This is a fun Accordion Fold Card to make and share!
In our Online Card Club meetings I like to try to include a fancy fold type card in the mix – this accordion fold card was a recent one we did. It’s fun and easy to make and to share!
The outside…looks like a “regular card”.
The strip of patterned paper down the side is from the Delightfully Eclectic Designer Series Paper – and what I loved about this particular pattern, especially for club, is that the other side is a floral print. That way, club members could choose which print they wanted to showcase!
The inside of this card, though….
FUN, right?! The accordion fold part is actually a second piece of cardstock. If you make it the same colour as the outside cardstock, I feel like it’s masked a bit and so looks more impressive at first glance. The cardstock is cut to 5-1/4″ x 10″, and then scored in 1″ increments from 2″ to 8″ (so 7 score lines). I die cut squares from the Stylish Shapes Dies and stamped with the Good Feelings stamp set. The HIP HIP is on one stamp, so I just carefully inked up only the first “hip” so I could stamp one per square.
You could swap out the words for images if you’d rather, or do a combination of images and words. This accordion fold card is totally customizable!
The only caution about this accordion fold card (other than how you’ll get hooked on making more of them)…is that it is a bit bulkier than your “standard” card, so you may need to watch postage. I’m sure if you sit a heavy object on it for a while it will flatten it down a bit more.
The Online Card Club meets once a month, and members join for a 6 month period. Each member places a minimum order at each meeting, and once during their membership period will receive a minimum of $20 Stampin’ Rewards to spend on product of their choice! If you’re interested in joining us, please contact me. New members are welcome to join up to 1 week before the next club session (typically the third Monday of the month). Next club session is Monday, 18 September, 1pm EDT. Open to Canadian residents only due to Stampin’ Up! regulations.
Here’s a little peek at some of the new product that will be available Wednesday!
The September-December 2023 Mini Catalogue will be in effect as of Wednesday, 6 September – here’s a peek at new product that you’ll find in it!
Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators get advance ordering privileges for new catalogue product – one of the very fun perks of being a Demonstrator. It’s so we can prepare samples and classes ahead of time, theoretically, but really, half the time we are just ooohing and aaahing over the product. (Or maybe that’s just me?! ha!). One of the other things I enjoy about being a Demonstrator is being part of Demonstrator only card swaps – where we make multiples of a single design and share with others who have done the same thing – so we end up with a variety of cards in terms of designs and products used. It’s a great way to kick start my own creativity plus get samples of products that I might not (yet) own!
I love the colours used in the Snowflake Magic Specialty Designer Series Paper. I always love things that are shiny or sparkly….and blues/greens are some of my favourite tones, so this paper was part of my first preorder from the catalogue. I combined it with the Magical Meadow stamps and coordinating dies (available in a discounted bundle) and stamped the sentiment in Pretty Peacock, which partners so well with Lost Lagoon. A little bit of bling from the Faceted Gems Trio pack completes the card. All of these links will work properly after 6 September, so you can come back then to follow the trail down the rabbit hole… (plus I’ll post a link to the actual catalogue as well, so there’s that).
Here’s a speedy video of my mass production process (less the part where I cut out the vellum circles because apparently I sometimes get the start/stop process messed up and just record me getting ready to record….not the actual part that I wanted to show!!). It’s from the YamStamps TikTok (speaking of rabbit holes…)
When I mass produce, I tend to do all (or most) of the same task at the same time before moving on to the next. Less switching of tasks means less brain work for me….and when you get into a rhythm it’s easier – plus it’s the only time I can usually craft and watch/listen to something at the same time without getting too distracted!
Did you enjoy this peek at new product?! I’ll be sure to post more – especially after the catalogue is live on Wednesday, so be sure to come back to the YamStamps blog to check it out!
This faux shutter / fractured card design is easy to create!
Right now, the faux shutter / fractured card design seems to be everywhere – or at least variations of it. It’s a super fun and easy way to create an interesting pattern – so here’s another take on it. If you’d like the full written instructions, subscribe to the YamStamps Newsletter (click on the link or use the box at the top of the YamStamps Site) – the tutorial for this design is included in the multiproject September version which is being sent out on Tuesday, 5 September (and a copy goes to all new September subscribers as well!).
For this version of the card, I embossed the Basic White Cardstock with the Fern 3D Embossing Folder. I think random pattern folders like the Fern EF are great for this card design because each section ends up looking different.
The centre square is cut from the Stylish Shapes Dies, and then the strips are added around the outside of the square, trimming them flush with the edges of the embossed cardstock.
I wanted to share this faux shutter / fractured card before we all get totally distracted by the September-December 2023 Mini Catalogue, which goes live on Wednesday 6 September. So many things coming up this week – a long weekend (YAY) followed for many by Back to Work / Back to School (probably not as big of a yay), and then the Mini Catalogue Launch (YAY), then Thursday (meh) and Friday (YAY).
I hope that your upcoming week is full of more Yays than not! Good luck with all the “back – to’s” coming up. Be sure to check back here at the YamStamps blog on Wednesday for links to the digital version of the Mini Catalogue and more information on specials that are happening – if you like patterned paper, you’ll love the special releases that are available as of Wednesday as well!
Do you tend to create cards in one orientation? Landscape or Portrait? I find I tend to favour portrait cards – those that are taller than they are wide – so for me, it’s good to create a landscape card every once in a while. There are definitely some images or die cut shapes that force a certain orientation for your finished card based on their size….but that’s not very often, really.
This is a card that we recently created in Club – I created the landscape/top fold card ahead of time as the sample prototype….but during our Club session, I created the portrait/side fold card. Can you spot the other difference?
I left a small gap between the papers for the landscape card, and decided not to leave any space for the portrait one. You could choose either option for either orientation – there’s enough room in any case! (I think I prefer the one without the gaps….)
The other thing that I love about this card is that you can get four similar cards from your cuts. I cut four sheets of the Hello Irresistible Designer Series Paper the same way and then just mixed and matched the pieces…though I think I managed to get two sets that were exactly the same for my sample cards!! I find I typically make the sample card, and then I cut and prep for all the club members plus another set for me to make “live” with them….so it just figures I’d get the same set LOL. That being said, it’s not like I’ll be giving the same card to the same person…so I think it’s safe. Plus – landscape or portrait – think they’d realize it’s the same paper layout? (I actually had to look twice myself).
The sentiment is from the Good Feelings stamp set. This is a fantastic set of large greetings that are perfect for card sending occasions – thanks, encouragement, support, celebration…. It’s a good one to have in your crafting room stash. Stamping onto a tag die cut with the Tailor Made Tags is an easy way to add a sentiment to your cardfront, and I love that the stitching effect is echoed in the Stylish Shapes Die Cut circles behind the tag.
So next time you are sitting down to make a card, consider flipping it on its side! It’s something I share in the YamStamps Sketch System Subscription – showing a variety of ways to change up a single card design to get a bunch of different looks. Every four weeks we start again with a new sketch and different samples! You can start your subscription at any time. It’s a great way to just jump in and get crafting, rather than trying to figure out a design layout every time. Check it out at https://go.yamstampsmore.com/sketchsystem. I think it’s a great way to supplement your crafting – you can still be original with your ideas, but you don’t have to do that every single time! Paper Crafting Doesn’t Have to Be Difficult to Be Impressive!!
Return of the super simple card! Here’s a variation on a simple card….
I’m not sure if it’s because summer is winding up (sorrrrryyyyy to mention that) or things are gearing up for back to school/back to routine but life seems to be a bit busier than usual right now – or is it just me??
I’ve been busy putting the final touches on the Shake It Up! Class, and truth be told, I have had the Taylor Switft song that I used for the Tik Tok video stuck in my head since I uploaded it! (haha video linked so you can share my ear worm…). In any case, here’s a variation on a simple card that stays still, which is a nice break for me after editing shaker card videos! *sigh of relief*.
I call this a variation on a simple card because of my previous post about the World’s Most Simple Card…it’s similar but different….
Have I mentioned that Masterfully Made is one of my current favourite Designer Series Papers?! Perhaps you’ve guessed that since it shows up on a semi-regular basis in my shared projects of late. In any case, a simple card that still looks impressive thanks to the patterned paper. I coordinated the backing cardstock (Pumpkin Pie) with the orange shade in the paper, and then added the die cut in Basic White to highlight the torn edges on the DSP and also to make it stand out on its own. I added Adhesive Sheet to the back of the Basic White Cardstock before running it through the Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine with the leaf die from the Artistic Dies. I love that die for adding a large decorative element to my cards! The Adhesive Sheet makes it super easy to apply this detailed die cut to the card. As a bonus, often when removing the backing adhesive liner, it pulls out any little offcut bits that might remain in the die cut!
If you’re looking for a fun way to start the back to class season, you have until 7pm EDT tomorrow (Thursday 24 August) to grab Early Bird pricing on the Shake It Up! Online class. Don’t miss out on the extra savings! Even if life is a little hectic for you – you can purchase the class at a discount now, and access it later (well, after tomorrow evening when it launches) when you have a bit of time! Lifetime access means you have plenty of time to get through all the content, and re-watch it as necessary. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me!
Create an eye catching Paper Strips Card – it’s easier than you might think!
There is nothing better than an eye catching design that is easy to create – and usually once you have the design, you can just swap out the supplies and get a whole new look! That’s the case with this fun paper strips card that only uses 3 long strips of cardstock for the striped design!
To create a paper strips card like this one, you have a backing piece of cardstock cut to the size you want your focal area. After that, you add the strips one by one and just trim to fit that cardstock. For me, it was easiest if I placed the longest strip first (so in this card, it’s the long Smoky Slate cardstock piece that has the Matte Dots on it in the picture). From there, I just lined up the other pieces accordingly, alternating the colours (Blackberry Bliss and Balmy Blue). The second section I placed was the one with the vertical(ish) strips, starting with the longest one and lining everything up accordingly. I didn’t worry too much about exact positioning, because it’s a “structured free form” kind of design, if there’s such a term. You could definitely play with this design and come up with countless variations.
I just eyeballed the spacing on this paper strips card, and then added some Classic Matte Dots and die cut labels from the Something Fancy dies for the sentiment from the Beautiful Balloons stamp set. SECRET TIP: (well, not so secret anymore, I guess) – stamp your sentiment on an angle so you don’t have to worry about it being perfectly straight
Potential Paper Strips Card Variations – change the pattern, use Designer Series Papers, emboss your cardstocks (some/all of them), use different colours….so many possibilities without having to work too hard!!
If you like being given patterns and ideas that you can take and make your own, you should subscribe to the YamStamps Sketch System! Each month brings you a sketch (card blueprint) with measurements, and a total of four weekly samples (with supply lists) based on that month’s sketch – directly to your email inbox. After four weeks, a new sketch and four new samples will be on their way! This monthly subscription to help your creative flow costs only $9.99CAD (billed every 4 weeks). It’s a month by month subscription, and you can stop your subscription at any point in time (though you’ll get the full set of samples for whatever sketch you’re on before you’re removed from the mailing list). I posted a bit more about the Sketch System in this previous post on YamStamps.com.
