Papertrey Ink July Release Countdown Day 2

One of the reasons why I love this release so much is because there's a little bit of everything; today we're showcasing a fun new stamp/die set called Hooray It's Your Birthday and the latest in the Psalm Reflections collection.

This card also features the new Cover Plate: Jumbo Dots. It creates such a playful background; just perfect for birthday cards!

The Hooray It's Your Birthday die set comes with 4 balloons; three with built in texture and design, and one that coordinates with the balloon included in the stamp set.  My card today features the three textured/patterned balloons.

There are quite a few sentiments included in the set, but I chose to use the previously released Birthday Your Way to achieve the look I was going for. I DID use one of the included sentiments on a card I'll be sharing on day 4, so stay tuned!

My second card for today uses the new Psalm Reflections: July stamp/die set. I thought it would be fun to make something sunny and summery to highlight this particular verse.

As always, the coordinating die is the perfect size and shape to make the sentiment stand out.

The background was created using the On the Border: Sunburst Frame. I die cut everything from white cardstock and then had fun coloring with finger daubers and blending brushes.

Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Papertrey Ink July Release Countdown

This month has flown by, but here we are at day one of the Papertrey Ink July release countdown! Up first is a super cute new set called Window Garden; it's chock full of sweet flowers, pots, and a birdhouse to tuck here and there to create a fun scene! 

As you can see, I made two cards; there are two different shutter options, so I wanted to try both of them out! This particular card also uses the new Garden Blessings stamp set, but it won't be showcased until Sunday. I will have LOTS of fun projects to share using that stamp set, but here is a little sneak peek!

There are a few different sentiments that you can add to the window box, but I chose to use the "welcome" sentiment for both of my cards today!

I used the stencils that came in the June Surprise Box and I just love them! I also used the Brick Wall Stencil Collection for one card and the Pool Water Stencil Collection for the other. I think the pool water stencil looks quite a bit like stone, so it works well for these types of cards, too!

You can see the pool water stenciling a little bit better in this photo.

I was thinking how cute this window scene would be all decked out for Halloween. I don't know if there will be any additions, but my mind can totally see it!

My next card is CAS using the new Paw Prints stamp/die set. One of my friends in the neighborhood just welcomed 14 new Great Dane puppies into her family! While this dog looks NOTHING like a Great Dane, she is still getting this card! LOL!

That being said, this particular stamp set is very versatile so you can make all kinds of different dog breeds depending on the outline shape, the tail, and the ears!

This particular set is also geared towards the loss of a pet, so it is very versatile.

There are some heart images, a bone, which you can see on the left hand side of the photo (I desperately wanted to use it on my card, but with the CAS design, I just couldn't make it work! ha ha!

That wraps it up for today, but stop by tomorrow for day 2 (birthday and the new Psalm Reflections) of the July release! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

The Greetery {Easy Watercolor Hibiscus}

 

Hello everyone! I'm here today sharing a pair of easy watercolor cards using some of my favorite new products from The Greetery! Creating summer cards is my favorite; the colors, the textures…maybe because summer seems so fleeting no matter how hard I try to hold on! There is one thing that isn’t my favorite….and that is the heat that comes with summer! Ha ha! I decided to create these cards using blue/blue-green tones for something cool and refreshing!

To begin, I simply created a wash of watercolor onto three panels of watercolor paper. I know Betsy has mentioned this before, but the cheap watercolor pad they sell at Hobby Lobby (Master’s Touch brand) is the best for this type of project; it is inexpensive and the texture can’t be beat. It is not ideal for serious water coloring, so I just keep it with my paper crafting supplies so I can grab it easily for these types of projects. I chose to create one panel with green hues, one with blue green hues, and one with lighter blue hues. In hindsight, I should have kept the panels a little more “loose” with more open spaces of white. It is hard to add white space back in once it’s gone! Ha ha!

Once the panels were dry (I sped up the process by using my heat tool) I die cut the big Monstera Leaves; one from the green panel with the veins from the blue-green panel, and one from the blue-green panel with veins from the lighter blue panel. The Palm leaves were die cut both from the same blue-green panel; I had originally planned on layering them, but in the end, I used them separately. The hibiscus leaves were selectively die cut from the green panel and then I ran ALL of the BotaniCuts Hibiscus dies (I have them all connected) through the light blue panel. I had so much fun assembling the flowers and leaves. I added some additional detail to the die cut detail lines on the hibiscus flowers using the same paint and a small detail watercolor brush. I also added some black ink splatter to ALL of the die cut pieces for contrast.

I stenciled two panels of the same textured watercolor paper using the new Wicker Weave Stencil collection using Tea Dye, Brushed Corduroy, and Walnut Stain Distress Oxide inks. I used a light hand and selective stenciling for a loose look. Once that was done, I added the flowers and leaves using foam squares and liquid glue. I had originally planned to use all of these details on one card, but I just couldn’t get the composition right, so I omitted the two Monstera leaves and created a second simple card to share with you today.

For the sentiments, I used the older, but well-loved Birthday Blooms Stamp Set. I stamped the large, focal sentiment in black ink and then die cut them using the Birthday Blooms Die. I heat embossed the accent portion of the sentiment in white onto black strips of cardstock. I layered them using foam squares and then mounted the panels onto A2 card bases using liquid glue. I gave both cards a spritz of Shimmer Spray for sparkle and shine! As I mentioned earlier, I had envisioned this project a little bit differently, but it’s ok to switch things up if it’s just not working! Sometimes I find myself holding onto an “idea” too tightly rather than letting my creativity flow! It’s always more fun just to let yourself experiment and enjoy the process rather than the outcome. I actually usually end up loving the result way better if I just allow myself time and space to enjoy the creative journey…I hope you do, too! It’s also okay just to step back and take a break and come back to your project with “fresh eyes”! Sometimes that’s when the lightbulb moments will happen, which I just love! Well, enough rambling from me….thanks for fluttering by!

Papertrey Ink June Release Countdown Day 4

Its the 4th and final day of the Papertrey Ink June release countdown! I have a big post today so get comfy! ha ha! Things are tropical, travel-inspired, and just plain FUN! I know I say it all the time, but summer cards are my favorite!

My first card for today uses the AMAZING new Pleasing Pineapple Hot Foil Plate. I found that I need to heat my foil machine on the hottest setting and heat for 20 seconds for best results with this particular plate. I wasted a BUNCH of my hoarded Aqua Mist cardstock and teal foil and finally gave up and tried regular gold on yellow! I love the result!

I didn't want to cover up too much of the beautiful foiling so I kept this card simple, but with some fun details to make it special. I couldn't resist making more black and white striped flip flops, but this time I added both medallion details and some gold drip drops to the center.

I heat embossed the sentiment, which is from the new Just Sentiments: Days of Summer stamp set onto a strip of vellum and wrapped it around the foiled panel securing it in the back with scotch tape. I also added some greenery from the Feathered Friends 24 dies for some additional tropical detailing.  I added a strip of Bitty Big: True Black paper (same as what I used for the flip flops) to the side and added the focal panel to the top using foam squares.

My next card features the adorable new Pack Your Suitcase stamp/die set. I've made three cards using this stamp/die set to give you some additional ideas. This particular card also uses a few elements from the new Tuck It: Travel stamp/die set.

I stamped the suitcase and all of the accessories in a Barbie-esque color palette; I love how it turned out!

I combined two different sentiments for a custom feel; the longer sentiment is from the new Just Sentiments: Days of Summer and the "Safe Travels" is from the new Tuck It: Travel stamp set.

I used the same Elegant Edges: Fresh Cut dies that I used yesterday for "sand", and today I used it for clouds. I added the little airplane from Tuck It: Travel and the palm trees.

My second card is a little bit on the masculine side; I felt like I was only making girly cards for this release, so I thought I'd switch things up.

Once again, I used elements from the Tuck It: Travel stamp/die set....they pair so well together and add a little bit of whimsy to the cards!

You can really change the feeling of a card just by switching up the colors.

My final card for today and for the release uses a few elements that you've previously seen, but I think this is my favorite one using the Pack Your Suitcase stamps/dies. You can see another Pineapple hot foil background and more greenery.

I tucked it inside the suitcase and behind for a whimsical feel! I added some gold drip drops to the flip flops to bring in a little more gold.

The sentiment, which is from the older set Just Sentiments: Wish You Were Here stamp set, is just perfect for this card!

Thanks for joining me today! The June release will be available for purchase tomorrow night at 10 PM ET. I'm guessing the Go-To Gift Card Holder: Beach Bag dies will fly off the shelf so if it were me, I'd head to the shop early! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Papertrey Ink June Release Countdown Day 3

Welcome to day 3 of the Papertrey Ink June release countdown! The summer fun continues  with the latest addition in the Inside Greetings series! I paired it with some of the dies from the new Go-To Gift Card Holder: Beach Bag dies and some older favorites!

Since I'm absolutely smitten with the flip flops included in the Go-To Gift Card Holder: Beach Bag die collection, I thought it would be fun to create the look of sand meeting the water. I used the Elegant Edges: Fresh Cut dies for the "sand" and then did some ink blending for the water. I stamped the sentiment, which is my favorite from the Inside Greetings: Days of Summer stamp set, in black on the "water" portion.

The flowers are from the Into the Blooms II die collection; I thought they would be a fun addition on this beach-y card!

The Palm tree is from the new Tuck It: Travel stamp/die set that was featured on day 1. I added some dew drops to the water portion to give it some watery detailing. 

My second card for today uses the new Psalm Reflections: June stamp set. This one has coordinating dies that give the detail in the top left and bottom right corners.

You can use them like I have here, or you can actually die cut the outer perimeter to use them as accents.

My daisies are just about to bloom and I can't wait, so I decided to use some of the flowers from the Into the Blooms die collection to accent the sentiment.

I gave the flowers and leaves a generous sprinkling of glitter and added some black ink splatter for detail.

Well friends, this concludes day 3, but join me tomorrow for a BIG post for the 4th and final day of the release countdown! Thanks for fluttering by!

 

Papertrey Ink June Release Countdown Day 2

Welcome to day 2 of the Papertrey Ink June release countdown! Thank you for your sweet comments on yesterday's post! Today the team is featuring the new Into the Blooms: Iris die collection; I'm in love!

I was in need of two sympathy cards this week, so I chose to make two identical cards to send to the grieving families; I think the irises are a perfect choice for a sympathy card, but I can't wait to use them again in a more cheerful way!

I colored the flower portions using Amethyst Allure and Royal Velvet ink. I colored the yellow portions with a yellow marker to make things easier. The greenery is colored using Green Parakeet and New Leaf ink.

Since I already had the Woodblock Prints Stencil Collection out from my travel card yesterday, I thought I'd use one of the other designs for the background on these two mini-slimline cards.

I didn't add any stenciling in the middle so it almost gives the illusion that the irises are glowing. I added some black ink splatter for dimension, glitter and sequins (which I don't usually use on sympathy cards) and the sentiment is from the Feathered Friends Mini 4 stamp set.

My second for today uses the new Larger than Life: Hello stamp/die set; simple and easy to use!

I started off stenciling an A2 panel of white cardstock using the Wild Blooms Stencil Collection using some bright, summery colors. I also used the Cover Plate: Quilted die to add the texture over the top.

I die cut the Larger than Life: Hello twice from black cardstock and then glued them together. The remainder of the sentiment is stamped in black onto a strip of white cardstock and adhered using foam squares. I gave the entire panel a spritz of shimmer spray and mounted it onto a top-folding A2 Hawaiian Shores card base. A few sequins finish it off! Thanks for fluttering by!