Category: papercrafting

cardmaking · Die cutting · papercrafting

Spellbinders New Simon’s Snow Globes | Colorful Christmas Card Ideas

Karen Brown1 Comment
Simon Hurley's Snow Globe Christmas Card ideas in bright tropical hues.

Christmas at the beach anyone? I am excited to share 2 cards featuring Simon Hurley’s new Snow Globe holiday collection from Spellbinders. I created 2 bright colorful little vignettes that I think are quite fun!

Bright Tropical Christmas Card

Bright colorful tropical Christmas Card with Palm Trees, Santa and Reindeer.

For my first card, I was simulating a tropical sunset (including palm trees!) with Santa and reindeer flying overhead. I used the Snow Globe etched dies and added the palm trees from the coordinating Nativity Scene. The entire die bundle is wonderful with snowmen, homes, deer and nativity….endless combinations

I love making backgrounds from colorful strips of paper. The background was so easy….I cut 1/4″ strips of colored paper and then adhered to a piece of cardstock. Funny story, I usually use a tape runner for this but halfway through, my tape runner ran out and I didn’t have a refill. No worries though, I just finished the panel with liquid glue, and you can’t tell a difference in the end result. If you’d like to see a quick video on how to create a rainbow striped background, click HERE. (I shot this as a reel for Instagram, but also posted it to YouTube, so the YouTube orientation is a little unusual.)

After my background was complete, I die cut all my components and then assembled my card with Bearly Glue and craft foam (for dimension).

PRO TIP: I like using a combination of liquid glue and craft foam as it allows me to micro-adjust the placement of my die-cuts. I slid the Globe around until it was centered, which is harder to do with Adhessive Foam Squares. I do use double-sided foam squares a lot when placing flowers.

CAS Die Cut Chritmas Card

Handmade silhoutte Christmas Card with Santa, Reindeer and Snowy village houses.

For card #2, I did a more traditional wintry Christmas scene using Teal Topaz and Brushed Gold Cardstocks. I love the contrast of the bright white against the teal sky. And, the gold adds a subtle elegance to the snow globe.

Spellbinders Simon's Snow Globe holiday card ideas in teal and pinks.

Products Used:

So there you have two bright colorful snow globes. As always, I am so pleased you stopped by!

Karen

Interested in more…You can also find me at these spots too:

@karens_mini on Instagram

Pinterest: @karenabrown

FaceBook: Karens_Mini

YouTube: Karen Brown

cardmaking · Die cutting · papercrafting

Spellbinders New Serenade of Autumn | Colorful Die Cut Cards

Karen BrownLeave a comment
Colorful Die Cut Autumn Cards using Spellbinders Serenade of Autumn Collection

Hello papercrafters, I am back with some lovely seasonal die-cut cards for Fall! I chose some traditional autumn colors and then added beautiful pops of blue. Spellbinders just released this fun collection called Autumn Serenade and I used the Autumn Sealed Sprigs dies along with the coordinating Chipboard Stickers and pre-printed Die Cut Shapes for my cards. I found the stickers and shapes to be real time savers when assembling my cards.

I just got back from a trip to Colorado, and I found the changing folliage was so inspirational for these projects.

Using Pre-Printed Stickers and Die Cut Shapes for Quicker DIY Cards

For my first card I used the Sprigs die kit and then added a sentiment plus heart die-cuts to finish my card. This Die Cut Shapes Kit includes 138 pre-printed pieces with lots of sentiments, botanicals, pumpkins, butterflies etc.

Seasonal Thinking of You Card with die cut leaves, Wheat and flowers.

For card #2 I used this showy Chipboard Hello Banner Sticker to complete my fall bouquet. The Chipboard set includes 27 chipboard stickers pre-printed with a variety of sentiments, gold embellishments, butterflies, birds, pumpkins, leaves and flowers. I love this little package and will be using it on future projects.

This Sealed Sprigs Collection reminds me of one of my 2022 Favorite Die Sets called Floral Reflections and you can see that Blog Post HERE.

Using Pre-printed Chipboard stickers for Quick Seasonal die cut cards.

My Process:

  • I started by selecting colors for my two cards. I used colored paper from two different sampler packs (listed below).
  • Next, I die cut my leaves and botanicals. I played around with layouts and then used the Press and Seal Method to keep my arrangement in place as I flipped it over and added foam adhessive squares to the back.
  • I knew I wanted a banner across the “crossed stems” on each card. The HELLO is a lovely chipboard sticker and the “Thinking of You” is a preprinted die cut. The gold accents add a nice bit of shine to the cards.

Products Used:

Interested in more…You can also find me at these spots too:

@karens_mini on Instagram

Pinterest: @karenabrown

FaceBook: Karens_Mini

YouTube: Karen Brown

cardmaking · Mixed Media · papercrafting

Super Easy Cut Collage Birthday Cards | Minimal Supplies Needed

Karen BrownLeave a comment
Cut Shapes Paper Collage Birthday Cards

Hello, I have a super quick post today sharing two fun collage birthday cards that I created by cutting wonky shapes from paper. So easy, anyone can make them and they require minimal supplies. I think they are so cheerful and happy.

I started by going through my acrylic gel press and scraped scraps but you could just as easily use ready made paper. I picked out some melon (just made these for my last post on covering journal covers: read HERE), green, blue and gray. After I was done sorting I decided to add some red to the mix too. I then cut out silly whimsical shapes and glued them onto an A2 notecard. I handlettered a quick sentiment to complete the card. Nothing precise or perfect here!

Easy DIY collage style birthday card made by cutting shapes from colored paper.

Now that I see card #2 finished, I think it has a real Eric Carle vibe.

Supplies:

  • Colored Paper or Mixed Media Scraps
  • Scissors
  • Glue (I used UHU stic glue)
  • Card Base
  • Black pen (for sentiment)

I found this cardmaking session very satisfying. What do you think? Would you try this?

Karen

Mixed Media · papercrafting

Colorful Collaged Journal Covers: How I Made My Handcrafted Gifts

Karen Brown1 Comment
Color-Blocked Collaged Journal Covers.

I recently signed up for Willa Wanders Fodder Challenge 2023 and I was so inspired by Instructor Barb Smucker and her Collaged Notebooks. I knew I wanted to try this technique and I am so glad that I did!

Collaged Mixed Media Notebook Covers

Color-Blocked Collaged Notebook Journal Covers.

My “How To” Process:

  • I started by creating colorful papers for my cover. Instead of using a gelli plate, I put acrylic paint on my mixed media paper and then used a scraper to move the paint around. On a palette, I started with basic primary colors and then had loads of fun custom mixing my colors. I was going for coral but wound up with several really pretty melon colored pages. On some pages I smoothed out the paint and on others I left it a bit rough with slight ridges of acrylic. I also painted marks (circles, lines, Xs and doodles…) on additional pages.
  • I also went through my gelli prints and selected some more papers that I used. The dark blue and bright orange were both gelli prints.
  • Once I selected a bunch of papers that I liked, I started playing around with layouts. I was going for a contemporary color-block look. Using a metal ruler, paper trimmer and 1 1/2″ circle punch I trimmed the pages to the sizes and shapes I wanted.
  • I laid a piece of plain paper inside the cover to protect the journal pages from excess glue during my assembly process.
  • Next, it was time to start covering my journal. I started with the the papers that would go along the spine. This journal has a cool open spine that did not need to be covered so the paper edge went directly up to the edge of the spine, but I left a 1/2″-1″ overhang for the other side. To get a nice smooth cover I dipped the paper in a pan of water for 2 seconds, blotted off the excess water, and on the back, brushed on a 50% mixture of Matte Modge Podge and Matte Medium with a flat brush. Then, I carefully put the paper up against the spine, leaving the overhang off the edge. Next, I put a piece of wax paper over the glued piece and brayered over the area to remove air bubbles and excess glue. Finally, I dabbed up the excess glue that seeped out.
  • I repeated this process until the front and back covers were complete. This journal has a nice black elastic band, but it was a little trickier to cover the back because of the grommets. For my next journals, I ordered notebooks without the elastic band. I will report back which style I like better.
  • To finish the notebooks, I folded the overhung edges (starting at the corners) toward the inner face pages and then glued securely with the glue mix I used above.
  • Last step was to glue a facing page to the front and back inside covers. I again used my mixed media painted pages for this.
  • I let my journals dry and then placed books on top overnight to keep the notebook nice and flat.
Mixed Media Collage Journal

These two journals are gifts and I plan to make more for Christmas. I hope to have another post about them this fall.

Collage Mixed Media Notebook Covers

I bought all my own supplies, but I am including links to the products used in case you’d like to give it a try.

Products Used in This Tutorial:

Products Available on Amazon:

Soho Open Spine Notebook

Liquitex BASICS Paint I used 3 Primary Colors and white

Liquitex Matte Medium

Matte Modge Podge

Brayers

Metal Ruler for Cutting and Tearing Paper

Scraper

Karen

cardmaking · papercrafting · Video

3 Colorful Sentiment Focused Cards +Video

Karen Brown2 Comments
3 Sentiment Focused Handmade Cards

Sometimes, you just want your sentiment to be the star of your card. Today I am sharing three cards where the focal point is the sentiment. The video (below) is also part of Altenew’s Let’s Get Sentimental Video Hop.

Love Card or Valentine

Love, Love, Love Die Cut Valentine Card

I felt like getting a little inky and messy, which is always fun in the craft room! I started by creating three gradient watercolor panels that were the basis for my sentiment die cuts. I wanted BOLD colors so I used Altenew’s lusciously pigmented Spring Garden Mix Watercolor Markers + the love die from Altenew’s Script Words set. I kept things Clean and Simple for this first card.

I made this card for my husband, but wouldn’t it be great for a Valentine?

VIDEO

I created a short video for Altenew’s “Let’s Get Sentimental “Video Hop that shows my process. Watch below on YouTube or click below to watch on my blog.

Watch on my blog:

Congratulations Card for Graduation

Die Cut Congrats Graduation Card

I needed a Graduation card for my nephew and I came up with this design using Altenew’s Archway die set (includes both the wave and tree + a rainbow that I used twice HERE) + Script Words Congrats Die. The Archway die set is one of my favorite 2023 releases.

Hello Friend Card

Hello Friend handmade card.

I wanted to add some texture to my next card so I embossed my background with Altenew’s Playful Circles. The die cuts are Simply Hello and Simply Friend.

Here is another variation of a bright fun “hello friend” card I did a few months ago.

Altenew Spring Garden Mix Watercolor Markers + Script Word Dies + Archways die set.

Supplies:

Here are links to the supplies I used on these cards….click the icon to start shopping. Compensated Affiliate links are used at no additional cost to you. Your support helps me bring you new projects, content and videos. Thank you!

Other Supplies Available at Amazon:

Faber Castell Collapsible Watercolor Cup

Tonic Studios paper trimmer

Removeable Highlighter Tape

Tonic Studios Craft Pick

3M Painter’s Tape
Altenew Script Words "love" die + handmade card.

I took a bunch of photos and am including the rest here.

Altenew Script Words die cut handmade cards.

And finally, one standing photo…. Don’t you just love top fold cards?

Clean and Simple CAS Valentine

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

cardmaking · hot foiling · papercrafting

Spellbinders | Its My Party Too Collection: 3 Colorful Rainbow Card Ideas

Karen BrownLeave a comment
Spellbinders Hip Hip Hooray clean and simple foil glimmer card. GLP-388

Clean and Simple Foil Glimmer Card

Today I am sharing some sentiment focused hot foil cards and the first one was so quick and easy! I wanted to spotlight the fun sentiment so I added some 1/4″ paper strips to the bottom right corner and then angled my sentiment. Done!

Products Used:

Paper Trimmer available at Amazon:

Tonic Studios paper trimmer

Spellbinders Glimmering Hooray Hot Foil Plate and Die Set + handmade card | GLP-388

Hot Foil Stamping + Texture + Rainbow Colors

For my second card, I wanted some texture on my background panel and I thought the Tiny Dots Embossing Folder would be perfect. To add fun pops of color, I added a 1″ rainbow accent strip to the bottom of my card. The width of each strip is 1/4″.

Products Used:

Spellbinders Glimmering All About You Hot Foil Plate and Dies Set GLP-389 + handmade card

Hot Foiling + White and Gold Floral Die Cuts

For card #3, I kept the rainbow color theme but I added lots of white and gold floral elements to emphasize the lovely gold foiled sentiment. I started with the star of the card, which is the gorgeous hot foiled sentiment. Next, I ink blended a rainbow panel that I die cut into an oval shape and then embossed with the Tiny Dots embosssing folder. At this point, I thought the card looked too plain so I die cut a bunch of my favorite flowers and added them around the perimeter of the center oval. I also embellished with some colorful enamel dots. I die cut the card base from an A2 top folding card. To keep the top fold, I positioned the top edge of the die just above the fold.

Spellbinders Glimmering All About You Hot Foil Plate and Dies Set GLP-389 + Tiny Dots Embossing Folder SES-051.

cardmaking · Die cutting · papercrafting

Waffle Flowers | Flourish Panel Cover Die 2 Ways

Karen Brown2 Comments
Waffle Flower Crafts Flourish Panel Die: Cards Two Ways

Rainbow colors in cardmaking are always a good idea! I recently received a new cover die from Waffle Flower Crafts called Flourish Panel and it is a real beauty! I couldn’t decide whether to have the rainbow panel on the top layer or below the lattice so I opted to do it both ways. I still can’t choose which way I like it better. What do you think…..I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

How To Add Dimension on Die-Cut Cards

Waffle Flower Flourish Panel + Using inexpensive Crayola Watercolors in Cardmaking

I have step-by-step directions (with process photos) below. On one card I die-cut the watercolor panel and on the second card I used the rainbow colors as a background.

Waffle Flower Crafts Flourish Panel Die + Print and Script Happy Birthday Sentiment dies.

Cardmaking Tutorial: How I Made These Two Die Cut Cards

Step 1: Make Your Rainbow Watercolor Panel. Today, I used watercolors for my colorful focal point. On the panel with the rainbow on the top layer, I used Kuretake Watercolors to blend a rainbow. I went over the watercolor panel twice to get an intense color. On the second, panel, I used inexpensive Crayola Watercolors and it worked beautifully! You could also ink blend your background.

Step 2: Die-cut your top layer with Waffle Flowers Flourish Panel Die. I have an electric Gemini Junior die-cutting machine that I used.

Step 3: You could stop die-cutting here, but I wanted a lot of dimension, so I die cut two additional panels so I could stack my layers.

Step 4: Glue Your Layers Together. Using Bearly Glue, I glued three lattice layers together for a substantial top panel. Be sure to weight them down after gluing so they stay nice and flat. I have a large acrylic block that I use. I also adhered the layers to an A2 Top-folding card.

Step 5: Add A Sentiment. I always need Birthday Cards so I used Waffle Flowers new Print and Script Birthday Sentiment Dies. I love that they come with both a cursive and block font with coordinating shadow dies. I cut the sentiments from white cardstock and the shadows from Navy.

Now I have two bright cheerful birthday cards to share.

Products Used:

cardmaking · Die cutting · papercrafting

Waffle Flower | Four Festive Birthday Cards

Karen Brown37 Comments

Welcome to the Waffle Flower May Release Blog Hop! I’m happy to be hopping with the folks from Waffle Flower to show you all the fun new stuff awaiting you on the Waffle Flower website! Be sure to check out each stop in today’s blog hop for fun, inspiration, and chances to win some of these new release goodies! 

Waffle Flower Layered Party Hat (421360) die cut handmade birthday cards

Today I created four festive birthday cards for Waffle Flowers May 2023 Blog Hop. I hope you’ll “hop” along with us and visit each stop along the way.

Waffle Flower Layered Party Hat Die Set

Waffle Flower Layered Party Hat (421360) handmade card in bright festive colors.

I had so much fun with this Layered Party Hat die set and I cut loads of colorful elements. I posted two cards here but I have lots of leftovers that I plan to make into cards when I get back from my trip with friends.

I started by picking vibrant colored cardstock, then I die cut and started making combinations with the hats. For this post, I really liked using the darker color on the base and then adding a lighter shade on top. And the confetti made the hats even more fun! For my sentiment, I chose the new Print and Script Birthday Sentiment die set that has a fun cursive Happy Birthday and a coordinating shadow.

Die cut birthday hat card in bright colors: red, orange, pink and yellow

For my second card I wanted a rainbow grid look so I cut a 5 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ base and added 6 hats. I used a new Subsentiments Birthday Die Cut Embellishment for my sentiment. I love how easy it is to finish cards with preprinted sentiments.

Die Cut Grid Birthday Card featuring Waffle Flower Layered Party Hat (421360),

Pro Tip: Instead of adhering the hats with foam tape, I used craft foam. This allowed me to microadjust the hats to get them lined up the way I wanted. Putting liquid glue on the craft foam enabled me to wiggle and move the hats until I was happy with their placement.

Waffle Flower Layered Party Hat (421360) handmade Birthday card.

Waffle Flower Balloon Background Die and Stencil Trio

Waffle Flower Balloon Background Die and Stencil Trio: 421354 and 421355

If you love ink blending then you will adore these Festive Balloon Background Dies with coordinating stencils.

Color selection is one of my favorite parts about cardmaking so this card was extra fun for me. I chose 14 inks in rainbow colors and then started blending away.

PRO TIP: I found it easiest to lay my inks out in order so that I wouldn’t get confused during the ink blending process. I included a process photo to illustrate.

PRO TIP 2: Remember to turn your background for more even blending.

To compliment this release, Waffle Flower included two wonderful new birthday sentiments. One has a beautiful scripty font and the other is a bold print.

I love both new sentiments so I made a rainbow balloon card with each.

Waffle Flower Print and Script Happy Birthday cards: 421352

Don’t you just love cards that are so versatile? This is the type of card I love to keep on hand….each could be used for a friend, child, man, female.

Products Used in This Blog Post:

Didn’t you just love Jeanne’s creations?

Laurie Willison   is next on the hop!

Here are links to all of the Hop participants:

Waffle Flower Blog

Cathy Zielske

Galina Filippenko

Laura Bassen

JJ Bolton

Amanda Rochaix

Caly Person

Renee Day

Jeanne Jachna 

Karen Brown You Are Here!

Laurie Willison

Dana Kirby

Dilay Nacar

Amy Kolling

Laura Evangeline

Channin Pelletier

Giveaways:

For today’s hop, Waffle Flower is giving away $25 gift certificate to THREE lucky winners. You can leave a comment on this blog and along the hop by 11:59pm EST on Tuesday May 9th, 2023 for your chances to win. Winners will be chosen at random from the comments left on any of the posts in this blog hop and will be announced on the Waffle Flower Blog on 05/10/2023.

Additional Gift Certificate for One of My Commentors:

I am excited that there is an additional Gift Certificate for one lucky commentor on my Blog Post! I really love reading your comments…you all make me smile!

Specials:

From now till May 8th, 2023, all orders placed at waffleflower.com will receive a mysterious gift (No code required!).

For those of you who are new to Waffle Flower, they have a Last Chance section on their website that lists many goodies for 25% off until they are gone! This would be a great place to start your collection! And don’t forget to check out their monthly Flash Sales!

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

cardmaking · Die cutting · papercrafting

Spellbinders | Stylish Ovals Collection 4 Ways

Karen Brown1 Comment
Spellbinders Stylish Oval Hello You Floral Dies (S5-565) + Oval Nesting Dies (S5-562) on a handmade card.

Oval Shaped Cards

Shaped dies can really change the look of your cards and projects so I was excited to see Spellbinders new Stylish Ovals Collection. I created the first card for my mom’s upcoming birthday. Red is her signature color so I paired corally reds with aquas and greys for a very eye-catching color palette.

To make my oval cardbase, I used the largest oval die for the base. I took a white A2 top folding card base and put the top edge of the die just above the fold so that the die would cut around the top. I die cut the stem twice and glued together for added heft and stability.

Supplies Used:

Shaped Oval Card with Spellbinders Stylish Ovals Collection

Spellbinders Floral Die Cut Cards

Spellbinders Stylish Oval Hello You Floral Dies (S5-565) + Oval Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die handmade card.

I needed a card for a bridal shower so I made a second oval shaped card with die cut flowers. This one is smaller than card 1, it is 5″ x 3 3/4″. I think it makes for a sweet gift encloser.

I used the same products as card one but added a pretty little oval frame from the Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die. This die is so beautiful and a has an incredible amount of detail, but it cuts beautifully. I used just the middle section on this card and I used the other 2 sections on card #4 below.

Products Used:

White oval shaped card with die cut red flowers.

Die Cut Rainbow Arch Birthday Card

Colorful Rainbow Arch card with Spellbinders Stylish Oval Nesting Dies (S5-562) handmade card.

In case you haven’t noticed, I LOVE these oval nesting dies. Just for fun, I wanted to make a bright cheerful rainbow card so I selected 8 bright shades of cardstock and then die cut my rainbow elements.

This type of birthday card is so versatile that I love to keep them on hand. I could send this to anyone…man, woman or child.

Products Used:

Festive Rainbow Colored Die Cut Birthday card.

Spellbinders Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die

Spellbinders Stylish Oval Infinity Punch and Pierce Plate Cover Die (S5-566) handmade card.

This cover die is gorgeous in person! I started by making a rainbow gradient background with inks and blending brushes. I then placed the center and exterior components of the cover die over the top and added two floral embellishments that echo the spring colors.

Supplies Used:

Oval pierced cover die with spring ink blending on a handmade card.

I hope I offered some inspiration for your crafting.

Karen

cardmaking · papercrafting

Tips for Making Vibrant Colorful Cards

Karen Brown5 Comments
Tips for Making Vibrant Colorful Cards

Today I wanted to share some Tips and Tricks for making bold, vibrant colorful cards. The Featured Stamps are from Altenew’s March 2023 Mini Stamp Collection.

TIP #1: Use Watercolor Markers which have tons of pigment.

Below, you can see the watercolor panel that I used for my die cut word sentiments. I added Rubelite and Autumn Blaze from Altenew’s Spring Garden Brush Markers and then used a #18 brush and water to blend the colors. I did not increase the saturation on this card, the color on the screen is the true color in person. So bright and happy!

Making backgrounds with Watercolor Markers.

Products Used:

Altenew's Mini Coneflower Stamp and Die + Altenew's Spring Garden Brush Markers

TIP #2: Use Strips of Cardstock in Rainbow Colors

I like to keep strips of colorful cardstock on hand for quick cards. The strips on this card are each 1/4″ wide and they are a snap to make with your paper trimmer.

Using strips of colored cardstock to make colorful rainbow backgrounds.

Products Used on This Card:

Altenew's Mini Dogwood Stamp and Die on a handmade card.

TIP #3: Create a Rainbow Gradient Accent Strip

On Bristol Cardstock, I blended watercolors from Altenew’s Spring Garden Brush Marker Set in Rainbow Order. I used water and a #18 Brush to blend the colors. I created a 5.5″ x 4.25 inch panel and trimmed off a 1.75″ strip for this card, reserving the remaining panel for a future project.

Altenew's Spring Garden Brush Marker Set + handmade card

Products Used:

Altenew's Mini Dahlia Stamp and Die Set + handmade card

Thanks for stopping by! What do you think…..do you have a favorite?

Karen