Category: Paper Pumpkin

Key to My Heart Paper Pumpkin Kit

Posted on by dayinker
Contents of the Key to My Heart January 2023 Paper Pumpkin kit

The Key to My Heart January Paper Pumpkin kit had enough supplies to make nine Valentine’s Day cards. I love the color combination and the lock and key theme. It reminds me of the place where my son got married. There is a fence overlooking the Bosque where couples have attached locks to the fencing, similar to the Love Lock Bridge in Paris. https://pixels.com/featured/love-lock-bridge-paris-amy-sorvillo.htm

I don’t know about you, but I don’t generally send out more than a few Valentine’s Day cards. I made the three cards as designed and then I flipped the cards around and made some very cute birthday cards using some new stamp sets from the January Mini catalog. First, let me show you the cards the kit makes.

To My Valentine – Love is the Key – Key to My Heart

To My Valentine card from the Key to My Heart Paper Pumpkin kit.

This card has very simple stamping. Some hearts on the Fresh Freesia banner and the sentiment. I love the Calypso Coral baker’s twine included with this kit. The big floppy bow sits under the sentiment and on top of the strip of vellum. Vellum is a great material to add interest to a card without being distracting.

Love is the key Valentine's Day card from Stampin' Up! January 2023

The second card has about the same amount of stamping. This time the hearts are stamped right on to the beautiful Fresh Freesia base and the vellum circle is placed over the top to soften the entire effect. How cute is that gold key? It’s one of the prepunched elements in the kit and I like how the design anchors the sentiments to the locks by floating the tip of the key over the stamped banner.

The third card is very clever. The punched out part is a keyhole that allows the Fresh Freesia wash on the inside of the card to peek through. This is the simplest card of the three, only the sentiment is stamped. Although anytime you have to tie a bow, there is a bit of fussing involved, right? By the way, I saved that punched out keyhole piece for one of my alternative cards.

All of these cards are just beautiful and so simple to make. The “Love is the Key” card would be perfect to send to a couple. But let me show you what else you can do with these kit contents.

Key to My Heart Birthday Card Alternatives

Alternative Paper Pumpkin birthday card

For my alternates I used the base of the keyhole card and on the of the bases in the To My Valentine card. I also used the Desert Details bundle (stamps and dies) and the Queen Bee bundle from the January 2023 Mini Catalog.

For this card, I cut the keyhole card base in half and trimmed it down to 4″x5-1/4″. I glued it down to the base meant for the three-lock card so that the keyhole is upside down and the gold criss-cross hatching shows through the hole making a beautiful vase. The flowers are from the Desert Details stamp set using Calypso Coral and Mango Melody ink. I die cut them with the matching dies. The sentiment is from the Something Fancy stamp set also in the mini catalog, stamped in Calypso Coral.

For the final touch I added a generous amount of champagne rhinestones.

Key to My Heart layered birthday card Paper Pumpkin alternative design.

The second card uses the back of the card we cut in half, just the plain Powered Pink base, trimmed down to 4″x5-1/4″. I used a half sheet of Basic White cardstock as the card base. Using stamps from the Queen Bee stamp set, I added some interest to the Powered Pink layer with Calypso Coral. The leaf spray is from the same bundle, stamped in Soft Sea Foam. Notice the keyhole punch out has been transformed into a vase with a stamp from the kit and an Iridescent Pastel gem.

I added a few more gems in the top half of the card to give some balance to the design. My Dayinkers loved creating this alternate and how all the layers came together to form a beautiful birthday card.

I hope you’re having fun in your craft room during these cold winter days. Until next time, Ink up!

Pick of the Crop – Paper Pumpkin June 22

Posted on by dayinker
June 2022 Paper Pumpkin Pick of the Crop cards from Stampin' Up!

It’s so nice to be back chatting with you about crafts. It’s been far too long since I’ve shared with you. But sometimes, it pays to pause. My uncle says this and he’s very wise. So I’ve been paused for a short while. I had even stopped crafting for an entire month for the first time in five years. And then the June Paper Pumpkin box arrived. Pick of the Crop.

It was exactly what I needed to restart my creativity. To rekindle my passion for sharing my creations. And to reassess what was important to me.

I love the vibe in this month’s cards. The remind me of the time when I traveled to France with my mother and my aunt and we shopped at the local outdoor farmer’s markets. Fresh, floral, and fun. And maybe just a little bit cheesy, but that’s even better! Of course I have some alternates to share.

Background Texture and Lots of Lavender

Alternative design for the Paper Pumpkin paper crafting kit Pick of the Crop from Stampin' Up!

I used one card from the kit for both alternatives. This first card uses the back of the card. A blank piece of cardstock can be rather boring. There are three simple ways to instantly add interest: Use a background stamp such as Drybrush to add an all over image. Take a single stamp, like the strawberry in the Paper Pumpkin kit, and stamp all over the card in a random way. Or emboss the paper.

For this card, I chose to emboss the background with the Fern 3-D embossing folder. Voilà! Texture and interest. There were several extra lavender branches included in the kit. The sentiment banner was also from the kit. I added a sentiment from the Cup of Tea set in Highland Heather ink. Lastly, I used some Brass Butterfly embellishments.

Shimmer Dragonflies on a Paper Pumpkin card front

This is the front of the card I repurposed from the kit. I loved that sunset or sunrise background. To start, I used a base of Pale Papaya. Then I cut the bottom strip off the card. It’s about a half-inch or so that was not part of the primary image. Then I trimmed down the width to 3-3/4″. This made it very easy to cut into three strips of 1-1/4″.

The sentiment and tag are included in the box. I used one of the new In Colors, Tahitian Tide, to stamp. For the dragonflies, I used the In Color Glimmer Paper which has an ombre effect with the Dragonflies punch. Curling the wings of the big dragonfly with a bone folder and adding one dimensional under each wing gives a lift to the shape making it more interesting.

Thanks for joining me as I rediscover my passion for posting these blogs for your interest and education. Let me know if there is a card you like or a technique you’d like me to cover. Until next time, Ink up!

Lots of Pun with Paper Pumpkin

Posted on by dayinker
Cards made with the Lots of Pun December 2021 Paper Pumpkin subscription box.

The Lots of Pun, December 2021, Paper Pumpkin is filled with funny yolks, you know, the “moldy oldies.” But seriously, it’s a super cute kit with sentiments for celebrating, condolences, and general good wishes. At least one of my cards will be perfect for my Valentine.

These are the cards made as designed. The kit comes with extra pieces, so it’s easy to get more than the nine cards it was designed to make. For my alternatives, I took one of each of the card bases and cut it in half. Then I trimmed each half to 4″x5-1/4″. That means I have six more punny ideas for you!

Lots of Pun with Cherries

Alternative design for the Lots of Pun December 2021 Paper Pumpkin

For the first split card, I used the Granny Apple Green back and embossed it with the Tasteful Texture 3-D embossing folder from the current Annual catalog. After mounting the pane on a base of Pool Party cardstock, I put the cherries in the frame exactly like the card was designed. Instead of using vellum and the red banner detail, I used the rainbow striped banner. The heart embellishments in the kit were the perfect final touch.

Alternative design for a condolence card using the Lots of Pun December 2021 Paper Pumpkin

The second alternative I created from the same card base is a condolence card. Unfortunately, sometimes we need to send this kind of card. Again, the front panel is layered on Pool Party cardstock. For the sentiment cluster (vellum, rainbow banner, red ruffle, and stamped banner), I trimmed the scrap piece of rainbow-striped paper from the pre-punched frame. The narrow strip adds a nice pop of color. The clean and simple (CAS) design lets the sentiment stand out.

Orange You Glad I Said Banana Again?

Alternative design for a thank you card using the Lots of Pun December 2021 Paper Pumpkin

Okay, that’s not how that ancient knock knock joke goes, but of course it came to mind when playing with these punny bananas in the Lots of Pun kit. For this alternative duet, I used the yellow checked card base with the Pool Party back. Both cards are on White cardstock as the base.

The first card is another CAS. I used the smaller vellum circle to anchor my cluster of bananas. The “top” banana is raised on Dimensionals. I giggle every time I see the banana with glasses. The sentiment in the word bubble banner is also elevated. For a final touch, I added three of the Daffodil Delight gems from the kit.

Alternative design for a congratulations card using the Lots of Pun December 2021 Paper Pumpkin

The second card, starts with the Pool Party back that I stamped with the hat and dots stamps from the kit using Pool Party ink. When stamping a background like this, it’s good to make the images “fall off” the edge. That technique keeps the background from fighting for attention with your focal point. In this case, I super cute piece of toast in a Granny Apple Green party hat. The blue plaid medallion is the “left over” piece from the frame used in the cherries card.

Egg-stra Alternatives

Alternative design for a greeting card using the Lots of Pun December 2021 Paper Pumpkin

The last two alternatives use the Daffodil Delight card base that has the watercolor sploosh on the front. Starting with the Daffodil Delight panel, I embossed it using the same Tasteful Textures folder. Next, I layered on the big vellum circle from the kit. I staggered the two eggs, generally only line up items if you have three or more and usually odd numbers. Again, those eyeballs will do funny things to two eggs lined up on your card. And not the good funny.

Alternative design for a greeting card using the Lots of Pun December 2021 Paper Pumpkin

I used two sentiments, one in the bubble banner popped up on Dimensionals. The other has the Early Espresso ruffle under to give it some visual weight. I love the little smiling eggs. Talk about “sunny side up!”

The last alternative calls to my serious side, a pun-free alternative. I used the Crumb Cake banner from the kit, layered over a second scrap of rainbow banner and then the Early Espresso striped banner. I used Dimensionals cut in half for the hello sentiment from the kit. If you have the mini Dimensionals, they work so much better, but they still should be cut in half. Last, I added that twine bow because everyone I know loves tying bows. (I said pun free, not joke free.)

I hope you liked the cards I have for you here. If you haven’t signed up for Paper Pumpkin, there’s a link to the right. Here’s a preview of the January 2022 box. Sign up by January 10 so you don’t miss out. And until next time, “Ink up!”