2023 January-June Mini Catalog

Jan’23- Paper Pumpkin Alternatives- 2 More

Hi friends! Thanks for your patience- my computer is still on the injured reserve list , so I finished typing & the post on my phone. So I’m FINALLY here today with two more Paper Pumpkin alternative cards in my second post on alternative cards. Yesterday’s post also had 2 cards, & on Monday’s post, I shared my kit cards made just like the instructions. I wanted to make a few special cards for Valentine’s Day so these two are probably in the Artistically Avid category, but I’ll let you be the judge. Avid or Artistically Avid?

2023-Jan. paper Pumpkin “Key to My Heart“ Alternative Card+

Directions to the first card in Petal Pink:
1. Cut a card base of Petal Pink cardstock 5.5 x 8.5; score at 4.25.
2. Cut a piece of Distressed Gold Specialty Designer Paper to 4-1/8 x 5-3/8. & adhere to Petal Pink card base. Set aside.
3. Cut another piece of Petal Pink cardstock to 4 x 5.25.
4. Cut a piece of Textured Chic Specialty Designer Paper & adhere to 4 x 5.25 Petal Pink layer on the left side.
5. Cut down a PP kit Petal Pink & Gold plaid card front; cut off the back part of the card. Cut the card front in half. Save the cut off half & the card back for later use.
6. Cut the edges to approximately 1/8″; ensure the frame around the gold plaid is approximately the same width. Adhere to the right edge of the card base & over the Textured Chic piece.
7. Cut a piece of Distressed Gold to 1.5 x 4.25″. Adhere over the junction of the card front & Textured Chic papers.
8. Using a scrap piece of Petal Pink cardstock, stamp the heart lock in Petal Pink & cut using a scalloped Layering circle.
9. Cut a Distressed Gold circle, slightly larger than the scalloped Petal Pink circle. Mount the Petal Pink circle with the key image onto the Distressed Gold Circle.
10. Using dimensionals, adhere the circle to the panel with papers.
11. Adhere dimensionals to the key from the kit & mount on the panel.
12. Tie a bow with Gold Elegant Trim & adhere to the center of the key.
13. Stamp sentiment in Petal Pink on a scrap of Petal Pink card & cut out using Tailor Made Tags. In Distressed Gold cut out a “paper hole reinforcer”. Adhere to the Petal Pink tag & add Gold Elegant trim. Add dimensionals to the back of the tag & mount as shown in picture. BTW- Those little open circles have the name of “paper hole reinforcer” according to office suppliers. Who knew?
14. Adhere panel to the Petal Pink & Distressed Gold card base that you set aside in step 2.
15. Add three Petal Pink Solid Faceted gems around the circle & add three Gold Pastel Adhesive backed Sequins around the tag & key.

Alternative Card+ indicates non-kit, Stampin’ Up current products used.
Supplies: All Stampin’ Up; Paper Pumpkin kit elements are designated as PP 1/23; AC = ’22-’23 Annual Catalog; MC= ’23 J-A Mini Catalog, SAB = ‘23 J-F SAB
Stamps: PP 1/23 Key to my Heart
Paper: Petal Pink #146985, PP’23.-card front panel cut down
DSP: Distressed Gold Specialty Paper #159237 AC; Textured Chic Specialty Paper #158808 AC
Ink: Petal Pink #147108
Tools: Layering Circle dies #151770- AC; Tailor Made Tags #155563 AC
Accessories: Gold Simply Elegant Trim #155766 AC; Petal Pink Solid Faceted Gems #159189 MC; Pastel Adhesive backed Sequins #160387 MC

My second card uses the Fresh Freesia card & it is cut down but differently than the Petal Pink Card. Follow the directions below.

Directions for the Fresh Freesia card. This card is a bit of a free flow of layers.
Alternative card+; Use abbreviation legend above.
1. Cut 1/4″ off the open sides (3 sides) of the Fresh Freesia card. Leave the fold in place.
2. Using the Timeworn Type 3D embossing folder, emboss the kit’s Fresh Freesia parallelogram. Distress with sanding block or sand eraser around the edges & across the embossing. Allow some white paper (called the core) to show.
3. Adhere diagonally across the card front. Trim any excess that hangs off the sides.
4. Choose coordinating DSP. Here is Dandy Designs in Balmy Blue. Cut to 1.75 x 5.25″ & adhere to the card base a little to the left of center.
5. Cut two strips of Distressed Gold at 1/4″ x 5.25”. Mount the first strip adjacent to the left side of the 1.75x 5.25 “ of the Balmy Blue DSP panel. Mount the second strip on the right alongside the Fresh Freesia parallelogram in two places.
6. Punch two scalloped Hearts in Coordinating DSP. Here: Balmy Blue from Country Floral Lane. Adhere at an angle to the card panel.
7. Use the large Vellum circle from the kit & adhere in a “hidden” place. Here I put our Multipurpose liquid glue on top of the blue hearts b/c the Fresh Freesia will be on top.
NOTE: This liquid glue gives it a little wrinkle, but I like that b/c it adds dimension. If you’re looking for a more uniform look, use Tear & Tape or Stampin’ Seal.
8. Punch two Fresh Freesia DSP hearts. Here: Dandy Designs. Ink the small heart background stamp in Orchid Oasis. Stamp off once then stamp the two hearts.
9. Stamp the Medallion & key in full strength Orchid Oasis on a scrap of the same DSP as the hearts.
10. Cut the Medallion with Layering circle & fussy cut the key. Adhere the key to the center of the Medallion. Glue the entire medallion between the hearts.
11. Stamp your sentiment in full strength Orchid Oasis on scrap DSP. Punch out with Handmade Tag Punch with the sentiment towards the top. Cut off bottom portion of sentiment to get a straight edge & align at the bottom right.
12. Grab your envelope & decorate while you have out your ink & heart stamp; if desired.
13. Adhere Embellishments in grouping of three.
14. Cut a piece of Orchid Oasis cardstock to 5.5 x 4.25. Mount finished card on the Orchid Oasis

Supplies: All Stampin’ Up. Refer to the Abbreviation Legend from the above card.
Stamps: PP 1/23 Key to My Heart
Paper: Orchid Oasis- AC, Kit Fresh Freesia base, kit Fresh Freesia parallelogram.
DSP: Dandy Designs- SAB; Country Floral Lane- MC #160375
Ink: Orchid Oasis- AC
Tools: EF- Timeworn Type 3D-AC #156505; Around the Bend dies (small hearts) MC #160649; Handmade Tag Punch #159690 – carryover from ‘22 Holiday MC
Accessories: Loose Flower Flourishes- AC #155808; Iridescent Pastel Gems-MC #160429; Opaque Adhesive-backed Gems-MC #160412

Finally ready to post … computer’s still funky so I’ve been typing on my phone. Slow go but complete at last!

Below is a second look at the two cards. So what do you think? Avid or Artistically Avid. ?Happy Stamping, Marilyn (akaMJ)

Jan’23- Paper Pumpkin Alternatives

Happy Monday, friends! Today, I have two cards that I made with components from the January “Key to My Heart” Paper Pumpkin kit.

My first card highlights the kit’s stamps (shown below). The heart shaped lock stamp was stamped in Polished Pink & Petal Pink on Petal Pink cardstock. The images were fussy cut; it is an easy shape & there’s only three so I didn’t mind. {wink,wink}

The heart locks were mounted on Distressed Gold scalloped circles with the center circle being a larger circle. Those circles were mounted on a cut-down piece of the PP card front. I set that piece aside.

A 4 x 5.25” piece of Country Floral Lane DSP was mounted on a Petal Pink layer (4-1/8 x 5-3/8”. Then another pattern of Country floral Lane was mounted on top of that panel; it’s barely visible but can be seen at the card’s edges.

The sentiment shape started as a strip of cardstock & one end was cut at one end with Something Fancy dies. The sentiment is from the PP stamp kit & was stamped in Polished Pink on Basic White. The key stamp was stamped on the backside of the Distressed Gold paper & cutout. An open circle from the Tailor Made tags was backed with a tiny scrap of Polished Pink & adhered to the key. The entire sentiment strip was centered across the bottom of the DSP panel.

The entire DSP panel was mounted on a card base of Polished Pink cardstock. Little heart pearls were added.

Supplies: All Stampin’ Up; Paper Pumpkin kit elements are designated as PP 1/23
Stamps: PP 1/23
Paper: Petal Pink, Polished Pink, PP’23.-card front panel cut down
DSP: Country Floral Lane #160375- J-A’23 MC; Distressed Gold Speciality Paper #159237 AC
Ink: Petal Pink, Polished Pink
Tools: Layering Circle dies #151770- ‘22-‘23 AC; Something Fancy Tags #160424 – J-A ‘23 MC; Tailor Made Tags #155563 AC
Accessories: Heart Pearls #159190

My second alternative card features just one element from the kit. The punched out section from lock opening that is meant to be discarded. It reminded me of a vase so I went with that.

The keyhole/vase was embossed using the Timeworn Type 3D embossing folder. On a Basic White I stamped the Petal Park leaves in Pear Pizzazz. Then I adhered the top part of the vase to the leaves panel.

The flowers were stamped in Polished Pink on a separate piece of Basic White & punched out & added to the panel. That white panel was mounted on Polished Pink cardstock. This vase & floral panel was mounted onto Mint Macaron.

The vase was masked off & the tiny floral cluster was stamped in Polished Pink on the lower section of the Mint Macaron panel. The entire panel was then mounted on a Polished Pink card base.

Supplies: All Stampin’ Up; Paper Pumpkin kit elements are designated as PP 1/23
Stamps: Petal Park #160571
Paper: Mint Macaron, Polished Pink, Basic White
Ink: Polished Pink, Pear Pizzazz
Accessories: Timeworn Type Embossing Folder 3D #156505
Tools: Petal Park Builder Punch #160576; Petal Park bundle #160577 [stamps & punch]

I hope these card’s encourage you to finish your January’23 Paper Pumpkin. See you tomorrow for more Paper Pumpkin inspiration. Happy Stamping, Marilyn (aka MJ)

Adorable Owls- version 3- Artistically Avid

Hello again, friends! Thanks for indulging me yesterday with the exciting news from Stampin’ Up. And thanks for returning today for the third & last day in my Adorable Owls series. For the past two days, I’ve shared two different cards- a simple or Casual card & a stepped up version or Avid card. Today’s card is an Artistically Avid card… lots of design elements, layers & embellishments.

The sketch of the card is the same as the last two days which was intentional so I could show how easy it is to take your casual card & step it up. I often start with a Casual card & then make it my own with “twists”.

My card base & DSP layer are the same as the casual card.

How to make this card:

Chose three pieces of coordinating double sided Designer Series Paper (DSP). Cut to 3.75 x 4.5″. TIP: If you use 12 x 12 paper you can get 6 sets. Then cut the 4.5″ side at 1.5″ and 3″. Now there are 3 pieces that are 1.5″ by 3.75.

Pick a coordinating color of cardstock & cut a 4″ X 4.75″ piece to serve as a mat. Mine is Mango Melody. Mount the three 1.5″ x 4″ DSP pieces equal distance on the cardstock. Set aside. TIP: Align the two outer pieces approximately the same distance from the edges & then center the middle piece between the two outer pieces.

Wrap Fresh Freesia Open Weave ribbon across the middle of the Calypso Coral & DSP panel & secured ribbon to the back.

The birthday owl was stamped with Momento Tuxedo Black ink on Basic White cardstock & cut with a Layering circle die. The owl was colored with Gray Granite & Crumb Cake; Calypso Coral & Fresh Freesia were the accent colors. The owl was mounted on a Fresh Freesia scalloped circle. Then a Fresh Freesia Open Weave ribbon bow was tied & mounted using glue dots to the left of the owl panel.

The sentiments were stamped in Momento Tuxedo Black onto scraps of Mango Melody cardstock. They were cut a little wonky & added at angles to boost the fun of this adorable card. Last Fresh Freesia Opaque Adhesive-backed gems were added.

Supplies: from Annual Catalog unless otherwise stated
Stamps: Adorable Owl #160269 (Sale-a-bration ’23) ; Sentiment on inside- Something Fancy #160416 (Jan-April ’23 Mini Catalog)
Cardstock: Fresh Freesia #155613, Calypso Coral #122925; Mango Melody #146989
Designer Series Paper (DSP): Dandy Designs #160836 (Sale-a-bration ’23)
Ink: Momento Tuxedo Black #132708; for coloring: Fresh Freesia #155611, Calypso Coral #147101, Balmy Blue (eyes) #147105; Gray Granite #147118; Crumb Cake #147116
Tools: Layering Circle Dies #155170; Blender pen #102845
Accessories: Fresh Freesia Open Weave Ribbon #155615; Fresh Freesia Opaque Adhesive-backed gems #160412 (Sale-a-bration ’23)

Thanks again for stopping by! Happy Stamping, Marilyn (aka MJ)

Adorable Owls- version 2

Hi friends! Yesterday, I shared with you a Casual card using the Adorable Owls Sale-a-bration stamp set & my Sketch #2. plus the wonderful Sale-a-bration DSP called Dandy Designs, a 48 sheet pack.

Today, I’m going to take it up a notch & share an Avid card.

As you can see, I flipped the sketch from horizontal to vertical & centered the circle. To make the original casual card a little more interesting, I cut the 1.5” x 4” rectangles on the diagonal, giving me 6 triangles.

A Mango Melody 4” x 5.25” piece serves as a mat for the triangles. TIP: mount a triangle at the top & the bottom then piece together an alternative DSP design to comple the top & bottom rectangles.

I spaced the middle triangles equal distance from the top & bottom rectangles & added a thin strip (approximately 1/4”) of Fresh Freesia.

The birthday owl was stamped with Tuxedo Black ink on Basic White cardstock & cut with a Layering circle die. A bit of color was added using Calypso Coral & Fresh Freesia.

Three strips of cardstock in different lengths, widths & colors (Fresh Freesia, Mango Melody & Calypso) were added to the back of the diecut owl. That entire piece of cardstock strips & the owl were popped up with dimensionals & mounted to the center of the card panel.

The card panel was then mounted to a card base of Fresh Freesia. Last a bow of Fresh Freesia Open Weave ribbon was added.

So there you have it- an Avid Version of yesterday’s Casual card. Let me know what you think. Happy Stamping, Marilyn (aka MJ)

Supplies: from Annual Catalog unless otherwise stated
Stamps: Adorable Owl #160269 (Sale-a-bration ’23)
Cardstock: Fresh Freesia #155613, Calypso Coral #122925; Mango Melody #146989

Adorable Owls

Have you seen the Adorable Owls Sale-a-Bration stamp set? There are so much creativity with this set. I think because it is truly adorable. For my next three posts I will be sharing cards made with this set & the same sketch- my Sketch 2.

There’s a casual card (today) an avid card & an artfully avid card. Basically it’s a simple card that’s stepped up some in version 2 & stepped up even more in the third version. Nice to have options. Here’s the casual card.

Pick a coordinating color of cardstock & cut a 4″ X 4.75″ piece to serve as a mat. Mine is Calypso Coral. Mount the three 1.5″ x 4″ DSP pieces equal distance on the cardstock. Set aside. TIP: Align the two outer pieces approximately the same distance from the edges & then center the middle piece between the two outer pieces.

Using a scrap piece of coordinating cardstock, stamp the owl in Basic Black. Stamp your sentiment using the same color of cardstock. Also cut a 1/2″ X 4″ piece of the same color of cardstock & add dimensionals to the back. Tie a piece of ribbon in a coordinating color around the cardstock strip.

Punch out the stamped owl using the Decorative Circle punch. Color the owl according to your taste. Since this is a casual card, I didn’t color much & this is also why I used a light colored cardstock in Fresh Freesia. The non-white background gives the image some fun without adding a lot of time for coloring.

The last steps are building your card. Adhere your DSP-cardstock panel to the card base. Adhere the ribbon-cardstock strip across the center of the DSP panel. Adhere the Owl and the sentiment to the outside. Add a sentiment to the inside.

It’s a very basic card that’s easy to mass produce. I always like the clean & simple designs for a swap group that I belong to. But these stampers are so experienced that I don’t want it to be boring. In my next post, I’ll show how to take it up a notch.

Supplies: from Annual Catalog unless otherwise stated
Stamps: Adorable Owl #160269 (Sale-a-bration ’23) ; Sentiment- Something Fancy #160416 (Jan-April ’23 mini Catalog)
Cardstock: Fresh Freesia #155613, Calypso Coral #122925
Designer Series Paper (DSP): Dandy Designs #160836 (Sale-a-bration ’23)
Ink: Momento Tuxedo Black #132708; for coloring: Fresh Freesia #155611, Calypso Coral #147101, Gray Granite #147118
Tools: Decorative Circle Punch #159174, Blender pen #102845
Accessories: Fresh Freesia Open Weave Ribbon #155615

Come back soon for the second card- the Avid version. Thanks for stopping today. Happy Stamping, Marilyn (aka MJ)

Friend Valentine

Happy Thursday, friends! My card today starts with a Petal Pink card base with layer of Petal pink embossed with the Pretty Flowers Embossing Folder.

Then a piece of Balmy Blue was die cut along the bottom in a whimsical way using the hearts from the Around the Bend dies. The bikes were taken from a piece of the Country Floral Lane DSP.

The sentiment from the Love for You stamp set was stamped in Sweet Sorbet on Petal Pink. The “Happy Valentines Day” was die cut using the Something Fancy dies.

Last, three of the Balmy Blue die cut hearts were added along with three Balmy Blue Iridescent Gems.

Enjoy the rest of your week. Stay tuned for more ideas for Valentine’s Day cards! Happy Stamping, Marilyn (aka MJ)

Sending Support

Hi friends! Today’s card was made to showcase more of Stampin’ Up’s new products. There are so many great products in the new Mini Catalog (January-April ’23). I wanted to share something other that the favorite Petal Park & Regency Park which I’ve used on previous days. Another day I will get going on Valentine cards but in the meantime I made this card.

I used for the Color Throwdown Challenge of Gray, Navy and White.

I also chose a sketch from this week’s Sketch Challenge at Splitcoaststampers but I flipped the sketch so I could show you these fabulous dies called “Around the Bend” in the new Mini Catalog. .

The papers are really the star here…the silver is from “Like an Animal” DSP & the Night of Navy is from “By the Bay”. Both DSPs have such a nice shine & the design is similar with the scale or shell design. Gotta’ love how SU! products coordinate even between product bundles!

The sentiment if from ” Sending Support” a Sale-a -bration stamp set. Such nice sentiments in this one set. The one on the front of the card pairs with the inside sentiment. Front: There are so many ways you might feel right now… Inside: Alone isn’t one of them. The sentiment was cut with the Tailored Tag dies from the Annual Catalog.

Gray twine left over from the December Paper Pumpkin was wrapped around the tag. And silver pearls from the Red & Green adhesive backed Pearl pack which carried over from the holiday Mini Catalog.