Thankful Vintage Leaves

In creating today's card, I had planned to use a new technique but unfortunately, the technique did not produce the results that I wanted so I will save that one for another day! Luckily, I still had the color scheme and rough card design so I set forth to create it.

I started by stamping three oak leaves and one poplar leaf, from the Vintage Leaves stamp set, on Thick Whisper White using Night of Navy. These were die cut using the coordinating framelits.

Next, I stamped the sentiment from the Painted Harvest stamp set on Gold Foil with Jet Black Stazon and then die cut it using the #3 oval from the Stitched Shapes Framelits.

After cutting a Night of Navy matte, I used the Layered Leaves Embossing Folder to dry emboss it. My plan was to adhere this matte to the Thick Whisper White card front but it didn't look right so I decided that a little bit of gold would help. Instead of using a large piece of Gold Foil when only a tiny edge of it would be seen, I decided to use a trick that I learned.

I cut a second matte from Thick Whisper White and then dragged my Versamark along the edges. I heat embossed the edges using Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder. Now, when I placed my embossed matte on top, my design looked better but it still needed something else. While I thought about it, I adhered the embossed matte to the one with the gold edges and then tied a length of the Night of Navy Crinkled Seam Binding Ribbon around both mattes.

The three oak leaves were adhered using Dimensionals and a little bit of liquid adhesive. The gold oval was adhered over the leaves with the poplar leaf adhered on top of that. It was then that I realized that I had forgot to add some flecks of gold with my Gold Wink of Stella! Too late now.

After finishing with my mattes and sentiments, I decided to stamp leaves around the edge of the card front. With the mattes then adhered with Dimensionals, the card design was perfect!

The Whisper White card front stamped

I stamped three offset oak leaves on the inside of the card and called it done!

I'm thrilled with how this card turned out! Love the navy and gold together. And what's not to like about leaves?

Hope YOU like my card! Would love to hear from you in the comments below!

Christmas Decor and Gift Card Holder

For the last class of the year for my Country Villas Stamp Group, we worked on a decor project cased from Constantly Stamping. Though I had intended to create the project using alternate colors, as a traditional red & green Christmas lover, I decided to follow Connie's color choices. I mean, why reinvent the wheel?

To begin, the Pyramid Pals Thinlits were used to cut two of each color, of both Old Olive and Always Artichoke.

Next, the Festive Flower Punch was used to punch petals from Cherry Cobbler and leaves from Old Olive and Always Artichoke. Then, using a leaf from Vintage Leaves, the leaf veins were stamped on each petal and leaf, using coordinating ink. The 1 1/4" Circle Punch was also used to
punch one circle from Cherry Cobbler.

A glue gun was used to adhere each petal to the 11/4" circle and then further petals were added, working toward the centre. The leaves were added behind the flower petals.

The stamens were cut from Glimmer Paper using the Botanical Builder Framelits and then adhered with the glue gun. Additional "greenery" was die cut from Gold Foil and Gold Glimmer using the Pretty Pines Thinlits. These were also adhered to the flower using the glue gun.

For the Pyramid Pal pieces, the tabs were cut off and then they were adhered together as per usual, using Fast Fuse.

Using the MISTI, they were each stamped with the large medallion from the Frosted Medallions stamp set using the matching ink. Once the ink had dried, each piece was scored from point to point and from corner to corner using the Simply Scored. A bone folder was used to burnish each fold well and each piece then formed a 3D, four-pointed star.

The two stars were placed one on top of the other, offset, and a pencil was used to mark the point where the top star sat on the bottom star. The glue gun was then used to place glue behind the pencil lines and the glue was allowed to cool. More glue was added to give additional height and the top star was adhered to the bottom. In the same way, the finished poinsettia was adhered to the top of the completed eight-pointed star.

To complete the fancy star-poinsettia, a rhinestone was added to the centre of the flower and a length of the Cherry Cobbler from the Silky Taffeta Combo Pack was knotted and glued into the back of one of the star points.

I love how this turned out! The colors are so rich and festive. I hung mine on my tree while one member of our group decided to showcase hers in a shadow box frame.

Our second project was simple by comparison but still produced a pleasing and useful Gift Card Holder.

We used the Envelope Punch Board to create a small envelope using a piece of Candy Cane Lane DSP. A sentiment from the Tin of Tags stamp set was stamped on a piece of Whisper White using Real Red and the MISTI. A second stamping with Versamark allowed the sentiment to be heat embossed using the Real Red Glitter Embossing Powder. The paper was then adhered inside the envelope.

A strip of Cherry Cobbler was cut and wrapped around the envelope to create a belly band. The little house adhered to the belly band was fussy cut from another piece of the Candy Cane Lane DSP. The now retired 2-Way Glue Pen was used on the snow parts and then Dazzling Diamonds was added for a sparkly finish. To another touch of shimmer, a Clear Wink of Stella pen was used to trace over all the white and candy parts on the house.

To complete the gift card holder, a tag was die cut from Crumb Cake using the Tags & Labels Framelits and then stamped with a stamp from the Hang Your Stocking stamp set. It was hung from the belly band using a length of twine from the Candy Cane Lane Baker's Twine.

I hope you've enjoyed these little Christmas projects!

Stamp Class #2 Projects

When I was a kid, time seemed to pass soooooo slowly. It took forever just to get to the weekend. Christmas and summer vacation were eons away. And growing up, in general, seemed like it would never happen. Now, one week runs into the next, and the months gallup into years!

Though it seems like only a few days ago, I met with my second stamp group at the end of September. All but three were new to stamping but they did fabulously with the two projects I created for them.

The first card started with a standard card base cut from Thick Whisper White card stock. A matte of Real Red received a stamped background of Versamark using one of the stamps from the Timeless Textures stamp set. It was Heat embossed using Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder.

A length of the metallic gold twine from the Baker's Twine Trio Pack was wrapped around the matte and secured with tape. The matte was then adhered to the card front using Dimensionals.

On a square of Thick Whisper White, the candle from the Jar of Cheer stamp set was stamped using Basic Black Archival ink. The heat tool was used to set the ink before coloring with Stampin' Write Markers. The candle and flame also received some Gold Wink of Stella.

The candle and a piece of gold foil were die cut using the Layering Circles Framelits and then adhered together using liquid adhesive. The finished embellishment was then adhered over the twine using Dimensionals.

To complete the card, a sentiment from the Tin of Tags stamp set was stamped in Real Red on the inside of the card.

The second card was CASEd from here. The standard card base was cut from Crushed Curry and two mattes cut from Very Vanilla and Rich Razzleberry.

The Rich Razzleberry matte was spritzed lightly with water and then embossed using the Cable Knit Embossing Folder. It was adhered to the Very Vanilla matte with liquid adhesive and then to the card front.

Crumb Cake was used to stamp a leaf from Vintage Leaves on watercolor paper and then after die cutting, color was sponged onto the leaf using Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie, Rich Razzleberry and Old Olive. Two pieces of Linen Thread were tied around the leaf stem and then the leaf was adhered to the card front using Dimensionals.

The Triple Banner Punch was used to flag one end of a strip of Very Vanilla and then Rich Razzleberry was used to stamp the sentiment from Basket of Wishes Stamp set. The strip was adhered using Dimensionals.

The ladies had a lot of fun and the time flew by!

Cable Knit Thank You

Though Autumn is not my favorite season–I much prefer Spring–I do love leaves! The Vintage Leaves stamp set is one of my most treasured because I think it is very realistic and it can be used in so many ways and the coordinating Framelits are nice too!

For my thank you card today, I started with a standard card base cut from Cajun Craze. I cut a matte from the now retired Naturals Ivory card stock and embossed it with the Cable Knit Embossing Folder. I find myself reaching for this folder over and over again!

Though the color and texture of the Naturals Ivory was what I wanted, the paper did not react well to being spritzed with water and then being embossed. The dried paper was very warped and I resorted to placing a sheet over it and ironing it to get any sort of flat matte from it! It was finally adhered to the card front using Fast Fuse.

Next, I stamped both the maple and oak leaves, on Cherry Cobbler and Delightful Dijon respectively, with Versamark and heat embossed using Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder. Each leaf was then die cut using the coordinating Leaflets Framelits.

The leaves were adhered to the card front using Dimensionals and then one of the now retired Gold Basic Metal Buttons was threaded with Linen Thread and adhered to the leaf stems.

The sentiment, from the now retired Happy Watercolor stamp set, was stamped with Basic Black on on a strip of Cajun Craze and then the Triple Banner Punch used to flag the end. It was adhered just under the leaves.

A matte of the Naturals Ivory card stock was stamped with both the oak and maple leaves using Cherry Cobbler and Delightful Dijon and then adhered inside the card.

I love all the texture achieved by combining both the embossing folder and the embossed leaves!

Vintage Leaves Card Set Winner Announced!

I'm just popping in to announce the winner of the Vintage Leaves Card Set!

I must say that I learned a few things from this venture.

It seems that though I might be excited about a particular project I have created does not necessarily mean that others will share my excitement. Though I worked long and hard on this card set, it did not seem to inspire many viewers to comment for a chance to win this set. This is a little disappointing but I won't let it deter me.

Be that as it may, I am grateful to both Donna Ellis and Charlene Erb for their support! In retrospect, I wish that I had two giveaways so that I could give you both a gift for your loyal support. In the end, though, it was Donna that won the card set.

Donna, I will be contacting you to arrange to post this card set to you. I hope you'll enjoy it!

Vintage Leaves Card Set Giveaway

Jennifer McGuire posted a tutorial the other day for a gate fold technique that used border dies. I really liked the result and kept mulling it over in my mind as to how I could make it my own. With Autumn just around the corner, I decided to create a card set using Autumn hues and employ Jennifer's technique.

For my colors, I chose Cherry Cobbler, Cajun Craze, Delightful Dijon, and Garden Green. I cut a piece of each color at 11 x 4.25", modifying Jennifer's size to be more in line with that of a standard size card. Each piece was scored on the long side at 4" from one end and 2" from the other end. After folding on the score lines, the card front overlapped slightly.

I placed the single edge die from the Detailed Floral Thinlits along the edge of the longest flap and ran it through the Big Shot. It easily cut through the top and partially through the next layer. I had to open the card, reposition the die and run it through again to finish cutting the second flap. There was a resulting indent from the die on the inside of the card but that would be hidden by a matte.

I chose a leaf stamp, from the Vintage Leaves stamp set, for each of the four colors and then stamped the front of the card using matching ink except for the Cherry Cobbler card. When using my Cherry Cobbler on the matching card stock, the color appeared "greenish" so I chose to use Real Red as an alternative.

After stamping the card fronts, I cut white mattes for the inside of the cards and stamped a leaf on each of those to match each card. In addition, I used my Envelope Punch Board to create envelopes for each card and stamped leaves on the fronts of those as well before assembling the envelopes, using Post It notes to mask off the non-inked sides of the envelopes.

Next, I stamped sentiments from the Watercolor Wishes Card Set, in Versamark on the four colors of card stock and heat embossed them with Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder. These were then die cut with the matching Leaflets Framelits. Each die cut had its edges inked with the corresponding ink.
It was then that I got the idea to heat emboss the edges of the die cut gate fold edges themselves! To do this, I used a Versamark Pen to ink each edge, repeating the process to really get a nice embossed gold effect.

Another idea struck and I decided to add flecks of ink onto the cards to provide a bit more texture to my design. I used both my Stampin' Write Markers, flicking the marker off the edge of the cap, and my Tim Holtz Distress Splatter Brush with reinkers, which produced larger splatters.

To finish each card, I added a thread nest, using Gold Metallic Thread secured with a glue dot, and adhered a leaf over it using Dimensionals.

After completing the cards and envelopes, I needed a container to put them in so I consulted this tutorial by Catherine Pooler on how to create a box. Once I had figured out what size I needed for my card box and lid, I cut the two pieces from Kraft card stock.

I scored, cut and glued the piece for the box bottom and then used my stamps to create my own paper for the box top. After stamping the leaves, I again used my Tim Holtz Distress Splatter Brush to add flecks of Crumb Cake reinker. After it was dry, I scored, cut and glued the lid together.

A belly band was created for my card box using a strip of Garden Green card stock topped with the now retired Cherry Cobbler Sheer Linen Ribbon. I stamped two oak leaves in Delightful Dijon on the matching card stock and die cut them with the framelits. The edges of the leaves were inked with matching ink and then I used my McGill Paper Blossom Tool Kit to give some dimension to the leaves. I used Glue Dots to adhere them to the top of the belly band to complete the box.

I am really loving the rich hues of this color combo! Feel free to copy this image if you'd like to use it!

I'm very pleased with how this card set turned out! And now the fun part–I'm going to give it away!

If you live in either Canada or the United States, here is what you need to do to be entered into a draw to win this card set:

1. Leave a comment either below or on my Facebook post (or both!).
2. Pin any image from this blog post to Pinterest.
3. Share my Facebook post about this card set.

On Sunday, September 4, at 7:00 pm CDT, I will draw to see who wins the card set! Be sure to check back here for the announcement of the winner. I will need the winner to contact me so that I may get a mailing address for where to send the card set.

The lucky winner could be YOU!

Acorny Thank You

One of the first items that appealed to me in the Holiday Catalog was the Acorn Builder Punch as well as its coordinating stamp set, Acorny Thank You. It might have something to do with growing up in the country, surrounded by oak trees AND their acorns! Regardless, I thought it would be cute to be able to mix and match colors and papers to create all kinds of acorns for fall cards.

For this card, I started by stamping the acorn bottom twice on Whisper White card stock using Baked Brown Sugar. I used the coordinating punch to punch out the bottom as well as punching two tops from Gold Glimmer paper.

I knew that I wanted to use the Kraft Corrugated paper as a matte for a good dose of texture but thought it looked rather plain so I decided to stamp on it!

On a scrap of the corrugated paper, I tested Basic Brown Sugar, Soft Suede and finally Tip Top Taupe inks. I settled on the latter ink because I wanted the stamping to become a subtle background pattern.

After stamping oak leaves all over the corrugated matte, I inked the edges with Soft Suede using a sponge dauber.

I used the Stitched Circles Dies from Simon Says Stamps to die cut circles from a piece of the now retired Color Me Autumn DSP.

On Mossy Meadow card stock I stamped the sentiment in Versamark and heat embossed using Gold Tinsel Embossing Powder from Recollections. It was die cut using the Bitty Banner Framelits.
The corrugated matte was adhered to a Mossy Meadow card base using Dimensionals and the stitched circle matte was adhered to the matte in the same manner.

Using glue dots, I adhered an arrangement of Gold Cord on the stitched matte and then adhered two acorns at angles with Dimensionals over the cord. The sentiment was adhered at bottom of card front also using dimensionals.

For the inside matte, I stamped the oak leaf in Mossy Meadow on Naturals White card stock.

I really love all the texture on this card–to me it simply screams, "Fall!"

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Vintage Leaves and Happy Scenes

Friday was the first meeting of our stamping group after the summer break. It was a small group this time round as a number of members are either traveling or had other activities that night but we still had fun in creating two fall cards.

The first card used the Hearth & Home Framelits and the Happy Scenes stamp set to create a fall scene.

Watercolor paper was masked at the bottom using Post It Label Roll. Marina Mist was sponged over the top of the paper to create the sky.

The MISTI was used to stamp the scene using Basic Black Archival Ink. The scene was then colored in using Stampin' Write Markers.

The window was cut from Basic Black card stock using the Hearth & Home Framelits and adhered to the scene using the new Fine Tip Glue Pen.

A matte of Tangerine Tango was embossed using the Stripes Embossing Folder and then Cajun Craze ink was sponged over top to give definition to the stripes. The matte was then adhered to the Basic Black card base using Dimensionals.

The completed window was adhered to the striped matte using Dimensionals and then a tiny bow created with the now retired Pumpkin Pie 1/8" ribbon was adhered to the top of the window using the Fine Tip Glue Pen.

A 1" banner was cut from Basic Black card stock using the Triple Banner Punch. A 3/4" strip of Whisper White was also punched to make a banner.

The sentiment was stamped using the Basic Black Archival ink and then the banner was sponged with Pumpkin Pie ink and edged with Cajun Craze. It was then adhered to the black banner. The completed banner was adhered to the bottom of the card using Dimensionals.

A matte of the now retired Naturals Ivory card stock was stamped with leaves from the Perpetual Birthday Calendar stamp set (an invaluable stamp set for adding "little touches" to cards and envelopes!) using Tangerine Tango and then edged with Cajun Craze.


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The second card was a one layer card with lots of textured elements!

Oak leaves were cut from both watercolor paper and vellum using the Leaflets Framelits.

On a craft mat, Distress Inks (Fired Brick, Rusty Hinge, Fossilized Amber) were stamped and then spritzed with water. The two watercolor paper leaves were dragged through the ink until the colors were as desired. The leaves were dried using the Heat Tool. Water drops were spritzed onto the leaves and then blotted with a towel and then dried again.

The vellum leaf had the edges and stem inked with Versamark and then heat embossed using Gold Embossing Powder.

All three leaves were bundled together using Linen Thread. A little Crystal Effects was applied to the thread ends to make them stiff and then the ends were wound around a pencil to provide a little bit of interest to the thread.

A die cut from Gold Foil was made using the Starburst Framelits and then the shape was embossed using the Woodgrain Embossing Folder. It was adhered to the Soft Suede card front using Dimensionals. The bundle of leaves was adhered over the starburst also using Dimensionals.

The sentiment from the For All Things stamp set was stamped with Soft Suede onto Baked Brown Sugar card stock. The Triple Banner Punch was used to flag one end.

The 7/8" Scalloped Circle Punch was used to punch a shape from Soft Suede and it was adhered to one end of the sentiment banner. A Gold Basic Metal Button was adhered on top. The banner was adhered to the card front using a Dimensional.

For the inside of the card, a matte was created using Naturals White card stock. Three oak leaf tips from the Vintage Leaves stamp set were stamped at the bottom of the matte using Baked Brown Sugar and then the edges were inked.


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Love the colors and textures in these cards! Hope you enjoyed viewing them.