Strength and Hope and a fun design, too;)

Hello!!

Warm weather seems to be setting in for good, and with it comes butterflies and lots of flowers! Here is a card I created after playing around a bit,for my May swap with some of my SU! friends:) I wanted to use some of the new stamp sets from our Summer Mini Catalog.

The 1st card is the actual one I am sending for my swap(hopefully you gals get it before my post;).

It uses our Strength and Hope set.  This set is not only gorgeous, but SU! is donating $2 from the purchase of this set (or the digital download version of it)to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Pretty and Awesome=Pretty Awesome;))

I used very vanilla card stock as my card base(4-1/4x5-1/2). The butterfly is on a piece of very vanilla embossed with our new 'Flower Garden' Embossing Folder,layered on peach parfait and baja blue.  The butterfly itself was stamped on glossy card stock in black staz-on ink.  I then mixed together a few drops champagne mist shimmer paint with a few drops of more mustard re-inkers. I used a piece of crumpled up plastic wrap and pounced it on the butterfly and allowed to dry.

  It is gorgeous! The photo does not pick up the sparkle,but trust me-Pretty Awesome;) !!  I sponged some peach parfait around edges and to the center,and pop dotted to my layered cs.

The 2nd card, uses the same set in addition to the new 'Flower Fest'.  This sets images match some of our punches so, OF Course I just HAD to have it :)!  

The base of card #2 is in soft suede.  Several of the flower images were stamped on whisper white cs.  I then watercolored with our blender pens and the following colors:so saffron,peach parfait,wild wasabi,and pacific point. I layered it on a piece of so saffron cs.  The flower was stamped on a piece of peach parfait cs in tangerine tango,punched out with our 2-3/8" scallop circle,and highlighted using white ink and a blender pen.  A pearl was added to the center. The leaves are stamped on pear pizzazz cs with always artichoke ink.

Now on to the fun design;))

This is an inter-locking design. I measured the half way mark of the 4-1/4 side of my card base, I mark it with a pencil or tiny score mark.  From there, I use my mat pack and measure towards the center of my card, approximately 2". I make a hole with my paper piercer  through the entire card(both top and bottom layers).  Using my cutter, I make a slit on the TOP piece of the card from the bottom corner to the center circle that was pierced.  On the BOTTOM (or inside) piece of my card i make a slit measuring from the top corner to the center circle.

This can be done either way,as long as your top and bottom slits are opposite and meet in the middle(hope that makes sense?)

You then inter-lock the two slits:

I decorated both inside pieces with the flourish from 'Strength and Hope'.  The 1st is in peach parfait and the 2nd is in early espresso ink.  The fronts were run through my big shot with the 'vintage wallpaper' embossing folder after I made the slits, I didn't want the grooves from the embossed front to make the slits off a little.  Well, I hope you enjoy this technique and that you will give it a try too!!

There are a couple little extras I ended up adding.  On the 1st I used our Four Frames Stamp set(sorry, this won't be available until our new catalog in July!!)and the decorative label punch. On the 2nd a strip of peach parfait punched(dotted ribbon scallop punch) ribbon was added underneath my flower layers.  I hope I got it all, if not-OOPS!

Until Next Thought,

Kris