Garden in the Spring

Sometimes you find a card design that just really “wows” you, right? I wanted to use some of the Stampin’ Up!® Garden Impressions Designer Series Paper (DSP) for class this month, and I found a card from Vanessa Baker (Confetti Design) that I loved. I loved it so much, I didn’t change a whole lot, just some of the colors, dies, and stamps used. I love the freshness of the Soft Sea Foam card base.

Using the Big Shot Embossing Mats

Every month at classes, I try to introduce at least one new technique. This month, I wanted to show off our new Big Shot Embossing Mats. I say “new,” but we did have a very similar product years ago when we had the “Texturz” plates (before we began offering embossing folders). The new version includes two mats. Using these mats, you can use our thinlits or framelits to emboss as well as cut. I love being able to get twice the use out of a product, don’t you? There’s a thicker gray mat that gives a deep impression, and a thinner blue mat that gives a little lighter impression. Sometimes with very detailed dies, you can cut through your cardstock with the thicker mat, so I used the thin blue one for this die. When you purchase these, the packaging has instructions and the different Big Shot sandwiches you use, so be sure to hang on to that!

For this card, I used the Big Shot Embossing Mats to emboss the floral image from the Springtime Impressions Thinlits Dies onto the Soft Sea Foam card base. It adds a little texture and interest without overwhelming the rest of the card.

Garden Party Butterflies

While I was watching (or listening to!) the America’s Got Talent Semi-Finals Tuesday, I die-cut all the butterflies  – also from the Springtime Impressions Thinlits – from the Garden Impressions DSP. I love the way these turned out! They remind me of dresses one would wear to a springtime garden party.

I cut another strip of DSP for under the Stitched Seasons Label, then notched the edges with Paper Snips. You can also use the Banner Triple Punch for this, but my Paper Snips were handier at the moment.

Blended Seasons Bundle

Aren’t you loving the Blended Seasons Bundle? It includes a versatile all-season Stamp Set and the Stitched Seasons Framelits. I die-cut one of the labels from Powder Pink Cardstock and stamped a few flowers from the Abstract Impressions Stamp Set in Flirty Flamingo and Powder Pink. The sentiment (from the Bunch of Blossoms Stamp Set) is stamped in Call Me Clover. By the way, if you bundle the Abstract Impressions Stamp Set with the Springtime Impressions Thinlits, you’ll save 10%.

By the way, the Blended Seasons Stamp Set, Stitched Seasons Framelits, and Watercolor Pencil Assortment 2 will no longer be available after August 31 (or while supplies last), so be sure to order yours today. The new Watercolor Pencils assortment may be in a future publication, but there’s no guarantee, so do order those soon. You don’t want to miss out on the chance to have these beautiful colors – Granny Apple Green, Coastal Cabana, Garden Green, Night of Navy, Gorgeous Grape and more!

I Love Punches and Buttons

I was going to stamp and die-cut the leaves from the Rooted in Nature bundle, but after die-cutting 25 butterflies, I decided to punch the leaves instead using the Leaf Punch. I love my dies, but when you need 48 of something, punching is much quicker!

The final touch is the adorable little Tinted Faceted Button in the center of the butterfly. So sweet! I used one Stampin’ Dimensionals to adhere the butterfly over the label, then a Mini Glue Dot for the button. So easy!

This card is one of my favorites ever. I love the fresh, clean, springtime look.

Thanks for stopping by Stamping with Buffy. Have a lovely day!

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