Christmas In July – Part II!

Aloha, all!

This July I’ve been having fun making slimline cards again. I forgot how much I like making cards of different shapes – as long as they can be mailed, of course! With Social Media the way it is today, when a kind of card-making becomes popular, it becomes WAY popular! There’s even now a Facebook page called, “Slimline Card Addicts.” As of today, it’s almost up to 1,000 members. And I’m one of them!

A Primer on Slimline Cards

Those of you who are on my Newsletter Mailing List received a primer on slimline cards last week. I will send a catch-up copy of my newsletter to new subscribers on Thursday. So, if you’d like my primer on this kind of card, sign up over on the right.

Slimline Cards Make Fun Backgrounds

You can stamp, layer, and add ribbons and other embellishments on a slimline card just as you do with an A2-sized card (4-1/4″ x 5-1/2″). But one thing that you can do differently with a long card is to add more larger cut-out openings to help make a scene than you can with an A2 card front.

When I first saw the August – December 2020 Stampin’ Up Mini Catalog, this stamp set did not make my wish list. I tend not to use cute critters in my cards, mostly because I don’t really know how to make them “pop” as so many people do. But when I really got into the slimline cards and looked at the catalog again, Freezin’ Fun reached out and grabbed me. I could just see the sled and the skis sliding down towards each other with a tree in between. The stamp made my second demonstrator pre-order.

First the Stamping

When you have a copy of the Mini Catalog in your hands, check out the Freezin’ Fun stamp set on page 69. You’ll notice that both the raccoon on his sled and the bunny on her skis are both downhill in the same direction. Then look at the “Tip” over to the left. Yes, you can stamp a mirror image of a stamp and it can look really, really nice. There are dozens of videos on YouTube showing various ways to create a mirror image.

The way that I do this “Mirror Stamping” is to set myself up to stamp using the Stamparatus stamp positioning tool. Then, instead of stamping onto paper, I stamp onto a Silicone Craft Sheet that I’ve tucked into the corner of the Stamparatus. I next open the Stamparatus and ease the corner of my cardstock into the corner of the Stamparatus slowly letting it lie down onto the Silicone Crafting Sheet. I press the cardstock into the craft sheet and then carefully life it up. That was all it took for this image. But, if it isn’t dark enough, I just repeat the stamp/lay the paper down. It will all be in the same position courtesy of the Stamparatus.

Two Ways to Make the Windows

With the help of a pencil and ruler, you can mark the spots where you want to die-cut the squares (or other shape) in a slimline card front. For this design, the second largest square in the Stitched Shapes Dies fit the card perfectly. I laid the squares out one by one, marking inside the corners of the die with the pencil. When you cut them out, the pencil marks will be on the part you cut out and not on the card front.

The second way is to find a die that’s made to cut all the windows at once. I am now the owner of such a die, and it’s well worth the price. I’m sure that Stampin’ Up! will come up with a die if the slimline card idea becomes more popular.

The Embossing Folder Isn’t Long Enough

Not all embossing folders will work with the 8-1/4″ long piece of cardstock that I used for this card. But one such as the one that I used from the new Wrapped in Texture Embossing Folders will work beautifully. The secret is to have a folder with a consistent symmetrical design all the way through. I ran one half of the die-cut layer through my embossing machine, stopping before I got to the end. Then I turned the cardstock around and arranged the other end of the cardstock in the embossing folder by sliding the folder to fit into the embossed image already made. Finally I ran that end through my machine, stopping before the end. Perfect!

Adding More Texture

While both the raccoon and the bunny would have fit inside those windows just fine, I really like the way that even more texture is added to the card by mounting them on Stampin’ Dimensionals and placing them so that they look like they’re sliding out of the background. I had so much fun making this card, and this part was the most fun!

The Coloring

I used Stampin’ Blends for all the coloring. The raccoon includes Gray Granite and Smoky Slate, with a Real Red hat and scarf. The bunny has a touch of Balmy Blue with Petal Pink ears, along with a Just Jade hat and scarf. I repeated the Just Jade in the trees, and added a bit of Wink of Stella onto the snow. The paper in the background is one of the sheets from the Heartwarming Hugs Paper set. I love how the design matches the design in the embossing folder!

Now I’m going to go make some more of these slimline cards. While I love writing these stories for you, and hoping that you’ll like them enough to buy some of these Stampin’ Up! products in my store – I love crafting more!

A Fun Challenge for my Card!

It’s been a while since I’ve entered any online challenges. But this week there’s a challenge to make a slimline card, and this definitely fits the bill. So I’ve entered the challenge at Freshly Made Sketches, which had this challenge:

Happy Stamping!

PLEASE NOTE: MANY OF THESE PRODUCTS ARE IN THE AUGUST – DECEMBER 2020 MINI CATALOG AND ARE NOT AVAILABLE UNTIL AUGUST 4, 2020!