Very Simply Susan

My card making focus has been on making cards I can send out now. With many of us confined to our homes for the time being, I think its nice to get run out to the mail box and find some “Happy Mail” now and then!

With that in mind, I knew I had to use this sentiment from Perfectly Paired. It is the perfect message for right now. And sending a card is a good way to stay connected. And the Perfectly Paired sentiments work for so many card designs. For this one, I wanted to use some Blueberry Bushel, one of my favorite of the 2018-2020  InColors that is due to leave us at the end of May. The Perfectly Paired set was made to complement the Ornate Frames dies. And so, that was a “must have” for this card as well.  The design is simple. The DSP, Pressed Petals does all the work. The coordinating colors for this paper listed Night of Navy and Mossy Meadow. But I wanted to brighten it up a bit using Blueberry Bushel and Old Olive. I think those colors work great with this paper!

Stampin’ Tip: Sometimes the best way to start a card design is to find the sentiment you want to use and design around that. Many Stampin’ Up! sentiments fir perfectly in a die cut, punch or frame. Combined with some beautiful DSP and a ribbon, you can make a card in no time! 

What I Used For This Card: 

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I was in the mood to make something really pretty and Mosaic Mood DSP is perfect for making a pretty card. The colors are soft and subtle and the design understated, but classic. They are based on mosaic designs found in ancient Italy, but updated for use today.

To create this, I was inspired by a few cards in this week’s Global Design Project #GDP236 Case The Designer, Jannkeke De Jong used the Nested Stitched Label Dies as her focal point and I thought that was a great start. To see more beautiful work casing this design, click on the image below.

Because the Mosaic Mood DSP designs are great for mixing together, I used DSP on DSP.   So Saffron was used to set off the design and because I wanted a sentiment from Perfectly Framed, I used the coordinating Ornate Frames dies for the sentiment. Then it was just a matter of building a tiny collage. I just kept adding until I liked what I saw! Collages are fun to do and its nice to add in bits and pieces for interest.  To make the sentiment pop, I stamped in Soft Suede, a coordinating color to the Mosaic Mood DSP, but no so harsh it ruins the look, rather enhances it.

Stampin Tip: Again, my stampin’ tip is to use your Stampin’ Blend when you need a coordinating ribbon! I colored the 5/8″ Whisper White Flax with a So Saffron Stampin’ Blend because the white was just too much of a clash for this card. Because flax has a rough texture, you want to preserve the tip of your Stampin’ Blend by coloring using the side of the brush tip. This will get the color down, but not ruin the tip with the rough texture on the flax.

What I Used To Make This Card:

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I really love some shine and a little sparkle! And using metallics for a card makes it look unique and special. The Ornate Garden Specialty DSP does not disappoint if you love metallics and shine. Many of the papers are richly colored vintage floral designs, but there are several designs that feature rich gold metallic designs. Perfect for an over the top card design! Which is what I went for with this card!

The paper is gold metallic on Mint Macaron. And I loved the look so much, I decided to go for a monochromatic look. The only departure from that is the sentiment, which was stamped in Old Olive just to get it to pop! Even the main die cut is one of the Ornate Borders Dies is cut from the same DSP and layered under the sentiment with smaller pieces die cut from Gold Foil paper. A few of the Ornate Garden Faceted Gems highlighted the Ornate Border Die cut. And the ribbon, it is the Metallic-Edge ribbon colored with a Stampin’ Blend.

Stampin’ Tip: You can customize many ribbons using Stampin’ Blends. The Stampin’ Blends color perfectly on polyester ribbon and lay down even, rich color. I always test on a scrap first. And its best to always start with the lightest shade of Stampin’ Blends and experiment on the scrap with a second coat of the light blend. Usually that gives you the perfect color. Customizing ribbons is one of my favorite stampin’ tricks and I use it all the time. If you have some of the neutral shades of ribbon on hand and Stampin’ Blends, you will have ribbon to match many, many colors! 

What I Used To Make This: