Layering Circles Dies

Nested Friends Best Friends Card

Nested Friends Card Class, Card 2

Nested Friends Best Friends Card

We are on to the next card from my Weekly Card Class From ME. And this week features the Nested Friends Bundle by Stampin’ Up!. When you are showcasing friends, you need plural…so we have not one but two birds on this card!

This second card in the series is my “Summer” card. Want to see our first card in Spring fashion using the Nested Friends Bundle? Click here.

Best Friends Are True Blue

While my card is White and Balmy Blue, the designer series paper packs that I used are full of color! The Country Floral Lane DSP and Country Gingham DSP have the coordinating colors in them, making it simple to mix and match.

That is why card making with Stampin’ Up! products is so easy…great color coordination! I picked out the truest blue tones (all in Balmy Blue!) and cut different designs into small strips to place on my card front for the background. Try this on your cards using any colors and any designer papers for a fun look.

Colorful Blue Birds

For my adorable little best friend blue birds, I stamped the bird image twice from the Nested Friends Stamp Set using Memento Black Ink on White Cardstock. Next, I colored each bird using an assortment of Stampin’ Blends. The tones I chose were Balmy Blue, Crumb Cake and Pumpkin Pie (for the bird beaks).

While I am no real artist, I did my best to try to create both a male and female bird for contrast. My male bird has a bit more Balmy Blue color to show off for his lady friend. After my birds were colored, I die cut them with the coordinating die from the Nested Friends Die Set.

Lastly, I layered my colored and die cut branches and birds on a circle mat, courtesy of the Layering Circles Dies. I chose Balmy Blue Cardstock for the largest scallop die. And my White circle die cut has a bonus feature: I embossed it using the Merry Melody 3D Embossing Folder. Just imagine the sweet notes these friendly birds are singing together!

Get Your Nested Friends Card Class From ME

This Nested Friends Card is just one in my featured class this week. If you would like to see the video from my online class, click this link. For more details on what is in this week’s class from Maine and how to get yours, click here.

I will be sharing more cards from this class, as well as my bonus cards, as this week goes on. Be sure to check back here or follow me, The Maine Stamper, on FaceBook, for more cardmaking inspiration and ideas.

Magical Gnome Gift Card

Magical Gnome Gift Card

Friendly Gnomes Card Class, Card 3

For the last Friendly Gnomes card in my weekly Card Class From ME, I pulled out all the stops to make this one magical gnome card. Besides being an adorable card to look at, this one is fun to play with too! Want to see the previous card from my weekly class? Click here.

The magic in this card is the addition of the Mini Pocket Envelope to the design. While it could be used to hold a gift card or even cash, it also houses a sweet little gnome and a fancy heart. And the best part…the gnome and heart are removable!

Mini Pocket Envelope

Besides the Friendly Gnomes Stamp Set and Gnomes Dies, the cute paper envelope is not to be missed. While most may think this item belongs on the inside of a card, I say when it looks this good, decorate the front instead.

DESIGNER TIP: If you don’t plan on placing a gift card in this pocket, shorten the opening with some adhesive before closing the pocket envelope up. That way your gnome and heart won’t slide to the bottom and will stay closer to the top to peek out.

I chose the Dandy Designs Sale-A-Bration paper pack for the sweet designs for this card. (Also sweet, the paper is FREE with an order over $100). With fun colors like Pool Party, Granny Apple Green and Fresh Freesia, this color combo is easy to pull off.

Dandy Designs DSP

Gnome Sweet Gnome Card

Punch A Bunch

For this final card in my weekly card class, I also relied heavily on my punches. Although Stampin’ Up! no longer sells Circle Punches, I still have and use mine. I find it much quicker than getting out the Layering Circles Dies and sending cardstock thru my Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine.

But, Stampin’ Up! does have a current fabulous Heart Punch Pack. These large heart punches work together to form a scallop layer heart that may be used behind a regular shaped heart. In fact, this is seen in the pull-out heart feature shown in the photo above.

Colorful Gnome

Just like the other Friendly Gnomes in this card series, I used my Stampin’ Blends for quick and easy coloring. First, I stamped my images from the Friendly Gnomes Stamp Set using Memento Black Ink. Then I made sure to have some scrap paper behind my images, because the blends really saturate the paper.

Colorful Gnome and Mushroom stamped and colored images.

Here is the color palette I used for my gnome:

HAT/SHOES: Pool Party (Light and Dark)

SKIN: SU 800

HAIR: Dark Daffodil Delight

JUMPER: Fresh Freesia (Light and Dark)

FLOWER: Light Fresh Freesia/ Light Daffodil Delight

Here is the color palette I used for my mushroom:

UPPER CAP: Fresh Freesia (Light and Dark)

LOWER CAP: Dark Old Olive

STEM: Light Old Olive

DOOR/WINDOW: Pool Party (Light and Dark)

Get Your Friendly Gnomes Card Class From ME

While this is the last card in my featured class this week, I hope you agree it is a magical gnome card. If you would like to see the video from my online class, click this link. For more details on what is in this week’s class from Maine and how to get yours, click here.

I will be sharing more cards from the Friendly Gnomes Card Class (in the form of alternate cards and bonus cards) as this week goes on. Be sure to check back here or follow me, The Maine Stamper, on FaceBook for more card making inspiration.

Cherry On Top Card

Share A Milkshake Card Class, Card 1

If you joined me for my Share A Milkshake Card Class on January 9, you saw me make this Cherry On Top card first! This week, I am focusing on the Share a Milkshake Bundle, which is made up of the Share A Milkshake Stamp Set and the Share A Milkshake Dies.

Usually I save the best for last, or at least the most difficult card. But, for this class, I rolled out the most awesome card first, with the cherry on top! Check out the Stack Shuffle Repeat process…

Stack Shuffle Repeat Technique

Something else that was over the top…or maybe the cherry on top, for this card was the designer series paper technique that I showcased. It is called the Stack Shuffle Repeat Technique. Watch my video for all the details.

Normally, you might choose designer series paper from the same paper pack for this technique. However, I do like to mix things up a bit. Instead of one paper pack, I chose 3: Dandy Designs (FREE during Sale-A-Bration with a $100 order), Delicate Desert and Enjoy The Journey. The color and patterns I chose worked really well together too.

Stack Shuffle Repeat with Designer Series Paper Technique
Notice how the patterns rotate positions? This is part of the Stack Shuffle Repeat process.

Waffle Cones And Cherries

The sweetest thing about this card, next to the designer series paper arrangement, is the delicious looking and very realistic paper waffle cones. Did you notice they almost form a heart as they are grouped together? I used the Layering Circles Dies to create a Vellum scallop and Petal Pink layer as backdrop for my waffle treats.

You will be able to quickly and easily create waffle cones just like this with the Share A Milkshake Dies. There is very little stamping involved, since the dies really do all the hard work for you. You just need the right color cardstock (I used Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla and Early Espresso). And to detail your waffle cones, add like-color ink with a sponge dauber.

I think the best color for the cherries is Cherry Cobbler, of course! I used a scrap of Very Vanilla cardstock to stamp on before die cutting. And watch for the tip I shared in class on lining up the stamp from the Share A Milkshake Stamp Set with the coordinating die.

Get Your Share A Milkshake Card Class From ME

This is just one card in my featured class this week. If you would like to see the video from my online class, click this link. For more details on what is in this week’s class from Maine and how to get your card kits, click here.

I will be sharing more cards from the Share A Milkshake Bundle as this week goes on, so be sure to check back here or follow me, The Maine Stamper, on FaceBook. I would love to know what you think of this fantastic card!