Wednesday, November 19, 2025

GOLDEN FRIENDLY FOLIAGE

As I mentioned on Monday I liked the little different "twist" that this Friendly Foliage Bundle provides when making cards with simple stems & foliage.

Monday's card used only the "inner" die that coordinates with this stamp.  Today's card uses both the inner and the outer die.

If you compare the two cards you will see that the outer perimeter of the frame is also die cut on today's card.  The outer perimeter die cuts not only along the outside of the stamped frame, but it also cuts around the stems that protrude past the frame.


The Basic Beige checked designer series paper is from the Gathering Together Designer Series Paper (DSP) collection.  To add a bit of elegance, shimmer and shine I embossed the foliage with gold embossing powder.  


Two Branching out Dies cut a "window frame" in the DSP, and I layered Season of Elegance Basic Beige & Gold Specialty paper behind the frame.  Both pieces of checked DSP are popped up with dimensionals so the "golden" frame is recessed between the DSP layers.

HINT:  When popping up DSP, it is helpful to use a piece of cardstock as a backing to provide stiffness.

The Happy Birthday sentiment from The Right Words is heat embossed with gold embossing powder on Basic Beige cardstock, and an extra little strip of the Season of Elegance Specialty Paper provides a lower border (and more gold) for the greeting.

Three little pieces of Open Weave Trim were scrunched together and tied in the center to add a bit of "fluff" on the left of the greeting.


Being one to never let pretty scraps go to waste, I used the frame that was left over from the card front when I die cut the Gathering Together DSP.  

The inside sentiment, also from The Right Words Stamp Set, was heat embossed with gold.  Then two Friendly Foliage die cut leaves of gold foil were tucked into the lower right corner to keep the shimmer & shine going.


A list of the products used is shown below.

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Location: Commerce Township, MI, USA

Monday, November 17, 2025

FRIENDLY FOLIAGE Birthday

This week I am featuring a new November Online Exclusive Bundle called Friendly Foliage.  What attracted me to it was that it was a little different than all the other "foliage" stamps and dies that I have.

This foliage in a frame is one stamp, but then it can be die cut with one or two dies.  One of the coordinating dies cuts the outside perimeter of the frame and the foliage that extends beyond the frame.  A second die cuts the inside of the frame and all the spaces between the foliage.


For this card, I decided to use only the die that cuts inside of the frame.  This leaves a window where you can see through the foliage.  I thought that was cool!  It also allows you to have a wider frame around the image.

For my card when you look through the window you see a background that I created with the Shaving Cream Technique.  I just love this technique because it creates such unique patterns.  No two are ever the same.

If you have not tried this technique you can watch this video to see how it is done.

Yes, it can be a little messy, but it is so much fun -- and it is shaving cream, so it cleans up easily with soap and water.

Here is a closer look at the shaving cream scene behind my foliage.


I used fall colors for my "all white" card.  For the Shaving Cream Technique I used Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie & Crushed Curry ink refills.  The foliage is stamped with Cajun Craze.

I kept the inside of the card very simple.  I embossed the left edge with the Beautiful Pattern Embossing Folder (also a November Online Exclusive) which I used on the card front and then added a couple of narrow little scraps of the Technique Sheet to the right of the embossing.

Be sure to come back later this week to see the other ways to use this Friendly Foliage bundle.

Use this link to download a tutorial with all the details for today's card.

A list of the products used is shown below:


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Friday, November 14, 2025

FESTIVE SNOWMAN

I saved my favorite card this week to last.  There is something about these adorable Festive Friends characters that just make me smile every time I use them!


Today I using the tearing technique with the Two-Tone Cardstock.  I've used the "tearing" technique on and off over the years, but it was usually associated with a "vintage" or "grunge" style of card.  And since I don't often make cards in that style, I tend not to use this technique much.

When you tear Two-Tone cardstock it gives you a white edge which I like--not at all vintage.    In fact, I really like the torn appearance for snow drifts like these.


I used Cloud Cover two-tone cardstock and alternated using the dark and the light sides.

Depending on the direction you tear the cardstock you will get the white edge on either the dark or the light side.  So, pay attention to the direction you tear.  When you tear it, the back side of one piece will have the white edge and the front edge of the other piece will have the white edge.   For my snow, I just flipped one of them over and used both pieces.

Before creating the "snow", I used a Blending Brush and Secret Sea ink for the sky.  I envisioned a dark night sky with a full moon.  However, I initially forgot to mask the moon.  So, I placed a 1" circle mask over the inked area and added more ink.   I kept it lighter near the moon and darker farther away, creating a clear outline.  The result was unexpectedly pleasing -- a fortunate crafting mistake.

The small trees on the horizon line and the large trees on the left were die cut with dies from Light & Wonder Dies.

The little snowman from Festive Friends Stamp Set was given a bright, multi-colored hat with Stampin' Blends and his scarf was colored with one of the colors in the hat.  

The sentiment is from Festive Friends and was die cut with the Traditional Label Die.  Did I say how much I love the Traditional Labels Dies?  They are SO VERSATILE with many different shapes and sizes.


To provide a base of snow for my snowman on the inside of the card I added a couple of leftover torn strips from the card front.  The sentiment is from the Jolly Holly stamp set.  This is another stamp set that has received a LOT of use this season -- this greeting in particular.  I like that it is tall and narrow in shape and the sentiment sounds like me.

Use this link to download a tutorial with all the details of today's card.

A list of the products I used is shown below.

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Location: Commerce Township, MI, USA
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