Fun Card for a Celebration!

Another way to use Effervescent Elements – this fun card for a celebration!

I shared a fun beaded accent element previously – using Stampin’ Up!’s Effervescent Elements – two sizes of microbeads that are iridescent. Here’s a fun card for a celebration that uses them as well!

overflowing effervescence
Overflowing Effervescence Card

This card uses the discounted Bottled Happiness bundle which includes the Bottled Happiness stamp set and coordinating Vintage Bottle Punch. I’ve also used the Vintage Bottle Shaker Domes which are sized for the Punch.

The domes have adhesive on both sides of their frame edges, so one side sticks to the underside of the cardstock hole, and then the other side can be put against your other layer or another piece of cardstock to seal the dome closed. For this card, once I’d stamped the sentiment in Blackberry Bliss, I punched out the bottle shaped hole, and then inserted the dome into place. I filled the dome with Effervescent Elements and then sealed it closed with a piece of Window Sheet. If I was more confident with how I could line up my backing Design a Daydream Designer Series Paper, I could have just put that in place. But I’m not. So I didn’t. Aiming for success!!

fun card for a celebration – close up

Once my bottle was sealed, THEN I placed everything onto the backing Designer Series Paper (and Blackberry Bliss cardstock layer). Once it was on the cardfront, I then used my Multipurpose Liquid Glue at the top and a bit at the bottom of the bottle. I used the fine tip end so I could “draw” with the glue and control where the beads ended up. I sprinkled on some more Effervescent Elements over the wet glue and patted them into place, then let everything dry.

You get a lot of those beads in a container of the Effervescent Elements, so you can use them freely on your projects! For this card, I wanted the bottle to seem like it was overflowing, so I packed them into the dome. If you would rather, though, you could put in less and create a shaker card with more movement to it. That’s the fun when you’re making your own cards – you can customize them however you’d like and to suit the recipient!

If you’re interested in learning new techniques or creating on a regular basis, I have a few options available right now. One is my Virtual Stampers Club – open to anyone in Canada. We meet monthly and create four different projects together. Over a six month membership period, you’ll be able to spread out your crafting purchases and receive host benefits (aka free product) once during that time! Check the YamStamps Events Page for more information, or contact me.

My other option is an Online Class. I have a number of Online Classes available, and aim to produce one each month. The most recent one was Cards That Will Move You, and I’m working on another Fancy Fold Class for my August release. If you’re on the YamStamps Mailing list, you’ll be notified when classes are available or on sale! You can learn at your own pace and will have lifetime access to the class videos. Check the YamStamps More Page for more information, or contact me.

Until then – Happy Crafting!

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Is It Too Early For Christmas Cards?

I shared a quick post on Facebook the other day and the response was pretty divided. Is It Too Early for Christmas Cards?

For Stampers Club I like to start sharing one holiday card a month starting with the July-December Mini Catalogue. We made our first card during our last session. I shared a prep photo on the YamStamps Facebook Page…which made some people wonder Is it too early for Christmas Cards?

Is It Too Early for Christmas Cards?
the photo that sparked a debate…

So the caption was “It has begun….#ChristmasIsComing”. There were a number of comments in either direction – a few thought it was too early, and few loved it. What do you think?

Is It Too Early for Christmas Cards? Well, this is the card we created in Stampers Club. I love the Lights Aglow Specialty Designer Series Paper! It’s a 6″ x 6″ package with metallic elements as part of the design…which means I will be attracted to it because it’s shiny…

Lights Aglow Speciatly Designer Series Paper

There are some patterns and frames that are just pretty and don’t scream “HOLIDAY PAPER” so I like to think that for those of you who answer the question “Is it too early for Christmas Cards” with “Yes”, there’s some options if you grab this paper now!

This is the card we created. Straightforward and simple.

Is It Too Early for Christmas Cards?
Lights Aglow Happy Holidays Card

To highlight the gold in the Designer Series Paper, it’s mounted onto a strip of Gold Foil Sheet. I cut the label from the centre of the gold piece since nobody will see the hole once the card is assembled. The “Happy Holidays” sentiment from the Brightest Glow stamp set (also available in French – Moments Lumineux) fits onto a strip of cardstock that is the right size for that label. The dies for the label and the detailed punch out are from the glow dies, available in a discounted bundle with the stamp set (English discounted bundle and French discounted bundle available)

The “easy” button for these products is actually the Lights Aglow Suite Collection. Honestly, when I did my demonstrator preorder in June, I did not purchase the whole suite. Now I’m wondering why I didn’t! Well, if you (and I) decide to purchase it this month or next, we will all qualify for Sale-a-Bration benefits too – we get 3 SAB products at the free with $60CAD product level, or 1 SAB product at the $60 level and 1 at the $120 level. So maybe that was my unconscious strategy… Shortcut to shopping is yamstamps.com/shop or you can message me if you’d like to pay by etransfer or need assistance placing your order. Ships to your door in Canada!

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Elegant Rose Card

Check out this simple and elegant rose card using a free stamp set!

If you’ve checked out the YamStamps site on a semi-regular basis, you may have spotted that some of my favourite designs are towards the clean & simple end of things – so this elegant rose card is definitely in that category.

Elegant Rose Card
Elegant Rose Card

This elegant rose card was super easy to make, which also makes me love it more! Just two tones – Merry Merlot and Gold. The Gold is the Distressed Gold Specialty Paper from the Annual Catalogue. I LOVE this paper – it’s got the metallic sheen, but it’s not super bright. I used Merry Merlot Cardstock, and then Merry Merlot ink for the rose image. Monochromatic colour schemes just make everything easy.

The rose is from the Wonderful World stamp set – and you can select it for FREE during July & August Sale-a-Bration with a $120 CAD product purchase – it’s part of the Wonderful World Bundle – which includes the Wonderful World stamp set and coordinating Designer Series Paper. The majority of Sale-a-Bration items are available to select with a $60 product purchase, but there are a few items that are only available at the $120 threshold (and Wonderful World is one of them).

The lattice is from the Organic Beauty Dies, and before die cutting, I put an Adhesive Sheet on the back of the Distressed Gold sheet. That way, once it was cut, I just had to peel the liner away and I could easily attach the lattice to the card. Bonus – I have lots of little distressed gold diamonds that I could use on another project. (Or to decorate the envelope and inside of the card if I want!). I don’t want to waste any of this paper if possible!

The image on this elegant rose card is on Crumb Cake Cardstock and mounted on a Merry Merlot circle. They’re die cut with the stitched circles from the Stylish Shapes Dies. I liked using Crumb Cake rather than Basic White or Very Vanilla because it felt a little softer and more in the colour scheme/distressed theme.

If you’re interested in getting your hands on this bundle, a reminder that Sale-a-Bration items are available during July & August – but only while supplies last. You can shop online 24/7 anywhere in Canada at https://yamstamps.com/shop or you can message me for assistance placing an order or if you’d like to pay by etransfer.

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Decorative Beaded Element

Make an easy and elegant decorative beaded element to dress up your next card or project!

Have you seen the Effervescent Elements in Stampin’ Up! Canada’s 2022-2023 Annual Catalogue? They’re one of my favourite new products! I used them to create a beautiful decorative beaded element for a recent card design.

Stampin' Up! effervescent elements
Effervescent Elements

Word of warning, though. If you’re going to use these, you’ll want to work with them inside a box lid or something that will contain them – because they TRAVEL. I used the tray from the new Embossing Kit (available starting tomorrow in the Stampin’ Up! July-December 2022 Mini Catalogue).

I used them to create a beautiful decorative beaded element on a card that I designed featuring new product from the July-August Sale-a-Bration catalogue (starting tomorrow too!).

The card was for a recent Demonstrator-only card swap. I feature some of the cards I receive in these swaps on the Sunday Swap Feature on the YamStamps Facebook Page and on the Sunday Swap Page here on the YamStamps site. Here’s the card I made – featuring the Wonderful World Designer Series Paper that is part of the bundle that you can select for free with a $120 product purchase during July and August Sale-a-Bration.

decorative beaded element card

I used an adhesive sheet to cover the Designer Series Paper, and then after cutting to the size I wanted, I removed the liner and added the beads onto the sticky surface. I liked using the patterned paper underneath because I think it adds extra dimension to the beaded piece – plus if I happen to lose any beads, it still looks pretty and the gap isn’t overly obvious because of the underlying pattern.

decorative beaded element close up
decorative beaded element close up

I tend to like shiny things but I also dislike any crafting that’s too messy (glitter being the prime suspect here) – so the Effervescent Elements beads are okay in my books – as long as I use them in my powder tray or a box lid. Even if they run away a bit, I can pick them up and put them back into the container without too much of a fight.

You can check out the video where I show how I created the decorative beaded element here. (Watch to the end if you want to hear me trip over my own words…).

Be sure to come back tomorrow – I’ll be sure to post all the links for the July-December 2022 Mini Catalogue and July-August Sale-a-Bration!

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Summer Beach Card

Die cuts and Designer Series Paper make for a serene summer beach card!

Summer Beach Card
Summer Beach Card

Stampin’ Up! Canada has some great products that make for easy crafting – which is perfect for this time of year. I used items from the Texture Chic Suite (also available in French) to create this summer beach card!

I started with the Texture Chic Designer Series Paper as the jumping off point. I chose my card colours from those in the patterned paper – Soft Suede, Petal Pink and Gold. I used the Seasons of Chic Bundle (available in French – Chics Saisons Bundle) that includes the Season of Chic stamp set (English / French) and the Chic Dies. For the mesh die cut, I put an Adhesive Sheet on the back of a Gold Foil Sheet before die cutting, so that it was easy to apply the detailed die cut. For the shells, I just used Liquid Adhesive because it has a wide chisel tip and a fine point tip.

summer beach card close up
Summer Beach Card close up

Summer is definitely the time for some easy crafting. Paper crafting is great because you can travel with the supplies (OK, not all your supplies, but you can pick out a few key ones). If you wanted to make multiples of this summer beach card, you could do your prep ahead of time and then just assemble wherever you are. Another option – Stampin’ Up! Kits Collection is a great way to have some portable crafting supplies that you can take with you to the cottage, camping or just to the backyard! We are in the last few days of the Buy One, Get One at 50% off kits collection sale, so it’s a great time to stock up on kits – great for having on hand for rainy days, travel, or for gifts for crafty (or even the not so crafty) friends!

I hope that you are able to spend some time this long weekend enjoying the weather. As for me, this summer beach card may be as close as I’m getting to water in the next while….I would usually be enjoying some time poolside, but we have to replace our pool liner (discovered when the winter cover came off)…so we are waiting for our new liner (and the people who can install it). *sigh*

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Congratulations Card

It’s that time of year – make sure you have a Congratulations Card in your stash!

As we approach the end of June, it’s the time for graduations – so we made this congratulations card in Stampers Club this month. Of course, there’s many reasons to send a congratulations card, but I guess I am thinking of grads, since my son just finished his university degree! We just attended his convocation at Western earlier this week, and so happy that we were able to be there in person. I was thinking that he got a little lucky with the timing (weird to say that, I know), but honestly – he was able to have a “normal” first year; the pandemic started in his second year so things changed part way through and into third year, and fourth year they were able to resume a lot of their in person classes and groups, including an in person convocation ceremony.

graduation
(one of the many photos taken the other day…)

So here’s the card (right, you’re here for the crafting LOL). Featuring some new catalogue product, including something that I need to reorder already…

congratulations card
Congratulations Card

I absolutely love the Distressed Gold Specialty Paper! (So much so that I have to put it on my next order going in because I’m down to scraps). Even though it’s in the background, it still stands out because of the design of the card. The foreground paper is from the Sun Prints Designer Series Paper, and it’s die cut with the Split Card Textures Dies. I die cut a Tailor Made Tag from the bottom right corner of the Distressed Gold Paper (because it’s hidden behind the DSP) before using Multipurpose Liquid Glue to tack the the Gold Paper and DSP together. I die cut the tag reinforcement from a scrap of the Sun Prints Paper. The sentiment is from the Art Gallery stamp set, and is stamped in Starry Sky ink.

I am drawn to the shiny objects LOL, so the Distressed Gold Paper was an easy pick for this card design, and I also love the Sun Prints Papers….plus the Sun Prints include a bit of a purple tone, and Western’s main school colour is purple!

one more photo of the grad for good measure…

Stampin’ Up! does have some other stamp sets that include the word Congratulations (including A Grand Kid, Peaceful Moments, Celebrate Sunflowers, the new Breaking News and more…) so there’s lots of options for your Congratulations Card – whether it be for a graduation, promotion, wedding, baby or whatever life event you’d like to celebrate! (For me, right now, I think it’s “You made it to today, yay you!). Shortcut to shopping is yamstamps.com/shop or you can send me a message if you’d like assistance placing an order or would like to pay by etransfer and have the order shipped directly to you.

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