from my ink pad to yours

Christmas in July: Filled with Cheer Card & Tag

Hi there, Crafters! I'm popping in with a couple of Christmas projects that I've done with the Filled with Cheer set, which is new this month on Stampin' Up!'s Online Exclusives.

I always like to try non-traditional colors for holidays, especially when working on Christmas in July. When I sat down to do some coloring with this new set, I chose Flirty Flamingo, Lost Lagoon and Crumb Cake with a little Pool Party thrown in for extra measure:

 

Flirty Flamingo

 

Lost Lagoon

 

Pool Party

 

Crumb Cake

The card:

• You can probably tell what colors were used and where. I cut out a mask and placed it over the colored image so that I could add just a touch of Pool Party with my blending brush. This helps make the white of the snow pop. 
• My greeting is on a banner layer because I messed up on the original. I used Stylish Shapes but whatever you have will work and you could even hand trim it. I DO suggest you practice a bit with this font as if you don't ink it too heavily you will realize that the letters in HELLO do have a fun little texture.

This photo shows the blends that were used.

I didn't have much cardstock around the poinsettia and gifts image so I fussy cut it and finished it quickly with a Crumb Cake tag I die cut with Greetings of the Seasons Dies. Way to make my relaxing coloring time useful! The ribbon uses a bunch of small pieces. I sometimes trim them lengthwise as I did here with the Black and Vanilla Gingham.

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the July host code, KUCZDWEF, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Filled With Cheer Photopolymer Stamp Set (English) [164362]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad [147107]
Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Basic Black 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [121045]	Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [120953]
Flirty Flamingo Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154884]	Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154882]	Lost Lagoon Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161680]
Basic Black Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154843]	Pool Party Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154894]	Stampin' Up! Masking Paper [155480]
Subtles 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163776]	Linen Thread [104199]	Black & Very Vanilla 3/8" (1 Cm) Large Check Ribbon [161982]
Pretty In Pink 3/8" (1 Cm) Bordered Ribbon [163784]	Deckled Rectangles Dies [159173]	Stylish Shapes Dies [159183]
Paper Snips [103579]	Greetings Of The Season Dies [164112]	Blending Brushes [153611]

Around the World on Wednesday: Case a Team Member

Hey there, stampers! It's time for another Around the World on Wednesday blog hop.

Our dear leader, Angie has organized this years Case A Team Member month with a Bananagram or letter tile theme. Here are the tiles for those of us on the hop:

If you are following the blog hop you have likely come from Angie's blog and have read that we are casing/working with each other. We chatted a bit a few weeks ago and decided to use flowers (especially the Country Flowers Bundle) and the brights. I think we both might have been looking at the Full of Life 6x6 DSP.

While I fully thought I would totally stay on that path, there were a couple of Angie's cards that really seemed to call to me to mix our styles together. First is a Blackberry Bliss Monochromatic card she did for an Instahop:

I love anything with these masks but I was especially impressed with the monochromatic approach and the tile technique.(Hint: she has a lot of amazing monochromatic cards on her blog and Instagram!) Then as I was browsing further into her body of work I came upon this beautiful Delft look:

I just loved the blue flowers with the eyelet like embossing. While I did think of trying to get all of these concepts together I did have to narrow it down. I kept the monochromatic Layers of Beauty and mixed it up with the Delft/eyelet look. For now my tiles only come into play with the Bananagram letters but I'll be trying that technique soon!

Here's a closer look:

• As you can see I did use the teapot dies from Country Flowers, though I depended on Layers of Beauty to actually bring in the flowers. Those masks are amazing. Using the blending brushes I was able to get all of those shades just using the Blueberry Bushel ink pad. What? You say Blueberry Bushel isn't in the Brights. You would be correct. But I think the color IS bright. It's one of my all time favorites and is kind of a fun twist on the Delft look.
• I stamped a 1/2 sheet of cardstock with the Layers of Beauty bouquet turned several ways to mostly fill the sheet. Then I blended the colors using the masks. I was able to die cut several pots cups etc in addition to getting my border.
• After trying the greeting with white embossing on Blueberry Bushel cardstock, I decided I wanted a softer look and embossing the greeting on white and used a blending brush to apply the color. (hint: I use a sharpie to put color or abbreviations for them on the back of my blending brushes. I use a fine point because some of my brushes are used for more than one color.)
• The embossing is done with the Eyelet 3D folder, part of the Country Woods/Country Flower suite. A hint with this folder is to add up to a half inch to the dimensions you will need as the design does "shrink" the paper a bit.

I had originally wanted to show this teapot from Country Flowers with the little cups from the Latte Love dies. The scale of the cups works really well with the teapot. Unfortunately, the card just seemed too busy with them but I did put together a little tag:

This tag was made with the new Online Exclusive Greetings of the Season dies

Finally, just to add at least a few of the brights colors, I tried another version using the teapot as a plant pot.

• 
  
• The leaves were die cut from white and both Lemon Lime Twist and Granny Apple Green were applied with a blending brush.

Now it's time to continue on the blog hop: Next up is the talented Bree Renwick.

Jan Clothier - NZ

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Danielle Kassing - NL

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Kelly Taranto - US

Angie McKenzie - US

Chris Smith - US

Bree Renwick - US

Teri West - US

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the July host code,    , I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Layers Of Beauty Bundle (English) [163519]	Eyelet 3 D Embossing Folder [163414]	Stylish Shapes Dies [159183]
Blueberry Bushel Classic Stampin' Pad [147138]	Blueberry Bushel 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146968]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]
Blending Brushes [153611]	Heat Tool (Us And Canada) [129053]	Versamark Pad [102283]
Basics Embossing Powders [155554]	Greetings Of The Season Dies [164112]	Petal Pink & White 1/4" (6.4 Mm) Diagonal Trim Combo Pack [163417]
Tinsel Gems Four Pack [161623]

More Musical Jamboree Cards

This past weekend I participated in my friend Kevin Theesen's Summer Online Retreat. I showed how to make simplified version of this tunnel, or some may say theater, card with the Musical Jamboree stamp set. It's really fairly simple and I just love the whimsical look that these animals get when they get to use papers from Thoughtful Journey as a background. One of the retreat participants mentioned that the characters reminded her of the Country Bear Jamboree at Disneyland.

• For this card I colored and fussy cut all of the animals plus the campfire from the set. For each of the animals I put down a base of Stampin' Blends in either Smoky Slate of Crumb Cake and then added more dimension and "fur" using Watercolor Pencils - without water.
• The background is Thoughtful Journey Designer Series paper.
• I used the woods die from the Grassy Grove dies. It's really important to do the scoring before doing the die cutting because it will be harder to score on the skinny trees. For this particular greeting, it is easier to get it centered by putting the space between "we belong" and "together".
• Construction details are given below for the simplified card:

 

• Measurements: Gray Granite Card Stock: (2)8 1/2” x 5 1/2” (half sheets), 2 scraps for animals
  Petunia Pop: scrap (for bandana), Thoughtful Journey DSP: 1 - 6” x 6” piece

• Score one of the half sheets of Gray Granite at 4 1/4” for A2 card base. Wait to fold this until embossing is finished.

• Emboss the coyote image in white in the lower right front of the card - in portrait orientation. Emboss another coyote and the badger on the Gray Granite scraps. Emboss the coyote’s head with bandana twice on the Petunia Pop scrap.

• Trim the 2 animals and bandanas that were embossed on the scraps. Attach the bandanas to each of the coyotes. Set aside.

• Emboss “You’re a great friend” in the upper middle of the DSP as shown. Trim 5/8” from each side. Score the DSP with the greeting vertically through the greeting. Reserve the trimmed strips.

• Fold the DSP as scored and attach to the inside of the Gray Granite card base. I apply adhesive to the back of the right edge, align the folds of the DSP and the card base interior and then fold the card to attach. Repeat this with the left side.

• Score the second Gray Granite half sheet at 2 1/8”, 4 1/4”, and 6 3/8”.

• Using the 7th largest deckled circle die cut a circle out of the upper center of sheet in step 4 - landscape orientation. This should be 1/2” - 1” from the top and equidistant between the 2 1/8” and 6 3/8” score lines.

• Fold the piece from the previous step so that the middle line is a mountain fold and the side score lines become valley folds. Apply adhesive to the back of the right side (landscape orientation) and line this up to the right edge of the open card base. With this inner section folded, apply adhesive to the left edge and fold the card aver this to finish adhering the two layers of the card.

• Attach the badger and the coyote to the lower part of the inside circle as shown. Take care to place the coyote so that it is entirely in the 3rd quadrant of the inner card so that it won’t bend when the card is folded. Attach the reserved DSP strips about 1/8” in from the edge of each side of the open card.

Here is one more version with the Country Woods DSP:

• The card and coyote are done with Gray Granite Cardstock
• This time I did my embossing in Black. I think just stampin in black might work too.
• The greeting is from the Simply Said stamp set.
• I colored the banjo and did just a bit of shading with the watercolor pencils - again with no water. You do need to use a rather gentle touch with the pencils or you risk pushing off the embossing.

Since I've already done another Musical Jamboree post I'll add a few more cards that I've done here. This set is so much fun but I really need to get to work with some other new sets!

• 
  These two cards use the set, Under the Moon along with blending brushes. I like to use Lemon Lolly for the moon, mask it, and go around it with Pool Party, Azure Afternoon, Blueberry Bushel and a bit of Night of Navy. By starting with light colors it looks like the moon is lighting the sky.

 

Don't you think this is a fun set? As I was coming up with ideas for card sketches and colors I worked to develop two different Pinterest Boards. The first is called Character Card Sketches and will give you ideas for cards that feature characters of many types with they are humans, animals or even made of snow. The second board is Musical Jamboree Inspiration. This board has 1) cards made with this set and 2)non-card animal art that give ideas for settings and colors that might work with this set. As you can see there are more ideas than I will ever have time to use so I hope you might find them useful too!

The two other blog posts of mine that feature this set:

Benji Meets Kubel - the card with stripes

Musical Jamboree and Thoughtful Journey Designer Series Paper

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the July host code, BPGXPC77, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.   US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Musical Jamboree Cling Stamp Set (English) [163616]	Gray Granite 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146983]	Petunia Pop 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [163801]
Thoughtful Journey 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163303]	Versamark Pad [102283]	Deckled Circles Dies [162286]
Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653]	Paper Snips [103579]	Bone Folder [102300]
Simply Scored [122334]	Stampin' Seal [152813]	Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154882]
Smoky Slate Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154904]	Gray Granite Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154886]	Basics Embossing Powders [155554]
Watercolor Pencils Assortment 1 [161700]

Benji Meets Kubel

Today is our monthly Around the World on Wednsday blog hop and it's really a special hop. The super imaginative Angie Mckenzie leads our group and her little Shi Tzu, Benji, is taking a virtual trip around the world, visiting each of us. What a blog hop we have in store for you!

This is Benji:

If Benji is going to visit us he's going to have a hard time avoiding our grandpup, Kubel, who spends a lot of time at our place and sometimes even takes trips around Minnesota with us. Kubel is our daughter's dog and he is named for her all time favorite Minnesota Twins baseball player, Jason Kubel. The pup Kubel was expected to be a Mini Australian Shepherd but it turned out he is the same size as both of his parents ... COMBINED. 

I sure hope Benji isn't afraid of him. Kubel will be so excited.

First Kubel will want Benji to take a walk with us. Yes, Benji we'll carry you if you get tired. Our first walk of the day is usually to Willow Pond Park just a few blocks from our place. If we are lucky we will see ducks, bunnies and even turtles...

Did you see the turtle? That one was pretty big!   I think those pups will need a rest. It's somewhat less strenuous to supervise all the neighborhood animals, cars and UPS trucks from Kubel's place in one of the picture windows. I hope Benji can see over the hydrangeas. Maybe the turkeys will come through.

When he's rested up we might think about a trip up to Lake Superior. It's almost a 4 hour road trip but it's worth it! Kubel loves to swim in the lake, even if it is cold. He earned this swim by getting his newly groomed coat VERY dirty. Luckily the waves were pretty gentle. Benji was still smart to stay on shore though - that lake is cold!!!

When we finally got to my craft room we decided to keep working with more critters, this time from Musical Jamboree. I'm doing a demonstration with that set for an online retreat later this month and I still need some extra samples. For this card I used one of my favorite sketches for characters. Last year I used it for cards I made with a bird, a cat and a goose.

• The main part of this sketch is the trimmed off circle that I usually fill with some sort of animal or character. I always feel like these characters should have appropriate or even elaborate settings and using the circle seems to let me off the hook a bit. Of course, this time I used the coyote. I just love this guy.  For this circle I used a white Stylish Shapes circle layered onto a Spotlight on Nature circle - the one with the dashes and dots. This layer was Pretty Peacock.
• Often I cover the whole card with one DSP or dry embossed design on the top 4 or so inches with a contrasting paper on the bottom - about 1 1/2".  This time I used the striped Pretty Peacock DSP from the Regals 6" x 6" and a wood tone from the Online Exclusive Meandering Meadows DSP. Since it seemed a bit dark and that's not my usual style, I trimmed the combined patterned pieces down to 4" x 5 1/4" so that a white border of the card base would lighten things up. I used the 3D Timber Embossing Folder on the wood. In the past I've used borders to accentuate the "seam" of the two papers but I used some Wild Wheat Jute Trim that I unwound into three separate strands. Once it is unwound the individual strands will be wavy as you can see on my card.
• Sometimes I use tags but for this card I simply embossed the greeting with white powder on a scrap of Pecan Pie and trimmed around it.
• As you can see in the close up, I like to use "dry" watercolor pencils a lot on animals as it gives more texture, especially if they are supposed to have fur.

• In this instance I set out to color a lot of animals while I sat in on a zoom meeting. I colored a bunch of them with either light Gray Granite or light Crumb Cake Blends. Then I add more texture, detail and shading with the colored pencils. I did not add any water to these so it's fine to stamp them with any dye ink. I used Early Espresso pencil over Light Crumb Cake on this fella. The banjo was light Wild Wheat Blends with Crushed Curry details. I layered several blues and greens (Garden and Night of Navy especially) in an attempt to get something that I would like with the Pretty Peacock. I really like that this guy has a kerchief as it gives me a chance to tie it in with whatever background I'm using.
• I made a mask so that I could use the blending brushes to add a touch of color to the background of the circle. Pool Party, and "grass" blend of Pretty in Peacock and Garden Green. Use a really soft touch for this!

One more card. Benji and Kubel thought I should try this sketch out with them. The tree "border" is a preview from the Frosted Forest Dies which will be available in July. The pups are from another Online Exclusive set, Pets and More.

 

Now it is time to travel on to Theresa.  I imagine she has quite a creative adventure planned for Benji.

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Aurélie Fabre - FR

TIna Zinck-MacDonald - CA

Angie McKenzie - US

Chris Smith - US

Theresa McEntee - US

Lori Willcox - CA

Bree Renwick - US

 

***The online retreat I'm doing is Kevin Theesen's Summer '24 Online Retreat, Friday, June 28-29. It will be recorded. There is a great line up of demonstrators presenting many different projects. You can find more information and registration here. Let him know I sent you!

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the early June host code, NRMFK9N4, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Sweet Peas

Just popping in with a cute little baby card today.

• This first card was from a fun playing session with the new stamp set, Sweet Peas.
• Stamping was done in Granny Apple Green. I used the Lemon Lime Twist and Granny Apple Green Blends Combos to do the coloring.
• The vine was just an experiment and I love the way it turned out. I just eyeballed placement - it wasn't perfect. But, once it was colored and fussy cut (very relaxing to me!) it SEEMED perfect.
• The little round circle DSP is from the Brights DSP.
  
• The die cut circle is from the Spotlight on Nature Dies. I cut a second one from Granny Apple Green and layered it under the first one so that the design around the edge has a little green showing through.
• No other embellishments so this is great for the mail.

Let me know if you have questions!

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear. 

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the early June host code, NRMFK9N4, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Sweet Peas Photopolymer Stamp Set (English) [163621]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [159276]
Granny Apple Green Stampin' Pad [147095]	Lemon Lime Twist Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161682]	Granny Apple Green Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154885]
Spotlight On Nature Dies [163580]	Granny Apple Green 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146990]	Brights 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163775]
Paper Snips [103579]

 

Thoughtful Journey

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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A while back I shared some cards that I did with Thoughtful Journey Designer Series Paper. Well, that was just the beginning...

 

• This first trio was actually my first time sitting down with this suite of products. I don't know if I've ever been so willing to let the DSP take over as I did with these. I'm usually in the camp that says that designer series paper is a pretty tool, not the main event. But the dreaminess, scale and coloring of the designs is perfect for greeting cards and I'm not surprised that Stampin' Up! is temporarily out of this DSP. I hesitated to finish this post right now because of that but then again, if the paper is out of stock, maybe that means many of you already have it. Right?
  
• Anyway these three cards give you 3 ways to make the DSP the focal point of the card: torn edges, crisp layers or a simple wide border. The die cuts from the bundle are really just fun embellishments.
• All of my die cuts are doubled up with two layers here. The last one just to add some dimension but the first two it was howI added the flowers. While I just used Mossy meadow cardstock on top of either Petunia Pop or Wild Wheat flowers, next time I might try this with some watercolored or brushed on ink.
  
• And yes, I said that right. The die cuts with flowers are two pieces? They are designed to layer one on the other as I did in the first two cards. I've seen other cards that have just the back layer colored as both the flowers and greenery, which certainly works but it's nice to know that you can quickly layer them.
• I decided I should get a few photos of this. Here are a few extra photos to show this in action:

   

• Aren't those little white flowers cute? I got sidetracked and just had give them their own card.

• I cut a piece of the Full of Life DSP with a Radiating Stitches Die to provide a setting for this.
• After embossing a quarter sheet of white cardstock with the Dashing Designs folder I trimmed it down to 5 1/4" x 4" before putting it on a white card base.
• The "MISSING YOU"  is stamped with Lemon Lime Twist ink and hand trimmed. A glue dot attaches a little white baker's twine. It was really so simple!

This one took only slightly more time:

• I started by diecutting the largest open die out of a 5 1/4" x 4" piece of thick Basic White cardstock.
• Then I attached the remaining "negative" 5 1/4" x 4" piece onto a Basic White card base and then glued the delicate die cut back in place. White on White on White!
• I also die cut some of the smaller accessory leaves out of white cardstock. They were colored in Lemon Lime Twist with a blending brush. Using a silicone mat helps to keep these smaller pieces in place while you get them colored.
• I stamped the poppy like flowers with Smoky Slate and colored them with the Petunia Pop Blends. Then I used a circle from Stylish Shapes to cut them out.
• The greeting was also stamped in Smoky Slate.
• The stamped circle is attached over a twist of Petunia Pop ribbon with Stampin' Dimensionals
• Embellish with Petunia Pop Shimmer Gems and you are done!

Finally these next two were muddling around in my brain since I first say the dies for this set. I love open dies that can be used more or less across the card. I'll link a few other examples at the end of the post.  I got the idea on paper just in time to use these as a warm up exercise for a crafting session with some of my teammates last weekend.

• I cut the DSP to be just a bit bigger than the card front. Usually I go just barely past the 4 1/4" or 5 1/2" marks on my trimmer. It's a bummer to find out that a layer you want to cover your base with is too small and it's easier to trim of the layer than the card base.
• Next, I position the die somewhat diagonally across the lower end of the DSP, making sure I cut off enough to leave room for my greeting. If the bottom isn't entirely separated from the die cut snip it apart and set aside for another project.
• Attach the top remaining DSP to your card. Then add some tiny dots of glue to the back of your die cut and put it in place.
• Unravel a 24" piece of Moody Mauve and Boho Blue twine. You'll get 3 wavy strands of each. Save 2 of each for other projects and use the remaining two to wrap around. your card, tying it in a bow.
• Embellish with pearls from the Adhesive Backed Pearl Trio.

Here is the second version featuring Wild Wheat:

Other Dies with DSP ideas. 

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the May host code, NRMFK9N4, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Thoughtful Wishes Bundle (English) [163314]	Thoughtful Journey 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163303]	Adhesive Backed Pearl Trio [163319]
2023–2025 In Color Jute Trim [161637]	2024–2026 In Color™ Shimmer Gems [163781]	Petunia Pop 3/8" (1 Cm) Bordered Ribbon [163785]
Bubble Bath 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [161718]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Soft Sea Foam 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146988]
Basic Beige 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [164511]	Wild Wheat 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [161725]	Petunia Pop 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [163801]
Mossy Meadow 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [133676]	Stylish Shapes Dies [159183]	Lemon Lime Twist 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [144245]
Full Of Life 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163357]	Dashing Designs 3 D Embossing Folder [163483]	Radiating Stitches Dies [161595]
Baker's Twine Essentials Pack [155475]	Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad [147113]	Mossy Meadow Classic Stampin' Pad [147111]
Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad [147145]	Boho Blue Classic Stampin' Pad [161650]

 

Layers of Beauty Masks

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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Maybe you've seen previous Layers of Beauty cards I've posted here and here. Today I want to share a specific group that use the masks without having the big bouquet stamped along with the masking/blending. Don't get me wrong. I love the whole bundle with stamps, dies and masks BUT I know that might not be in everybody's budget and I wanted to show how the roses look without the stamps or maybe even the dies. It takes just a bit more attention to line up the 5 sequential masks without the stamped image as a guide but the masks have numbered notches which are pretty slick. Even after lining up the notches, I suggest you eyeball and make minor adjustments. And, remember they don't have to be perfect to be beautiful - many of mine aren't perfect but most people can't tell!                  

Let's start with this lovely Lemon Lolly and Daffodil Delight card. This was made with supplies that are still available with the new catalog, though the border die is in the Online Exclusives. Your favorite border or even a straight edge would work.

• The rose has Lemon Lolly for the base layer and then Daffodil Delight for the second and third masks.
• I used Garden Green for the foliage, using a softer touch with the blending brush for the lighter shade.
• I stamped off the greeting also, using a second generation for the "Grateful for you".
• The DSP is from the Brights color family. And, can I say again I love this stripe - it works with everything!

I was having so much fun using these masks that I didn't clean them between bouquets. SO, this pink is actually Pretty in Pink ink mixed with a little Daffodil Delight that was left on the mask. Still a very pretty pink and I just had to make it into a card.

• The green for this bouquet is the new In Color, Shy Shamrock, again using a lighter touch for the softer shade.
• The anniversary greeting was stamped toward the bottom of a die cut made with the Deckled Rectangles dies.
• The background paper is another pattern from the color family prints - this one from the In Color 2024-2026 collection. I wanted to keep going with the shabby chic look of the deckled edge and thus sanded some of the edges. You can see this best in the upper left corner.  This is such a fun trick with DSP because the inner core of the paper is white and will show with a worn, shabby look through when you sand it.

This next card makes use of two of the Radiating Stitches Dies. These are in my online store with Stampin' Up!

• This card doesn't use the coordinating dies and you could easily replace the greeting with something else in your collection if you only wanted to purchase the masks.
• I covered the base of the card with yet another print from the In Color 2024-2026 Designer Series Paper. It features tiny white circles, which are also a versatile monochromatic look.
• The ribbon is from a pair of rolls that include white and Petal Pink.

Do you recognize the scalloped die on this Lemon Lolly card? If you've been following my blog or work at all you will know it is one of my favorites and I warned people I would still be using it after it retired.

• I did this with whatever ink was on the blending brushes I picked up. I think it included Lemon Lolly, Berry Burst, maybe some Petal Pink and Lemon Lime Twist.
• I love tiny tag dies and this one is included in the Layers of Beauty dies.
• The Lemon Lolly ribbon is also retired but the bit of Lemon Lolly twine that I added to it is still available!

Finally (Whew!) I got out my new Basic Beige ink pad and tried a miniature version of a card box I used to teach years ago.

• Both boxes are made with the measurements in the following pdf.
• Score on the dashed (and solid) lines and then cut where the line is solid. You will want to score again between the cuts on each end. This will give you a edge to fold over.
• You can make a second one the same what for the bottom. I used stamped thick Basic White for the top and Basic Beige for the bottom.
• If you think of it, for the bottom increase the measurements by about 1/16th" or one line on most imperial measurement tools. This will give you a slightly smaller bottom for the box. If you use the same measurements for both though it will still work, just have a slightly more snug fit.
• Finished measurements are approximately 4 1/2" x 2 3/4 x 1 1/4".
• I used the stitched Basic Beige ribbon to finish off both boxes.

Download Small box scoring measurements(2)

• The box with the (Unbounded Love) tag has just one bouquet masked across the center of the 1/2 sheet cardstock prior to scoring. Note that the contrast of the ink softens a bit as it dries completely.

• For the second box I stamped pretty much all over the 1/2 sheet of cardstock I started with. It is a different look but did take longer to do. It does simplify things, however, to do everything with one color and I think it gives a very elegant look. These would be great for showers or even weddings.

 

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the May host code, 62ZPFCC7, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Layers Of Beauty Bundle (English) [163519]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Brights 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163775]
Elegant Borders Dies [161593]	Lemon Lolly Classic Stampin' Pad [161666]	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad [147094]
Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad [147089]

Product List

Layers Of Beauty Bundle (English) [163519]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Shy Shamrock Classic Stampin Pad [163808]
Pretty In Pink Classic Stampin Pad [163807]	2024–2026 In Color™ 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163777]	Deckled Rectangles Dies [159173]
Layers Of Beauty Decorative Masks [163517]	2024–2026 In Color™ Shimmer Gems [163781]

 

Product List

Layers Of Beauty Bundle (English) [163519]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Shy Shamrock Classic Stampin Pad [163808]
2024–2026 In Color™ 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163777]	Layers Of Beauty Decorative Masks [163517]	2024–2026 In Color™ Shimmer Gems [163781]
Peach Pie Classic Stampin Pad [163810]	Radiating Stitches Dies [161595]	Petal Pink & White 1/4" (6.4 Mm) Diagonal Trim Combo Pack [163417]

 

Product List

Layers Of Beauty Bundle (English) [163519]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Layers Of Beauty Decorative Masks [163517]
Lemon Lolly 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [161720]	Lemon Lolly Classic Stampin' Pad [161666]	Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad [147145]
Berry Burst Classic Stampin' Pad [147143]	Baker's Twine Three Color Pack [162759]

 

Product List

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Layers Of Beauty Decorative Masks [163517]	Blending Brushes [153611]
Basic Beige Classic Stampin Pad [163806]	Basic Beige 3/8" (1 Cm) Bordered Ribbon [163788]	Paper Trimmer [152392]
Unbounded Love Bundle (English) [163384]

Make it Masculine Blog Hop

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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Today I'm hopping with the Crafty Collaborations group and the theme is masculine cards or projects. With Father's Day just about a month away along with birthdays and anniversaries it would be a great time to hop around the internet and collect some masculine ideas. I don't know about you but feminine flowery images are fun to play and ideas across the internet abound. That's not always the case for masculine cards.  If you follow the hop you'll have lots of ideas. When it's time for something for one of your favorite guys pull a few of these ideas out of your pocket.

I recently ordered the Under the Moon set from Stampin' Up!'s new Annual Catalog thinking that I would not only use it alone but as kind of an accessory to some other sets. One of those sets is Feathered Flight which was introduced as an Online Exclusive last year.

• This is one of the first pieces I played with, stamping the clouds and water in Pretty Peacock. You can stamp the water image and then rotate it 180 degrees and use it to stamp more water, as many times as you wish to blend together what you need.
  
• I'm not an expert with waterfowl though it does look a bit like our neighborhood mallard. I stamped him, again with Pretty Peacock, just above the water and then decided that I should soften the white/peacock contrast by brushing on a little Crumb Cake ink. I die cut a Pretty Peacock foliage silhouette from the Thoughtful Wishes bundle but you could use any foliage silhouette die you might have.
• I used a strip of Country Wood DSP that was originally rather white but I used my blending brush to add some Lost Lagoon shading.

A few more with some of the same supplies:

• On this one I used the swimming duck from Feathered Flight(Pretty Peacock) and then used the water image from Under the Moon(Lost Lagoon) but rotated it to be upside down giving the illusion of more water.
• The card base and largest layer are Pool Party, not a color I would usually use on a masculine card but I think it does well with this monochromatic look. I embossed the large layer with the Timber 3D folder and then added a little Lost Lagoon ink around the edges to give a bit of contrast with the card base.
• Oh, yes. The layer for the main image. Keeping the height the same and allowing for variation in the borders at the sides allows for easier assembly.
• Ribbon doesn't often find it's way on to masculine cards but shredding it into threads and tying a knot is acceptable, don't you think?

Finally, I think this one is my favorite because I love doing this masking thing with the moon!

• 
  
• Keep your blending brushes out for this one! Believe it or not the main layer starts with a 1/4 sheet of white cardstock.
• Start by stamping the moon with Lemon Lolly and then mask it.
• My first layer of blending was done with Pool Party, roughly an inch around the moon. This will create the moon's glow in the night sky.
• Next, blend in some Azure Afternoon allowing it to overlap the Pool Party just a little. Then Blueberry Bushel over the remainder of the card, . Follow up with a bit of Night of Navy to deepen the color at the edges.
• Before removing the mask from the moon stamp a few clouds with white craft ink. Then, create the illusion of the moon's reflection in water by stamping the water stamp with white craft ink. I stamped this a few times, turning the stamp to broaden the coverage.
• I added the flying waterfowl in black. You could easily do this same card with the little dolphins from the Under the Moon set.
• Trim off a bit and layer your image onto an Azure Afternoon card base. I added a skinning strip of Summer Splash for a little nighttime sparkle.

Now it's time to check out the other blogs on the hop:

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the May host code, 62ZPFCC7, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Under The Moon Photopolymer Stamp Set [163531]	Feathered Flight Cling Stamp Set (English) [162726]	Pretty Peacock Classic Stampin’ Pad [150083]
Lost Lagoon Classic Stampin' Pad [161678]	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad [147107]	Azure Afternoon Classic Stampin' Pad [161663]
Blueberry Bushel Classic Stampin' Pad [147138]	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad [147110]	Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad [147116]
Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Pretty Peacock 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [150880]	Lost Lagoon 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [133679]
Pool Party 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [122924]	Azure Afternoon 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [161719]	Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [120953]
Country Woods 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163393]	2024–2026 In Color™ Glimmer 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper [163771]	Blending Brushes [153611]
Pretty Peacock & Gold 3/8" (1 Cm) Metallic Ribbon [162588]	Linen Thread [104199]	Timber 3 D Embossing Folder [163094]
Thoughtful Wishes Dies [163313]

Musical Jamboree and Thoughtful Journey Designer Series Paper

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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The other night I stamped a few images from a new set, Musical Jamboree, to bring down to the family room to color while we watched a show. I colored a few and then did some fussy cutting so that I could play around with the images to see what kind of card sketches worked well with them. I mostly colored with neutral type colors in Blends, Gray Granite, Pebbled Path, Crumb Cake with a little Pecan Pie on the banjo. I don't know why - other than I have a crush on it - I colored the bandana with Petunia Pop. Then I added a little extra texture and shading with the black watercolor pencil. The pencil lets you almost create hair in the animals.

Just to add a little suspense I have to tell you about a couple of other quick cards I made earlier that were sitting on my desk before I show you the coyote...

I had previously completed these cards combining the Thoughtful Journey designer series paper (DSP) with the In the Grove Dies. I decided that if I trimmed the framed woods down a bit I could show more of the scenery and colors. This did require me to find some low profile greetings, such as those in the Sweetly Scripted set.

 

  

I really like how adding the additional frame of DSP around the woods adds to the the card. I certainly thought they were finished. But, look what happens when I add my coyote:

Doesn't it look fun and almost whimsical. When I posted them on Instagram a friend said that they almost tell a story and I agree!  I had some other ideas for playing with Musical Jamboree but I think they are going to have to wait. This guy with his Petunia Pop bandana belong on this card!

Stay tuned for more with the Thoughtful Journey DSP. This has so many possibilities!

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the May host code, 62ZPFCC7, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Sweetly Scripted Cling Stamp Set (English) [163600]	Musical Jamboree Cling Stamp Set (English) [163616]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]
Mossy Meadow Classic Stampin' Pad [147111]	In The Grove Dies [163511]	Thoughtful Journey 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163303]
Pebbled Path Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161658]	Gray Granite Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154886]	Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154882]
Pecan Pie Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161674]	Petunia Pop Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [163828]	Watercolor Pencils Assortment 1 [161700]

Around the World on Wednesday and a Sketch Challenge

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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The second Tuesday in May means that it's time for our Around the World on Wednesday Blog Hop.

This month we have a sketch theme:

I envisioned strips of wood in the background and decided to explore the Country Birdhouse Bundle with it's coordinated Country Woods designer series paper (DSP). Soft, worn colors were also part of the picture forming in my mind.

• As you can see my card base is Petal Pink and the size is A2 - folded 8.5" x 11.
• The next layer is a quarter sheet (4 1/4" x 5 1/2") embossed with Dashing Designs 3D Embossing Folder. This is a great neutral folder. I trimmed this piece down to 4" x 5 1/4". Sometimes the embossing "shrinks" the cardstock just a bit and this is why I start with a larger piece and trim it to size after the embossing is done.
• To finish it off I lightly rubbed a white craft pad across it and embossed with white embossing powder. I considered just having the ink and not the heat embossing but it shows the texture just a bit more when you are using white embossed powder.
• Other than the greeting and the Petal Pink scallops on the bird house, all of the pieces are cut out of the DSP.
• The birdhouse, bird and greeting were stamped in Gray Granite ink.
  
• The 3 strips are each 3/4" wide. I cut a 1 1/8" piece of the same DSP but used the backside for the wood tone space between the strips. I did this by centering the middle strip on the reverse side and then gluing the edge of the remaining strips to the sides of this reverse piece.
• I tied a bow with Crumb Cake Twine and attached it under the Birthday greeting with a rolled glue dot.

Here is a close up of the softly colored birdhouse:

Thank you so much for stopping by. Now it's time to move on to see what Theresa McEntee has to show us.

Jan Clothier - NZ

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Mikaela Titheridge - US

Angie McKenzie - US

Kelly Taranto - US

Shel Anderson - CA

Sharon Hashimoto Burkert - US

Chris Smith - US

Theresa McEntee - US

Bree Renwick - US

Lori Willcox - CA

Teri West - US

Cheryl Hamilton - US

 

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the May host code, 62ZPFCC7, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Country Birdhouse Bundle (English) [163401]	Country Woods 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163393]	Gray Granite Classic Stampin' Pad [147118]
Baker's Twine Essentials Pack [155475]	Dashing Designs 3 D Embossing Folder [163483]	Basics Embossing Powders [155554]
Whisper White Craft Stampin' Pad [101731]	Petal Pink 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146985]	Basic Beige 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [164511]
Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653]

Can we talk a bit about Gorgeous Gingham?

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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Can we talk a bit about Glorious Gingham? This 6"x 6" DSP comes in a pack with 5 colors: Blueberry Bushel, Berry Burst, Pecan Pie, Lemon Lime Twist and Pretty Peacock and it's retiring in just a few days. I have a spare pack for myself and I thought I'd let you know why.

One of my favorite things about it is that one side is a diagonal check which is one of my favorite ways to add borders to a card. (Oops! It appears that all of my cards show this side but I think I'll be able to remedy that with the new Country Flowers set.)

Often I use it in small amounts so it does go a long way.

It plays nicely with any other DSP pattern that includes its color. The Masterfully Made DSP, featured here, is 30% off.

If you don't want the crisp check with white look you can use your blender brush to add more of the color for a deeper look with shades of the color. I've also done this when I want to pair it with Very Vanilla instead of white as I did with the Ice Cream Swirl and Blueberry Bushel cards above and also with this sympathy card:

I was looking through photos for these cards and came across a project I was planning with the gingham and Trucking Along Bundle and then the bundle went on a rather prolonged backorder. The bundle is available and here are some of the planning shots I took. They will give you a better idea of the paper and also some color ideas if you have or are interested in the Trucking Along Bundle.

  

  


As I look to what is available in this look with the new Annual Catalog I only see one diagonal plaid which comes in Blackberry Bliss in the To Market Suite. I expect we will see more come and go but this is a color mix that is really versatile so give it a thought while it is still available at 20% off. If you think it should find a place in your stash, you can get it through my store which has a link in the menu bar above. Or click on any of the products at the end of this post. While you are in the shop, do check out some of the other great bargains including the Paper Florist Dies shown below with the Pretty Peacock plaid in one of my "tablecloth corner" cards.

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the April host code, FRDSRTF4, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Can we talk a bit about Gorgeous Gingham? This 6"x6" DSP comes in a pack with 5 colors: Blueberry Bushel, Berry Burst, Pecan Pie, Lemon Lime Twist and Pretty Peacock. One of my favorite things about it is that one side is a a diagonal check which is one of my favorite way to add borders to a card. It plays nicely with any other DSP pattern that includes its color. If you don't want the crisp check with white look you can use your blender brush to add more of the color for a monochromatic look with shades of the color. As I look to what is available in this look with the new Annual Catalog I only see one diagonal plaid which comes in Blackberry Bliss in the To Market Suite.

Product List

Glorious Gingham 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163170]	Ice Cream Swirl Bundle (English) [162771]	Quiet Reflection Cling Stamp Set (English) [162689]
Masterfully Made 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [161192]	Wanted To Say Dies [161594]	Graceful Deer Cling Stamp Set [162084]
Tailor Made Tags Dies [155563]	Layering Leaves Photopolymer Stamp Set (English) [161277]	Bough Punch [157711]
Kindest Expressions Cling Stamp Set (English) [161415]	Translucent Florals Dies [162252]	Trucking Along Bundle (English) [162306]
Paper Florist Dies [161284]

More Layers of Beauty and a Last Chance Reminder

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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Last week I introduced some of the cards I've made with Layers of Beauty.  This is a hard bundle to set aside so I'm going to share a few more with you.  But first, we are also closing in on the last week or so of Stampin' Up!'s 2023-2024 Annual Catalog and the last Chance List. I have, well, just a few opinions about the best things to take advantage of on that list.

This week's color challenge: Gorgeous Grape + Fresh Freesia + Daffodil Delight, over on Splitcoaststampers was perfect opportunity to take out the Pansy Dies one more time before they retire. While the coordinating stamp set is now out of stock, the dies are on sale for just $16 and I wanted to show that they work REALLY well without the stamps.

• I only used Thick Basic White cardstock on this.  I blended the challenge colors, plus Mossy Meadow (a "free" neutral), on the white cardstock with blending brushes and then die cut a bunch of pieces. As I assembled the pieces I added a little more shading where needed. I do love that the Color Challenge over on Splitcoaststampers always allows you to add colors from Stampin' Up!'s Neutrals color palette.
• I also blended a rainbow like piece going from Mossy Meadow to Daffodil Delight to Fresh Freesia to Gorgeous Grape.
• I cut off the right front edge of my white card base using the large curve from the Basic Borders Dies, applied some Fresh Freesia ink with a blending brush and adhered my rainbow piece underneath it. These border dies are on sale for $17.40 and are still in stock as I write this.
• My greeting is from an Online Exclusives set, Comforting Thoughts. I embossed it in white on a scrap of the Mossy Meadow Blended piece and cut it out with a cute little label die from the Lovely & Sweet Bundle. This bundle WILL carry over.
• I finished the card off with 3/4" White Herringbone ribbon which is retiring with a discounted price of $6.80. I also applied some Tinsel Gems (3 pack, not retiring).
• As you can see you can make beautiful pansies with just the dies and then add any of your favorite greetings.

OK, now on to some more Layers of Beauty cards, and there just happen to be a few more of my retiring favorites...

First of all I used up some of the pieces I played around with on my last post with another of the Basic Border Dies:

• The border die I used here is from the same die set that has the curved die used above.
• The flowers are trimmed from a piece that I die cut a smaller die from and featured in my previous post.
• The paper I used on the inside of the card that peeks through is from the retiring Bright and Beautiful DSP (from the Balloon suite). The greeting is from the retiring set, Phrases for All which is currently half price.

One of my all time favorite die sets that will be retiring is Scalloped Contours Dies. Here are a few that I got out when I first started playing with Layers of Beauty:

   

And, here is one more Layers of Beauty card that I shared on Instagram over the weekend - the only one I've made that doesn't use something that is retired. It features some new products in one of the new In Colors, Peach Pie.

• The Layers of Beauty Bundle includes stamps, dies and a set of 5 masks for coloring the beautiful bouquet of roses. I used Peach Pie for the two lighter colors on the roses and then some Calypso Coral for the darkest detail. I lightly blended some Garden Green on the leaves.
• I also used some other new products, In Color DSP, gems and In Color Glimmer Specialty Paper.  The paper lace border is made with one of the Elegant Border Dies in the Online Exclusives.

More favorites:

Parakeet Party Blends - If you use Blends, you can always use some extra greens and these are a good deal!

Soft Shimmer and Masterfully Made DSP. These work so well together.

Glorious Gingham DSP  - I use these so much, especially the diagonal patterns as borders.  Hint: When I want to soften the contrast of a bold color with white, I use my blends to add more color so that the white disappears and you just have a two shades of color.

Masks: I love to add just a hint of color to my background with these.

Classic Matte Dots - I will really miss these. They aren't too showy when you need something less feminine and dots are so useful. Sometimes I use them to bring balance back to the card when I can't get the other elements of the card arranged just right.

Sheer Ribbon 3 pack - I have really fallen in love with Bubble Bath and Lemon Lolly the past few months. I always prefer neutral or pale ribbons and these do fill that bill!

Scalloped Contour Dies - I think I will still be showing samples with these, just about my favorite dies ever!

Basic Border Dies - The zig zag and curve are my most used but the clouds and shallow point are quite useful too.

Chic Dies - You can easily use these without the coordinating stamps. leaves, flower, shells and snowflakes cover all the seasons plus that open weave piece is fabulous!

Christmas Pine Cone Dies - Any flower can become part of a holiday arrangement with these on hand.

Pansy Dies - SO, SO pretty on their own. They would probably work well with any greetings.

Merry Melody Embossing Folder - I have loved using this for Christmas birthday cards!

I will link the above mentioned favorite retiring products at the bottom of this post.

Rumor has it the Clearance Rack is being updated too so don't forget to check that out!

---

I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the April host code, FRDSRTF4, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Parakeet Party Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [159220]	Soft Shimmer 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper [161750]	Masterfully Made 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [161192]
Glorious Gingham 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [163170]	Foursquare Decorative Masks [161285]	Artistic Mix Decorative Masks [159178]
Classic Matte Dots [158146]	3/8" (1 Cm) Sheer Ribbon Combo Pack [161635]	Basic Borders Dies [155558]
Chic Dies [158815]	Christmas Pinecone Dies [156309]	Pansy Dies [155680]
Scalloped Contours Dies [155560]	Merry Melody 3 D Embossing Folder [156392]

 

Layers of Beauty Intro

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

---

Layers of Beauty was the first toy I played with when I received my preorder and it's almost preventing me from playing with anything else. Geesh!

Today I'm sharing a couple of cards I did while playing with this week's Color challenge at Splitcoaststampers.

Barbara chose these colors: Polished Pink, Lemon Lolly and Parakeet Party plus she suggested we use an embossing folder if we'd like "dessert".

 

• This first card makes use of a smaller die that cuts out just a portion of the larger bouquet.
• I used one of the Fun Patterns embossing folders for my dessert. This is a regular (non 3-D) folder and I was pleasantly surprised that this pattern didn't soften the cardstock too much so it still made a nice firm card base.

Same card, different version:

• I couldn't bear to toss out the remaining parts of the bouquet so I tried putting one of the pieces as a second image draped down from the top of the card.

I can't decide which I like better but maybe you can see why I have trouble butting this bundle away...

---

I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the April host code, FRDSRTF4, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

This or That with Around the World on Wednesday

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

---

Hello Stampers! It's time for the monthly Around the World on Wednesday Blog Hop again.

This month our theme is This or That: remaking a card or changing things up or just trying to decide "this one or that one". I'm also hosting a color challenge over on Splitcoaststampers this week so I thought I would combine the two. The colors are Crushed Curry, Granny Apple Green and Basic Black. Dessert is optional and is adding a second green.

I definitely had daisies and bees on my mind when I chose these colors. We usually have an optional dessert for these challenges and the dessert I specified was to add a second green. As part of the design team I usually know the colors or themes ahead of time so I have a little time to play  - or be perplexed about my choices. Perfect for this or that, wouldn't you say?

I've known that it was going to be time for my favorite dies, Scalloped Contours,  to retire but I'm still a bit sad about it and won't be sending mine to storage any time soon. But I also need to get a little more practice using other dies that can work in the same situations, such as the Everyday Details dies. So one of my dilemmas was whether to use the scallops or not. In a way it was kind of nice thinking that I would end up with two cards, instead of making decisions for just one, especially when I started thinking about the choices for daisies that you get with the Cheerful Daisies Bundle.

This bundle allows you to die cut stamped daisies OR to layer dies for nicely textured daisies.

I did think about whether the bee should be stamped on white or Crushed Curry cardstock but in the end the main choice was whether to include it on the polka dot card or not. I decided it was too busy with the polka dots.

I tried our three kinds of daisies on the white, Every Day Details, card base:

Final choice - big dots, scallops and green daisies or little dots and white textured daisies - with a bee. I've yet to decide which is my favorite and posted both for the color challenge. What do you think?

  

Now it's time to continue on to the rest of the blog hop. Let's see what creative delights Tricia has in store for us!

 

Jan Clothier - NZ

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Danielle Kassing - NL

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Angie McKenzie - US

Kelly Taranto - US

Chris Smith - US

Tricia Butts - US

Theresa McEntee - US

Bree Renwick - US

Lori Willcox - CA

Teri West - US

Cheryl Hamilton - US

 

 

---

I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the April host code, FRDSRTF4, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Product List

Cheerful Daisies Bundle (English) [161297]	Bee My Valentine Bundle (English) [162554]	Scalloped Contours Dies [155560]
Everyday Details Dies [162864]	Basics 3 D Embossing Folders [161598]	Blending Brushes [153611]
Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad [147087]	Granny Apple Green Stampin' Pad [147095]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]
Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad [147145]	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229]	Basic Black 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [121045]
Brights 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper [161643]	Black & White 1/4" (6.4 Mm) Gingham Ribbon [156485]	Black & Very Vanilla 3/8" (1 Cm) Large Check Ribbon [161982]

Sneak Peek: Country Flowers

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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We are back after an extended road trip after I attended Stampin' Up!'s Onstage earlier this month. My husband and I headed west to visit my parents in Arizona last week and then headed home to Minnesota just in time for a spring snowstorm.

On our trip we were fortunate to see spring blooms in many places so now that we are back I'm having fun putting together a few flower cards with a new set I brought home, Country Flowers.

This first card is my version of a Onstage After Hours, an optional stamping event I enjoyed with one of my downline.  I had registered to use Country Flowers though there were 2 other choices.  One of the new In Colors for 2024-2026 is Petunia Pop. It is my new FAVORITE! It's kind of right between Berry Burst and Fresh Freesia. Anyway, we all had cards to make using the same 3 sketches but with different colors. Well, I just had to switch mine up to use one of the other set's colors: Petunia Pop, Peach Pie, and Lemon Lime:

The sketch is basically what they suggested for Country Flowers but I borrowed the color scheme from the Citrus Blooms Stamp set:

• I stamped the rose image on two squares of Basic White and watercolored them with Lemon Lime Twist, Petunia Pop, and Peach Pie.
• The same image was stamped on the upper right and lower left corners of a piece of Petunia Pop cardstock with the same color ink.
• I added a layer of Lemon-Lime Twist and embellished it with Petunia Pop Shimmer Gems and Black Baker's Twine.

I watercolored another image using the plant in the teapot for another project at the event. But ... then brought it home and changed the layout completely. Using a little bit of everything.  Not the way most Stampin' Up! demonstrators design teaching projects, but maybe the way most of us stamp in real life.

• The image was watercolored on 2 1/2" x 3" watercolor paper with Pecan Pie, Lemon-Lime Twist and Shy Shamrock.
• This image is layered onto a 2 9/16" x 3 1/16" piece of Basic Black.  Yes, you read that right. The black was just 1/16" bigger. You have to use the tiniest of the markings on your trimmer. But, with a little practice you can get a nice, skinny border.
• The DSP strip is from the Zoo Crew designer series paper which will retire soon.
• I cut the teeny tiny banner out with the smallest die from Countryside Corners Dies and then stamped just the "sending" from the sending Love greeting that comes in the Country Flowers stamps. Instead of a stamped "love" I used the die cut "love" from the January - March add-on dies. These are no longer available though there is a new set, Thanks & Beyond,  available for the April - June kits. These are only available to Paper Pumpkin Subscribers.
• These elements are mounted onto a Lemon-Lime Twist piece of cardstock that is embossed with one of the Basics 3D Embossing Folders.

Finally I have this week's color combination at Splitcoaststampers. Diane is hosting with Boho Blue, Fresh Freesia and Soft Sea Foam. Dessert is spring.

• I'm using some soon to retire products, the most important of which is the Scalloped Contours Dies. Though I knew it would likely retire this year, it is still disappointing. I use this scallop border so often and the scalloped rectangle dies are superb too. They will be on sale in April - if you want to take a chance that they are still in stock.
• Other retiring products are the Boho Blue Ribbon, Dots and In Color 2023-2025 DSP.
• There are two hints I would like to point out. The first is a trick I like to use instead of dimensionals.  I make two extra die cuts if I want to show some dimension. On this card I cut two extra flower shapes in Boho Blue. It gives just a little shadow and makes a die cut that needs to stand out a little sturdier.
• The second hint is to use the dot or jewel embellishments to improve the balance of your design.  As I was designing this I couldn't come up with a location for the greeting that I was totally comfortable with. So I went with my gut feeling to place it low on the card, close to my flower pot, knowing that I could add some dots to eliminate any awkwardness this left in the design. I think the dots help tie the greeting and image together and also start to float up into my white space, kind of increasing the white space's relevance in the design. Maybe it sounds kind of silly but that is my process...

That's a lot of chit chat for one evening. Have a good week!

---

I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the March host code, VCXZ9MK7, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Singing the Blues with Around the World on Wednesday

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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Welcome back to this month's Around the World on Wednesday blog hop.

Our theme this month is March Blues and we have a great little palette to choose from:

I took inspiration from some of Stampin' Up!'s new Online Exclusives products: Simply Zinnia, Fun Pattern Embossing Folders, and White Glimmer Paper Specialty Paper. I took my color cues from the soft and lovely Balmy Blue Variegated Ribbon. It's so easy to make lovely monochromatic cards with paper, ink and embellishments that coordinate so well!

• 
  
• This card is easy to adapt to any blue, or any other color you like for that matter.
• I used a basic 5 1/2" x 4 1/4"  card base.
• The Fun Patterns embossing folders are narrow enough to work in the Mini Stampin' Cut & Emboss though you need to use the regular sized Stampin' Cut & Emboss to use paper that is wider than the machines opening, as I did here.
• I embossed 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" pieces of vellum cardstock, keeping the folder on the right side, with the left peeking out. Then I trimmed the cardstock to 5 1/4" x 4" before applying adhesive where the embossed vellum meets the unembossed vellum.
• After attaching this to my card base I tied the ribbon around the same area, thus covering any adhesive that shows through.
• I went on to decorate the card with a white zinnia cut with the Simply Zinnia Bundle and embellished with die cut pieces from white glimmer specialty paper. The greeting strip is also trimmed with the specialty paper and features a thank you message from Simply Zinnia.

Here is a close up of the detail.

Before I send you along the the next blog on the hop I'll share another version. The first card inspired me to make a few of these to swap when I head to Houston for Onstage, a Stampin' Up gathering with other demonstrators. I did this in Pool Party, one of my all time favorite blues, using the Magnolia Mood Bundle:

Now it's time to continue on the blog hop and see what blues Tricia has in store for us:

Jan Clothier - NZ

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Ximena Morales - DE

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Mikaela Titheridge - UK

Annette Ball - CA

Angie McKenzie - US

Kelly Taranto - US

Sharon Hashimoto Burkert - US

Chris Smith - US

Tricia Butts - US

Theresa McEntee - US

Lori Willcox - CA

Cheryl Hamilton - US

 

---

I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the March host code, VCXZ9MK7, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Easter Lilies with Around the World on Wednesday

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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Today we are blog hopping with Around the World on Wednesday and we are all sharing the love of a favorite technique. Well, when you've been stamping as long as I have, the favorites come and go but when I read this theme I had no problem coming up with my favorite technique.  It's not one I really have a name for but I've used a few times recently and it always seems to draw me back into the stamp studio.

This is kind of like 3 techniques mixed together.

First I blend monochromatic colors onto a piece of cardstock.  I've found that this process goes more quickly and gives richer color if I start with colored cardstock to begin with. So far I've tried Coastal Cabana with Lost Lagoon and Night of Navy blended, Lemon Lolly with Wild Wheat (and a little Mossy Meadow) and finally, Fresh Freesia with whatever purple was on my blending brush (pale Gorgeous Grape?) followed by more Fresh Freesia. As you can see sometimes I work from a darker bottom to brighter top and other times I more or less add the ink around the edges, leaving a lighter interior. Any pattern works but the idea is to show some kind of gradient.

My next step is to add dry embossing. I used the Distressed Tile 3D Emossing Folder on a couple of the cards and the Zinnia 3D folder on the third.

Finally I add just a touch of heat embossing by barely touching my Versamark ink pad to some of the raised portions of my embossed backgrounds. You don't want lots of embossing powder here. It's just an accent. Try to use a very light touch in applying the Versamark and feel free to use a small paintbrush to brush away any excess. I've only used gold pwder thus far but there's no reason you couldn't try another color.

For these first two examples I used embossed images for my focal points

This uses the main bouquet from Stippled Roses. After embossing, I applied Real Red and Garden Green ink with sponge daubers.

This Easter Lily bundle is so fun to work with. There are 4 parts and you have flexibility to arrange the lilies in various stages of blooming. There is an additional option to just use die cuts without stamps to assemble your lilies.

Finally, I stamped the zinnias in Tuxedo Black Memento and colored them with Blends. Though the image itself is not heat embossed, I sprinkled a bit of gold embossing powder over the zinnias and heated it from below, adding just a bit of gold shimmer.

I hope you give this combination of techniques a try. it can be just a bit addicting...

Now it's time to continue on with the blog hop. There's much more loveliness to see. Next up is Tricia Butts.

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Danielle Kassing - NL

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Mikaela Titheridge - UK

Angie McKenzie - US

Kelly Taranto - US

Sharon Hashimoto Burkert - US

Chris Smith - US

Tricia Butts - US

Theresa McEntee - US

Bree Renwick - US

Cheryl Hamilton - US

 

---

I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the February host code, T3XTGYVZ, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Around the World on Wednesday with a Sketch Challenge

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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Hello there stampers.  It's the second Wednesday of January and that means that it's time for another blog hop with the talented Around the World on Wednesday crew. If you are new to my blog, I'm Chris Smith. And, if you are following the listed order you are probably stopping by from Sharon Hashimoto Burkert's blog.

This month we have a sketch theme with this intriguing sketch. It has a few features that are a little outside my comfort zone, like being square, having a diagonal plus a few more layers than I typically use. But, no worries. Angie, our fearless leader, always says "most of all, have fun" and I knew I could take a little artistic license with the sketch if I needed it.

 

I got started by going through a stash of newly colored images I've been collecting. Do you have a preference for outline or solid images? It turns out most of the preordering that I did for the fall mini catalog involved solid images and I really missed the coloring so I think I did a 180 degree turn with the latest catalog and ordered MANY images to color. So as we watched the classic holiday movies I colored!  I used a few of them on my first layout to get a feel for the sketch:

I played around with a few greetings that came with these images in the Lovely & Sweet Bundle:

 

...and decided to go with the "bit of love" greeting as I felt it worked better for the square card.

I was a little concerned that I had competing focal points but didn't want to give up either image. I had done some research into the images. The larger, lower right image represents a cocoa plant. Pinterest indicated that the pod could be rust to reddish to purple hues. The smaller one on the  upper right is a vanilla and would be more realistic with yellow blooms but this is one I colored after seeing how well the cocoa image looked in the Berry Burst, Soft Sea Foam and Mossy Meadow combo.  It reminded me of print I once had of an orchid with a hummingbird, so I'm just sticking with these...  Anyway, I thought maybe I could use both images if I went just a bit more in the collage direction. More stamping, more texture, more embellishments.

And here we are:

Thank you so much for stopping by! Now it's time to head on to see what the talented Tricia Butts has in store for us.

Jan Clothier - NZ

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Danielle Kassing - NL

Ximena Morales - DE

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Mikaela Titheridge - UK

Tina Zinck-MacDonald - CA

Annette Ball - CA

Angie McKenzie - US

Kelly Taranto - US

Shel Anderson - CA

Sharon Hashimoto Burkert - US

Chris Smith - US

Tricia Butts - US

Theresa McEntee - US

Bree Renwick - US

Cheryl Hamilton - US

---

I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the January host code, XHY4D4BW, I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  You will also get to choose at least one Sale-a-bration item. US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Lovely & Sweet Bundle (English) [162627]	Layered Florals 3 D Embossing Folder [162935]	Nested Essentials Dies [161597]
Soft Sea Foam Classic Stampin' Pad [147102]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]	Versamark Pad [102283]
Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154882]	Mossy Meadow Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154890]	Soft Sea Foam Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154902]
Berry Burst Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161681]	Bubble Bath Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161675]	Basics Embossing Powders [155554]
Linen Thread [104199]	2023–2025 In Color™ Dots [161620]	Crumb Cake 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [120953]
Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [140272]	Berry Burst 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [144243]	Soft Sea Foam 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146988]

Pastel Stars at Night Stampin' Up Card

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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I hope you have had a pleasant long weekend with family and friends, shopping, cooking or maybe even crafting!  I thought I'd jump in on the Crafty Collaborations Share it Sunday blog hop this morning to share a card whose pieces have been on my desk for a bit. This particular blog hop is sure to have several surprises if you follow along as there is no set theme and everyone will be doing their own thing.

Back to my pieces, I was inspired to try these in pastel colors by one of Bobbie Hartmann Lemanski's (aka Bobbi Hart) cards on Instagram. 

• Some weeks ago I watercolored a half dozen pieces of watercolor paper by spritzing the whole sheet with water and then adding bits of reinker randomly with my brush.  I tried to keep the color light on this one and dabbed color off with a tissue if it got to dark.
• Then, a few weeks ago I pulled out this one and use it with the Stars at Night Hybrid Embossing Folder, which features a 3D folder and coordinating dies. I die cut part of the embossed piece and kept a strip whole.
• I pulled out some gems and applied some Wink of Stella. So, so pretty but I just wasn't sure how I wanted to do a card.
• Finally I pulled out my specialty papers and voilà! The matte rose gold looked perfect so I pulled out my well loved Celebrate die from the Wanted to Say set and layered it on some vellum and added some skinny strips of rose gold to the edges of my panel.
• I knew I would have to edit down the number of stars so I will probably have to come up with a second card to use them all.

This shot shows the Wink of Stella a bit better. Maybe you've seen the gorgeous Stars at Night Hybrid Embossing Folder used with the coordinating stamp set, papers and other accessories. The papers and gold star embellishments are sold out and the hybrid folder is now on sale for 30% off. I still think there is so much you can do with the folder and dies and it's kind of fun to step out of the box after seeing a set used almost exclusively with an elegant but entirely different color scheme.

Know it's time to check out other lovelies on the blog hop:

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the November host code, C4PB2K3R , I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me:

Product List

Stars At Night Hybrid Embossing Folder [162006]	Wanted To Say Dies [161594]	Lemon Lolly Classic Stampin' Ink Refill [161671]
Pool Party Classic Stampin' Ink Refill [122933]	Bubble Bath Classic Stampin' Ink Refill [161670]	Fluid 100 Watercolor Paper [149612]
Very Vanilla 8-1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [144237]	Rose Gold 12” X 12” (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper [159139]	Vellum 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [101856]
Stampin' Spritzer [126185]	Water Painters [151298]	Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush [141897]

The Daisy Sketch

Before you read on I want to draw your attention to the "STAY IN TOUCH" link just above.  Click there to sign up for my newsletter. You'll be so glad you did! Many thanks ~ Chris

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One of my favorite sketches to use over the past few months is one I refer to as the the "daisy" sketch. I originally started using this in 2019 with the Daisy Lane Stamp set along with a large and medium sized daisy punch.  Please note that links to Mini Catalog Last Chance and Carryover lists follow this topic.

This is my initial "perfected" version, after playing with a few different colors, etc.

It basically has:

• a left border that is 1/2" to 1" or so wide with the remainder covered by DSP or a dry embossed piece.
• an approximately 1 3/4" wide greeting panel on the lower 1/3 or so of the card. 
• 2 objects (daisies) on the left of the message and one on the lower right, extending off the card.
• embellish with leaves etc as desired or indicated by the occasion.

It was easy to adapt for a specific occasion request.

I shared this one earlier this fall with altered colors and objects but the same basic arrangement.

Last month, I brought it out again for when I hosted a color challenge:

This is one that I did on a Facebook Live video earlier this month. After the video I decided to add a tiny bit of Balmy Blue Blends brushed just outside the yellow centers, along with a few more leaves...

Here is the video.

On a different note: Stampin' Up! has announced the carryover and last chance lists for the September - December Mini Catalog. Sale prices go into effect on Tuesday, November 21. Many thanks to Michele Barnes and Cheryl Smith for the large print versions of these lists!

Download Last Chance No French Larger Font Sept - Dec 2023 Mini

Download CARRYOVER_US_LG_PRINTMARGINS

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I so appreciate that you took the time as you visit my blog today. Let me know what you think and come back again soon! Feel free to ask questions if something isn't clear.

If you would like to receive my newsletter please click on the Stay in Touch link at the top of my blog. You can also check out the Stampin' Up! catalogs link in the same location. If you don't have regular Stampin' Up Demonstrator and would like hard copies of any of our current catalogs please feel free to email me at [email protected]

I would love to help you with your stamping journey and have you shop with me! You can click on "Shop with Chris Smith" at the top of my blog.

If you place a minimum $50 (US) order using the November host code, C4PB2K3R , I will send you a gift with a make and take project.  US customers only. Customers placing an order smaller than $50 will still receive my thank you card.

If you place a $150 or greater order please don't use the hostess code. You will still receive the gifts but you will also get your own hostess benefits.        

Shop with Me: