Floating by to say hi! {Purple Onion Designs}

Hi, crafty friends! I’m back with another card from the new release at Purple Onion Designs, this time featuring stamps from the Lakewood collection from Holly Mabutas. This collection consists of 24 stamps that give off the perfect, relaxing summer vibes.

I fit a lot of images into this scene. Riley, Oliver & Boo go float tubing, Morris floats, Max chilling & floating, Pier and Boat House. I was a little strategic and stamped most of these images far enough apart that I didn’t need to do a ton of masking. I really only needed masks for the guys walking on the pier.

I colored in my scene with Copics, opting for very vibrant colors for all the floating elements and the details on the boat house, while keeping the rest fairly muted. The lake is lighter the further back you get, and the sky is a bit moody off in the distance. I added a bit of black glaze pen to the eyes of the gang on the pier for a little bit of dimension and shine.

I stamped a sentiment from the Summer Days sentiment set (which is also new, btw) using Cornflower ink from My Favorite Things.

I adhered the panel to a card base that measures 6 1/8″ x 4 1/4″. This is an irregular size for a card, but when I create scenes like this, I let the scene dictate the size of the card. I can always make a custom envelope to fit.

I used lots of Copics for this one.

For a limited time, this entire collection is available as a bundle. This bundled set is discounted over 30% off the regular prices and is available for a limited time.  The bundled promotion ends on Thursday, July 10, 2025.

This calls for a hangover {Purple Onion Designs}

Hi, crafty friends! Have you checked out the new release from Purple Onion Designs? There are two new collections from a couple of our favorite illustrators: Pei and Holly Mabutas. Holly’s collection is massive, with 24 stamps, including some really versatile backgrounds that I’ve had a blast playing with (I’ll share more in a future blog post), and Pei’s collection consists of 12 stamps in her sweet and fun signature style. My favorite character of hers, Mousy, makes an appearance, but today, I’m focusing on Mr. Corgi’s Margarita.

I knew I had to color up this image as soon as I saw it. This is so adorable with the corgi hanging off the top of the glass. And so funny, and very typical of Pei’s illustration style. I love it!

I colored the image with Copics, fussy cut him, then added VersaMarker pen to the rim of the glass and used white puff embossing powder from Wow! to mimic a salt rim. The embossing also adds some fun texture to the glass. I also used a black glaze pen to add a little bit of shine and dimension to his eyes.

I ink blended Parsley and Starfruit inks from Concord & 9th onto a white cardstock panel for an ombré effect, then used the Geometric embossing folder from WRMK to create some subtle dimension. I added the panel to a card base I’d covered with Parsley cardstock from Concord & 9th, before mounting the image using foam tape.

In this release there are also a few sentiment sets, and this one from the Good Libations set was the perfect one to pair with the corgi. I stamped it in Parsley ink onto white cardstock, then ink blended with Starfruit ink and fussy cut, before mounting it onto the card with more foam tape. I used a couple of different embellishment mixes from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards to finish off. The sequins are from the Beach Dreams mix, while the gems are from the Seashore mix.

Simple color palette for this one. This was so fun to color!!!

For a limited time, you can purchase a bundle with all 12 stamps in the Spring is in the air collection. This bundled set is discounted over 30% off the regular prices and is available for a limited time.  The bundled promotion ends on Thursday, July 10, 2025 on the Purple Onion designs website.

For you {Papiria}

Hi, crafty friends! I’m back today with a card I shared earlier in the week over at the Papiria blog.

The Blended petals set from Concord & 9th is a very versatile one with a large flower image that you can color up any way you’d like. There are even coordinating stencils that let you add color very easily, which is what I used for my card. As much as I love coloring, stencils make everything go so much faster!

I stamped the image in black ink, let it dry and used the coordinating stencils to color it in using Creamsicle, Sweet Pea, Wildberry, Sprout, Tidepool and Peacock inks, all Concord & 9th colors. I then used the coordinating die to cut out the image, adding a couple of blank die cuts behind it for dimension.

I used the Twist Pattern press plate from Pinkfresh Studio along with some Pistachio Fresh Dye ink from Altenew to create a subtle pattern in the background. I die cut it using the coordinating die and added two more die cuts behind it before adhering it to the front of a top fold card I created from Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink, which is the same white cardstock I used for everything except the sentiment.

Speaking of the sentiment – I used the Sweet Sentiments die set from Altenew. The top layer is from white mirror cardstock from Kort & Godt, the black is black mirror cardstock from Kort & Godt, and then I put three additional die cuts of the shadow die behind for dimension. I finished off the card very simply with Iridescent Dew Drops from Pinkfresh Studio.

Hug {Purple Onion Designs}

Hi, crafty friends! Sometimes you need a big hug, and this Hugs image featuring Elliot & Marcel from Purple Onion Designs is the perfect one to use.

I actually decided to watercolor this one with my Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers. I prefer using a paintbrush with water with these, but there’s also a blender that you can use. Marcel is small, but I still used three different browns and a pink for him (064 Oatmeal, 607 Milk Tea, 068 Deep Brown and 200 S. Almond Pink). For Elliot and the die cut letters I used 312 Overcast Sky only. I did use a little pink for the bow on his tail, but for the actual elephant, it was just the one blue. I love the movement you get with watercolor, it’s something you can’t really achieve with Copics.

I fussy cut my image, leaving a thin white border. Using the Impact Alphabet die set from My Favorite Things, I die cut the letters to spell out STOR (big) four times from white cardstock and once from Black cardstock from Concord & 9th. I used the Parker lowercase alphabet die set from Memory Box to die cut the letters for klem (hug), again four layers of white, this time topped by a layer of the watercolor paper.

I stacked my layers, and sandwiched the image between the white and black letters for the large word. I created a black mat on the card front, covered that with a piece of green patterned paper from the Watercolor Wash 6×6″ paper pad from My Favorite Things and mounted the letters and image in the center. I adhered the klem letters directly on top of the larger letters and added a sub sentiment sticker strip from Kort & Godt below it. I popped it up a bit to level it with the black letters, before finishing off with a few dew drops from the Spring Leaves embellishment mix from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards.

Just because {Kort & Godt}

Hi, crafty friends! Today’s card is one that I shared a while back on the Kort & Godt gallery blog. It’s pretty simple, but then again, that’s kind of my thing.

The bunny is from an image sheet (MA1011) from Kort & Godt. I did some fussy cutting on the left side and then used partial die cutting to turn it into a tag.

I used the Twist pattern press plate from Pinkfresh Studio with Nectar ink from Concord & 9th on a piece of Nectar cardstock from Concord & 9th to create a subtle background. I adhered the panel to a top fold card base I created from Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink.

I mounted the tag in the center using foam tape and added a bow with white cotton thread from Kort & Godt. I adhered a couple of sentiment sticker strips with foam tape.

To finish off the card I adhered a few faceted pearls. This card is so simple, and the soft colors really are perfect for spring.

Kort & Godt products used:

MA1011 (image)

Die-211

TR-104 (white cotton thread)

ST1013 (sentiment sticker strips)

ST178 (faceted pearls)

Wishing you a super chill day {Purple Onion Designs}

Hi, crafty friends! Summer’s just around the corner and with it comes ice cream!! These dragons from the Ice Cream Time stamp from Purple Onion Designs are certainly enjoying theirs.

I stamped my dragons onto cold pressed Fabriano Artístico Extra White watercolor paper using Altenew Obsidian ink and used Zig Clean color real brush markers with a brush and some water to watercolor them. I used the Watercolor Rectangle stencil from My Favorite Things to help me create a frame to color inside of.

I added some tufts of grass to my coloring. The markers make it super easy because of their actual brush.

Once all my coloring was dry, I stamped a sentiment from the Friendly Warm Wishes sentiment set from Purple Onion Designs using Obsidian ink from Altenew once again.

I adhered my panel to a card base and finished off with the Melon embellishment mix from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards.

Zig markers used for coloring:

214 Cyclamen pink

064 Oatmeal

702 Mandarin Orange

705 Peach Orange

502 Mimosa

307 Aqua Blue

406 Sage Green

411 Cactus Green

You have a heart of gold {Kort & Godt}

Hi, crafty friends! I’m constantly cold, so I look forward to spring and summer all year because it means that I get to feel less cold. The warmer seasons also bring out happy colors in my cards, and today’s card is an example of that.

I started by running a panel of Stamper’s Select White cardstock from Papertrey Ink through my die cutting machine with the Kaleidoscope embossing folder from Simon Says Stamp for a subtle, textured background. I love white space on my cards, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be flat.

Next, I did some stripping. Cardstock stripping, that is. I cut a few colors of cardstock into different width strips. The colors I used are (top to bottom – all Concord & 9th cardstock): Ballet Slipper, Carnation, Sweet Pea, Buttercup and Clementine. I added the strips to a scrap of cardstock to keep them all together and mounted them at an angle using foam tape.

I die cut the word klem (hug) three times from white cardstock and stacked them for dimension. I usually stack four, but I was using a scrap to die cut from and there was only room for three with the piece I used. Three layers work too!

I love how this word die creates a space for a sub sentiment strip. You can put pretty much anything on the bottom of the last part of the die cut and still see the whole word. For this one I used a sentiment sticker strip and adhered a couple of layers of cardstock strips behind it for even more dimension, so it pops off the die cut a little. To finish off the card, I added a few gold heart, I thought they matched the sub sentiment (you have a heart of gold) nicely.

Kort & Godt products used:

Die 244 Klem

ST1013 (sentiment sticker strip)

ST149 (hearts)

Get happy! {Purple Onion Designs}

Hi, crafty friends! I have a fun card to share today with some cuties from Purple Onion Designs. I colored this up for the rainbow theme for last month’s Coloring Club Challenge over on Instagram. Polly the hedgehog is so cute with her buckets of paint, and I had her paint a stone wall this time.

In addition to Polly and the stone wall, I also used Hazel and the countryside horizon background. I die cut a panel of X-Press It blending card using the Postage Collage die set from Waffle Flower. I then used the coordinating coloring stencil to mask off the edges, so I could stamp in the “windows” only and keep the outside white. I used a 0.03 Copic multiliner to add a very thin frame around each part of the scene to contain my coloring inside.

Once my coloring was complete I stamped a sentiment from the Journey sentiment set from Purple Onion Designs using Altenew Obsidian ink.

I stacked cardstock scraps behind each of the postage stamps for dimension and adhered everything to a card base I created from Rustic Cream cardstock from Papertrey Ink. I love this cardstock, I need to break it out more!!

To finish off the card I embellished with iridescent flowers from the Spring Leaves mix from Little Things from Lucy’s Cards.

Lots of Copics for this one.

Floral hug {Papiria}

Hi, crafty friends! I have a super dimensional floral card to share today that I created for the Papiria blog, featuring the Paper Posy bundle from Concord & 9th. The bundle consists of a huge die set, an embossing folder to go with some of the dies in the set and the cutest little sentiment stamp set.

I used a couple of the brand new cardstock colors from Concord & 9th (Brickyard and Pimento), along with a bunch of older ones (Sorbet, Grapefruit, Nectar, Eucalyptus, Rainforest) for the rest of the florals. I also used a little bit of vellum and some gold shine cardstock for the flower centers.

Once you’ve die cut the florals and greenery, you can use the embossing folder that coordinates to create texture on the petals and large leaves. They come out looking like crepe paper, and I love the look. There are many ways to assemble these flowers, and I created a bunch more that I wasn’t able to fit on this card. For the circular centers, I stacked some white die cuts behind the gold ones for dimension, and I curled all the petals and “crepe paper” leaves before assembly.

On the Powder panel that covers the card base, I wanted a little bit of texture. I used the Leafy Lattice press plate from Pinkfresh Studio with Polar Bear ink from Altenew for a subtle background – it’s so subtle it barely shows in the photos, it’s definitely more noticeable in real life. I probably could have gone a little bit darker with the ink, or ink up the press plate a second time and run it through again if I wanted it darker.

I adhered all my flowers and leaves with liquid glue, stacking the pieces in the background for strength and dimension. They’re only attached at the base of the sprigs, so they have som lift at the tips. I die cut a sentiment die from Kort & Godt four times from Harbor cardstock, stacked them, added a vellum shadow layer behind and glued my sentiment on top of the larger flower, before finishing off with a few champagne glitter drops from Pinkfresh Studio.

This card is very dimensional and not at all mail friendly. I might have to either hand deliver this or create a box envelope for it.

Thank you for believing in me

Hi, crafty friends! It’s a sunny day in Oslo today, but I plan on spending the last day of Easter in my craft room. Today’s card is one I created for the Coloring Club Challenge that Alberto Gava is hosting on Instagram. I can’t believe we’re so close to the end of it! As soon as I saw the magical creatures theme for this challenge, I knew I’d be coloring a dragon. And as soon as I saw that Mama Elephant would sponsor the prize for the magical creatures challenge, I knew that Me and my dragon would be the stamp set I’d use. It’s sooo good, and back when Kathy Racoosin hosted the coloring challenges, I’d always sneak in some ME dragons, so I had to do that here, too!

I started with two panels of X-Press It blending card and stamped the flying dragon and little boy on one of the panels, and the little girl in the corner of the other. I stamped in Copic friendly ink, colored up the images, then stamped on top with Altenew Obsidian ink, which gives really crisp black lines.

Once the coloring was complete, I put masks on top of my images and ink blended around them. For the piece with the little boy and the dragon, I used Icy Water fresh dye ink from Altenew, and for the panel with the little girl, I used Evening Gray ink, also fresh dye ink from Altenew. I also used Moon Rock at the very bottom to ground the little girl. In the sky, I also added clouds with Fresh Snow hybrid ink from Papertrey Ink through the Tiny Clouds stencil from My Favorite Things. This barely showed on my very pale blue sky, so I added Perfect Pearls powder on top, which makes the clouds stand out a little more, and it gives great shine when you tilt it in the light.

Using the Slim Film City die set from Mama Elephant, I die cut the city skyline from the panel with the little girl, and I also added a second skyline silhouette behind her that I die cut from the remainder of the panel, which I’d inked with Moon Rock ink.

I stamped a sentiment from the Bitty Thanks & Gratitude stamp set from My Favorite Things using Altenew Obsidian ink, die cut the whole thing using a die from the Watercolor Rectangle STAX die set from My Favorite Things, added an additional three layers behind it for dimension and adhered it to a white card base. I decided not to add any embellishments to this, those clouds really do add quite a bit of shine in real life, and I didn’t think the card needed any more.

I used a very basic color palette for this one.