Magnolia Blossoms

 Here are some new-to-me Simon goodies that I recently received.  I liked the way these flowers are constructed, simply, but they show a lot of detail and dimension.  I also got a new 3D embossing folder to go with them.  My post today has 3 cards made with them.

supplies: white, several pinks, and green cardstock, a dark pink Zig marker, Simon Says Stamp Etched Magnolia Blossom dies, Magnolia Branches embossing folder, leaves from PTI Build a Bouquet die set, Spellbinders Curved Everyday Sentiments Glimmer Plate/die, Rose Gold glimmer foil, Doodlebug Tiny Heart sprinkles

Simon is putting their newer dies on a magnetic sheet now, which is a lovely plus!  I used 2 shades of pink for my flowers, and a marker in a shade darker to color the top 2 parts of them, lifting the very center above everything else, and pulling the middle layer upwards.  This set doesn not have leaves to go with it, but these PTI ones worked just fine with them.

We have a Betty magnolia that has wrapped itself around a corner bedroom, making the room feel like it's in a tree house!  This year the buds formed and a few flowers opened, but then we had a couple cold nights, and that was the end of them for this year.

Here's a picture of it in better years.

This type of magnolia isn't nearly as big the as the beautiful Southern Magnolias, but nonetheless a nice option for us here in the north.  

Next I used these dies and made an ivory version to represent the southern variety.

supplies: 3 shades of ivory, gold, and green cardstock, Simon Says Stamp Magnolia Blossom dies and Magnolia Branches embossing folder, stamped sentiment from Vintage Garden

The sentiment is from a 2022 stamp set with the most lovely cursive font on the sentiments.

And finally, my friend Mary Anne sent me a pop-up card for Easter that I couldn't wait to CASE.  I used just one of these flowers as the focal point for my version of her card. It measures 4 inches wide, and folds flat so it fits into an A2 envelope.  There's room on the reverse for a sentiment.

supplies: white, pinks, green, and yellow cardstock, Doodlebug patterned papers, Magnolia Blossoms dies, PTI Build a Bouquet leaves

Hope you're doing well - thanks for visiting me today!

Country Basket

 I received this new Simon Says Stamp die set just before we left for our little trip, so I am just now getting around to paying with it.

supplies: white, parchment, kraft, and various pastel cardstock, Simon Says Stamp Country Basket Bouquet, Simon Hurley Must-Have Sentiments Glimmer Foil Plate/die set, gold glimmer foil, adhesive foam

It was easy to put together, with lots of floral options for filling this cute little basket.  And it's a good size for a focal point on an A2 card - not much else needed.  After arranging my basket, I added some adhesive foam to pop it above the card base.

Hope your day is going well; thanks so much for stopping by today!

Easter Blessings

 You should have noticed by now that I really love embossing in my backgrounds.  So when I saw this card by Jane Kathryn on Pinterest, I thought I'd do a CASE of it.  I loved Jane's idea because it really forces you to look at the amazing details in the embossed design.  Here's my version.

supplies: white cardstock, Spellbinders/Yana Smakula Amaryllis Garden 3D embossing folder, rectangle die, sentiment/matching die from Spellbinders February 2024 Daffodil Spray Glimmer kit, Polished Brass glimmer foil

I simply embossed an A2 panel, and overlayed it with another plain one that looks like a frame.

These flowers looked like lilies or fancy daffodils to me, and from there I went to our upcoming Easter holiday next week.  I haven't done a white-on-white card in eons, and these 3D folders work beautifully with that idea.  With a different folder and sentiment, this would make a lovely sympathy card, too.  

The foiled sentiment takes it up a step, don't you think?  

Happy Easter!

An Angel for Christmas

Last year I chose these PTI Angel dies, but made ornaments with them mostly.  This year I wanted to make a card using them.

supplies: white, Cotton Candy, Mint, and gold foil cardstock, Taylored Expressions (retired) Sheet Music embossing folder, PTI Build an Angel dies, sentiment from Spellbinders Sending Joy Sentiments Betterpress plate/die set, Christmas Wreath die set, and Essential Arches die, Polished Brass glimmer foil, tiny pink pearls, adhesive foam

If you'd like to see my angels from last year, go HERE.  This is a wonderful set!  

Christmas is getting closer - are you ready?  This year, both boys and the Grands will be with us!  First time in an eon, and we are SO excited!  

Spellbinders December Club Kits: What Matters Most

This post will be my last as an influencer for Spellbinders.  It's time for me to slow down here; I've been going full-tilt for 20 some years, and I want to be able to do this only for enjoyment now.  You'll still see me posting, but far less than in the past.  I"m so grateful to Spellbinders for allowing me to play with their amazing products, and I've enjoyed every minute!

The December Spellbinders Club Kits are now available, through Dec. 27!  The theme this month is What Matters Most.  Traditionally, the December kits are made with Valentine's Day in mind, and this year the hearts are more subtle than some kits in the past, but they're there.

My first card pairs the Stencil Kit, Where Love Lands, with the embossing folder, Sweet Stems, and a sentiment from the BetterPress kit, I'd Pick You.

supplies: white and pink cardstock, Where Love Lands stencil set, pinks, blues, greens, yellow, and tan inks, Sweet Stems embossing folder, I'd Pick You BetterPress sentiment, adhesive foam squares

After finishing my stenciling, I decided to fussy-cut out the image, and popped it above the hearts and flowers embossed panel.  The sentiment is perfect for the image!

Next I mixed the Stitching kit, A Perfect Blend, with the 3D folder, Unlock My Heart.

supplies: white, red, aqua, and pale grey cardstock, A Perfect Blend Stitching dies, white embroidery floss, Unlock My Heart 3D embossing folder

Once again this month, there is minimal stitching; only a bit on the half-hearts.  There's also another sentiment in the set.  

Next, here are the Dies of the Month, Better Together and the Glimmer Kit, Soft Hearted.  I also used a sentiment from the Stitching Kit and an Essential Heart die.

supplies: cream, kraft, brown, green, yellow, several pinks, and black cardstock, Better Together dies, Essential Hearts die, Soft Hearted glimmer plate, included Bright Pink glimmer foil, sentiment from A Perfect Blend stitching kit

I really like the Bright Pink glimmer foil!  I foiled it on a medium pink cardstock to use as my background.  After I constructed the pair of owls, I saw that it was pretty busy for them, so I used a heart to separate them.  The sentiment is a die that is included in the Stitching Kit.

This Better Together kit also includes a cute little otter and some sentiments to use with him.

As I said, I liked the foil color this month, so I used it again on the BetterPress plates, called I'd Pick You.  It's a sweet clean and simple design - simply foil the press heart plate and one of the sentiments from the Glimmer kit, then add a bow die-cut from pink metallic cardstock.

 

supplies: white and pink cardstock, pink metallic kraft cardstock, I'd Pick You BetterPress plates, sentiment and matching die from Soft Hearted Glimmer kit,  Bright Pink glimmer foil, Garden Wreath bow

Here is my card using the Large Dies, Wrapped in Care and a sentiment from the Stamp/Die set, Simply Said.

supplies: white and colored cardstock, Wrapped in Care dies, sentiment/die from Simply Said, Sweet Stems embossing folder

And finally, my last card features the Caboodle dies, Unwind.

supplies: white and shades of softr peach cardstock, Unwind caboodle bonus dies, sentiment/die from Simply Said, Tiny Heart Scallop 3D embossing folder

I went with soft peaches this time.  And since the caboodle bonus dies are titled Unwind, I used that sentiment from the clear stamp/die set for this month.  It is a sentiment set, containing 14 different sentiments, with dies for each one.  The embossing folder that I used for my background is from a year ago.

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available for new subscribers only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all, plus a free bonus item each month, and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!

Spellbinders November Club Kits: Charmed Life

 The Spellbinders Club Kits for November are now available, through November 27.  The overall theme is Charmed Life - all things girly!

My first card shows you the Large Dies of the Month, Charmed Life.  It makes a partial purse with some fun charms attached: a teddy bear, cherries, and a flying pig!  I mixed it with the Glimmer Plate, Luxe Links, foiled with Blush glimmer foil.

 

supplies: cream, tans, browns, and pinks cardstock, rose gold metallic cardstock,  a dotted pink dp, Charmed Life dies, flying pig from the Caboodle Bonus, Luxe Links glimmer plate, Blush glimmer foil. foiled sentiment from Paws in the City BetterPress kit

I started by foiling a piece of chocolate cardstock with Blush glimmer foil (included in this month's kit), then used a die in the Charmed Life set to trim it into a partial purse shape.  That was affixed to a cream A2 panel, then I made my charms, tied a scarf around the handle, and added a sentiment from the BetterPress kit, Paws in the City.  There are more charms to choose from, as well as ways to hang them.  The little flying pig is the Caboodle Bonus for this month!

Next up is another purse, much smaller this time, that doubles as a puppy carrier!  It's made from the Stitching dies, Fur-ever Fabulous, and I popped it above the 3D folder, Petite Tuft, and added another sentiment from the BetterPress kit.

supplies: white, black, tans, brown, pinks cardstock, Fur-Ever Fabulous stitching dies, camel embroidery floss, 3 strands, Petite Tuft 3D embossing folder, sentiment from Paws in the City BetterPress kit

The stitching kit this month has very little stitching, only on the purse, to give it some dimension.  I popped the whole thing above my background, and used yet another BetterPress sentiment.

The Clear Stamps and Dies are called Go-To Girl.

supplies: white cardstock, aqua printed paper, Go-To Girl clear stamps and matching dies, Nested Tree Frames rectangle

This kit contains what you see here, plus another girl, some accessories, and 3 more sentiments.  And there are matching dies for the main images and all of the sentiments.  

I always enjoy the stencils each month; here's my card to show you them.  They're called Cherry Chic, and I had to use the cherries from the Charmed Life set, of course!

supplies: white, red, green, aqua, and a red gingham patterned cardstock, Cherry Chic stencils, inks in 2 aquas, red, and green, cherries from Charmed Life, sentiment and die from All Seasons Summer press plate/die set, (retired) Postage Edge Rectangle die

As always, there are 5 stencils in the set, 2 for the stripes, and the remaining 3 for the cherry details.  I used a sentiment from last year.

Almost done!  Here are the Dies of the Month for November, Let's Do Brunch, and the embossing folder, Luxe Lattice.

supplies: colored cardstock, Let's Do Brunch dies, Luxe Lattice embossing folder, swiped with white ink

This fun die set contains brunch foods! (I didn't include toast or champagne). And the little arms and legs are a fun addition.  There are 2 other sentiments included, too.  I used the Luxe Lattice swiped with white ink as a kind of tablecloth for them.

And finally, here is my card using the BetterPress kit, Paws in the City.

supplies: white and red cardstock, black and white diagonal stripe dp, Paws in the City BetterPress Plate (includes sentiment), Perfect Touch Rectangle die

The set includes an acetate registration sheet to help you place the images.  And there is a die that will cut out all the sentiments at once.

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available for new subscribers only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all, plus a free bonus item each month, and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!

October Spellbinders Club Kits: Glimpses of Christmas, part 2

 The Spellbinders Club Kits for October are now available until October 27; the overall theme is Glimpses of Christmas.

First I played with the Large Dies: Window Wonderland.

supplies: greys, cream, green, red, and white glitter cardstock, Window Wonderland dies, Brick by Brick 3D embossing folder, sentiment and matching die from To You and Yours set

This is one of the most intricate die sets I can remember working with - 35 pieces!  There's also a child pulling a sled included, which is coming up next.  And it works nicely with the brick embossing folder.

Here's a card to show you the child pulling his sled full of gifts, mixed with several of the other Club Kits.

supplies: colored cardstock, Window Wonderland large dies, Snow Day Friends small dies, Magic Wonderland glimmer plate and Moondust glimmer foil, sentiment from To You and Yours

Here is the Caboodle Bonus for this month, mixed with the embossing folder and some greens.

supplies: red, white, and green cardstock, Magic for You dies, Holiday Flurry embossing folder, Christmas Wreath Add-Ons greens

My last card shows you the biggest stamp in the Stamps/Dies: To You and Yours. mixed with the Glimmer plate, Magic Wonderland.

supplies: green and white cardstock, To You and Yours tree stamp and matching die, Magic Wonderland glimmer plate, embossed, red and yellow enamel dots

I stamped the tree in green ink, cut it out with its matching die, and added some "berries" and a star using enamel dots.  For the background, I embossed the glimmer plate; I wanted just some subtle texture.

Edited to add my card using this month's BetterPress plates, called Made with Snowflakes.

supplies: white and red cardstock, Made with Snowflakes (includes sentiment), red marker to color hats

What an easy card to make - I just pressed the snowmen image using black ink, then carefully colored in their hats.  There are 3 sentiment plates in this set.  I pressed this one using red ink, matted it with red cardstock, and affixed it to the card front.  

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available for new subscribers only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all, plus a free bonus item each month, and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!

Spellbinders September Club Kits: Charmed Season

 The September Club Kits from Spellbinders are available to new subscribers, now through September 27!  The theme is Charmed Season, all about Fall.

To set the tone for this month's theme, I played first with the Small Dies, aptly called Harvest Magic. I mixed them with the 3D embossing folder, Patchwork, and a sentiment from the Stamps/Dies, Autumn Whim.

supplies: colored cardstock, Harvest Magic dies, Autumn Whim sentiment, Patchwork embossing folder

That black cat is darling, isn't he, and there's a nice variety of autumn findings to surround the pumpkin with.  I love the quilt embosssing folder, too.

Next up are the Stencils of the Month, Acorns and Oaks, and I added another sentiment from the  Autumn Whim stamps/dies.

supplies: white and kraft cardstock, Acorns and Oaks 5-piece stencil set, distress inks, sentiment from Autumn Whim stamps/matching die.  

For my final card today, I mixed the Glimmer Kit, Gilded Weave, with the Stamps and Dies, Autumn Whim.

supplies: white and chocolate brown cardstock, Autumn Whim stamps and die for sentiment, Gilded Weave Glimmer plate and copper glimmer foil (included in the kit), Autumn Whim Stencil (Caboodle freebie), markers, adhesive foam strips

Besides the 6 sentiments, the stamps this month include this panel of fall items, and the caboodle gives you a 2-piece stencil to color it, but not completely.  I colored the rest with my markers.

I'll be back in a few days with more of my cards from this new release.

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available for new subscribers only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all, plus a free bonus item each month, and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!

Spellbinders August Club Kits: Beneath the Blue, part 2

 Here are the rest of my samples for the August Spellbinders Club Kits.  They are available now through the 27th for new subscribers.  The fun theme this month is Beneath the Blue.

First is the Large Dies, Splash Tales, with a background using the Embossing folder, Coral Impression.

supplies: colored cardstock, Splash Tales dies, Coral Impression embossing folder

This month's dies are 26 pieces. Here's a second card using more of the dies from this set, along with the 3D folder.

supplies: colored cardstock, Splash Tales dies, Underwater Waltz 3D embossing folder, sentiment from Paper Splash

Next up is the Clear Stamps/Dies, Paper Splash.

supplies: white, aqua, and peacock cardstock, Paper Splash stamps and matching dies, clouds from Birthday Bliss, (retired) Summertime Waves embossing folder

This kit includes 2 images and 10 sentiments, with dies to cut them all out.  

My final card features the BetterPress Kit, Fish Parade.  The set consists of the circular pattern, plus 3 different sentiments, with 3 dies to cut them out.  This month I foiled the plates.  

supplies: white cardstock, rainbow stripe pattern paper, Fish Parade plates (sentiment included), Rainbow Confetti glimmer foil

Once I'd decided on the rainbow glimmer foil, it was a natural progression to frame my panel up with a rainbow stripe paper.

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available for new subscribers only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all, plus a free bonus item each month, and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!

Spellbinders Club Kits for August: Beneath the Blue

The Spellbinders Club Kits for August are now available for new subscribers, until August 27!  The theme this month is Beneath the Blue!

I'll start with a mix of the Glimmer kit, Beneath the Bubbles and the Small Dies, The Deep Blue Two.

supplies: colored cardstock (base is Spellbinders' Celestial), Beneath the Bubbles glimmer plate, Speckled Prism glimmer foil, The Deep Blue Two fish and plant dies, adhesive foam

Speckled Prism glimmer foil is included in this month's glimmer kit, and it is the perfect choice for these bubbles!  I think the Celestial cardstock which I used for the background worked beautifully with all the other colors, too.  The sentiment is one of 2 in the Glimmer kit. The Small dies this month are a set of 23, and on this card I only used the plants/coral and the fish.  You'll see the little divers on my next card.

I popped a few of the fish above the rest of the scene; that helped them to stand out a little better, especially that little school of the smallest ones.  This was really fun to put together!  

Here's the rest of the small dies, and the 3D embossing folder, Underwater Waltz.  Again, a great pairing!

supplies: colored cardstock, The Deep Blue Two dies, Underwater Waltz 3D embossing folder, and sentiment from Paper Splash stamps/dies, Aquamarine Essentials Gems for bubbles

Can you believe the detail on these little figures?  But Spellbinders provides great directions to help us put them together.

My next card mixes the Stencils, Underwater Bloom, with one of the Caboodle dies, Fish Friends, and another stamped sentiment.

supplies: white, orange, and black cardstock, Underwater Bloom stencils, Fish Friends dies, sentiment from Paper Splash, adhesive foam squares, adhesive glitter dots

I made this one into a simple 4 1/4" square card.

And my last card for today features the Stitching Kit: Hand-Folded Stitch.

supplies: red, white, blue, aqua cardstock, Hand-Folded Stitch dies, 3 strands of white embroidery floss, (retired) Summertime Waves embossing folder

There are 2 other sentiments included in this kit, and a wavy die so that you can make your own ocean panel. 

You can look HERE for information on Spellbinders Clubs.  Each is available for new subscribers only from the 6th until the 27th of each month.  If you click on my links under each card, you can see the specifics of each product.  You can subscribe to each of our 10 kits separately, (and you can "unjoin" a subscription at any time without any penalty), or you can get them all, plus a free bonus item each month, and save 60% by choosing the Deluxe Caboodle!