BOHEMIAN BORDERS BUTTERFLY

Have you ever made your own Designer Series Paper? No?? Well, at my September Stamp-In Workshop, my girls did just that!

The background of this card? Nope. Not DSP. Starting with a blank slate of Whisper White, simply add various of the borders from the Bohemian Borders set in alternating colors. So easy. And, don't you think it looks really cool?? Like real DSP?

With the help of the Scalloped Tag Topper Punch (page 165), some Stampin' Dimensionals, (page 156), the Elegant Butterfly Punch (page 166), and the Bow Builder Punch (page 167), the end result is a very dimensional card.

Are you chompin' at the bit to learn how to make this card? Well, you're in luck! Here you go:

Supplies:

Crazy About You stamp set (page 106)

Bohemian Borders stamp set (page 96)

Island Indigo cardstock

Wild Wasabi cardstock

Whisper White cardstock

Pumpkin Pie ink

Island Indigo ink

Wild Wasabi ink

Scalloped Tag Topper Punch

Bow Builder Punch

Elegant Butterfly Punch

Corner Rounder Punch

Stamping Sponge

Ribbon

Whisper White Baker's Twine

Stampin' Dimensionals

Directions:

Fold a 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" piece of  Island Indigo cardstock in half, creasing well with a bone folder.

Use three of the Bohemian Borders stamps in alternating colors of Island Indigo, Pumpkin Pie and Wild Wasabi marching down the card to create your design.

Use the Corner Rounder Punch to round all the corners of this piece. Adhere it to the card base.

Punch a butterfly, using the Elegant Butterfly Punch in the lower portion of a 2" x 3" piece of Whisper White cardstock. Insert the top portion of this piece into the Scalloped Tag Topper Punch to create the tag. Round the bottom corners of the tag. Sponge Island Indigo ink lightly around the edges.

Choose whichever combination of words you'd like to use as your sentiment from the plethora of stamps in the Crazy About You set. Apply them to an acrylic block, approximating the distance the words need to be apart from each other. You can check by holding the block with stamps attached over the butterfly-punched tag. Once the words fall at equal distances from the top and bottom of the butterfly, you are set. Stamp the words in Pumpkin Pie.

Insert a 6" length of 3/8" Taffeta Ribbon through the top hole of the tag. Secure it with a piece of Whisper White Baker's Twine tied in a knot close to the top of the tag.

Using two Stampin' Dimensionals, one at the top and bottom between the butterfly's wings, attach a square of coordinating DSP that measures 1 7/8" x 1 7/8". Adhere this piece flat to the card front.

Create a little bow with the Bow Builder Punch from Wild Wasabi cardstock. Adhere it to the card front below the butterfly.

NOTE: It has always bothered me that one of these bows created with the Bow Builder Punch would probably not look quite so perky after a trip through the mail on its way to the recipient. Accidentally, I set something heavy on top of one of the bows I had made. The happy discovery from this aggravation was that they look darling when they are FLAT also!

Bohemian

Smiles.

NOBLE MAPLE LEAF

Have you seen the set of stamps that came in this month's Paper Pumpkin kit? 

I was completely astounded when I tore into that cute red box and laid eyes on the array of wonderful and versatile stamps enclosed within. I could hardly wait to use them. 

I wasn't planning on putting together the cute little treat bags that were the actual kit quite yet, but, gee, I certainly did want to use some of those stamps!

See the border on this card? I used two of the Paper Pumpkin stamps to create it: the maple leaf and the squiggle. Fun and easy to make an eye-catching border with just these two stamps. Mine is done is Delightful Dijon and Cajun Craze.

The noble maple leaf was created with an old Stampin' Up! die. I still LOVE these leaves and plan to use this die forever and a day! I cut the leaf from a gorgeous textured Designer Series Paper that I had hoarded in my stash, waiting for just the right project to come along.

Of course, you all recognize the tag from the Chalk Talk Framelits on which I mounted my leaf with Stampin' Dimensionals. To further add to the dimensionality, I also popped up the tag itself onto the card. 

Thick Baker's Twine in Very Vanilla and Wild Wasabi united to make a perky bow that I attached with a Glue Dot. Another Glue Dot-ted element is the old, old Stampin' Up! button that nestles into the notch of the tag. Without that button, the card just somehow look unfinished. This was the perfect addition.

I  know the three following photos don't show you anything new about this card. But, I was having such a blast with the lusciously dramatic light and shadows, I just had to share them with you.

This is a card that would be suitable for virtually any occasion. OK. Well, maybe not for a new baby. But, even for a fall wedding or any occasion for a male. I love when a card ends up being so versatile. 

Two of the reasons that I rarely put a sentiment on the front of my card are: 1) I think that they can almost stand alone as a work of art in miniature; and 2) by eliminating the sentiment from the front, you are left with infinite options for an occasion simply by adding an appropriate sentiment INSIDE the card. Leave it blank until a need arises!

Noble

Smiles.

FOCUS FRIDAY: TOGETHERNESS

Nature's springtime

HELICOPTERS.

Fallen from a

maple tree.

Beauty,

grace,

color.

HARBINGERS

of 

AUTUMN.

Beauty,

grace,

color.

The

CIRCLE OF LIFE

over

and 

over

and

over.

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.

- Albert Camus -

MY INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT

P.S. Please click on the word "HELICOPTERS" above for a charming and informative short video about maple helicopters.

Circular

Smiles.

FRESH APPLES

Incredibly, tomorrow is the first day of fall! There are so many wonderful aspects to this time of year. Among them, of course, is the proliferation of Farmer's Markets and roadside stands offering fresh farm-grown produce and flowers. 

To me, this image of an old pickup truck laden with a heavy load of apples is the epitome of the season.

In sharp contrast to what we in the Midwest are about to be treated to in the next few weeks, namely a luscious show of gorgeous colors, I wanted to keep this card fairly monochromatic. 

The colors I chose were Crumb Cake, Early Espresso and touches of Cajun Craze.

I ran the oval on which the truck image is mounted through my Big Shot inside the beautiful Woodgrain Embossing Folder. I then sponged the edges liberally with Early Espresso ink. This adds lots more dimension and character that the embossing alone can offer. 

And, I love the way one of the apples from the baskets in the back of the truck rolled out to add a little spark to the sentiment -- which was punched with the Washi Label Punch. I love that punch!

I am entering this card into The Paper Players challenge for this week, a Clean-and-Simple Challenge in which entrants were to create a fall scene:

The Paper Players Clean-and-Simple Challenge #263: Create a Fall Scene

Crisp

Smiles.

TEXTURED BIRTHDAY

As you can see, this card is FULL of texture. It is absolutely TEXTUREFUL! Yes, that IS a word. At least, now it is. Because it describes this fun card so well.

This card went to my niece, Stacy, who -- by the looks of the card would probably be a child -- is an adult with two precious daughters of her own. But, she teaches young children, and since she is so full of fun herself, I thought the card would be perfect for her. I also thought Macy and Mallory might get a kick out of it as well.

The texture and dimension comes from several sources. 

The cute lion, from Zoo Babies on page 32, is stamped twice. The second time it is stamped, his head is punched out with the 7/8" Scallop Circle Punch (page 165) and popped up with a Stampin' Dimensional. The lion is mounted atop a Decorative Dots Embossing Folder-embossed circle in -- a color mostly neglected on my part -- Tempting Turquoise, cut with the Circles Collection Framelits (page 173).

Texture and interest continue in the ribbon-and-dot strip that is a continuation of the Happy Birthday salutation. The red grosgrain ribbon has delightful up-and-down stripes. And the layered dots added to the ribbon carry on a bit more texture.

The happiest and most textured aspect of the card, however, is in its background treatment. 

I don't know if you've ever tried this trick before or not. But, if you haven't, you MUST give it a try. Here's how to do it:

Take a cheery napkin and carefully separate the top ply of the napkin from the bottom undecorated plys (plies???) beneath. This is usually fairly easy if you start at one of the corners of the napkin. Crumple the decorated layer of the napkin a few times in your hands, slightly flattening it out each time. Once you have nice, interesting veins in the napkin, set it aside. DO NOT FLATTEN IT COMPLETELY. You WANT the ups and downs for texture. 

Cover completely a base piece of cardstock, cut to the size you want for your card, with Stampin' Glue Stick (page 156), from edge to edge. 

Gently place the napkin over the glued piece, and flatten in place with your fingertips, preserving as much of the texture as possible. 

Cut off the excess to about 1/2" from the edge of the base piece. Fold the edges of the napkin to the back and glue or tape them in place. Then when you mount it on your card, you will have a delightfully neat finished edge.

Have you ever tried this technique? It is a take on the faux silk technique in which you use tissue paper.

Textured

Smiles.