Using the Watercoloring Technique

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Each year Stampin’ Up! chooses an Artisan Design Team … a group of stampers who have submitted their work and were asked to be on that year’s team.

They share their beautiful artwork with us and I would like to share the following post with you. This is from Chantal de Kaste / Artisian Design Team 2015–2016

Personally, I think that the Best Thoughts Stamp Set (item 139234) is one of this year’s most beautiful hostess sets. I’ve already made an engagement card with it for a good friend. “The best is yet to come” text was very appropriate for the occasion and the set’s flower image is awesome in its simplicity . . . and so versatile. It’s perfect as a background stamp—or it can easily be the centre of attention (as it is with this card):

I used a watercoloring technique with the help of Aqua Painters (item 103954), Classic Stampin’ Ink Refills, and Shimmery White Cardstock (item 101910). For the card above I used the Rose Red Classic Stampin’ Ink Refill (item 102109) and the Melon Mambo Classic Stampin’ Ink Refill (item 115662). I put one drop of each ink color in an egg cup and filled an Aqua Painter with water.

Before doing this, I stamped the flower in VersaMark ink (item 102283) on Shimmery White Cardstock, then poured White Stampin’ Emboss Powder (item 109132) over it. Then I shook off the excess powder and heat embossed the image using the Heat Tool (item 129053). Once this was done, I squirted some water on my stamped flower using a Stampin’ Spritzer (item 126185) filled with water. That allowed me to blend the ink. Then I colored the flower using an Aqua Painter, changing the colors until I got a result that I liked. As the finished flower was very wet, I used the Heat Tool to dry it off a bit; then I cut out the flower using Paper Snips (item 103579).

For the next step, I assembled the card using Smoky Slate Cardstock (item 131202) for the base, a piece of striped Designer Series Paper from the Neutrals Designer Series Paper Stack (item 138435), and Whisper White Cardstock (item 100730) for the top layer—embossed using the Polka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (item 133739) and splashed with red/pink ink using an Aqua Painter.

I adhered the cut-out flower to the card (placing a small piece of thread underneath). I also stamped the “Friend” image from the Awesomely Artistic Stamp Set (item 139950) in Tuxedo Black Memento ink (item 132708) on Whisper White Cardstock, then cut it into a banner shape and adhered it to the flower. I also punched small flower accents from White Vellum Cardstock (item 101856)  using the flower punch in the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack (item 133787), and added a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels (item 119246) to the finished card.

I made the same card using Pool Party Classic Stampin’ Ink Refill (item 122933) and Island Indigo Classic Stampin’ Ink Refill (item 122932), which gives the card an entirely different look. Have fun creating your own watercolor card!

Chantal de Kaste / Artisian Design Team 2015–2016

I hope you enjoyed Chantal’s beautiful cards … I just love them, and that is why I shared with you.

Thanks for stopping by ~

Have a beautiful day!

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Stampin’ Supply List ~

 

A Little Something for You …

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I’m going to share with you one of the cards we made at my “Birthday Bash” class. What an awesome turnout … two great nights full of fun and fabulous stampers!! Love you ladies ❤

The class focused on the “Party Pop-Up Thinlits Dies” and different ways to use them, plus some great tips and techniques. You’ll want the “Bundle” … we used the “Party With Cake” stamp set on some of our other cards.

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This card shows that you can use your pop up die cut as a stand alone greeting … we snipped it away from the die cut and mounted it onto a doily!

Our designer paper comes from the “It’s My Party” Designer Series Paper stack and teamed it with the “It’s My Party” Cardstock Pack.  I love the cardstock packs … it’s a great way to get the colors you need for your designer paper without breaking the bank and buying 3 full packs of cardstock!!

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Our fun little balloon comes from the “Party Punch Pack” which is bundled with the “Party Wishes” stamp set.  Our inside saying “a little something for you” comes from this bundle too and stamped in Melon Mambo.

On this card you can see our balloons are tied down with the “White Bakers Twine” … my other class used the “Linen Thread”.  Either one works great.  Glue dots came in handy throughout all our cards!

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Don’t forget the Stampin’ Dimensionals … a must have to pop up your balloons.

I just love this card … quick and easy to make and it’s totally FUN 🙂

Hope you enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed making it.  Stampin’ with friends makes for the best evening… it just throws all those stresses out the window! We all know “Laughter is the best Medicine”

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I would love to do a stamp party with you and your friends, or just join in one of my classes.  Check out my “Classes & Events” tab at the top of the page.

Thank you for “POP”PING in on my blog today …

Hope your day is a great one!

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

 

Simply Sunday: To an Amazing Women

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I have my Simply Sunday Series card for you. Simple yet so pretty … it’s the English Garden Designer Series paper that makes this card.  There are so many pretty patterns in this paper pack that it was hard to choose.

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I chose the small flower pattern because I new my greeting was a bit larger, so I didn’t want them competing, however I think this cute pattern shines on it’s own.

The designer paper has Blushing Bride in it so that is what I used for the base of my card. I highlighted the Melon Mambo by using it on a portion of my greeting… all stamped on our Whisper White cardstock.

Our birthday greeting comes from the hostess stamp set “Happy Birthday Everyone” … one of my favorites. We all need birthday cards and this one is so versatile, and I LOVE the font!

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I wanted to add a little bit more to draw your eye directly to the greeting so I punched the upper left hand corners with the Curvy Corner Trio Punch. You will find this punch on page 31 of the Occasions catalog. And while you’re on that page … check out the Iced Rhinestones I used on the card above the cute little banner.

The cute little banner was punched from Blushing Bride with the Banner punch and adhered to the back of the greeting. The entire greeting was popped up with our Stampin’ Dimensionals.

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All my rhinestones were colored with a Sharpie™ marker. I love that you can just color in the center and leave the outer bling as is. It really does get your attention!

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Thank you for taking time out of your Sunday to visit with me.

Enjoy the rest of your day ~

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

 

Birthday Greetings …

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Whew … the weekend has officially begun!! I heard it was going to be about 52° today … heat wave for this time of year in Wisconsin (I’ll bet you there will be people golfing and wearing shorts!!) lol

As promised, I have my updated card from our Throwback Thursday card … here’s the TBT

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and here is my “newest model” …

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I’ve changed out the designer papers of course so I’ll start there. I used the It’s My Party Designer Paper, so many fun patterns for birthdays and I liked that this one could be used with anything … including my flower!

The beautiful flower comes from the “Helping Me Grow” stamp set, I’ve used this many times and just love the flowers! Pushing “spring”!!

Instead of using the Dazzling Diamond Dust technique on my flower, I went simple for my sparkle and just painted on the “Wink of Stella”.  I blended the ink with my “Wink of Stella” pen to create more sparkle without loosing the depth of the layering of color on my flower.

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I love my rhinestones but I replaced them on this card with the “It’s My Party” Enamel Dots. I thought they worked so nice with the designer paper … they are in the same “party” suite.

And lastly …. my greeting, which comes from the “Sunburst Sayings” stamp set. It just fit in the space so nicely!! Amazing what a little transformation can do to a card!

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Thanks for coming over and checking out today’s post … much appreciated!

Have a warm and wonderful weekend!

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST ….

Hooray … You Did It!

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

A quick post today, I’ve been spending my time with my daughter who just had surgery. Surgery went well, but she is just trying to get the pain level down … we’re all thinking that it should be better today.

So today I’m sharing the “Hooray” card to celebrate Andrea’s successful surgery.

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We all wish her a speedy recovery … she’s not used to laying around, but I told her it was time she got to be the “princess”… lol

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Adhere a piece of Shine On Specialty Designer Series Paper to the Pool Party card.

2. Stamp the scallop image in VersaMark ink on Whisper White Cardstock, cover it with Silver Stampin’
Emboss Powder, and heat emboss it. Cut it out using the 1-3/4″ Circle Punch. Fold a piece of Pool Party
3/8″ Glitter Ribbon in half and snip the ends in a diagonal. Staple the circle to the top of the folded ribbon
using the Handheld Stapler.
3. Stamp “Hooray” in Calypso Coral ink on Whisper White Cardstock. Cut it out and adhere it to the top ofthe circle. Stamp “You did it” in Bermuda Bay ink and cut it out in a pennant shape. Also adhere it to thetop of the circle. Tie a piece of Whisper White Baker’s Twine into a bow and adhere it to the top of the
circle. Adhere the entire ribbon and circle piece to the front of the card.
4. Randomly adhere three or four individual silver sequins to the front of the card.
INGREDIENT LIST

Supply List

Thank you for stopping by today.
Have an awesome day ~
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Simply Sunday: It’s Your Day

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I have a cute-n-simple card for you … complete with instructions. I always tell you how I made the card, but today and yesterday I’m sharing an on-line card class with Step-by-Step instructions for you to follow.

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INSTRUCTIONS
1. Fold a piece of Mint Macaron Cardstock (2-3/4″ x 8-1/2″)
(7 x 22 cm) in half.
2. Stamp the confetti image multiple times in Mint Macaron ink
on the front of the folded cardstock.
3. Fold the top 3/4″ (2 cm) of the cardstock down to create a tab.
4. Stamp the sentiment in Melon Mambo ink on a piece of
Whisper White Cardstock (1-1/2″ x 3-1/4″) (4 x 8 cm). Punch the
bottom of the stamped cardstock with the Banner Triple Punch.
5. Cut a separate banner from a piece of Basic Black Cardstock
(1-1/4″ x 1-1/2″) (3.5 x 4 cm) using the Triple Banner Punch.
Adhere the black banner to the back of the white banner with
a small overhang.
6. Adhere the banner to the folded section of the Mint
Macaron Cardstock.
7. Cut a small flower from a scrap of Crushed Curry Cardstock
using the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack, and adhere an enamel
dot to the center of the flower. Adhere the flower to the banner.
8. Tie a piece of Baker’s Twine from the combo pack around
the enclosure.
9. Stamp the greeting on a separate piece of Mint Macaron
Cardstock (2-1/2″ x 4″) (6.5 x 10 cm). Add a piece of It’s My
Party Designer Washi Tape to the top of the cardstock and
slip the piece into the enclosure.

TODAY’S INGREDIENT LIST …

Supply List

Hope you enjoyed the card … I also hope you enjoy your Sunday.
Thanks for stopping by ~
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It’s Your Day!

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I have a fun card to share with you … instructions included! If your one of my stampin’ friends who can’t make it to one of my classes – I’ll bring a mini class to you!

Here is today’s card along with instructions and a list of ingredients needed to create the card!

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INSTRUCTIONS
1. Fold a piece of Whisper White Cardstock (8-1/2″ x 5-1/2″) (22 x 14) in half
to create the card.
2. Add strips of It’s My Party Designer Washi Tape to the card front.
3. Stamp the sentiment in VersaMark ink on a piece of Basic Black Cardstock
(2″ x 3-1/2″) (5 x 9 cm). Cover the sentiment with White Stampin’ Emboss Powder,
shake off any excess powder, and heat emboss.
4. Cut the top of the stamped cardstock into a tag using the Scalloped Tag
Topper Punch.
5. Adhere an enamel dot to the tag.
6. Cut multiple pieces of Baker’s Twine from the combo pack and add them to
the top of the tag.
7. Adhere the tag to the card using Stampin’ Dimensionals.
8. Run a piece of Whisper White Cardstock (8″ x 5-1/4″) (20.5 x 13.5 cm) through the
Big Shot with the Party Pop-Up Thinlits Dies. Add pieces of It’s My Party Designer
Series Paper behind the cut out letters. Adhere the pop-up piece inside the card.
LIST OF INGREDIENTS …
Thanks for stopping by!  I’ll be back tomorrow with my “Simply Sunday” Series!
Have a wonderful weekend.
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I’m Lost Without You …

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Did you enjoy the card swap share yesterday? I will do more of that as our demonstrator group the Star’s swaps. Inspiration comes from many places … swapping, Pinterest, and blogs. I hope you are inspired by the projects I share with you here on my blog.

Today I’d like to share a card with you that I made from a card that I saw on Pinterest. This is also one of the card we make at my last Stamp Camp.

The card features the “Going Global” stamp set and “Going Places” Designer Series paper ….

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This is an awesome stamp set for those “Masculine” cards we all want, but can be used for any occasion! My base of the card is Sahara Sand and is one of the colors in the “Going Places” Designer Series Paper.

The compass image is stamped with the StazOn and punched with the 2″ Circle Punch.  My greeting was stamped with StazOn on the White Vellum Cardstock.

I thought we were in need of a bold pop of color so I chose Bermuda Bay, and embossed it with the “World Traveler” Embossing Folder (LOVE IT). Then we sponged just a little color over the embossed area to highlight it just a little more.

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Hope you’re inspired by today’s card. Thanks for stopping by.

Have a wonderful day …

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

 

 

Card Swap Share …

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I’m sharing the swap cards for my last downline meeting. “Downline” is just a term used for the awesome ladies who have signed up to be demonstrators through me. We do a lot of swapping … at our meetings, at retreats … whenever we can.

Our team is known at the Star’s by Design group … You know what the best part of swapping cards? The diversity!! We all have different styles of stamping and our favorite stamp sets, so we all go home with really cool cards!

We’d love to welcome you to the “Stampin’ Up! family” & get to know you!

Join the fun for only $99

Sweet Deal!!  NOW – March 31, receive an extra $30 in product of your choice in your Starter kit!!  whohoo!

Sign up before March 9th and you could attend our Stampin’ Up! Party … ON STAGE in beautiful Salt Lake City with me!!

No risk – no pressure – join the fun now!

Build your own personal kit by picking up to $125 $155 worth of any of our high-quality stamps, cardstocks and accessories.

Begin your journey now … click JOIN NOW

 

Here is Kathy’s swap card from our “Star’s by Design” Team meeting …

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Eileen’s Swap …

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and my swap (cased) …

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You can see our styles are different … but each card is unique and beautiful.

I really wish you would consider joining our team of stampers. Our meetings are great, I send newsletters or updates and we love attending Stampin’ Up! events together.

Let’s talk … it’s that easy … and there is no obligation.

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Time to Celebrate!

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

It’s time to celebrate birthdays!! Today I’m going to share a FUN card created with the “Party with Cake” and “Party Pop-Up” bundle. It is really easy to use and I have some great tips to add a pop of color without a mess.

My club members did cards similar to this one, and I’m hosting a class on February 25th to showcase all the things you can do with this fun, fun bundle. You’ll find full details in my events page.

First let me show you the card ….

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Start with the “It’s My Party” Designer Series Paper … you can make endless cards with this paper stack, combine that with the “It’s My Party” cardstock pack and your ready to go!!

For our greeting … I omitted the “with cake” by putting a post-it note over it before inking up the stamp, then we pulled it off so only the words we wanted were inked.

Next, I took my “Perfectly Artistic” Designer Paper (ends Monday) from our Sale-a-bration catalog to make our balloons. I love our balloon punch with 2 sizes of balloon. (Also bundles with the Balloon Celebration Stamp Set) We tied a knot in our White Bakers Twine and attached it to the balloon with a “rolled up” glue dot!

Ahhhh … Let’s get to the inside and make this card REALLY POP!

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How fun is this! And it’s really simple to do.  Fold your cardstock in half and use the crease to align your die – there are tabs on the die that you align with the crease.  I used the “Precision Base Plate” to use with my dies … then used the “Big Shot Die Brush” which helps the paper release from the dies.  I LOVE IT!!!

Here’s a great tip for coloring your die cut …

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Slide a post-it note behind your cut out and one over it …

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This simple technique allows you to color your pop up dies without getting ink all over everything else!

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Your birthday person who receives this card will love the surprise inside! This is just one of the two dies in this bundle. I have listed the items needed to make this card, click on any of the items to get the details .

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Thank you for checking out my blog today, hope you enjoyed the card and the stampin’ tips! I’d love to hear what you think … feel free to post your comments below.

Have a Fabulous Friday!

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

Happy Valentine’s Day … Friend

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

As promised I have a card for you, using the Perfectly Artistic Designer Series Paper.  I teamed it up with the “Bloomin’ Love” stamp set and “Bloomin’ Hearts” Thinlits Die.

A perfectly quick -n- cute card for anyone who did not know that Valentine’s Day is only in 3 more days! Managing a Candy store … I don’t forget these dates! lol

I began with a Crumb Cake base and then added my “Perfectly Artistic” Designer Series Paper.  The heart maybe the focal point but the beautiful watercolor background just adds a soft touch to the card.

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I used the “Thick Whisper White” Cardstock because it holds up so nicely with all the intricate cuts – not all bendy and floppy! I then stamped the flowers with Rose Red and Blushing Bride.

The banner was created with the Triple Banner Punch and stamped “friend” on it.  There is one banner on top of the heart and another underneath it … just to add a bit more dimension.

To complete my card I added a few pearls and popped up the heart with Stampin’ Dimensionals … Sweet, Simple and complete.

I appreciate you stopping in today ~

Hope your day is a good one.

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

 

My Heart Smiles …

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I have a sweet card to share with you that my stampers made at my last Stamp-a-stack. The card highlights the “Botanicals” bundle… to me it’s one of those stamp sets that you just have to have when you open that catalog!

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I have to compliment Stampin’ Up! on creating such an amazing group of stamps, designer paper, dies and accessories. They coordinate so beautifully.

I used the “Botanical Gardens” designer paper to help me choose my color pallet – Cajun Craze, Hello Honey, Mossy Meadow (the Botanical Gardens Paper Pack) and Whisper White.

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The Hello Honey became the base of my card. I layered the Mossy Meadow and a strip of designer paper on next – that would act as a mat to my Whisper White which I cut the leave border out from the framelit die. There is also a strip of the designer paper on the inside of the card.

Next I cut out the leaf and one of the flowers, popped it up with a dimensional and added one of the beautiful “Botanical Gardens Jewels” to top off my flower.

I wanted more color and dimension to the card so I punched out three flowers from the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack. I added a touch of bling with the “Rhinestones” and attached the flower with the “Mini Glue Dots”.

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Last but definitely not least is our greeting … “My Heart Smiles Just Thinking Of you”. The beautiful verse comes from the “Suite Sayings” stamp set. So many great greetings in this stamp set!

Don’t you just love all the ideas and the wonderful things you can make with this product suite! So so pretty and versatile… I just can’t get enough.

Thank you for visiting today, it’s much appreciated.

Have a joyful Monday and a great week.

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

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Simply Sunday: Happy Birthday

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today we will keep it short and simple … I know many of you are preparing for your Super Bowl parties!

So let’s begin with our beautiful stamp set “Helping Me Grow” and the hyacinth flower. I chose Perfect Plum and Whisper White for my color combination … simple.

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I heat embossed the hyacinth with the White Emboss powder then highlighted the flower by sponging some ink over the flower. It also creates a bit of a shadow around the blooms. Wipe off any excess ink with a tissue so it does not smear.

The greeting was stamped from the Rose Wonder stamp set … you will also notice that I used the die from the Rose Garden Thinlits Dies. I love that Stampin’ Up! creates their stamp sets to coordinate with each other.

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Sweet and Simple … don’t we all love cards like this! Thank you for stopping in.

Enjoy your game day, no matter what you are doing!

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

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Valentine: I have Loved You …

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I’d like to share a Valentine’s Card with you that I created with the “Bloomin’ Love” stamp set.  I love Early Espresso with our “pinks” so that is where I began planning my card …

I stamped the beautiful heart with Blushing Bride onto Very Vanilla cardstock. The banner comes in the set so I stamped that too … but only after I had stamped the words first. The greeting comes from the “First Sight” stamp set and I omitted all but that part.

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Actually … the Forever comes from the same stamp set, again I omitted part of the stamp. A great little technique the stretches the use of your stamps.

I used the fun fold on today’s card by simply folding the card front forward … it adds a fun dimension to the card and a step up from the normal card front.

The glimmer paper really enhances the card into a shimmery delight… and the heart completes the card, which comes from the “Itty Bitty Accents” Punch Pack.

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A simple card … maybe, but very, very elegant for a very special loved one.

Hard to believe only 8 more days till Valentines Day! Hope I inspired you to create a card for your loved ones.

Thanks for checking out my blog post today.  I’ll see you tomorrow for my Simply Sunday series.

Have a wonderful weekend ~

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …

 

 

Just for You … Happy Birthday!

Hello Stampin’ Friends ~

Today I have a quick -n- cute card for you created with our Balloon Bouquet Punch and a couple of our Sale-a-bration items: Botanicals for You and the Perfectly Artistic Designer Series Paper.

I wanted my card to make a bold statement so I knew I would be stamping the greeting in black, therefore my card base would also be black. To give it that extra “wow” … I chose the Melon Mambo as my contrasting color, based off of my 3 balloons: Melon Mambo, Bermuda Bay & Crushed Curry.

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If you wanted to create this card for a boy, you could easily swap out the Melon Mambo for the Bermuda Bay … the Perfectly Artistic Designer Series Paper had 12 different colors, depending on what side of the paper you choose.

I used the Crushed Curry Bakers Twine to tie down my balloons! Here’s a quick tip … Instead of trying to tie a knot around the actual balloon, just tie a quick knot at the end of your Bakers Twine, then roll up a glue dot to attach it to your balloon. So Easy! Then we just tucked the ends under the Whisper White before mounting the front to the base of the card.

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You can’t forget about the inside … plus, you have all the smaller balloons! We simply attached them with your snail adhesive and then we drew our ties with a Black marker.

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To add a bit more fun to our card, we punched stars from the “Confetti Stars Punch” and attached them to highlight the greeting and the balloons with the “Fine-tip Glue Pen”. I think it just adds the right touch off added color to finish off the card.

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DON’T FORGET … Our Perfectly Artistic Designer Series Paper is one of the “Limited Time” items can is only available through February 15th.

Hope you enjoyed our celebration of a “Just for You” birthday card. I have two little grandsons that would love this card, so off I go to swap out some colors and stamp them a card.

Thank you so much for joining me today …

Have an awesome Friday!

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TODAY’S STAMPIN’ SUPPLY LIST …