Aloha, all!
Between being under the weather for most of a week and having a great friend visit for some crafting time, I’ve been absent from my spot in the blogosphere for far too long. The good news is that the crafting time with my friend has resulted in a ton of projects that I get to share with you this week and next. Most of them are using at least one, and in some cases several, new Stampin’ Up! products. Read on to learn about two of my favorite new stamp sets and check out a new color!
Two Favorite New Stamp Sets
The first of my new favorites is called Color and Contour. There’s actually a bundle which includes a die that will cut out the flower that you see stamped on the card. But for this fairly simple card, I just wanted the stamped image. Just wanting that stamped image was because of the other favorite new stamp set, Watercolor Shapes. When my friend, Donna, first arrived, she went through the new Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog and placed an order right then and there. She said that she wanted me to show her how to use her new stamps. And the Watercolor Shapes Stamp Set was one of those. I hadn’t ordered it myself as it just didn’t appeal to me. At first. Then when I started working with Donna’s set, it hooked me almost right from the start.
Choosing the Card Layout
To make the card at the beginning of this article, I really wanted the rectangular Watercolor Shape stamp to be a focal point in the card. So I stamped it right in the middle and then built on that shape. The single-stemmed flower image from the Color and Contour set was going to be perfect. As I’ve been trying to feature the wonderful new In Color collection in my cards, I picked Pale Papaya. Of course that’s a favorite for this Hawai’i resident. I first tried to use that in the flower also. But I really needed that to be darker. When I tried Pumpkin Pie Ink, it was just what I was looking for.
Once those two stamps were on the card, I thought that was elegant enough that I didn’t need anything more except for a sentiment.
I Love Two–Piece Sentiments
So often I forget about stamping a sentiment inside a card. In general I like to write notes that fill the inside of a card. So I don’t really need them. But when I come across a set of two sentiments that go together, I jump right on that to include an inside sentiment. Color and Contour has such a set that seemed just right for my layout. I stamped the first of the two on a plain rectangle of Basic White Cardstock and adhered it to the front over the stamped images, using Stampin’ Dimensionals.
For the inside of the card, I stamped the second of the sentiments in the middle of the card. If I write a note on the inside, I start at the top of the inside and leave space above and below the sentiment. Or, if I just want to say something quick and sign, I simply add that under the sentiment.
And once a sentiment goes onto the inside of a card, I feel as if the inside also needs just a touch of color in some kind of a stamped image. Color and Contour has the perfect image for this. So I stamped the small bud and continued the Pumpkin Pie fill for that from the front page.
And There’s More
As I said, I’ve made a ton of cards over the last few days. There are so many backed up for me to share with you that I’ll have to post every days for a while so I can keep up with myself! More on Color and Contour – and some new papers – tomorrow!
Happy Stamping!
