Blender Pens

Honeybee Home

Honeybee Home card in Bumblebee, stamp set and ink colors used to create it.

Honeybee Home Bundle

It may be mid-January, but perhaps you have honeybees and springtime on your mind. I was so excited to use the Honeybee Home Bundle in my Make It Monday demonstration. If you would like to watch the step-by-step making-of video for this sweet-as-honey card, here is the link.

The Honeybee Home Bundle is new to the January-June 2022 Mini Catalog by Stampin’ Up!. When you purchase the bundle, you automatically save 10%. But if you prefer, you can order the stamp set or dies as separate items. Let’s take a look at them!

Honeybee Home Stamp Set

Honeybee Home Stamp Set

The Honeybee Home Stamp Set is a red rubber cling variety. There are 12 stamps, with 3 of the images as uniquely styled honeybees. This set also has 3 different styles of flowers for our lucky bees to visit. And the 6 sentiments have sweet scripty font and lovely things to say. Can you imagine the variety of colors you would use to make beautiful flowers using this stamp set?

Honeybee Blooms Dies

Honeybee Blooms Dies
The Honeybee Blooms Dies coordinate perfectly with the Honeybee Home Stamp Set. You will be able to die cut each unique stamped honeybee with your die cutting machine. And of course, there is a die for each flower stamp image. In addition, you will receive 3 dies that cut silhouette flowers and greens (these dies do not coordinate with stamps). This die set boasts 9 total dies.

Decorative Masks As Embossing Folders

Basic Pattern Decorative Masks

When I CASE’d (copy and share everything) this Honeybee Home card from the January-June 2022 Mini Catalog, I discovered that decorative masks can be used just like an embossing folder. Here is the exact sandwich order I used in my Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine:

  1. Base Plate
  2. Clear acrylic plate
  3. Thick impression mat
  4. Cardstock
  5. Decorative mask
  6. Clear acrylic plate
Basic Patten Decorative Mask and embossed cardstock

The embossed effect is subtle. If you add some ink with a sponge or Blending Brush, you will highlight the raised portions of paper. For the cards I completed using this technique, I used the Basic Patterns Decorative Masks, but any mask will work. To see additional ways to use decorative masks, click here.

Coloring With Blender Pens

Coloring the stamped flowers with a blender pen and ink pad

Another technique used on this card was the one I colored my stamped flowers and honeybee with: Blender Pens. After stamping my images using Memento Black Ink, I added color to the images using my ink pads with blender pens. Now, I didn’t just grab ink from the foam pad itself…that would be a very dark ink application of color.

Re-inking an ink pad to help with blender pen coloring

Instead, I squeezed my ink pad while it was in the closed position to get some ink to transfer from the foam side to the plastic cover opposite it. This is harder than it seems, but very necessary to get a good ink coloring application.

If you are having trouble getting the ink to transfer from one side to the next, try re-inking your ink pad. A juicy pad will share ink more readily. After successfully transferring ink, use the back of a plastic spoon to push the excess refill into the foam pad.

Bumblebee or Fresh Freesia?

Honeybee Home card made in Bumblebee and Fresh Freesia

One thing that I love to do is make an exact copy of my card in another color scheme. The original design called for Bumblebee Cardstock. But to mix it up, I pulled out some Fresh Freesia Cardstock and started over once filming was complete. Did you miss the cardmaking video how-to link? Click here to watch.

Notice that I used different masks on each card! A new color always brings fresh perspective…and in this case it brought Fresh Freesia as well. Which color scheme do you prefer? For more card ideas using Fresh Freesia, click here.

Honeybee Home card in Fresh Freesia, with stamp set and ink colors used to create it.

Your Honeybee Home Bundle

If you love these cards and need the supplies to create them, now is a great time to check out my online store. Sale-A-Bration is happening! With a qualifying order of the Honeybee Home Bundle (and an add-on item like the Playing With Patterns Resin Dots used on these cards), your order will qualify you for a FREE Sale-A-Bration selection. That’s right… a stamp set, some paper…you decide what your freebie will be.

But hurry, Sale-A-Bration ends on February 28, 2022. Don’t miss out on this honey of a sweet offer. You will soon be creating bee-utiful cards of your own!

Peaceful Cabin In Pale Papaya

Peaceful Cabin Card in Pale Papaya

In Color: Pale Papaya, Part III

What a wonderful long color journey this has been! As I have explored the new 2021-2023 In Colors with you, we have covered 5 gorgeous colors over 5 months. And now we are down to the end…

This last In Color, Pale Papaya, is one I have struggled with. But I have to say, this card using the Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set in Pale Papaya, Old Olive and Balmy Blue is my favorite! I did not intend to save the best for last, but you can be the judge of that.

Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set

The Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set is just that. You have a cabin scene, some pine trees, a wooden fence and more. There are also 5 lovely sentiments, and all but one can be used year round. Because my chosen colors are not winter themed, I down-played the snowy scene aspect and made a card that spans different seasons.

I began by stamping the cabin stamp from the Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set in Early Espresso Ink onto Basic White Cardstock. You can see that the imagery here is lovely as is, or can be colored in to suit your needs.

Stamping the cabin stamp from Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set

Next, I stamped the same image onto a Post-It note. I made sure the top of the image was stamped along a sticky edge. Then, I cut this out with my Paper Snips, creating a “mask”.

Creating a cabin stamp mask with a Post-it note

And with my newly made mask, I covered over my original stamped cabin. This way, I could stamp my pine tree stamps from the Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set behind the cabin. I stamped the trees multiple times in Old Olive Ink to get good coverage, overlapping them slightly.

MAsking a stamped image to stamp another image behind it.

The Colors of a Peaceful Cabin Card

My pine trees needed a little more green after I was finished stamping them. I used a Blender Pen to shade more Old Olive Ink to fill them in. The majority of the color, Old Olive, comes from my pine trees on this card.

Using a Blender Pen to shade in the pine trees from the Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set

I decided to add background color for this card by way of Water Painters. One of my favorite methods is to use ink refill drops on clear acrylic blocks and adding water. I find that wetting the paper slightly with water before adding the ink color mix provides a great medium.

Creating a background with Water Painters and Ink Refill

When I was happy with background, I tore the top and bottom of the paper to create an interesting edge. Next, I used Blending Brushes to add Balmy Blue Ink to the top, and Old Olive Ink along the bottom.

Applying ink to the cardstock edges with Blending Brushes

Sentiments And Such

As I mentioned earlier, the Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set has some great sentiments in it. I chose the words “for you” for my card. After I inked up the stamp in Early Espresso Ink, I used it on a small scrap of Very Vanilla Cardstock. I then mounted my sentiment onto a scrap of Old Olive Cardstock and cut one side at an angle with my Paper Snips.

Using the sentiment "for you" from the Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set

Embellishments in a very specific color can be hard to come by…unless you make your own color! I did just that with the Elegant Faceted Gems. I added some color to the clear gems, using my Dark Pool Party Stamping Blend. Now, I know this card features Balmy Blue, but that shade was so light I needed something slightly darker. In the end, the color is still very opaque, and quite beautiful!

Coloring gems with a Blender Pen

A little twine makes this card divine! I relied on the Baker’s Twine Essentials Pack (5 colors to choose from!). Because I am adding Very Vanilla to my card front, I chose the corresponding color twine. I wrapped it around my Peaceful Cabin scene and made a small knot in the front.

Adding Baker's Twine to the card front.

Creating a Peaceful Cabin Card

Pale Papaya is the main focus color for this card, so I created my card base using Pale Papaya Cardstock. To bring in more Balmy Blue, I chose a pattern from the Subtles Designer Series Assortments. Likewise, I added more Pale Papaya color using matching sized squares of 2021-2023 In Color Designer Series Paper. You can see that I layered my squares on Very Vanilla Cardstock.

Peaceful Cabin Card front pieces

My Peaceful Cabin Card front layers were so easy to assemble! Much of them went down flat, using Multipurpose Liquid Glue.

Assembled front layers of the Peaceful Cabin Card

I did add Stampin’ Dimensionals under my sentiment piece. I chose the mini version on purpose. In this way I could make sure my Baker’s Twine remained in between the dimensionals, so there was no issues with interference.

Adding the sentiment with Stampin' Dimensionals

The last thing I added to my card front was the pretty blue bling I created. I used my Take Your Pick Tool to lift the self-adhesive beauties onto my card. In symmetry, I used 3 smaller sized gems along the top, then 3 larger size gems along the bottom.

Adding Elegant Faceted Gems with the Take Your Pick Tool

My 2021-2023 In Color Tour

I hope you have enjoyed spending some time getting to know the new 2021-2023 In Colors with me! Each month we covered a different color and some coordinating combinations. And 1 out of 3 cards for every new In Color was a Christmas card. If you would like to see the Pale Papaya Christmas card, click here.

As always, products for the cards I create are available in my online stamping store. I showcased the Peaceful Cabin Stamp Set, but did you know there are also coordinating dies? The Cabin Dies and a Die Cutting Machine will help you cut the stamped images nicely, and the Peaceful Cabin Bundle will also save you 10%. I encourage you to check out any sales or specials when you shop…earn yourself some amazing deals. Your creativity is worth it!

Finished Peaceful Cabin Card