely Floral embossing folder, Brights Candy Dots, Stitched Daffodil Delight ribbon, clear Wink of Stella glitter brush pen

The Share What You Love suite also includes this beautiful embossing folder. It's perfect for the focal point of a card. I embossed the flower on a piece of white card stock, and to add a bit of contrast, I painted Wink of Stella glitter in the areas inside the embossed lines.

For the bottom panel I stamped four of the images from the stamp set in four different colors on Whisper White card stock. I adhered the two pieces to a Coastal Cabana card base and separated them with a piece of Daffodil Delight ribbon. I also added three retired Candy Dots because they were the perfect pop of color.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Love What You Do, Make a Difference
Paper: Coastal Cabana, Whisper White card stock
Ink: Coastal Cabana, Old Olive, Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight
Accessories: Stitched Shapes and Layering Circles Framelits dies, Year of Cheer washi tape, Metallics sequins assortment, Dimensionals

For the last card I used the second set in the suite, Make a Difference, to stamp my birthday sentiment. This is an alphabet set with two font styles -- a script style and a printed style -- so you can build your own sentiments. There are also numbers, punctuation and a number of phrases, such as "Handstamped by" and "From the desk of." The script alphabet even has some stamps that are letter combinations (th, ee, ss, etc.), which I love.

I used a Coastal Cabana card base with a stamped Whisper White strip along the left side. On the rest of the card base I stamped a few of the leaf and berry images in Coastal Cabana to frame the circular focal piece. I added a few gold accents (sequins and retired washi tape) to give the card a little sparkle.

Whew! That was a long post. Thanks for making it all the way to the end!