So Detailed With Stamped Embossing

Today's card uses a technique called Stamped Embossing which I used on the cards on the blog post, Catalog Party Prep Part 5.

Because I wanted a fresh and clean color scheme, I chose to use Tempting Turquoise and Whisper White. I started bu cutting the following:

• Tempting Turquoise card base, 4.25 x 5.5"
• two, 4 x 5.25" mattes, one Whisper White, one Thick Whisper White

Choosing the Thick Whisper White matte, I embossed it using the Petal Burst Embossing Folder. Then, using a stamp from the now retired First Sight stamp set, I lightly stamped repeatedly over the embossed paper, continuing until it was necessary to ink up again and then stamping some more until I was pleased with the resulting pattern I achieved.

I then die cut a piece of Tempting Turquoise with a die from the So Detailed Thinlits. I used some Removable adhesive to hold the die cut in place over the matte and then used my Simply Scored tool to score on either side of the matte so that I could fold the die cut edges neatly and adhere them at the back of the matte. The matte was adhered to the card front using Dimensionals.

Using my MISTI, I stamped the sentiment, from the now retired Thoughtful Branches, on Thick Whisper White using Tempting Turquoise and then Versamark, finishing by heat embossing with Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder. The sentiment was the die cut using a circle from the Stitched Shapes Framelits. The sentiment was adhered with Dimensionals over the So Detailed die cut.

For the inside of the card, the Whisper White matte was stamped using stamps from the Touches of Texture stamp set. Unfortunately, I got some extra ink on the edge of the flower stamp and it stamped onto the matte. :(

Photo shows ink smudge above flowers

I really didn't want to stamp the matte again so I used my trusty Mono Sand Eraser to lightly erase the ink smudge.

Ink smudge removed thanks to the Mono Sand Eraser

After adhering the finished matte inside the card, I added a few sequins to the card front to complete the card.

Catalog Party Prep Part 5

Today brings us to the last day of my 5-part series. If you missed them, be sure to view Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.

For my card set today, I CASEd the stamping on embossed images technique from Patty Bennett. Of all five card sets, I think this one is my favorite because the technique I used is just so much fun to do!

I started by cutting five standard card bases, one from each of the new In Colors–Peekaboo Peach, Flirty Flamingo, Sweet Sugarplum, Emerald Envy and Dapper Denim. I also cut five mattes from Thick Whisper White card stock.

After embossing each matte using the Fluttering Embossing Folder, I inked up the flourish stamp from the First Sight stamp set and proceeded to lightly stamp–so as not to stamp between the embossed bits–on top of the embossed matte, . I stamped several times until I ran out of ink and then re-inked the stamp for more stamping. I continued stamping until I was pleased with the coverage.

What is cool about this technique is that the stamping just goes on the raised butterflies and you get some incredible dimension to the stamping because not all of it is the full-strength color of the ink. In addition, the flourish stamp provides a truly unique pattern. I repeated this technique with all five colors.

I knotted a matching piece of the new ruched ribbon around each stamped matte and then adhered the mattes with Dimensionals.

The label outline from the Rose Wonder stamp set was stamped on Thick Whisper White using ink that matched the color of the card. As well, the sentiment from the Endless Birthday Wishes stamp set was stamped and die cut using the Rose Garden Thinlits. The sentiment label was then adhered with Dimensionals on the top right of the card front.

On a Whisper White matte adhered to the inside of the card, I stamped the flourish stamp again in the bottom left and top right. I then stamped a butterfly from the Papillon Potpourri stamp set on a scrap of Whisper White and punched it with the Elegant Butterfly Punch. I added a coating of Wink of Stella and then adhered the butterfly in the bottom left corner with a glue dot to finish the card.

Don't they look lovely in the In Colors? I hope you will give this technique a try–it should work with any embossing folder with large raised portions such as Brick Wall, Large Polka Dot and possibly the new Petal Burst. If you don't have the First Sight stamp set with the flourish stamp, try another similar stamp that you do have!

Drop me a comment below about your try with this technique–I'd love to hear from you!

Catalog Party Prep Part 3

Today I bring you Part 3 in my 5-part series. You can view Part 1 and Part 2 if you missed them.

My card set today was CASEd from a card designed by demonstrator Annette Stewart but I can't link to it because it is displayed on the demonstrators' forum :(

I started with a standard card base cut from Thick Whisper White. I used the Softly Falling Embossing Folder to emboss the card front.

Using the Bold Butterfly Framelits, I die cut large, solid butterflies from each of the five In Colors and also five from vellum. I also used the Butterflies Thinlits to die cut small, intricate butterflies from the five In Colors and five from vellum.

On each of the vellum butterflies, I used my Embossing Buddy and then used the ornate stamp from the First Sight stamp set to stamp with Versamark. I then heat embossed using White Stampin' Emboss Powder. Because vellum is much more fragile than card stock, care must be taken to warm up the heat gun for a few seconds before attempting to heat emboss the vellum so as not to warp it.

Each vellum butterfly was attached to a matching card stock butterfly with glue dots. The smaller butterfly units were then attached to the larger ones also using glue dots. A large pearl was added to hide the glue dots. The wings were bent slightly to provide movement as well as to reveal both the ornate vellum wings and the colorful card stock below.

The sentiment from the Lovely Amazing You stamp set was used to stamp with ink that matched the card stock of the butterflies. Round punches were used to punch both Whisper White and In Color card stock circles. The circles were adhered together with Fast Fuse and then attached to the card fronts using Dimensionals. The completed butterfly for each card was also attached with Dimensionals to complete the cards.

Don't these butterflies look lovely in all five new colors? It is hard for me to pick a favorite! I think the embossing from the Softly Falling Embossing Folder also adds a lovely bit of subtle texture.

Beloved Blackberry Bliss for International Stampin' Up! Blog Hop

Welcome to our International Blog Hop highlighting some of our favorite products that are retiring.We are sure you will find some incredible inspiration from the products you are about to see! I was in Kylie Bertucci's International Blog Highlight and I was selected to be in this hop today.

You may be starting the blog hop here at my blog–Linda Vich Creates–or may have come from the person previous to me in the list. If you get off track at any time, the full lineup below will help you move along from blog to blog so you see all the projects. At the moment you are visiting Linda Vich. I live in Canada. If you live in Canada and were wanting to purchase some Stampin' Up!® products, I am happy to help you!

As soon as I found out that this blog hop would focus on Retiring Products, I knew I would have to create a project featuring my all time favorite color, Blackberry Bliss! Oh how I will miss this color! Because it is so dear to me, you may still see me use it on a project from time to time!

I chose to create a gate-fold card so cut a card base for a 5 x 7" card but scored the Blackberry Bliss card stock at 2.5" and 7.5." I cut mattes from Very Vanilla and Blackberry Bliss and then used the Stylish Stripes Embossing Folder to emboss the Blackberry Bliss mattes. Because the mattes were longer than the embossing folder, I had to emboss part of the matte and then turn the matte around and reinsert it, carefully lining up with the previously embossed parts, and emboss again. The mattes were then adhered to the card front.

Using all but the largest Floral Frames Collection Framelits, I cut two from Very Vanilla and two from Blackberry Bliss card stock. I used the ornate flourish stamp from the First Sight stamp set to stamp all over the Very Vanilla die cuts using Blackberry Bliss ink. This stamp works very well for creating a stamped background and overlapping the pattern does not seem to give any weird looking shapes or designs.

I also die cut the stamens, using the Botanical Builder Framelits, from Very Vanilla card stock. I used my McGill Paper Blossom Tool Kit to shape these. It was a simple matter then to use Dimensionals and stack up the die cuts. I added a gold sequin and a rhinestone to the centre of the stamens and then added additional sequins and rhinestones to the petals of the larger Blackberry Bliss die cut.

Next, to add a bit more pizazz to the front of the card, I used glue dots to adhere Gold Sequin Trim around each embossed Blackberry Bliss matte. I adhered the completed flower to the top of the card using Dimensionals. For using the Dimensionals on this gate fold card, I placed them in strategic spots on the back of the die cut but only adhered the ones on the right side of the card front; the left ones were included to give the proper support and balance to the die cut.

To keep the card closed and to add a little more elegance to the card, I adhered a length of the Very Vanilla 5/8" Satin Ribbon to the back of the card using Fast Fuse and then tied it in a bow at the front.
The inside of the card is simple yet elegant. I stamped a Very Vanilla matte with the same ornate flourish stamp and also stamped the sentiment to complete the card.

I am so pleased with how this turned out! It has great contrast by using the Blackberry Bliss and Very Vanilla color combo and it is also very classy and elegant!

I used the following Retiring Products in the making of this card:

• Blackberry Bliss 8.5 x 11" card stock #133675
• Blackberry Bliss Classic Stampin' Pad #133642
• Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder #132174
• Floral Frames Collection Framelits #127012
• Very Vanilla 5/8" Satin Ribbon #134550

Be sure to place your order before these products are gone!

Thank you for taking part in our blog hop! There are so many amazing ideas and inspiration you don't want to miss. Remember that currently you are at my blog–Linda Vich–so check the blog hop line up to see who is next in the list.

Birthday Blooms For Kylie Bertucci's International Stampin' Up Blog Highlight

I have been looking forward to participating in Kylie Bertucci's International Stampin' Up Blog Highlight. The theme is Love–any kind. However, as the time to post my project drew nearer, I still had no inkling of what I was going to create!

In the meantime, I have been working on some other projects that have gone awry so I took the evening off and watched tv.

Then, just before going to bed last night, an idea for my project popped into my head! I sat down and sketched it out, noting all the color and paper details, including a new technique that I wanted to try. Just the other day, Michelle Long had posted a card she had created by painting with her Aqua Painter filled with rubbing alcohol. I loved the technique and decided to use it on my card. Satisfied that I had noted everything I needed I headed off to bed.

Today, I sat down in my craft room to create my project and it came together quite nicely–almost exactly as I planned it except for a color change and a change in how I was going to add my sentiment.

I started by designing out the measurements for my project in my Silhouette Cameo design software. Once I knew the actual sizes of paper I needed, I proceeded to cut:

1. 3 1/2 x 3 1/2" Typeset DSP
2. 3 3/4 x 3 3/4" Basic Black matte
3. 5 5/8 x 5 5/8" Pacific Point matte
4. 6 x 6" Basic Black card base

On the Typeset DSP I stamped the floral image from Birthday Blooms with Jet Black Stazon Ink. I used Stazon instead of Basic Black Archival because I would be using alcohol in my Aqua Painter instead of water. I proceeded to paint the image using Pacific Point, Cucumber Crush, and Crushed Curry reinkers.

I loved how this turned out! It really is such a fun technique! I started with very little color and then built it up as the color dried very quickly due to using the rubbing alcohol instead of water. This method works much better than water on normal paper because it dries so fast!

After my image had dried completely, I placed the paper between a couple of sheets of scrap paper, covered it with an old pillowslip and ironed it! The paper had bubbled a bit in the area where I had painted but ironing got it completely flat again! I adhered the painted paper to a black matte using Fast Fuse Adhesive.

Next, I embossed the Pacific Point matte with the Brick Wall Embossing Folder. To give the embossing a more distinct look and to give the wall a bit of character, I sponged over the matte with Night of Navy ink.

For a bit more texture, I used Tear & Tape to adhere two pieces of Basic Black 3/8" Stitched Ribbon diagonally across the matte. Once the ribbon was in place, I adhered a piece of self-adhesive black fun foam and then adhered the matte to the card front using Fast Fuse Adhesive. The fun foam really works well to provide lift to a matte but to do so evenly. I used Dimensionals to adhere the painted image to the middle of the embossed matte.

Now this is where my plans for this project changed. I had wanted to white emboss a sentiment on black card stock. However, because the Typeset DSP has a Very Vanilla background, the white would have looked wrong which leads me to ask, "Why doesn't Stampin' Up have any Very Vanilla Embossing Powder?"

After choosing my sentiment from the First Sight stamp set, I decided to stamp the words and cut them up. I stamped three sentiment "pieces" of Very Vanilla with Jet Black Stazon ink and then trimmed them down in size. For the word, LOVE, I used my MISTI to stamp it first in Basic Black Archival and then in Versamark and heat embossed it with Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder. I inked the edges of each piece using Basic Black Archival ink.

I added Dimensionals to the backs of each sentiment and laid them out on the painted matte. After finding a pleasing arrangement, I used Glue Dots to adhere loops of Gold Metallic Thread behind LOVE to make it the focal point of the sentiment. I added a rhinestone to the "O" as well as three other rhinestones, which I colored with a Copic marker, for the front of the card.

For the inside of the card, I cut a matte from Very Vanilla and stamped the floral image in Pacific Point. I inked the edges of the matte before adhering it with Fast Fuse to complete the card.

 

I'm really liking how my card turned out! If you like it too, could you please vote for my card by visiting Kylie's Blog? To vote, just look for the photo of my card–mine is number 28–and then click on the little heart in the top right of the photo. It should turn red once you have voted. If my card gets into the top five, I will be able to take part in an International Blog Hop! I would really appreciate your help with this because this is such a great opportunity!

Thank you for stopping by today!

Birthday Blooms and Botanicals Meet Shabby Chic

Time to change things up a bit by combining some watercoloring with a shabby chic style!

Today's design of this early Mother's Day card resulted from my color choice for watercoloring the lovely Birthday Blooms stamp. I have seen a lot of variations of this flower being colored but not too many yellow ones. I decided that I would use a different yellow hue for the flower by combining So Saffron and Delightful Dijon for a rich, dark yellow hue.

I started by stamping on watercolor paper with Basic Black Archival ink. I used my MISTI so I was then able to stamp in Versamark which allowed me to heat emboss using Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder.

Using my Aqua Painter, I wet a few sections of the stamp at a time and then colored the sections with So Saffron reinker. I used my heat tool to dry my work and then added in some shadowed areas using the Delightful Dijon reinker.

For the centre of the flower I used Soft Suede reinker. For the leaves, I used Old Olive and after drying, Mossy Meadow for the shadows.After completely drying the my work, I fussy cut the flower.

Next, I cut two ovals, Hello Honey and Mossy Meadow, from papers in the Botanical Gardens DSP. I used a Distress Tool to distress the edges of each. I sponged the edges with Delightful Dijon and Cajun Craze. These were adhered using Dimensionals. The flower was also adhered in the same way.

I cut a card base for a 6 x 4.75" card from Delightful Dijon. After scoring and folding, I distressed the edges and sponged them and the top of the card with Delightful Dijon. I cut a flowered matte from the Botanical Gardens DSP and distressed its edge and inked it with Cajun Craze. I wrapped two layers of the Delightful Dijon 1" Ribbon around the matte (two layers to make the color deeper) and taped the ends on the back. The matte was adhered to the card base using Fast Fuse Adhesive.

I adhered a small strip of paper to the middle of the ribbon and put Fast Fuse Adhesive on it. I layered some Lost Lagoon Thick Twine, from the now retired In Colors Accessory Pack, over the adhesive to accentuate the tiny flowers on the paper. The oval mattes were then adhered over top with Dimensionals.

I used the banner die from the Large Numbers Framelits Dies to die cut a piece of Cajun Craze patterned paper from the Botanical Gardens DSP and another from Cajun Craze card stock. I stamped the sentiment from the Crazy About You Stamp Set on the patterned paper with Basic Black Archival ink and stamped again with Versamark. I heat embossed with Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder and then layered the patterned paper sentiment on top of the Cajun Craze card stock for stability. This was adhered to the card front with Dimensionals.

Inside the card, I cut a matte from the same flowered DSP. I cut a smaller matte from the now retired Naturals White card stock. I distressed both mattes, inking the edges with Cajun Craze and Delightful Dijon. I stamped the sentiment from the First Sight Stamp Set in Mossy Meadow. The mattes were layered and adhered inside the card with Fast Fuse Adhesive.

I really like the shabbiness and the rich hues in this card!

Have you tried the Shabby Chic style? Let me know in the comments below!