June Class & Club

 

This month was a focus on stamping, and here's a quick look at the Class and Club cards we made this time - along with a few "variations on the theme" cards.

Card #1: (above) - This card used discontinued Stampin' Up! products - Flowering Fields paper and Timeless Tulips stamps.  We also used a round scalloped punch to cut out the focal flower after it was stamped.  The sentiment was from a discontinued stamp set that came with their Sentimental Rose Kit.  The focal flower and sentiment were stamped with Pumpkin Pie ink and the leaves with Pretty Peacock ink.  The matting was done with Pumpkin Pie cardstock.

Card #2: 

For my sample card, I just used die cut otters from the Otterly Adorable patterned paper using the Otterly Amazing cutting dies.  For their cards, class members stamped the otters (Otterly Amazing Stamp set) and colored them in with Stampin' Blend Markers (Pecan Pie and Crumb Cake).  We again used the dual oval punch to cut the sentiment  (stamp was again from the Sentimental Rose kit), which has unfortunately been discontinued.

Card #3: 

The paper is from the Take to the Skies paper pack which was recently discontinued.  The focal stamp and sentiment stamps were from Beside Me stamp set which is currently on Last Chance sale.  We used various inks with water and a paint brush to color in the picture.  Night of Navy cardstock made nice matting, and Night of Navy ink was great for the sentiment (also from the Beside Me stamp set).

Card #4: 

Here we used the Flower Cart stamps and cut them out with the matching Flower Cart dies to create the main focal - stamping and die cutting the pieces before gluing them together to create our focal image.  The paper is from a 2023-2025 In Color DSP which is currently on the last chance sale.  The cardstock is Moody Mauve (on last chance).  I did not have the matching Moody Mauve ink and it has been discontinued, but fortunately DID have the 2023-2025 In Color Stampin' Write Markers (currently on last chance) - so used the Moody Mauve Marker from that set to ink my stamps for the flowers and sentiment.  I used Shaded Spruce ink for the leaves, and obviously black for the rest.  I again used the dual oval punch for the sentiment.

Card #5: 

This card uses another paper from the Take to the Skies DSP pack.  It has some nice masculine prints, but unfortunately has been discontinued.  I used Copper Clay cardstock for some of the matting (Copper Clay marker from the 2023-2025 In Color Stampin' Write Markers drawn around the outer edge to create the illusion for the rest).  I also used a small piece of Copper Clay Twine from a set of twine that has been discontinued.  The focal and Greeting were stamped using stamps from the Beside Me stamp set.  The focal was colored with Stampin' Blends.  The sentiment used the same Copper Clay Stampin' Write marker, that we used to edge the paper, to ink the stamp. 

Card #6: 

This card again uses the Flowering Fields paper and Timeless Tulips stamps - different paper from the pack and some different stamps from the set.  To bad they've been discontinued!  The widest border piece is the same paper - reverse side.  The smaller piece and the matting is Blackberry Bliss cardstock.  Ink used was Berry Burst and Pretty Peacock.

Card #7: 

This card again uses a stamp from the Beside Me stamp set - colored with ink and water brush.  The paper is "found paper" that came on a bunch of flowers I received.  It was so pretty I couldn't just throw it away.  I ironed it on a dry setting to remove the wrinkles and used it to create this card.

Variations on a theme:  The following cards, use the provided paper to make quite different cards than those shown above, so we can see there's far more than one way to use materials:

Variation #1 & 2: 

I already showed these cards, in the Otterly Adorable without Otters post, so I won't discuss them here.

Variation #3: 

Again using the discontinued Flowering Fields paper, this time I used the Tulip Fields stamp set (unfortunately also discontinued) to stamp a windmill focal.  I die cut the focal using a die from the Perennial Postage die set, and again used Blackberry Bliss cardstock for matting. I stamped the windmill and sentiment with Blackberry Bliss ink and the bushes with Pretty Peacock ink. The windmill was colored it with the Berry Burst marker from the Brights Stampin' Write Marker set, and the bushes with the Pool Party Marker from the Subtles Stampin' Write Marker set.

Variation #4: 

 

If you look closely, you will see that I used the back side of the paper for the border - it's plain green instead of having the subtle pattern that the rest of the paper has.  I simply stamped a rose & leaves - and a sentiment - from the discontinued Sentimental Rose Kit.  I used Shaded Spruce and Pretty In Pink inks.  I used the Pretty in Pink marker from the 2024-2026 In Color Stampin' Write Marker set. to color little dots in the center of the flower, and the Shaded Spruce marker from the Regals Stampin' Write Marker set to draw a bit more stem to connect the leaves to the flower.

Quick Turtle-y Cards

 

Today I had several cards I needed to make quickly.  I turned to a fun Stampin' Up! paper pack called Turtle-y Cute.  I used parts of 3 papers from the set to create 6 cards - one Father's Day card and 5 "Un-birthday" cards.  A couple of the papers have pretty background scenes that I made use of. Here's a quick look at details for each card.

Card #1 (above):  I fussy cut pieces from the 3rd piece of paper - in this case the grill and grill master - and glued them to the background scene after inked the edges.  I stamped a greeting in red using a stamp from the Beside Me stamp set from Stampin' Up!, punched an oval, inked the edges, and added to the card with foam tape.

Cards #2 & #3: 

I made a couple of cards using the beach background scene (this one and the next one).  Again I inked the edges of the scene.  This time I stamped the greeting directly onto the background after fussy cutting a bunch of pieces from the other paper and creating these beach scenes.  The greeting stamp is an old one from JustRite - a set called Royal Antique Labels One.

Card #4:

This time I used the stage background to make a card for a grandson who enjoys singing - though I'll admit the turtle doesn't look much like him!

Card #5: 

This fun picnic scene was created in a similar way - this time adding a punched oval with the sentiment.

Card #6: 

There were several pieces left over from the background scene paper.  I thought the striped paper looked a bit like an awning and the flowered piece a bit like the ground, so I created this scene for my last card.

So there you have it.  Six VERY QUICK cute cards.  So glad to have them finished! 

Otterly Adorable - without Otters!

One of the things I've learned is that a set of themed papers DOESN'T mean you have to stick to that theme!  This is particularly true of Stampin' Up! papers.  They almost always have quite generic patterns on the back sides of their papers that can be used for almost anything.  However, even some of the themed "front" side of papers can be multi-purposed.

The Otterly Adorable set of papers is a case in point.  The otters are SO CUTE that it's tempting to feel you must put otters with the "sea weed" paper for example - but you have options.  Here I've taken a single panel (4" x 5 1/4") of sea weed paper for each of 3 makes, to show what I mean.

Card #1: 

Here I cut an inch and a half off the bottom of the panel and flipped the top part over to use the watery back side of it.  Adding some otters certainly makes for a cute card.  The otters were die cut (using the Otterly Amazing cutting dies) from another paper in the pack, but could just as easily have been stamped and die cut from the Otterly Amazing bundle.  The sentiment was stamped from the Sentimental Rose stamp set (discontinued).

Card #2: 

Thinking "outside the box" a bit, I realized that the sea weed could just as easily be jungle plants!  So, I did a jungle make using a monkey die cut from my stash (Karen Burniston die).  The sentiment came from a Hero Arts stamp set called Thinking of You Stamping Village (oval cut with Double Stitched Oval die from Kat Scrappiness).

Card #3: 

 

This time I sliced a vertical piece and flipped it.  The "sea weed" here can be thought of as plants the ladybug likes to climb on, OR as simply a pretty generic background.  Either way, it makes a pretty backdrop for this ladybug I found in my stash (Elizabeth Crafts Die).  The sentiment is an old JustRite stamp from the set called Your Special Day.

Scrapbook Pages

Today I have several Scrapbook Pages.  They are mostly made using old papers and scraps that I need to use up, so most are not from Stampin' Up!  I started working on this scrapbook back in 2020 and only got a few pages made over the years since then, so I REALLY want to get it finished! 

The picture above is the only one that has some things from Stampin' Up! and that is their Flip Flaps!  If you are a scrapbooker, and haven't seen these, they are a game changer that I believe will really take my scrapbooking to the next level.  I learned about them after I had completed pages 10-13 and you can see that page 10 has more pictures on it than I should probably have tried to put on it - makes it pretty busy.  The dual page layout (pages 14 and 15AB) would have been the same except that I had discovered Flip Flaps, so have four of the pictures hidden using them - allowing for a much better layout!  Here is a look at pages 10-15AB:

Page 10:

This page is not one of my favorites.  It's too busy.  When I made it, I did not know about Stampin' Up!s Flip Flaps.  That is something I'll be using on one of the pages near the end of this post - but I won't be able to show them to you yet, because I don't have them!  I've ordered them and am looking forward to getting them soon so I can finish that page!  Anyway, this page would have benefited from something like that - fewer pictures with a couple in a flip flap would have helped a lot.   I also wish I'd made more of the yellow ducks instead of adding the white one and the mallard, but it is what it is.  I DID like the grass print at the bottom and the sky print at the top, but the background papers really get lost.  Definitely not my best example!

Page 11:

I like this one quite a bit better, but I wish I hadn't split the background paper the way I had.  It looks too choppy split basically in half like that.  However, I've had a challenge in the past with embellishing my pages and while this isn't perfect (don't like the row of leaves on the bottom left side), I think I'm starting to learn about embellishing better.  A lot of people just add flowers, no matter what the subject of the page, but I like my embellishments to have some meaning to the page.  This isn't the best example, but there WAS a botanical garden and the founder WAS called Ladybird! :)

Page 12:

Though this page isn't great, there are a couple of things I REALLY like about it.  First, that I have any pictures in the upper section.  I took those from a video and they turned out much better than I thought they might!  2nd, I like the double matting of the upper photos and that they, the title, and journaling are on that rose-colored block of paper.    I like the font used for the title, and the embellishments (though wish I had one more!).

Page 13:

Again, not the best layout in the world, but there ARE some things I like.  1) I love the title block!  I picked that up at a scrapbook store several years ago and this was a great place to use it. 2) I am glad I found a way to make a page despite the fact that we had taken no pictures at the convention! and 3) While the palm trees are smaller than I'd like, I feel I'm STARTING to figure out how to come up with meaningful embellishments.

Page 14 & 15AB:

I had real trouble with this layout - everything about it - from finding papers to figuring out a layout, it took me 3 days of trying things, walking away and coming back before I finally figured out what I wanted to do with it.  I'm REALLY happy with the way it turned out, though.  It was worth the wait to figure out how I wanted to do it.  

I like a lot of things about this layout:  

• The narrow strip of green cardstock between the two patterned papers makes such a difference!
• Adding mats and bits of mats in the green helps things pop.  
• I made use of any dies I found in my stash that had grasses, cattails or grass-like features - as well as the little heron/egret die cut.  The grasses and bird embellishments took some time to make, but I'm really pleased with how they turned out, and think they add a lot to the layout.  For the grasses and cattails, I used a die from Spellbinder's Garden Builder set (mostly cut this one in pieces), cattail dies from Spellbinders Holiday Blooms, and the greenery from a Daffodils die set from Elizabeth Crafts (had to trim some of these pieces to meet my needs).  I cut the grass/stalks from green and yellow, and the cattails themselves from a brown suede.  Then I did some inking using a foam applicator (could also have used a blending brush) to make them all look more realistic.
• I like the way the entire thing feels cohesive - even though it's not only a dual page layout, but the 2nd "page" is actually a gate fold - split down the center.  (I have a bunch of "Gate Fold" sheet protectors in my stash that I bought on a close out from a scrapbook store back in Tennessee a LONG time ago.  I appreciate being able to use them from time to time.  I'll miss them when they're gone as I have no idea if I could ever get any more.)
• Instead of cramming all the photos I wanted onto these two pages, Flip Flaps on the first side of the gate fold (see pictures below) allow me to add more pictures without the layout feeling crowded.  I am SO glad Stampin' Up! is carrying these Flip Flaps.  They are SO easy to use and will make future scrapbooks MUCH better!

Close Up of left page: 

Close Up of Right Gate Fold Page:

Right Gate Fold Page with lower Flip Flap open:

Right Gate Fold Page with Upper Flip Flap Open:

I haven't completed the pages you'll see when you open the gate fold.  That will have to wait until a future time, but I'll go ahead and post these now, because an unfolding family emergency means I don't know when I'll be able to get to more scrapbooking.

Page 15CDE:And NOW with the gatefold open:

 And then a closer look at each page:

Page 15C: 

I have a little lizard die that I got from Temu that I thought worked well as a baby alligator.  I used ink sponging and a fine-tipped black marker to color them a bit like the baby alligators you see in the top picture:  The top and bottom pictures on this page are flip flaps.  Here's what they look like when the flip flaps are open:

Page 15D:

I had a LOT of bird pictures and had figured to use a bunch of flip flaps - but then realized that they don't have them for the 2" x 3" size which is what my photos were.  Sooooo, I fit as many on as I could and discarded the rest.  I had some tropical leaves & flowers in my stash that I added as embellishments (made from Spellbinders dies).

Page 15E: 

And the last page - no flip flaps - just pictures.  This time I used some Karen Burniston dies to make my monkey and vine embellishments.

Scrapbook page and "Scrap Cards"

First up today is an 8 x 8 scrapbook page made based on a challenge for WSD.  For it, I used papers and embellishments from my stash - including several old HOTP papers and a "Brad Buddy".  I added some detail to the Brad Buddy rocking horse with Sharpie markers.  The title was made using alphabet cutting dies.  If you look closely, you can see a decorative stitching around the edge made using my sewing machine and gold thread.

When I was finished with this page, I had several scraps of the papers left over.  I'm learning that it works best to USE UP scraps at the time I make them!  So, I started by using a couple of the pieces to form backdrop and border for a swap card I needed to make with the theme "Trees".  

Card #1:

After gluing my scraps in place, I made a couple of trees using Frosted Forest decorative masks and dies from Stampin' Up! using Pecan Pie, Pool Party, and Pretty Peacock inks. After gluing them in place, I added sentiments cut from the same paper pack whose leftovers I was using. 

Card #2:

Now I just had small scraps left over.  I arranged them as a backdrop and glued them in place.  Then I went looking for some sort of focal.  I saw this stamped and colored image (from Stampin' Up! Beside Me stamp set - currently on "Last Chance" sale) sitting on my desk.  I had experimented with using Stampin' Blends with VersaFine ink - only to find out that ink bleeds when the markers come in touch with it.  I had thought it a failed experiment, but decided that though it was an experiment I wouldn't try again, it wasn't so bad that I couldn't use it!  Now I needed a VERTICAL greeting.  I thought about an old stamp I had in my stash from Sweet Stamps (no longer in business).  I stamped that with Misty Moonlight ink onto white cardstock, and added both to my card with dimensionals.

By this time I thought I'd used up my scraps, but came back later and found a piece of the blue left over!   SOOOO. . . . 

Card #3:

Now I had to find something to go with that blue piece.  I still had a focal sitting on my desk, so decided to use that.  Could I find some scraps that would go with the blue and the focal?  I think these do!  This card is designed as a Book Binding Card.  As you can see from the next picture, it has a one and a quarter inch "binding" on the left that does not open, the rest of the card opens normally.

Simply take a 4 1/4" x 11" piece of card stock and score at 4 1/4" and 5 1/2"  Fold in half at the 5 1/2" score line, then fold as valley fold at the 4 1/4" line.  With the fold line on the left, glue card shut between fold lines.  

I found a piece of yellow cardstock for the background, added the blue mat and the focal - then a sentiment from my stash.  A scrap of patterned paper with similar colors along the "binding" finished this card.

Card #4: 

Now I only had one of those focals left and I wanted to get it off my work space!  I embossed a piece of Night of Navy cardstock (used Mini Corrugated 3D embossing folder) and went looking for a patterned paper that would work together with it and the focal.  I chose this Early Espresso DSP which makes a great backdrop for it (works with the pink in the girl's shirt, but keeps the masculine feel I wanted).

The card itself is a Fancy Accordion style with lots of folds.  Again I started with a 4 1/4" x 11" piece of cardstock.  This time I scored it at 2 3/4", 5", 6", 8", and 9".  First two score lines are folded as valley folds - then mountain, valley, mountain.  Unless you add a panel that extends more to the right than the card itself, this card will be smaller than an A2 card by about 1 1/4" (which suggests if you started with a piece that was 12" long it wouldn't take much modification to end up with a standard A2 sized card).

Using 6 x 6 Scenic Papers

Today we're looking at using scenic 6 x 6 sized papers.  I have some from a retired set called Meandering Meadows that I need to use up, so I started looking for good ways to use papers like these.  All products used were from Stampin' Up!® (and images © Stampin' Up!) unless otherwise noted.

 

Card #1 (see above):  I found instructions for a "Spanner Card" in a You-Tube video by Glenda Calkins.  It was pretty cool, and I adapted it for this first card (see above).  Especially for scenic papers that have a path, I LOVE this way of using them.  Here's what I did:

• I took a 5 1/2” x 8 1/2” piece of Crushed Curry cardstock and scored and folded it in half to make an A2-sized card base.
• I sliced JUST THE FRONT of this card at 1 1/4" on each side from the bottom to the fold: 
• I glued a 1" x 5 1/2" piece of acetate to JUST the bottom of these side pieces (don't get glue on the middle section!)
• I trimmed the scene to 4" tall (carefully choosing where to cut based on the scene itself), then cut this 4" tall piece it from left to right: 1" strip,  2 3/4" strip, 1" strip.  (There was a bit left over which I saved for later).  I glued the 1" strips centered on the side sides flaps of the card front and the larger piece to the middle flap (you could mat them first if you wish).
• Then I die cut some pieces for a fence and gate using an old Spellbinder's cutting die (Garden Gate).  I carefully glued this in place so that glue only touched the sides and the acetate - and so the gate itself was not glued shut.  See picture above.  This completed the main part of the card structure.
• I stamped a greeting toward the top of the middle section (Spellbinders Sending Sunshine Sentiments), added a piece of white to the inside, and decorated that with a small strip from my leftover pieces - using the back side of the paper this time. Here are a couple of pictures that show opening the card:

Card #2:

This card is made similarly - using Fresh Freesia cardstock and a different patterned paper from the same set.  I had intended to try a black fence, but forgot and cut it out of white again!  Probably for the best anyway.  As you can see, this time instead of just stamping my sentiment on the patterned paper itself, I created a matted greeting (stamp from Spellbinders Welcome Sign and Sentiments).

 

OSW #1:   I next decided to see what I could do to make more than one card from a single sheet.  I chose to call it a 6 x 6 One Sheet Wonder and made 3 cards from the single sheet.  Here's how I cut up my patterned paper:

 

I actually ended up using the reverse side for one of the cards, so what I actually used was more like this: 

Below are the 3 cards that I made from these pieces.

OSW Card #1:

I used the middle strip to make my first card.  I matted it and glued it to the right side of the card front.  Then I created a sentiment using some oval shaped dies and a Stacked Happy Birthday die (Creative Expressions).  I used Cherry Cobbler cardstock for the matting and sentiment.  I also added a couple of strips of this card stock to the inside of the card for a bit of interest:

OSW Card #2:

This next card started as an A2 card base from Garden Green cardstock.  After scoring and folding it to make the A2 size, I cut off 1 1/2" from the right side of the card front.  I added a white cardstock panel to the inside of the card and then a 1/4" strip of the cut off piece to the right side to add interest that would show through to the card front. I matted my patterned paper on white and added it to the left side of the card front.  Finally I created a sentiment using Melon Mambo and white cardstocks, Melon Mambo ink, and a stamp from Changing Leaves stamp set.  The inside looks like this:

OSW Card #3:

This last card used the reverse side of the remaining pieces from the OSW AND scraps from the Garden Gate make (see #1 above).  I started with a piece of Pecan Pie cardstock as a base mat layer (from which I cut many of my mat pieces before gluing it in place).  Then I added a piece of Petal Pink cardstock on top of that.  I matted the 3 patterned pieces with Pecan Pie cardstock (after trimming 3/4" off the bottom of the largest one). and glued them in place as you see in the picture above.  

Next, I created a focal piece - 2 3/8 circle punched from Pecan Pie cardstock forms the bottom layer, then a 2" scalloped circle punched from white cardstock.  This was my base for adding a cluster of small die cut flowers and leaves - cut from the scraps!  I used dies from Otterly Amazing die set for my leaves and from Impressions Abloom die set for the little flowers.  (I die cut some extras which I saved for the inside of the card).

Finally, I created my sentiment piece from strips of white and Pecan Pie cardstock and Pecan Pie ink. I used a stamp from the discontinued Sentimental Rose kit and punched the ends using a retired punch called Lovely Labels Pick a Punch.

 Inside:

As you can see, I added a couple strips of Pecan Pie cardstock and some leaves/flowers to complete the inside of this card.

OSW #2:

I made a 2nd set of cards using the same cutting guide, but a different sheet of patterned paper - and minor variations in the way I made them.  Here are the 3 cards I got from it.

OSW #2 Card #1:

This time, I matted with Blueberry Bushel cardstock and used Blueberry Bushel ink for the sentiment.  I also added a piece of twine near the top of the patterned paper panel.  As you can see, instead of a die cut sentiment, I simply stamped onto the left side of the card front (using a stamp from an old JustRite set called Special Gifts Labels Twenty-Nine.  

OSW #2 Card #2: 

This time I used Balmy Blue cardstock for the card base and matting.  I added a freebie strip greeting from Sassy's LLC.  I decided a cute little critter would complete this card nicely, so I added one from my stash (made from Karen Burniston's Woodland Animals die set).

OSW #2 Card #3:

This one was more difficult, though I ended up making it in a similar way to OSW#1.  The problem was that the flip side of this paper was VERY dark and really didn't coordinate that well with any of the cardstocks because of the way the colors were blended.  I ended up choosing to use a Shaded Spruce cardstock panel that I cut just smaller than an A2 card front - then embossed with the Cane Weave 3D embossing folder.  I then added some Pretty Peacock and Night of Navy inks using a blending tool.  This became my background.  I matted my patterned pieces with white before adding them as you see here.  The sentiment is another of Sassy's LLC - matted on Night of Navy and white card stock. The football was from my stash (created from Spellbinder's Sporting Goods die set).

So, there you have several different ways to use 6 x 6 scenic patterned papers.