In all the excitement of the new catalog, I wanted to take an opportunity to feature some products from the January – June catalog. This is the first year where the new Annual catalog has gone live and the January – June catalog (formerly Occasions catalog) is still active. Some of the products in the J-J catalog are also in the new, big catalog, so you may be doing a double-take wondering about these products that you’re seeing in the big catalog. The good news is that the bundle pricing in the J-J catalog is still available so you can enjoy the 10% savings on those bundles that are on your wish list. All of the products that I used for this card will be available for the year except the patterned paper. This pretty paper will be retired as of the end of June, so if you want it grab it while you can. The beautiful artwork on these papers are stunning and are worth checking out.
I do want to describe one “trick” that I employed for the focal image on my card. Last Fall at the OnStage Online event, the Art Gallery Suite was one of the product suites that was presented during a stamping session. I think it was the session with Sara and Shelli, the CEO and Co-Owner of Stampin’ Up! Anyhow, my recollection is that Sara showed us an easy way to get the green leaves and colored flowers using the ink pads instead of markers. I stamped the full image in Old Olive and then diecut with the Tasteful Labels die. Then I stamped the upper portion of the image on another piece of white using Pool Party ink with Coastal Cabana highlights. I used the coordinating dies to cut out the flowers, and then trimmed the little connective pieces with scissors to separate the flowers from the stems. Finally I glued the blue flowers over the green image and it adds a little dimension with easy stamping. Huzzah!
This challenge from the Global Design Project was the inspiration for my card. I like the simplicity of this layout, and it is versatile for lots of different designs. I used some pretty patterned paper for the background on my card, but I can see using an embossed layer, a stenciled layer or even a subtly stamped background. There are SO many options for this design! I also used some of the mesh ribbon which added just the right touch to the card. I really like how this one turned out!
 |  |  |  |
 |  | ||
 |
