This is the first card I’ve made with the new stamp set Gift From the Garden. I saw a gift set of cards and things that Stampin’ Up! posted one day by a UK demonstrator and decided to get the stamp set. So cute! I haven’t started on the gift set yet but here’s my first card.  Very easy! Use the marker technique to color the flower pots and the plants separately, breathe on the stamp to remoisten and then stamp. I layered with matching colors, Cajun Craze and Wild Wasabi and adhered to the Sahara Sand card base. The greeting is stamped in Cajun Craze ink and comes in the set, of course.  I think the flower pot stamp is cute in itself so I placed it in the photo!

I love this cute gift set!  Maybe it is the colors! If you have a gardener in your life, maybe you need this Gift From the Garden stamp set!  Place your order today!

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If you want to make a simple, easy handmade card, then try this Definitely Dahlia Thank You Card. Stamp the card, stamp the greeting, done and beautiful!  The beautiful Definitely Dahlia single stamp will do all the work for you! It is one big stamp, as you can see, and I am sure there are lots of possibilities for colors and creativity. Apparently dahlias come in lots of colors so there is lots of leeway in stamping your flower!

The Definitely Dahlia stamp comes in clear-mount or wood-mount.  My personal preference is wood-mount for large stamps like these and also background stamps. I like having that large stamp already mounted on the wood and I think it is sturdier for stamping a large area like that. Plus the stamp itself, this one, is decorative just as a stamp to set on your shelf!

The card base is Daffodil Delight card stock and the dahlia is stamped on Whisper White with Daffodil Delight ink.  The greeting is from the new stamp set One Big Meaning.  This stamp set contains all kinds of “Thank You’s” and we can all make use of those! The greeting is stamped with Memento Ink.

If you wanted to jazz up this simple card, you could certainly do that with ribbon, with a little bit of glitter and maybe the greeting on a banner or other die-cut shape. Stamp the dahlia on another paper and cut it out and make it a pop up on the card front with Stampin’ Dimensionals.  Lots of possibilities!

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In the Sunday paper, I read an article about how coloring for adults is really a craze right now. Apparently there are all kinds of coloring books for grown-ups out there. The author described coloring as “transporting” because she was just concentrating on the page and what she was doing, not her worries and problems. While that is nice, we stampers have known that for a long time! When we sit down and stamp a card or project or get together in a class with other stampers, life tends to take a backseat and we can relax and just enjoy the creative experience. We often call it stamping therapy or say that all our stamping supplies are “cheaper than therapy”! We don’t even need to spend money on coloring books for grown-ups because we can just stamp an outline image, such as this flower from the You’ve Got This Stamp Set, and be “transported” while we color away!

The only trick to this card is masking.  Stamp the flower on the Whisper White card stock with black Stazon or Memento Ink (I didn’t have any trouble with the Memento ink even though it is not waterproof like Stazon). Then stamp it again on computer paper and cut out with Paper Snips (believe me, they make “fussy cutting” so much easier than other scissors). This cut out flower becomes the “mask”.  Lay it over the stamped image (good to apply dots of 2-Way Glue and let dry so it will be like a post-it note to hold it in place) and then stamp that background right over the mask and the flower! The mask will protect the flower image from the background ink. Remove the mask and then color in! If you are still using your Blendabilities, this flower is perfect for them.  Otherwise, use the Stampin’ Write Markers, in different shades if you like. Use Watercolor Paper and you can really work the coloring without making the paper pill.

The card base on this sample is Melon Mambo, the layer Blushing Bride. To color in the flower I used Pink PIrouette as the lightest color, Blushing Bride and thought I was using Melon Mambo for a few dark accents but it turned out to be Rose Red!  All Stampin’ Write Markers. The flower stem colors are a couple of greens, Wild Wasabi and Old Olive. The background ink color is Blushing Bride.

If you prefer not to color in, stamp the flower image, then stamp right over it without a mask, with the background image and your flower will automatically be colored in! Looks great that way also!

So if you would like to join the adult coloring craze, just stamp the “You’ve Got This” flower and color! Use Stampin’ Write Markers or use Blender Pens or the Aqua Painter. You have all kinds of choices. Just relax and enjoy the process! In the end you’ll have a lovely work of art!

To get your stamp set and coloring mediums, just shop online at Stampin’ Up! Don’t forget to check the Weekly Deals, too!

Happy 4th of July!

Would you believe this Flower Patch 4th of July Fireworks card is made from flower images? If you look at the Flower Patch Photopolymer Stamp Set, you will find some flower images that can be made to look like bursts of fireworks! All of these stamped images on this card are made from the Flower Patch Stamp Set and then embellished with some heat embossing.  You could also use glitter or rhinestones! If you purchase the Flower Patch Photopolymer Bundle, you will also get the Flower Fair Framelits Dies at a 15% savings on the Bundle!

To make these flowers look more like fireworks, I stamped the flower centers with Versamark Ink and used the Heat Tool and  Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder.  Embossing is so much fun! You could also use the 2-Way Glue Pen and Dazzling Diamonds Glitter or stick on some Rhinestone Jewels for some bling!

Look through your stamp sets and see what you could use to make a card, decoration, or treat for the 4th of July holiday! If you would like some of the supplies I used to make my Flower Patch 4th of July Fireworks card, you can order at my Stampin’ Up! Online Store HERE.