These fun little cards were created using parts of the Be Mine Paper Pumpkin kit for January.

The kit included pouches to put treats in which would be great for kids to bring Valentine's Day cards to their classmates.

But, I wanted cards I could put in the mail.

So I cut down the pouches (the Melon Mambo and white hearts pattern) and used them as card fronts.

The chameleons, kangeroo, Pool Party hearts and circles, plus the Melon Mambo hearts were all pop-outs included in the kit.

The greetings and heart embellishments were also found in the kit.

All I had to do was add the pieces to Lemon Lime Twist or Petal Pink card bases.

So versatile, and this were truly a 5 minute or less project!

Have you checked out My Paper Pumpkin?

With Stampin' Up!'s hassle free monthly crafting subscription, you get a box full of all the supplies needed to create fun cards or 3D projects.

This includes an exclusive stamp set, ink, paper, embellishments, Dimensionals, and or Glue Dots.

There are several subscription choices:

Crafting could not be easier!

Supplies Used:

Be Mine January Paper Pumpkin kit, Lemon Lime and Petal Pink card stock

Wild About You Heart

This is the Valentine's Day card I made for our 2 year-old granddaughter. 

She loves zoo animals, but she is especially fond of giraffes.

The giraffe image in the stamp set Animal Outing is perfect for her!

Here's how:

1. The embossed background is made using the Animal Friends Framelits die.  Normally when using this die, you would cut the design from the paper.  To emboss instead, you'll need to use the Big Shot Embossing Mats.

-Emboss the background on a piece of Crumb Cake card stock using this sandwich:  platform on Tab 1, standard cutting pad, blue mat, card stock, framelit placed down, white embossing pad.  You'll need to reposition the framelit three or four times to fully emboss the card front.

2. Cut the center of the card front out using the Big Shot and hearts framelits die or a punch.

3. Place scrap piece of Whisper White card stock into the Stamparatus.  Place the giraffe image rubber side down on the card stock.  Close the hinged plate, picking up the stamp.  Ink with Early Espresso and stamp.  Repeat as needed to get a good stamped image.  Do the same with the leaves/frog image.

4. Color the giraffe using Blender Pens, water color pencils or Stampin' Write Markers.  Do the same for the leaf images.  I used my Stampin' Blends.

5. Cut the giraffe and leaves out using the Big Shot and coordinating Animal Friends Framelits Dies.

6. Cut a background piece slightly smaller than your embossed card front.  For this card, my background came from Tranquil Tide Designer Series Paper.

7. Get an idea for the placement of the giraffe and leaves, leaving room for the greeting.  Once you have a plan, place the background piece in the Stamparatus.  Place the greeting rubber side down on the background.  Close the hinged plate, picking up the stamp.  Ink with Early Espresso and stamp.  Repeat as needed to get a good stamped image.  For this card, I used the greeting from A Little Wild.  Animal Outing has a stamp with the same sentiment, "Wild About You," but it is a little too big for this project.

8.  Cut out a border for the heart by nesting two heart framelits, one larger than the other, on a piece of Early Espresso card stock.  Cut out using the Big Shot.  Attach to card front using a small amount of Tombow Multi-purpose Glue.

9. Attach giraffe and leaves to the inside edge of the heart cut-out using a small amount of SNAIL adhesive.  I trimmed off the frog image.

10. Attach card front to So Saffron card base using Dimensionals around the heart and on the 4 corners to pop it up.

11. Add enamel dots to complete.

Big Shot Embossing Mats:

Your favorite Framelits, Thinlits, and Edgelits dies can do more when paired with the Embossing Mats. Use with dies that have decorative ejection holes for additional embossing. Or use with cutting dies to emboss instead of cut. Includes Impressions Pad, thin silicone rubber mat, and thick silicone rubber mat.

Animal Outing Bundle

Supplies Used:

Stamp Sets: Animal Outing and A Little Wild

Ink: Early Espresso, Stampin' Blends

Paper: So Saffron, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Whisper White, Tranquil Tide Designer Series Paper

Accessories: Big Shot, Big Shot Embossing Mats, Hearts and Animal Friends Framelits Dies, Stamparatus, Tombow Multi-Purpose Glue, Dimensionals, Enamel Dots

Paper Towel Background Trio of Hearts

Here's another card created using a paper towel that I had used for cleaning stamps, ink pads, and fingers.

You can see my Flowering Desert Paper Towel Background card HERE

This paper towel had Real Red, Powder Pink, Pineapple Punch, and a little Pacific Point and black on it.

I selectively chose what parts of the towel I would use for my trio of hearts.

I applied glue from a glue stick to a scrap piece of Whisper White card stock.

I then placed the paper towel onto the card stock.

Then, it was easy to cut out the hearts using my Big Shot and Hearts Framelits Dies.

The Basic Gray background was embossed using the Big Shot and Swirls and Curls Embossing Folder.

The greeting is from Wood Words, stamped in Basic Gray on the Blushing Bride card base using the Stamparatus.

The hearts were popped up using Dimensionals.

Easy, easy!

Supplies Used:

Stamp Set: Wood Words

Ink: Basic Gray

Paper: Blushing Bride, Basic Gray, scrap Whisper White

Accessories: paper towel, Big Shot, Swirls and Curls embossing folder, Hearts Framelits Dies, Stamparatus, glue stick, Dimensionals

I needed a quick and easy idea for Valentine's Day cards this year. 

I had my heart punch on my crafting table, left over from the Party Panda card I created HERE, so I thought, why not combine it with the embossing paste found in the Stampin' Up! Annual Catalog.

The embossing paste is so cool, and the supplies are endless!

Here's how:

Start by making a heart stencil.  I punched a heart out of scrap Whisper White card stock using my retired Full Heart punch.

If you don't have a heart punch, use the Big Shot, and a heart-shaped framelit die set like Sweet & Sassy.

Stamp the Sheet Music background stamp onto a piece of Smoky Slate card stock using Black Archival ink.

Place the heart stencil over the stamped image, securing it with pieces of washi or painter's tape.

Now to add the embossing paste.

To color it first, scoop out some out onto a silicone craft mat. 

If you don't have a silicone craft mat, use a clear-block or a plastic container lid.

Add a drop or two of color from an ink refill onto the paste and mix using a palette knife.

For this card, I used Berry Burst ink.

Apply the colored embossing paste onto the stencil, spreading it with a palette knife like you would frost a cake.

For an added touch of sparkle, I sprinkled some Dazzling Diamonds onto the wet paste.

Set the piece aside to dry completely.  The thicker the paste, the longer it will take to dry.

Be sure to clean your tools with water.  The embossing paste dries quickly and can be hard to remove.

Once dry, remove the stencil.

Tie a bow out of ribbon or baker's twine and add to the heart using a glue dot.

Attach the card front to a Basic Gray Mat.  Attach to Berry Burst card base.

Stamp greeting from Bloomin' Love using Archival Black ink.

I created three cards using different inks to color the embossing paste:

Rose Red, Melon Mambo, Berry Burst.

The color possibilities are endless!

Embossing Paste, $141979, $8.00

Supplies Used:

Stamp Sets: Sheet Music, Bloomin' Love

Ink: Berry Burst, Rose Red, Melon Mambo, Archival Black

Paper: Berry Burst, Rose Red, Melon Mambo, Basic Gray, Smoky Slate, scrap of Whisper White for stencil

Accessories: Embossing Paste, Palette Knife, Dazzling Details, heart punch, Black Baker's Twine, Glue Dots

I created this Valentine's Day card for our one-year-old granddaughter using the cute Sale-A-Bration stamp set, Party Pandas.

This set just brings a smile!

I combined it with the easy sponged sky background technique.

Here's how:

To create the sky, I used a scallop circle template that I've had in my crafting stash for years.

I cut a large scallop circle out of light-weight cardboard using the now retired Scallop Circle Bigz Die and the Big Shot.

I also cut out several smaller scallop circles out of the same cardboard using my scallop circle punch.

Then, I attached the smaller circles to the larger circle using scotch tape to hold it all together.

As you can tell, this template has been used many times over the years!

To create the sky, simply lay the template onto a piece of card stock, and sponge ink around the scallops.  Move the template around the card stock, sponging on more ink.

When done, remove the template, and you've got a cloudy sky background:

For this card, I sponged on Marina Mist and Island Indigo inks on my Whisper White card front. 

Now, it is time to complete the card.

1. Stamp a panda from Party Pandas onto a scrap piece of Whisper White card stock using Archival Black ink.  Cut the panda out using a pair of scissors.
2. Punch or die cut hearts out of designer paper.  I used my retired Full Heart punch, but Stampin' Up! has several dies, such as Sweet and Sassy, that can be cut out using the Big Shot.  I punched one heart out of Whole Lot of Lovely DSP, one out of Delightful Daisy DSP, and one out silver glimmer paper.  So soften the glimmer paper, I sponged on some Calypso Coral ink.
3. Cut 4 clouds out of Vellum card stock using the Big Shot and Up & Away Thinlits Die.
4. Attach the panda to the card front, using a Mini Dimensional to pop it up.
5. Attach the 4 die-cut clouds, layering them along the bottom of the card front.  Use a small amount of SNAIL Adhesive along the edge of the card front or where they meet.  Otherwise, the SNAIL will show through the Vellum. Trim any excess vellum from the bottom or sides using scissors or paper trimmer.
6. Attach a piece of ribbon or baker's twine (Calypso Coral baker's twine for this card) to each balloon using glue dots, leaving enough of a tail to reach the panda's hand.  Tie the end of the balloon strings together in a knot. Attach each of the balloons to the card front using Mini Dimensionals to pop them up.  Place a glue dot behind the Panda's hand.  Bring the knotted string down to the glue dot and secure just above the knot.  Bring the knot to the front, so it looks like the panda is holding the balloons. 
7. Make bows out of the ribbon or baker's twine and attach to each of the balloons using glue dots.
8. Stamp greeting from Lift Me Up using Calypso Coral ink.
9. Attach card front to Basic Black mat.  Attach to Calypso Coral card base.

Too cute!  I think my granddaughter will like her card.

You can get your own Party Panda stamp set by making a $50 purchase during Sale-A-Bration (ends March 31).

Click HERE to view the other Sale-A-Bration selections.

Be sure to let me know if you have any questions.

Supplies Used:

Stamp Sets: Party Pandas, Lift Me Up

Ink: Marina Mist, Island Indigo, Archival Black, Calypso Coral

Paper: Calypso Coral, Basic Black, Whisper White, Vellum, Whole Lot of Lovely, Delightful Daisy Designer Series Paper, silver glimmer paper

Accessories: sky template, sponge, Big Shot, Up & Away Thinlits Dies, heart punch, Calypso Coral Baker's Twine, Mini Dimensionals, Glue Dots

Just in time for Valentine's Day!

Here's a quick and easy gift-giving idea.

Perfect for holding chocolate favors.

I made these to hold Ghiradelli Chocolate Squares, but you could easily change the size to accommodate smaller or larger candies.

Here's how:

 Start with a piece of card stock measuring 9 1/4" x 3".  Score it at 3/4", 5", and 5 1/4".  Fold along the score lines.  The 3/4" score is the bottom of the matchbook.  Fold it up and staple towards the bottom middle, allowing for the front to slip inside to close.

For these, I used Berry Burst card stock for the bases.  The fronts are covered with a piece of Wood Textures Designer Series Paper cut at 4" x 2 3/4.   The folded up bottom piece measures 4" x 1/2" with the greeting from Teeny Tiny Wishes stamped in Berry Burst ink.

For the hearts, I stamped piece of Whisper White card stock using the Marbled background stamp in Berry Burst ink.  I then heat embossed the piece using a heat tool and clear embossing powder.  I punched out the hearts using my retired heart punch.  Any punch or framelit would work.  The hearts were added to the front of the matchbooks using Mini Dimensionals to pop them up.  Glimmer dots were added to complete.

I applied SNAIL Adhesive to the back of each chocolate square, securing them to the inside of the matchbook.

I made these as thank you gifts for attendees at a recent class.

Supplies Used:

Stamp Sets: Teeny Tiny Wishes, Marbled

Ink: Berry Burst

Paper: Berry Burst, Wood Textures Designer Series Paper

Accessories: scoring tool, heat tool, clear embossing powder, heart punch, Ghiradelli Chocolate Squares, mini stapler, Mini Glue Dots, glimmer dots