Let It (Continue to) SNOW!

We're still creating holiday cards that feature SNOW this week at Jingle Belles... It might be snowmen, snowflakes or just a snowy landscape; but include some snow on your cards. Here's how I got SNOW-y this week:

The other night I had fun ink-blending various shades of blue Ranger Ink Distress Oxides over several panels of white-embossed snowflake backgrounds. But then I couldn't decide which one I liked the best... so I popped a hole into one and layered it over the other... problem solved! The snowman and sentiment are from Simon Hurley's North Pole Sentiments die set by Spellbinders; the Snowflake Brads and Enamel Hearts are from Eyelet Outlet.

Link your fabulous snow-centric masterpieces on the Dashing Through the Snow post at Jingle Belles by next Wednesday evening, November 5th! ♥

Holiday Jumpstart: Home for the Holidays

Holiday Jumpstart: Home for the Holidays is Paper Anthology's newest holiday card kit, which features a a cozy holiday cabin nestled in a layered, snowy landscape.

Paper Anthology’s Holiday Jumpstart Card Kit is our pre-packaged kit that includes everything you need (except adhesive) to complete FIVE copies of this new original holiday card design. This edition is called “Home for the Holidays” because of the sweet cabin ready to welcome friends and family.

We all love the IDEA of making holiday cards throughout the year, instead being overloaded in November and December; but sometimes it’s hard to be inspired during the “off-season”. That issue is solved by this pre-packaged kit, which features everything you need (except adhesive) to complete five copies of this original design. Also included are complete written instructions (not pictured, but included!) and a nice big photo for reference.

This kit contains:

Five pale blue patterned paper panels
Five white pierced Trees and Hills layers
Five blue gingham Trees and Hills layers
Five white pierced sloping hill layers
Five diecut cabins (with windows and snowy roofs)
Ten deep green pine tree clusters
Ten olive green pine tree clusters
Five pre-diecut glittery "Warm Wishes" sentiments
Complete step-by-step instruction sheet with large color photo
Five white A2 cards

CLICK HERE to visit the “Home for the Holidays" page in the Paper Anthology Etsy Shop!

Candy Corn: A Celebration

For those who love the idea of candy corn more than the taste, help yourself to some Eyelet Outlet Candy Corn Brads! Same iconic look as real candy corn, won't attract ants, and attach easily to any Halloween card, treat bag or journal page! Here they're strung across the top of the journal card as bunting, above some super-spooky Small Eye Brads and surrounded by a background of gorgeous Ghost Tape.

Super Spooky Shopping List:

Candy Corn Brads

Small Eye Brads

Ghost Tape

♥♥♥

All the embellishment tricks and treats you need can be found in the Eyelet Outlet Store!

Stenciling on Burlap? (YES!)

A while ago I saw Wendy Vecchi do some stenciling on burlap and it was kind of mind-blowing to me, I had never thought of that! Recently, I found half a roll of sticky-back burlap ribbon and I thought, "Aha! This is my chance!" so of course I broke out the six piece stencil set that comes in the Spellbinders' Thank You Bouquet Bundle from the Tabbed Classics Collection and had a go. I used Wendy's Archival Inks from Ranger. They're translucent, which means that the color of your substrate will subtly influence the color of your finished project. Since my burlap was about the same shade as kraft cardstock, that meant I chose darker shades of reds, greens and oranges, so they'd show up well and coordinate nicely. I used the awesome Tip Tuesday trick that Wendy demonstrated for us in this video, where she brilliantly used her MAKE ART Stay-tion and the magnetic corner square from her Perfect Stamp Positioner to line up the stencils perfectly, meaning that you can position them in ANY direction without having a hard time on subsequent layers.

I chose to mount my strip of burlap on a coordinating layer of Dina Wakley Kraft Cardstock that I had debossed with the Polka Dot and Posy Duo Embossing Folder. I used the one step Emboss and Cut feature of the Thank You Bouquet Folder to make a few textured blooms and added a bit of delicate foliage from the folder with my Christmas Add-On set; part of last year's Not Your Ordinary Card Collection. A super-skinny mat of ivory cardstock sets off the whole panel, and a bit of machine stitching ensures that my burlap won't fray or come loose. 

I'd write more, but I'm pretty sure that somewhere in my craft stash I have some colorful burlap and I suddenly NEED to go and find that!!! :)

Arachnophobes, Look Away!

It wouldn't be October if I didn't make a Spider Web Mandala... in pink, of course! So here's this year's model:

Spider webs are fun and easy to draw; they can be any size and shape; they can have doodles or not; they can have Spider Brads or not; this is a fun seasonal art project, even for folks who believe they cannot draw! If you'd like to see some other versions, click the italic text! ♥

It's a Tall Order

A giraffe collage, that is! Actually, this collage was easy and fun to make. The giraffes are from my Gina Is Arty Clip Art Book, as are the strips of numerals and the coral/pink gel print. athe sheet music, map and envelope are from my own stash of vintage goodies and the beautiful embossed diecut flowers are from Wendy Vecchi's Thank You Bouquet 3D Emboss and Cut set from Spellbinders; tinted lightly with Wendy's Archival Inks.

Not to brag, but this is instantly one of my favorite collages, so I'm especially pleased that I worked on it inside my Dina Wakley Ledger Journal from Ranger and thus I get to keep it forever!

Best (Clipart!) Fishes

Would this be a good time for another fab and funky card made with my Gina is Arty Clipart? (Be a sport and say, "Yes" otherwise this whole post falls a bit flat. Thanks!) I have made A LOT of Best Fishes cards over the years, usually for masculine birthdays, but really they kind of work for almost any occasion. 

For this one I used Gina's large circle journal spot which already had five fish, some foliage, some bubbles and a blank space to put a title. I added a sticker sentiment, an additional fussy-cut fish and mounted the whole thing on one of my older gel prints which happened to have exactly the right colors. I added some oceany wave machine stitching in the background and mounted the whole thing on a 6" square card.

Here's a reminder what the book cover looks like and HERE IS A LINK to the page on Amazon where you can purchase your very own copy. Want to see a Flip Through before you buy? Visit THIS POST on Gina's Instagram @ginaisarty where you'll also find lots more of G's beautiful art and merch!

Dashing Through the Snow

This fortnight at Jingle Belles, we're asking you create projects that celebrate the white fluffy flakes of snow: it might be snowmen, snowflakes or just snowfall, but include some snow on your cards. Here's what I made:

I serendipitously discovered this blue and purple gelprint (made ages ago, using an ancient Darice snowy embossing folder to left some of the paint off the plate) and added torn sheet music, purple Core'dinations cardstock and snowy washi; before layering on ALL the flakes from my Tim Holtz/Sizzix Stacked Snowflakes die in sparkly white plus various blues and purples.

JB2522: Dashing Through the Snow runs until 6pm (Eastern) on Wednesday, November 5th. Join us at Jingle Belles!

More Pink? (YES, Of Course!)

I try not to use pink for EVERY project, even in October, but the fact is that Wendy Vecchi's Archival Ink collection from Ranger sported two of the best pinks ever: Pink Peony and Rosy Posey so it's hard to resist. For this card I made quite a loose background by "watercoloring" with Archival Ink and rubbing alcohol. 

I added some really rough stenciled flowers (also Rosy Posey, but with a heavier hand) using the stencils from Wendy's Thank You Bouquet Bundle from Spellbinders. Then I placed the dry panel, slantwise, into the Polka Dot and Posy Duo Embossing Folder and topped the whole thing off with the individual flowers from the Thank You Bouquet's emboss and cut feature. I added a soft swipe of Peachy Keen Archival and finished off with small dots of Rosy Posey Liquid Pearls in the centers. 

See the entire Tabbed Classics Collection and lots more awesome Wendy Vecchi goodies at Spellbinders!

Happy Halloween

What's better than an Eyelet Outlet Halloween Tape with adorable spooky icons and gold foiling? An Eyelet Outlet Halloween Tape that can be lined up seamlessly to connect the images and make your own gorgeous patterned paper, that's what! Add some Bat Brads, a Black Cat, a Broom, a Witch's Hat, some googly Eye Brads, and a wee Ghost and your super-fun design is complete!

Boo-tiful Halloween Shopping List:

 Bat Brads

Cat Brads-Black

Vacuum & Broom Brads

Witch Hat Brads

Small Eye Brads

Ghost Brads

Halloween Tape

If it's creepy, kooky, cute or spooky, you'll find everything you need to make the best Halloween cards ever, in the Eyelet Outlet Store.

SOS559: Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice

Time for a brand new challenge at Shopping Our Stash and this one is super-seasonal! For Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice we'd like to see cards and projects which reflect however you interpret the changing Autumn Season: Pumpkin Spice Latte, Thanksgiving, Changing Leaves, etc; the choice is yours. I have to confess that irl, I don't care for anything with the pumpkin spice flavor profile, but... that didn't stop me from making a card I love:

This sweet fox journal card is from an autumn-themed paper collection we had at Paper Anthology a few years ago, from Photoplay, I think; but it had been cut out of the sheet and so I can't be absolutely sure. I know that I've looked at it and thought about using it quite a few times and (for mysterious reasons) it never happened until now. The background is a found piece of collaged vintage paper that I had watercolored with autumn-leafy shades and then (again, mysteriously) did not use. When I found it, I knew it was exactly the right thing, but to fancy it up even more, I had some brand new 49 and Market Irresistible Times white Rub-On Transfers from the Ranger Online Store that I've been dying for an excuse to open up, so I did. I used my ancient set of Cuttlebug Leaves Dies (possibly the first die set I ever purchased?) to cut out a few leaves from bright white text paper backed with cardstock and matted both the fox and the large background on rich brown self-adhesive felt sheets that I'm slightly obsessed with. I thought about adding a sentiment, but nothing I tried jumped out at me, so I decided to wait. (I have often found it helpful to have a few "uncommitted" cards in my stash... you never know what sort of card you might need at short notice and it's nice to have options.

SOS559: Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice will run until the evening of Monday, November 3rd. Check out the fabulous cards our talented Crew have made to inspire you at Shopping Our Stash.

Tiger, Tiger

It's a Wild and Wonderful Mandala Monday, featuring one of the beautiful jungle cat illustrations from my @ginaisarty Cut and Glue Book, paired with foliage, hearts and background patterns from the book; augmented with some of my own gel prints cut into hearts, tear drops and circles.

If you'd like to see a flip through of every single page of Gina's book, you can do that ON THIS POST on Instagram! (Warning: If you're a cardmaker, journaler, collage artist or planner chick you are going to WANT this book!!!)

More cards on the way. In the meantime, I wish you a wonderful week! ♥

Unbe-LEAF-able

Here's a mini-make featuring a little stash of diecut leaves I found in my crafty leftovers. They were beautifully watercolored, but slightly boring... so I used Wendy Vecchi's Polka Dot and Posy Duo and Thank You Bouquet Embossing Folders from Spellbinders to add texture and some Potting Soil Archival Ink from Ranger to emphasize the texture et voila! Perfect for dressing up a plain gift bag and envelope!

You can find the entire Tabbed Classics Collection and so much more Wendy Vecchi goodness at Spellbinders!

Happy Birdie(s) to You!

On Wednesday, my friend Gina's Fabulous Clipart Book went live on Amazon and I couldn't be more excited or proud! I was lucky enough to get an advance copy a few months ago, so I posted a round-up of a few smaller pieces I made over the summer (you can see that post HERE) but now I'm excited to make all new stuff... starting with this fun and funky birthday card featuring just three of the beautiful fanciful birds in the book! I used gelprints for the background, vellum for the clouds and my trusty Dymo for the punny sentiment.

Of course, there are lots of other flora and fauna in the book. There are fish, reptiles, cats, dogs, jungle beasts, plants, flowers, foliage and... well a little bit of everything, really; all in Gina's signature funky, colorful, whimsical style. Here's a reminder of what the book looks like, it's available from THIS LINK on Amazon

You can find lots more of Gina's art on Instagram @ginaisarty and there is plenty of fab merch in her Redbubble, Tee Public and Zazzle Shops!

PINK Christmas (week 2)

It's the second week of Pink Christmas at Jingle Belles; the annual event where we ask YOU to make and link up as many predominantly PINK holiday cards as you possibly can, because WE (Stephanie and Lauren) are each going to donate $2 per card to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation! So how can you participate? Just make as many new cards as you'd like, each with a winter holiday theme, which feature PINK prominently. Then link them on the Pink Christmas post at Jingle Belles. Easy peasy!

Here's this week's card:

This week I unintentionally did something that I'm secretly a bit proud of: if you look at this card carefully, you'll see that I haven't actually used ANY official Christmas/holiday product! In fact, all of the papers (except the background) were from my scrap box. The adorable narwhal is an older Doodlebug 3D Sticker* and the little fishes plus the hearts were part of the set. I made the sentiment using some older Lawn Fawn alphabet dies and my trusty Dymo Labelmaker. 

We'd love for you to join us in celebrating PINK CHRISTMAS and of course it's for a very good cause, so start making and linking those PINK holiday cards today! JB2521: I'm Dreaming of a PINK Christmas runs until 6pm (Eastern) on Wednesday, October22nd.

*I tend to display beloved craft supplies for a bit before using them, so this Doodle-pops set is a few years old and seemingly now out of print. There are LOTS MORE varieties, though, from Doodlebug. 

Stenciling on Perforated Paper

One of the coolest ways Wendy Vecchi has been using her new Thank You Bouquet Bundle Stencils from Spellbinders is stenciling them on that perforated paper you can use for needlework. The question that raises is: HOW do you attach such a panel to your card? Of course you can use spray mount or any other invisible adhesive; or you can add a couple of diecuts on top of the design and hide a visible adhesive behind them. But... you can also "show your work" as they used to say in math class, and here are a couple of ideas for doing that:

Idea #1: Brads! I've added three Eyelet Outlet Dragonfly Brads, pretty evenly spaced, towards the center of this panel. I placed my stenciled flower panel on top of the pale blue mat, secured it very lightly with low-tack tape at the corners, then pierced holes through the holes of the perforated paper, threaded the brads through and opened the prongs at the back. Job done. Secure your thread ends at the back of the cardstock panel with tape.

Idea #2: Stitches! Perforated paper was literally designed to be used for stitching, and if you happen to have some laying around, chances are you have some embroidery floss, too. This time I didn't need to secure the corners because I had my brads in place, but if stitches are going to be your only attachment, you will want to keep the panel from wiggling while you pierce your holes.

Bonus Tip: How to pierce holes for stitching or brads if you don't have a paper piercer: A push pin is absolutely perfect for this, and you almost certainly already have one somewhere in your home or office. Pointed tweezers also work. Spellbinders' Tool n One (more commonly used for poking diecuts out of intricate dies) is good, as well. I actually have an ancient Heidi Swap Paper Piercer and I use it ALOT atop a piece of an old mouse mat that I saved especially, but any piece of semi-stiff foam or an old padded envelope works well to put underneath. 

(Just FYI: Yes, you really do need to pierce holes; a needle or the brads' prongs will probably not be able to go through your backing cardstock without bending or marring it. Ask me how I know!!!)

A few other ideas that I haven't shown here: Staples, either regular or decorative (especially cool with a grunge aesthetic); Eyelets; Machine stitching; and possibly... I haven't tested this but I suspect it will work... A wax seal applied on top of your design? Experiment and have fun!

Gina is Arty Clipart Book

If you love collage, bold colors and clipart I have the PERFECT book for you: Gina is Arty Colorful Cut and Glue Book of Illustrations is now available at Amazon and it is absolutely glorious! And I'm not just saying that because the artist, Gina Cunningham, is my friend (though I'm quite proud that she is!) but seriously, every illustration is her original art, so the book is full of fanciful animals, birds, fish, flowers, etc; then there are practical things for makers like journal spots, numerals and borders. There's a little bit of everything here, every page is glossy and extra vivid. Oh and I should mention that if you happen to find a page you don't like (hard to imagine, but I guess it's possible) the BACK of every page is one of Gina's beautiful, unique gel prints, so you can diecut, make backgrounds, even wrap tiny presents! 

I was lucky enough to get a preview copy of this beauty earlier this year, so here are just a few things I've made using Gina's beautiful illustrations. Many of these shots are staged on top of the reverse pages, so you can see they are quite useful as backdrops. 

Get YOUR COPY today!

♥♥♥♥♥

Falling Leaves

In this case, some of the Falling Leaves are very loose watercolor and some are Eyelet Outlet Leaf Brads and Mini Leaf Brads! Tiny golden 1/16" Round Brads are excellent for uses both practical (holding the corners of things) and decorative (scattered around randomly) on any project; they come in LOTS of other colors, too!

Lovely Leafy Shopping List:

Leaf Brads

Mini Leaf Brads

1/16" Round Brads

The Eyelet Outlet Store has embellishments you'll fall for in EVERY season of the year!

So! Much! Texture!

If you haven't yet tried Spellbinders' 3D Embossing Folders, you have a treat in store because they really do live up to their name. There are two* in Wendy Vecchi's Tabbed Classics Collection, and I've used them both on this super-textural pumpkin greeting.

Ok, so, you may have noticed there are three distinct embossed patterns on this card, and you're correct about that. The ovals which make up my pumpkin (more on that in a minute) are embossed using the bouquet area of Thank You Bouquet Emboss and Cut Folder without the dies. The four small square background panels are courtesy of the Polka Dot and Posy Duo which, at 5.5 x 8.5" is big enough to emboss two A2 panels at the same time.

A few years ago I stumbled upon a social media post in which the artist showed a super-easy way to draw a pumpkin: basically, it's just five ovals. One in the center, two set behind the first one and just very slightly higher up; then two more flanking those and again a tiny bit higher up from the base line. When it comes to card-making, an even faster and easier way to do it is with five oval diecuts! I was a bit stumped for a pumpkin stem until I saw the candy corn outline dies in the Halloween Add-On set from last year's Not Your Ordinary Card Collection. It turns out, if you layer them behind and offset from each other, one large corn and two medium corns make a pretty flippin' awesome stem!

Back to the more traditional elements of the card: The large flowers are also from the Thank You Bouquet set, and YES, you really can emboss and cut at the same time, it's very cool! I added a little bit of Archival Ink to the centers and attached them to the pumpkin. The dark and medium green leaves are from the Essential Envelope Everyday Add-Ons Die Set. The pale green fronds are from The Christmas Add-On to Not Your Ordinary Card Collection; and the tiny blossoms are from the original Essential Envelopes set.

One final shot to show you the inspiration for this card, which was a super-fancy paper plate of all things... just goes to show that cool ideas can come from ANYWHERE! ♥

*There was a gorgeous 3D Embossing Folder in Wendy's last collection, too; it's called Flowers & Foliage, it's one of my alltime faves AND... it's on sale at Spellbinders. Just sayin'...

Hearts and Flowers

It's a Very Vecchi Mandala Monday! I'm using (somewhat non-traditionally) the stencils from the Thank You Bouquet 3D Emboss and Cut Bundle*, which is one of my favorite elements from the Tabbed Classics Collection that debuted on Friday from Wendy Vecchi and Spellbinders. For this creation, I used only the first three stencils in the set, because basically I just wanted the petals and the centers this time. I did, however, move the stencils a few times, so that I could have multiple repeats of each flower.

For this mandala, I "watercolored" a 12 x 6" panel of cardstock with Pink Peony Archival Ink and Isopropyl Alcohol; splashing on a little bit of Goldenrod Archival that was leftover from something else. After the panel dried, I used the Thank You Bouquet Stencils, as I mentioned above, quite selectively: coloring just the biggest flowers but giving them two sets of Rosy Posey petals, spread across the whole panel; finishing off with a coat of white gesso to make the centers pop. I filled in the non-floral areas with one of Wendy's older Studio 490 Polka Dot Backgrounds. At the end, I took a black Fineliner and added super-scribbly outlines. Then I cut out a large circle, and used the heart dies from last year's Heartfelt Thanks and Scallops set to make petals of various sizes, which I matted on bold brick red cardstock and attached around the edges of the circle.

As I said, it's not a very traditional piece in any way, but I absolutely LOVED making it and I think it shows how very flexible these sets are!

♥♥♥♥♥

*Just a reminder the Thank You Bouquet 3D Emboss and Cut Folder IS available without the stencils; but honestly... I cannot imagine NOT having the stencils, so I definitely recommend the Bundle!!!

Blue Bouquet (Blue-quet?!)

The last few days, I've been celebrating the awesome new release from Wendy Vecchi and Spellbinders; it's called the Tabbed Classics Collection, and not only is it outstanding on it's own, it builds on (and works beautifully with!) Wendy's FAB Not Your Ordinary Card Collection from last year!

One of my favorite items from the new release is the Thank You Bouquet 3D Emboss and Cut Folder Bundle. You can get JUST the Folder with Dies, but... the stencils take the whole thing to the next level, imo; so I highly recommend the Bundle!

For this card, I wanted to try using the stencils without the embossing folder or die, and I have to say I looooove the results. Since I wasn't going to incorporate any texture into the bouquet, I chose to use several shades of blue, green and yellow to add contrast to the various elements. I did add texture to the background layer, though, by embossing my pale blueish/greyish cardstock with the Polka Dot and Posy Duo 3D Embossing Folder. This folder is 5.5 x 8.5" which means you can emboss TWO A2 cardfronts at the same time; or, if you're like me and enjoy making BIG cards, you can place your panel in the center of the folder to get both dots and posies on the same piece. The sentiment is from the Thank You Bouquet set, and yes, it does emboss and cut in one step!

Be sure to check out the Make Art with Wendy Vecchi Facebook Group and Wendy's Instagram (@wendyvecchi) for lots more ideas and inspiration!

Embossed Bouquet (New Wendy Vecch!)

Yesterday saw the release of some brand new goodies from Wendy Vecchi and Spellbinders, which is always a good thing! This release is called the Tabbed Classics Collection, and I'll tell you about all of the elements in a minute, but first here's a super-textural card I made:

Ok, so the Tabbed Classics Collection consists of: the Essential Envelope Every Day Add-Ons Die Set (accessories developed to perfectly accent the Essential Envelope Die Set but honestly, all of the parts work on their own, too); the Tabbed In & Out Sentiments Stamps and Dies which give you LOTS of mix-n-match greetings perfectly sized to fit the tabs on the Add-On set; the outstanding Thank You Bouquet 3D Folder and Stencil Bundle (you can purchase just the 3D & Cut Folder on its own, but TRUST ME you definitely want the stencils!); and finally the Polka Dot & Posy Duo 3D Embossing Folder which is big enough to emboss A2-sized panels for TWO cards at the same time... or... you can split the panel to have a bit of each together, which is what I've done for the background of this card.

And now a bit more detail about the card: I embossed a square of Core'dinations Whitewashed cardstock with the Polka Dot & Posy e/f so that it was about 2/3 posies and 1/3 polka dots, then lightly sanded it to get the contrasting color. I mounted it on some gorgeous sunflower-colored felt and machine stitched onto a 5.5" square card. For the floral panel, I wanted to see if I could emboss the Thank You Bouquet on a small square without using the coordinating die to cut it out and YES, I could, and I love how it turned out. I did use the folder with the die in place to make my Thank You sentiment... I LOVE that you can emboss and cut in ONE step, and noooooo it doesn't move around once you've nestled the die, added your paper and closed the folder!

More about the embossed Thank You Bouquet: I used the 6 layering stencils that come in the Bundle and my Wendy Vecchi Archival Inks. There is a die that will cut out the whole bouquet, but I wanted to see if it would look good on a white panel (YES!) and if the stencils would allow for full coverage without getting ink outside the design (also YES!). I chose a palette of soft pink, peach, yellow and green that feels like a pastel version of autumn to me.

I've got a few more projects up my sleeve that involve the loose flowers from the 3D & Cut as well as more of the eponymous Tabs (& Sentiments) from the Tabbed Classics Collection, so be sure to stay tuned. Also, you should know that Wendy has made probably a hundred amazing samples and is revealing them bit by bit; you should definitely check out her Instagram (@wendyvecchi) and bookmark the Make Art with Wendy Vecchi Facebook Group which is a constant source of inspiration!

New Wendy Vecchi? Yes, Please!

It's time for some brand new goodies from Wendy Vecchi and Spellbinders, which is definitely cause for celebration! This release is called the Tabbed Classics Collection, and I'll explain all the elements in a minute, but first here's a couple of pocket cards I made pairing the new accessories with last year's Essential Envelope Die Set that I can't wait to show off:

Ok, so the Tabbed Classics Collection consists of: the Essential Envelope Every Day Add-Ons Die Set (accessories developed to perfectly accent the Essential Envelope Die Set but honestly, all of the parts work on their own, too); the Tabbed In & Out Sentiments Stamps and Dies which give you LOTS of mix-n-match greetings perfectly sized to fit the tabs on the Add-On set; the outstanding Thank You Bouquet 3D Folder and Stencil Bundle (you can purchase just the 3D & Cut Folder on its own, but TRUST ME you definitely want the stencils!); and finally the Polka Dot & Posy Duo 3D Embossing Folder.

For this dynamic duo of mini cards, I made pockets using the score-and-cut die from the original Essential Envelope Set, then worked in basically every accessory in the Essential Envelope Add-Ons Set to decorate them with envelope fronts, banners and lots of three-layer frilly flowers.

I used the tabbed card from the Add-On set, with mix and match greetings from Tabbed In & Out Sentiments Set. You can see the second part of the sentiments when you pull out the tabbed cards.

I love the way that literally ALL of the new items work perfectly with --and add seamlessly to-- the original collection; but the new stuff also stands on its own, and can be used separately. Oof, I nearly forgot to mention that I used the the Polka Dot & Posy Duo 3D Embossing Folder on the envelope fronts, one is embossed and one is debossed. Ok, I admit it, the latter was done ACCIDENTALLY, but it genuinely looks equally nice as such, so I left it!

I've got more projects up my sleeve, which I'll be showing off in the next few days, so be sure to stay tuned for that. In the meantime, you will most definitely want to check out the gorgeous samples Wendy has made... you can find her on Instagram as @wendyvecchi and in the Make Art with Wendy Vecchi Facebook Group.