Tag Archives: Stitched So Sweetly Dies

Beauty of the Earth in a Fun Fold

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Cheryl, one of my Stampin’ BFFs, shared this fold with me. At the moment she did, I had Beauty of the Earth DSP on my craft desk and knew immediately what I wanted to do. I absolutely love the way these two designs work together, and I’m quite pleased with the end result:

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Beauty of the Earth DSP Fun Fold handmade card
  • Stamps: Peaceful Moments (my absolute fave sentiment set!), Forever Fern
  • Color Palette: Basic White, Crushed Curry, Mossy Meadow
  • Accessories: Big Boss, Painted Labels dies, Stitched So Sweetly dies, Beauty of the Earth Designer Series Paper, Champagne Jewels, Stampin’ Dimensionals

This is a design called Double Dutch Door. It’s very simple, but the cutting takes a little time and precision. When you remove the belly band, the top panel opens upward, and there are 2 mini panels at the bottom that open out to the sides.

You can customize this one to your heart’s delight! I used both Mossy Meadow and Crushed Curry ink on the Forever Fern images – I just dunked the bottom half in one color and the top half in the other. You could call that a specific technique, or you could just call it lazy 😁

I’ve been making more of an effort to embellish my envelopes. Most often I add a layer of Designer Series paper to the flap, which would have been a great choice with this one, but I chose to use my “dunking” technique with the leaves instead. Do you embellish your envelopes? It doesn’t take much time at all – you just need to remember to do it.

There’s an entire suite called Beauty of the Earth. I chose to use just the paper for this project, but there’s a lot of inspiration in the Suite!

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Sale-a-bration FREE STAMPS January-February-2022

Everybody loves FREE!! Choose FREE goodies from January 4 to February 28, 2022!! Shop HERE.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Sale-a-bration Join FREE STAMPS

Before you place that order, consider the Very Best Deal – joining Stampin’ Up! as a demonstrator! If you join by February 28, 2022, there’s a super opportunity. Choose 2 FREE stamp sets PLUS:

  • $125 additional product of your choice for $99
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  • Earn Sale-a-bration and host rewards on RETAIL price not your discounted price
  • An incredible community of crafters
  • Early access AND sneak peeks (you know you want to know!)

Join by February 28th for those two free stamp sets! Message me if you have questions or want to chat.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Paper Pumpkin February 2022 Safari Celebration kit

Be sure to subscribe by February 10th for your Craft Escape in a box! Paper Pumpkin subscriptions deliver ready-to-go projects to your doorstep every month, but you have ultimate control to skip or cancel 😱if you decide it’s not for you. The February kit will make 9 playful cards with envelopes that you can tailor to your card-sending needs. Don’t wait!

Snailed It: Magical Mushrooms

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The Stampin’ Up! January – June mini catalog is filled with delights, and these sweet mushrooms are Exhibit A. They remind me of the Alice in Wonderland sort of mushroom, and I find coloring them to be endlessly appealing. Because they’re magical, they lend themselves to whimsical colors.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Snailed It Magical Mushrooms birthday card
  • Stamps: Snailed It, A Wish for Everything
  • Color Palette: Basic White, Petal Pink, So Saffron, Mango Melody, Mint Macaron, Basic Black
  • Accessories: Big Boss, Snail dies, Subtle Embossing Folder (retiring May 3), Stitched So Sweetly dies, Polka Dotted Tulle Ribbon (retiring May 3), Blending Brush, Stampin Dimensionals

The Subtle Embossing folder is such a go-to texture on my craft desk that I’ve actually ordered a second one in the dire event that something happens to mine. It creates a dobby, fabric-like impression on our card stock that doesn’t distract from anything else: it’s SUBTLE.

Speaking of subtle, be still my heart but I do love our Blending Brushes! No more blobs or streaks, just lovely subtle washes of color. You can build color, you can blend colors, you can spend all day playing with your Blending Brushes! (Not that I would do that, of course.)

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Snailed It Magical Mushrooms birthday card

I have a my own technique for adding the ribbon to the back of a focal point. I’ve watched a lot of YouTube videos where crafters just seem to wave their fingers in the air and viola! they have a beautiful, casual ribbon bundle for their project. When I wave my fingers in the air, well, it’s just messy, let’s leave it at that.

My technique is to put some Stampin’ Seal on the back of the panel and then place the ribbon, layer by layer, on that adhesive. I flip it back and forth to see how it looks, and if I’m not happy with it, it’s simple to pull it off the adhesive and reposition it. Once I have the look I want, I add a small piece of tape (the ordinary desktop kind) to secure everything in place.

The Clearance Rack has been updated – snap up Designer Series Papers, ribbons, embellishments, punches and more at great prices – while supplies last. Or if you prefer, snap up the Snailed It bundle and go color some mushrooms of your own. I promise it will be magical.

Technique Tuesday: Split Card

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You’ve probably seen it – stamp once, split the results, and BOOM! two cards. It’s been on my list of things to try, and today I can share the happy results.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Beautiful Friendship Split Card Technique

This is an easy technique. In order to make your double card front, you start with a half sheet of card stock, 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches. I use a pencil to make a light mark at the 4 1/4 inch point along the top and bottom of the paper. (If you have eagle eyes, you can just see it in this image.) Then just stamp down the middle…

Just like that! You might notice a couple of things: I used two different accent leaves in different colors from left to right, and I smudged on the right. Smudges are not always an insurmountable problem! It depends on the location of the smudge, and this one was easy to cover

The next step is to cut your half sheet of card stock into quarters. This yields two pieces, 4 1/4 by 5 1/2 inches – the perfect size to create a card front!

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Beautiful Friendship Split Card Technique

I love this gold trim – just tie a knot where you want it to stop fraying. It frays all by itself, such a time saver!

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Beautiful Friendship Split Card Technique

This side of the split panel uses Gray Granite ink instead of Cinnamon Cider, so my accessories and accents use that color. The ribbon is retired, and I’m sorry, but I have been waiting since Moses signed up to be a demonstrator for my 1/4 inch Gray Granite shimmer ribbon!! This was in the archives and I dragged it out for this card. I used the Layering Ovals dies for the sentiment on this card.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Beautiful Friendship Split Card Technique

Adding a little extra color to the sentiment panel helps to tie it together with the rest of the card.

Ready to make your own? Grab some stamps, ink and a half sheet of card stock and have some fun. I used some sticky notes to mask my images, creating a sense of depth, but do whatever it is that makes you happy. Try monochromatic color schemes as I used here, or go big and bold with bright colors. Flowers are a great way to start, but other images will work too. Just a note: I couldn’t come up with a satisfactory card using images of people or animals. They look odd cut in half, and inevitably one side gets stuck with a “back side”.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Bonus Days Promotion July 2020

Just 10 more days to earn Bonus Days Bucks! Beautiful Friendship is one of my all-time favorite stamp sets for the lushness of the images and the many different types of cards they allow you to create. Shop HERE.

All the New In Colors

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My first full-catalog order arrived this afternoon and I WAS READY:

Maui Stamper Stampin Up 2020-2022 In Color Collection Painted Poppies

This card was designed, cut and ready for my 2020-2022 In Color inks and blends! It doesn’t often happen that way, but I was inspired by these gorgeous colors. I love the statement it makes when you feature a single color with black and white accents. (Note to self: Magenta Madness is VERY pink!)

Maui Stamper Stampin Up 2020-2022 In Color Collection Painted Poppies

Oh, Magenta Madness is glorious! I love this sentiment from the Peaceful Moments stamp set, because it sets the stage for just about any message – thank you, thinking of you, happy birthday, you name it. I’ll add an additional sentiment on the inside of these cards when it’s time to send them.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up 2020-2022 In Color Collection Painted Poppies

Stampin’ Up! hasn’t produced a Bumble Bee Stampin’ Blend, so I used Daffodil Delight with a little Mango Melody. You could easily use Stampin’ Write markers to color this image.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up 2020-2022 In Color Collection Painted Poppies

Any of the designs available with this DSP would work well for this technique, but I chose the dots because they echoed the repetition of the poppy blooms on the stems.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up 2020-2022 In Color Collection Painted Poppies

I wasn’t sure how Cinnamon Cider would work for this card, but I’m very happy with it! It reminds me of a vine that is quite common (actually it’s invasive) here in Hawaii called wood rose. The flower is yellow, but the seed pod looks like a soft wooden flower.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up 2020-2022 In Color Collection Painted Poppies

I don’t want to play favorites, but I *think* Just Jade is going to be my go-to In Color for this new suite of colors. It’s not as bright as Bermuda Bay and I can’t wait to explore new color combinations.

That’s today’s In Color Suite – what do you think? If you’re ready to shop, consider two specials going on for the month of June. A workshop or single order that reaches the $250 level gets an extra $25 of Host Rewards. I’m hosting events on Zoom with great success, and if you’re interested I would be delighted to talk about how we could make that work for you.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up June 2020 Bonus Host Dollars

If your shopping list is over $99, it’s a great time to sign up as a demonstrator. Your $99 kit includes your choice of $125 of Stampin’ Up! product, a selection of business supplies, and through June 30, you’ll add another stamp/die or stamp/punch bundle at no additional cost. There’s no obligation beyond purchasing the kit, but every order you place once you’ve signed up is discounted a minimum of 20%.

Maui Stamper Stampin' Up! Recruits Get a Free Bundle 06-2020

There are so many choices! It’s a good problem to have, don’t you think?

Farewell to First Frost

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This time of year I get a little verklempt over some of the retiring stamps. Others, not so much – but I’ll be sorry to see First Frost leave the catalog. I discovered a little embossed bit in my “pieces” a couple of days ago, and brought the set out for one last inking.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up First Frost in Gray
Maui Stamper Stampin Up First Frost in Gray

I cut small pieces from the Stampin’ Dimensionals sheet to adhere the embossed vellum stem. The White Embossing Powder perfectly masked the dimensionals, and I was able to cut them in narrow strips by using the extra bit of foam that’s left behind when all the dimensionals are used.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up First Frost in Gray

Funny, when I stamped the first images (Memento Black ink on Whisper White) I liked them so well I almost didn’t use the vellum bit that was my inspiration in the first place. Instead, I created this second version using Basic Gray and Very Vanilla card stock. It’s almost the same, although I used the Metallic Pearls and a retired sympathy sentiment (Teeny Tiny Wishes.)

I’m having trouble deciding which one I prefer! But I’ll tell you this: if you’re on the fence about adding First Frost (or Beautiful Bouquet and its great sentiments) to your craft stash, you’ll need to visit the Online Store right away as these two sets will be retired at close of business on June 2, 2020. Don’t dilly dally.

Inspired by Designer Series Paper

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I love our DSP. The colors are rich, the designs are versatile, the finish of the paper is smooth, and the weight is Goldilocks perfect – not too heavy, not too light, but juuuuuust right. I’ve been challenging myself to dig into my stash (it’s a little embarrassing) and create with all of the beautiful paper I’ve found there.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Peaceful Poppies

I used a Stampin’ Sponge to lightly shade the front edge of my Whisper White card. I didn’t want the bold color of Pool Party card stock, but the WW seemed too stark. Sponging was the perfect solution as it provided a hint of color and a very simple technique.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Peaceful Poppies

That Peaceful Poppies DSP is gorgeous and completely IN YOUR FACE. The colors and images are really bold, but they’re really easy to use. I reached for this combination first when I decided to dig into my DSP stash.

The So Sentimental bundle is a versatile bundle with unique and very useful stitched shapes that layer in a multitude of ways. This one is a keeper, and it’s carrying forward into the new Annual Catalog.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Magnolia Lane
Maui Stamper Stampin Up Magnolia Lane

This same layout has a simpler construction. The DSP panels stand on their own without a complimentary mat behind them, and the Whisper White card base is left in its natural state. I struggle with simple stamping (ink, stamps, paper) but this is pretty close for me.

Are you a DSP hoarder? I confess that I am, but I have been sending a lot of cards lately, and my stash is getting a little thin. Cutting into this gorgeous paper is hard – you know, the first cut is the deepest – but the results are worth it!

A lot of our beautiful DSP is on sale in the Online Store. Hurry, supplies are limited!

A Cute Chick to Welcome Easter

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If you’re lucky enough to have a Kit Kat bar (…break me off a piece!) in your Stay Home Stash, I’ve got a cute idea for you. I found these bars weeks ago, back in the olden days when you walked through a store browsing. I wanted to use this idea for a group, but even then there must have been some panic buying because there were just a few in stock:

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Welcome Easter Kit Kat Bar

The Stitched So Sweetly dies have an awesome assortment of shapes that are really versatile. They’re currently available as a bundle with the So Sentimental stamp set, and I’m crossing my fingers that they’ll carry over to the 2020-2021 Annual Catalog because I have more ideas than time right now!

To create a box for any candy bar, just measure the bar and add a SMIDGE – maybe 1/8″ – to those dimensions for the dimensions of your box. Use the Simply Scored tool to quickly create that box, being sure to leave a 1/4″ tab to adhere the sides, and enough extra in the height of the box to create overlap when you close the flaps. Choose a die that fits inside your largest side and cut out one section. You may have to be a little creative to fit things through your die cutting machine!

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Welcome Easter Kit Kat Bar

It didn’t take long to cut the chick out, but fussy-cutting Happy Easter took a couple of tries. I always want to get it reaaaaaallllly close, and that doesn’t always work!

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Welcome Easter Kit Kat Bar

I hope you have something yummy to enjoy on Easter morning! Mr. Maui Stamper and I will have a delicious home-cooked brunch (who am I kidding, EVERYTHING WE EAT is home cooked these days. SHEESH.) We’re looking forward to an exuberant visit with our family via the wonders of Zoom. We are spread over MANY time zones so coordinating these calls is quite complex. (what is it with me and ALL CAPS today? Apparently I am tired of being alone and feel the need to shout. Sorry.)

We’re still shipping, and Stampin’ Up! is being extremely conscientious about staffing and environment in the warehouse in order to protect the SU team as well as each of you receiving your box o’ happiness. If you need a little something crafty to brighten up your day, you can shop HERE – and mahalo.

Painted Poppy Fields

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As I mentioned in Two Poppies Four Ways, I think this image of stemmed poppies is the most versatile in the entire suite.

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Painted Poppies

This is a fast card – even the coloring with the Blends goes quickly. The main panel is applied to the black mat, and that assembly is lifted with Stampin’ Dimensionals to create more focus. The ribbon looks red in the photo, but trust me, it’s as Lovely a Lipstick as they come!

Maui Stamper Stampin Up Painted Poppies

You can see I didn’t worry too much about coloring inside the lines. That’s actually one of my goals this year – not to be so fussy. 9 times out of 10 it doesn’t matter! My goal is to get the cards made and in the mailbox, and that’s where this one is headed.

If you need some quick cards and you’re need a little somethin’ to pull it all together, shop HERE.