Hand Made Cards Archives - PageThe Maine Stamper

Flowers For Every Season

June 10, 2020 2 Comments

Memories & More Card Pack

June Mystery Host Thank You Cards

I appreciate everyone who places an order of Stampin’ Up! merchandise thru me. And to show my gratitude, I send out a homemade card to my customers every time they order.

I needed to make a batch of cards to thank all who placed an order with me during my June Mystery Host Party, and I turned to the new In Colors and the Flowers For Every Season Memories & More Card Pack.

I try to make multi-purpose cards, useful for any occasion. Because I leave the inside blank and unsigned, the card I send is perfect for my customer to pass along to someone else. Unless they keep it for themselves!

Mass Production, Craft Room Style

When I need to make a lot of cards, I look for some shortcuts. This makes the overall process quicker and easier. And there is nothing easier than a pack of Memories & More Cards, like the Flowers For Every Season variety I used for the cards shown here.

Stampin’ Up!’s Memories & More Card Packs tie into their like-color families for simple mixing and matching, no guesswork required. The cards are double sided, so there are lots of options in design. Each Memories & More Card Pack has a mix of sizes in 3 x 4″ and 4 x 6″.

I find the 3 x 4″ size perfect for card fronts, and the 4 x 6″ is quickly cut in half to make two 3 x 4″ pieces! In fact, this is what I did when creating my batch of thank you cards.

Flowers For Every Season Memories & More Cards — When using Memories & More Cards, there is less paper trimming needed versus a regular paper stack. The 3 x 4″ pieces are ready to be instantly added to any project!

Mini Embossing Folder For Big Impact

I love to add an embossed design to my cards. Creating texture is visually appealing to the eye, and impacts the card with a rich and valuable factor. There are times when I use more than one kind of embossing folder on a single card.

The new 2020-2021 Annual Stampin’ Up! Catalog debuted some “mini” embossing folders. These folders are sold as a pack of two different designs, in a smaller size of 3-3/8 x 6-1/4″ each. They will work in your standard die-cutting machine as well.

I worked with the Greenery Embossing Folders, choosing the leafy variety option, peeking from top and bottom. Instead of embossing directly on my card front, I used a piece of Whisper White CS, 3 x 5-1/4″ in size. I really enjoy creating layers!

A Little Stamping

There was not a whole lot of stamping required for these thank you cards, but the stamped images played a part just the same.

From the Forever Fern Stamp Set, I used the berry sprig. This stamp set is one of Stampin’ Up!’s DistINKtive stamp sets. The stamps ink and image with great shading to create depth and dimension. These are great stamps for beginners, because they stamp so beautifully every time without effort.

For the sentiment stamp, I picked “for you” from the Itty Bitty Greetings Stamp Set. My version is the wood-block mount stamp; if ordering this stamp set today, it will come in red rubber cling mount only. This small sentiment fit perfectly in the smallest stitched circle from the Tasteful Labels Dies.

Forever Fern Stamp Set and Itty Bitty Greetings Stamp Set

A Lot Of Die-Cutting

Both of my stamped images required die cutting, and I used the Forever Flourishing Dies along with the Tasteful Labels Dies to get the job done.

Besides the stamped images, I also die cut plain cardstock, using a cohesive color blending scheme for each card. I spent some time with ink and paper color choices to perfect my outcome.

I was able to die cut all four pieces needed for each card, with one pass thru my Big Shot machine. Time saver! I also developed a habit of making specific piles of paper scraps, dies and die cuts. No dies were lost in the making of these cards by ending up in the wrong pile!

Piles of dies, paper scraps and die cuts.

In Color Ribbons

I love buying ribbon, but I don’t use it often. With that in mind, I am determined to use it more on my projects. I have noticed others use it folded and tucked behind a sentiment, so I have mimicked that design for my cards. Each card features @7″ of ribbon.

The new 2020-2022 In Colors, which are showcased here along with Terra Cotta Tile, a 2019-2021 In Color, each have a ribbon to their name. By using the In Color Ribbon, the In Color Cardstock (as a layer behind the Memories & More Card) as well as the Flowers For Every Season Memories & More Card Pack that features the new In Colors, I have great continuity.

2020-2022 In Color Ribbons, plus Terra Cotta Tile — Ribbons in the In Colors: Terra Cotta Tile, Misty Moonlight, Magenta Madness, Just Jade, Bumblebee, and Cinnamon Cider.

Putting It All Together

These thank you cards for my customers went together quite fast, once I had all the pieces in order. It really was simple layering, and I kept everything flat for mailing purposes. Tombow Multi-Purpose Liquid Adhesive is my glue of choice, for its durability in adhesion.

I made 2 of each color, knowing that some of my recipients are partial to certain colors. It is fun for me to create with a specific person in mind, even when making the same design over and over.

I have a hard time looking at this great collection of cards and picking my favorite color combo. Here is a close up of each one, maybe you can decide which one you like best!

Cinnamon Cider

Bumblebee

Just Jade

Magenta Madness

Misty Moonlight

Terra Cotta Tile

Elegant Card, Ecstatic Thanks!

I am very hopeful that all who placed a Stampin’ Up! order with me during my June Mystery Host Party will enjoy the card I send to them.

Remember, I will send a card to everyone who places an order with me, so be sure to stop by my online store, https://juliemakson.stampinup.net, to place your order and get on my card list! Now is a great time to shop for so many new items in the just-released catalog, some of which I used on the cards made here.

Loving the new In Colors shown with my cards, but looking for a way to budget the purchase of all 2020-2022 In Color related items? Be sure to check out my Online In Color Club, starting July 2020. Sign up today!

Butterfly Wishes In Smoky Slate

June 1, 2020

Monday’s Are Hard, Stamping Shouldn’t Be

Monday’s are hard, but in this cardmaking series, I will show you that stamping shouldn’t be. In fact, it’s quite easy. And with minimal supplies and minimal efforts, you can get fabulous results!

Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set

Today’s Monday Card features the stamp set, Butterfly Wishes. This wonderful stamp set is a carry-over to the new Stampin’ Up! 2020-2021 Annual Catalog. To see last Monday’s card, which also features a butterfly, click here.

There are 2 stamps in this set that coordinate with the Butterfly Duet Punch. However, since we are using minimal supplies, this Monday Card only uses the stamp set.

Butterfly Duet Punch, item #148523, coordinates with the stamp set Butterfly Wishes, but we are not using the punch for our minimal supplies card.

That’s right, our minimal supplies include one stamp set, Butterfly Wishes, two ink pads, Basic Gray and Mango Melody, and two colors of cardstock, Smoky Slate and Whisper White. Please follow along!

A Monday Card

The Card Recipe

Smoky Slate CS: 5 1/2 x 8 1/2″, score at 4 1/4″ for card base.

Smoky Slate CS: 3 3/4 x 5″

Whisper White CS: 4 x 5 1/4″ x 2 (one for inside, optional)

Whisper White CS: 3 1/4 x 4 1/2″, 1 1/2 x 3 1/4″ and 1 x 3 ¼

Stamp And Assemble

This Monday’s Are Hard, Stamping Shouldn’t Be Card starts out with the typical “fold in half” and score with your bone folder to get a great crisp card base. Let’s not break tradition.

However, my TIP to you is to score once, invert the fold and score again. Your inner crease is now as crisp as the outer one. This makes for a professional looking card base!

Basic Stamping

I started with the branch stamp from the Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set. Using Basic Gray Ink, I placed this stamp at an angle about half-way down the 3 1/4 x 4 1/2″ Whisper White CS.

Branch stamp from Butterfly Wishes stsmp set — Notice the lighter areas of the stamped image. I did not miss ink coverage when I tapped my stamp in the ink pad. This is a DistINKtive Stamp, intended to give shading with high and low ink coverage.

My focus with the Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set is, of course, a butterfly. I chose the largest butterfly stamp and applied it to my white cs using Mango Melody Ink. I love that this butterfly is so realistic, and is floating with wings back.

Butterfly stamp from Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set in Mango Melody Ink

Generational Stamping I

This Monday card, as all my Monday cards, uses only 2 ink colors. So, to get the look of more than 2 ink colors, this card has generational stamping. That means we are using 1 ink color and getting lighter shaded images by stamping more than once with ink coverage on our stamp.

I brought in the flower stamp and my 1 1/2 x 3 1/4″ Whisper White CS. Next, I stamped in Mango Melody, using the full strength of ink along the edge of my white cs. This is the first generation stamping process.

Immediately after stamping the flower in full ink, I stamped it again in a random pattern on my larger white cs, as second and third generation stamping. Do not clean your stamp off in between applications. You will get lighter images with each generation of stamping.

Generational stamping with the Butterfly Wishes stamp set

Once I had enough light color flowers on the larger piece, I set it aside and continued to stamp fully inked flowers on the edge of my smaller white cs.

Flower stamp from Butterfly Wishes stamp set in Mango Melody

Generational Stamping II

With the great results of generational stamping in Mango Melody, I wanted to do the same with Basic Gray Ink. First, I brought in the Smoky Slate CS 3 3/4 x 5″, and began to stamp the sentiment, “A sweet friendship refreshes the soul” along the top outer edge.

I used the first generation of Basic Gray on the Smoky Slate CS, the applied second and third generations of ink on my larger white cs. I repeated the lighter generations 2 times.

Sentiment from Butterfly Wishes in Basic Gray with generational stamping

After my larger white cs was completed, I set it aside and focused on stamping the sentiment along the edges of the Smoky Slate CS. I find it easier to rotate the cardstock as I stamp the sentiment.

Sentiment Stamping

The last bit of stamping for the outside of the card went on the 1 x 3 1/4″ Whisper White CS for the sentiment. I used the medium butterfly from the Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set with Mango Melody. First I stamped off, then stamped onto my white cs, to get the lighter second generation image.

Second generation stamping with medium butterfly from Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set

Next, I used the smallest butterfly from the Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set, and with full strength Mango Melody ink, stamped directly over the medium butterfly. This was a little tricky using the Cling Red Rubber Stamp, as it is not see-through like the photopolymer style.

Smallest butterfly from Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set stamped over medium butterfly — This one is not lined up perfectly, but unless you are really looking hard, not horridly off. Home-made cards should have some flaws, right?

Lastly, I stamped the Birthday Wishes stamp from the Butterfly Wishes Stamp set in Basic Gray Ink.

Birthday Wishes stamp from Butterfly Wishes Stamp Set in Basic Gray Ink

Putting It All Together

Now it is time to add all those beautifully stamped layers together on the card front. These pieces lined up very easily! I started with 1 of the 4 x 5 1/4″ Whisper White CS pieces and adhered it to the card base. Next, I layered on the Smoky Slate piece with the sentiment stamped along the outer edges.

Following that assembly, I adhered together the sentiment and Mango Melody flower stamped pieces of Whisper White CS. I placed that on the large piece of white cs, leaving a small portion of plain white showing at the bottom. This card is very busy, and leaving a small section “void” gives the eyes a resting place.

Layers continue to build on the card front

This completed assembly went on the card front next. All of the layers used in this card line up and center nicely.

The Insider Job

Your card is beautiful on the outside, now lets make it pretty inside too! I like to mimic some of the outer stamping into a corner of the inside card. This way the card has continuity and there is still lots of room to add your own sentiment or written thoughts.

Here, I used the the tree branch image in Basic Gray and the medium butterfly, stamped off in Mango Melody, to add that inside interest.

Inside card stamping using Butterfly Wishes stamp set

Step It Up!

I love to show you that stamping and making fabulous cards can be so easy. I also like to show you that if you have more and want to add more to your cards, you can!

For my stepped up version, I used the Butterfly Duet Punch, along with the 1 3/8″ Scallop Circle Punch on my sentiment piece. Additionally, I used some Whisper White Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon and Basic Pearls.

Stepped Up version of the Butterfly Wishes Card

I hope you enjoyed making this easy card on a hard Monday with me. My video tutorial can be found on my FaceBook page, as well as my YouTube channel. If you need any supplies for this card, please feel free to visit my online store, https://www.juliemakson.stampinup.net, at any time. See you next Monday for another installment of:

Monday’s Are Hard, Stamping Shouldn’t Be!

2020-2022 In Color Welcome

May 29, 2020

New 2020-2022 In Colors Revealed

Every year, with the new Annual Catalog, Stampin’ Up! releases a set of five new In Colors into the color family realm. Anticipation builds months before, as we wonder what colors will be available for the next two years.

I have the excitement of a child opening a new box of crayons to see what color draws my eye first. And this year did not disappoint! The new 2020-2022 In Colors are truly fantastic!

This year we gladly welcome the following 2020-2022 In Colors: Cinnamon Cider, a delicious warm brown, just as the name implies. Just Jade, a washed green that evokes sea glass. Bumblebee, a divine golden yellow. Magenta Madness, the brightest fuchsia pink you can imagine. And Misty Moonlight, a perfect blue jean blue.

Celebrate With The 2020-2022 In Colors!

I couldn’t wait to work with the new 2020-2022 In Colors, so with some cardstock and designer series paper in hand, I went to work on my first card creations to showcase these fantastic colors.

The new stamp set, Celebrate Sunflowers, and the coordinating Sunflower Dies, helped me to bring my design to life. I wanted to be sure to make at least one card base in every 2020-2022 In Color, while mixing in the remaining colors as well.

In Color Designer

The card recipe is simple and I repeated it 8 times, each with a different result by changing up the coordinating 2020-2022 In Colors used. Certain portions remained constant, however. You will note on each card the following details:

-The card base and 4 x 4″ (top) DSP are the same In Color.

-The bottom 1/2 x 4″ DSP is the same In Color used for the 3 1/4″ square framing the stamped sunflower, and the die cut sunflower.

While changing things up, there remains some continuity.

In Color Card Assembly

These fun 2020-2022 In Color Cards were so easy to make in a large batch. Once I knew what size pieces I wanted to use and how the card lay-out would be, it was just a matter of playing with color combinations in a dry fit style. Kind of like trying on new clothes and mixing them with other things in your wardrobe!

Dry fit for 2020-2022 In Color Cards — Playing with 2020-2022 In Color designs.

Thanks A Bunch, Stamparatus

There was not a lot of room to add an additional paper sentiment, so I found the words “Thanks a bunch” from the Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set the perfect fit to stamp directly onto the DSP.

I took advantage of my Stamparatus for the sentiment stamping, and it paid off big time! Because I needed to ink and stamp @4 times to get the words dark enough to be seen on the patterned paper, the Stamparatus lined up my stamp perfectly every time.

I lined up the DSP using the grid paper to mark the exact placement, held the DSP in place with the included magnet, and repeatedly inked and stamped my sentiment. Perfect stamping every time, and a breeze to change paper in between…just re-align the new paper on the grid marks!

Stamparatus in open position — Here the Stamparatus is open, with the clear plate holding the stamp off to the side. Notice I have the Memento Ink cover under the clear plate. This helps to hold the plate at a better angle while I re-ink my stamp. This sentiment is not dark enough yet, it needs a couple more applications of stamping.

In Color Sunflowers

The sunflowers are the main focus on my card (did you think the main focus was the new 2020-2022 In Colors, if so you are not wrong there, either!).

Because the new In Color Ink Pads were not available for pre-order (but coming soon: June 3, 2020), I stamped the sunflower using Memento Black Ink on a 3″ square of Whisper White Cardstock. Some of the petals overflow the paper. Notice the adorable petal bend in the stamped image, there is some depth created with it that I love!

Stamping Sunflower from Celebrate Sunflower Stamp Set

To add the touch of In Color I desired, I die cut the sunflower image in 2020-2022 In Color cardstock variety.

Sunflower Die and Magenta Madness Cardstock

After die cutting with my Big Shot, I used my Take Your Pick Die Brush and the foam pad to clean up the bits and pieces that were loose but needed help completely removing. There were a lot of confetti pieces of paper left behind!

Foam Pad for Take Your Pick Die Brush — Colorful paper bits are extra fun in the craft room! These could be saved for shaker cards or other projects as well.

In Color, Altogether

Once my card parts and pieces were trimmed, stamped and die cut, it was time to assemble. I simply adhered everything flat, and there are no embellishments on this card, so it is easily mailed.

The die cut sunflowers in the 2020-2022 In Colors do have a floating effect. The only place to adhere them to the card was in the center of each. This provides interest without added bulk.

The inside of my cards needed a little love. I like to add a white insert when using a color card base. Then I stamp a little something in the inner corner as well. For these cards, I used the smaller sunflower stamp and Memento Ink.

2020-2022 In Color Card, inside stamping

In Color Sunflowers, You Pick

These 2020-2022 In Color sunflower cards are as cheerful as real sunflowers. It is hard to pick just one as my favorite. Here are some comparisons of similar yet different results in my card making:

2020-2022 In Color Magentat Madness Cards — Both of these card bases feature Magenta Madness. The use of the additional 2020-2022 In Colors made them look so different from each other!

2020-2022 In Color Cinnamon Cider cards — These card bases are made with Cinnamon Cider. Again, alike and yet different with a change of colors to compliment!

2020-2022 In Color Bumblebee cards — Here, I feature the In Color Bumblebee as the base. Yet one looks masculine and one looks feminine by changing accent colors.

2020-2022 In Colors Misty Moonlight and Just Jade cards — My last two cards are in Misty Moonlight and Just Jade. Of all the new 2020-2022 In Colors, the Misty Moonlight DSP was the most difficult to stamp a saying on for visibility purpose.

2020-2022 In Colors Coming Soon To You!

As I write this post and create these sample cards, it is almost time to be able to order from the new 2020-2021 Annual Catalog. On June 3, 2020, the new In Colors and papers (as well as the sunflower stamp set and coordinating dies) will be available in my online store, https://juliemakson.stampinup.net. Be sure to shop early, items are predicted to back-order quickly.

If you are an In Color fan, or just really love this set of colors, consider joining my 2020-2022 Online In Color Club. As a member, you will build your 2020-2022 In Color supplies from July thru November, paying an easy installment monthly. Each month we will explore one of the In Colors in depth, as you receive your In Color products, as well as bonus gifts from me! For more info and to sign up, click here.

The best news regarding the fabulous new 2020-2022 In Colors is that we have the next 2 years to enjoy them. I hope my samples have inspired you to do just that!