Skip links

Sixth Street Sundries

Emily Midgett

Make Way For Ducklings with Spellbinders!

Hi there! So when I was pregnant with my first set of twins, my baby shower was planned around one of my favorite books from childhood: Make Way For Ducklings. I loved the mental image of me as momma duck with my little trail of ducklings behind me. (I had no idea how appropriate that image would end up being…. I couldn’t have been more shocked to find out years later that we were going to have twins again lol.) When I saw the new Showered With Love collection from Spellbinders released this month, I couldn’t wait to use it to create some cute little baby cards! I focus so much on flowers that I sometimes I forget how much fun it can be to play with other subjects. Let’s get started with the details!

Both of my cards today feature the darling new Duck with Umbrella dies, and I love that the accessories can create a gender neutral, girl, or boy version of this sweet little duckling! I kept the color schemes somewhat neutral, with bright yellow duckies, Waterfall card bases, and red and black accents.

My first gender neutral card starts out by die cutting the Duck with Umbrella dies, cutting the duckling components from yellow, black, and orange cardstock, and the accessories from bright red cardstock. I used a small blending brush to blend Marigold ink (from Pinkfresh Studio) around the edges of the duckling, and Merlot ink (from Simon Says Stamp) around the edges of the red accessories. I find that this small step makes a huge difference in the finished look of the die cuts. It helps to add shape and dimension to this otherwise-flat image. I adhered all of the components together with liquid glue, popping up the little baby wing with some foam adhesive for extra dimension.

I die cut the card base using the new Raining Hearts dies from the new Showered With Love collection, using the raindrop background die with some Waterfall cardstock, backing it with some glittering aqua cardstock. I love the twinkling raindrops peeking out behind the aqua cardstock!

The Raining Hearts set includes a couple of sentiment die cuts, so I die cut the detail “hello” from some more glittery aqua cardstock, cutting the background layer from some black cardstock. I tried to keep the black accents to the “rule of three” so that the accents felt intentional, so I also die cut the “baby” from some more black cardstock with the Be Bold Uppercase alphabet dies. I cut the letters twice and adhered them together to add a bit of extra height. I also added a glittery aqua “sweet,” cut using the My Sweet Friend die collection. I adhered all of the components to the rainy card front using both liquid and foam adhesive for lots of texture and dimension!

My second card features the same color scheme, this time with a card that would be perfect for a little girl’s birthday! After creating the sweet little duckling from the Duck with Umbrella die set, I die cut one of the little bows included in the set and added it to her “hair,” making this baby into a little girl duckling with one piece of cardstock! Isn’t she so cute?

For the card base, I wanted something that was fairly neutral but still would be appropriate for a small child, so I pulled out the Plaid Company Embossing Folder and ran it through my Platinum 6 with an A2 panel of Waterfall cardstock. Once my card front was full of texture, I gently ran the Hero Arts Arctic ink pad over the raised area to add a little bit of extra interest to the background and to enhance the plaid pattern. To ground the scene and tone down the plaid pattern on the background, I also die cut a dainty oval from the Elliiptical Ovals die collection using some heavyweight vellum.

To make the card extra festive for a kiddo-friendly birthday card, I added some banners and confetti cut from the Party Decor die set using red cardstock and glittery aqua cardstock. I also die cut a greeting from the Smooth Lines Mix & Match Sentiments, cut from some more glittering aqua cardstock. I arranged the sentiment and duckling on the scalloped vellum oval, then flipped it over and added dots of liquid adhesive behind the solid die cuts to help hide the adhesive, then flipped it back over and adhered it to the plaid panel. I added the banners and confetti with some more liquid adhesive, then added a heat embossed birthday greeting strip with some foam tape. Lots of texture and dimension on this card!

Well, that’s all for these projects! I love creating sweet birthday and baby cards, and it will be so nice to have these on hand for our next birthday party or baby shower. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

More Pinkfresh Studio January 2023 Release Inspiration!

Hi there! I am back today with another project that I’m also sharing over on Instagram as part of the Pinkfresh Studio January 2023 Release Instagram Hop. I always love seeing my illustrations become stamps, but I was even more excited when Kinnari (the owner of Pinkfresh Studio) told me that they were going to create a Wonderful In Every Way Hot Foil Plate in addition to the stamp set, stencils, and coordinating die. I am totally obsessed with hot foiling, and seeing my design as a hot foil plate was so exciting! Yesterday, I shared a watercolored project using my new Wonderful In Every Way stamp set (which you can check out HERE), and today I am sharing a project using the Wonderful In Every Way Hot Foil Plate, coordinating layering stencils, and coordinating die. Let’s get started with the details!

Foiling on colored cardstock is one of my most favorite ways to utilize color in my cards. I think that the finished effect of using one shade of colored cardstock throughout the project makes for such a polished, cohesive final product. To that end, I wanted to do some colorful foiling on a shade of super pale apricot colored cardstock using some pretty pink foil using the new Wonderful In Every Way Hot Foil Plate.

I began by hot foiling the large floral image from Wonderful In Every Way Hot Foil Plate twice on a panel of A2 apricot colored cardstock using some bubblegum pink foil. I arranged the image so that it was slightly off the edge of the cardstock both times. I then used the layering stencils with the Peach Fuzz, Coral Reef, Ballet Slipper, Bubble Gum, and Sparkling Rose inks. I kept the focus on the pretty pink blooms, adding just a hint of color and shadow to the foliage with the peachy inks.

I initially planned on making a one layered card with both of the foiled floral swags creating a sort of frame on my pale apricot card front, but I ended up wanting to add a bit of color and texture to the area behind the blooms, so I used the coordinating die to cut the finished foiled and stenciled images out. Because I had hot foiled them on the edges of the same size panel of cardstock, I had a guide for exactly where to place them on my background. I die cut the Dotted Lattice cover plate die from some coordinating matte pink foil cardstock and layered it on another A2 panel of the pale apricot cardstock. I love how this looks almost tone-on-tone, but still it’s so colorful!

I adhered the die cut blooms to the top and bottom of the card front with foam adhesive, using the straight edges as my guide for placement. I always like to coordinate the foil/cardstock combination for the greetings with the focal points, so when I was foiling (I do all of my hot foiling in a big batch so that I have lots of bits and bobs to use later) I made sure to hot foil the new Wonderful Sentiments Hot Foil set using the same foil/cardstock combination so that everything stayed cohesive. I adhered the greeting with a double layer of foam tape to help it stand out even more from the background, then added a few Blossom Glitter Drops for some more sparkle!

Well, that’s all for today’s project! You should take a peek at the hop happening over on Instagram; Pinkfresh Studio is giving away tons of prizes, and we have even more inspiration to share with you using this month’s new release. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Pinkfresh Studio January 2023 Stamp+Die+Stencil+Hot Foil Plate Release Blog Hop + Giveaway!

Good morning, and happy Monday! Today, Pinkfresh Studio is hopping along to celebrate their first new release of the brand new year! I am always delighted to work with Pinkfresh Studio products, but it’s even more exciting for me when I get to use stamps that I’ve illustrated. The new Wonderful In Every Way is one of my most favorite illustrations that I’ve created, and I’m so excited to finally see it in a tangible stamp. And, bonus, Pinkfresh Studio has even created a coordinating hot foil plate to complement the stamp, die, and layering stencils, and I will share another project using that product tomorrow. Today, I have two projects to share using new goodies from this month’s new release using my current color combination obsession. Let’s get started with the details!

Both of my cards today feature bold, dramatic black backgrounds with brightly colored flowers as the focal point. In order to keep my color scheme as cohesive as possible, when coloring, I go one step further by coloring around the edge of my colored image with a black marker. This helps to visually keep the color scheme for both cards as true as possible, avoiding that white outline that detracts from the overall color scheme.

My first card uses the beautiful new Floral Trio stamp, die, and stencil suite. I began by stamping the main floral image from the Floral Trio stamp set onto some white cardstock using black pigment ink, then clear embossed over the top. I like to do this especially with images that will be stenciled, because the clear embossing powder seals the black lines and prevents them from smudging while blending.

I paired the Floral Trio Layering Stencils with Peach Fuzz, Coral Reef, Passion Fruit, Olive, and Evergreen inks from Pinkfresh Studio, using a light touch and some soft blending brushes to achieve a more subtle effect. I can be somewhat heavy-handed sometimes when it comes to ink blending, so I made special effort to use a light touch with these images, and I love the result with the soft peachy flowers and fresh green foliage! I used a black copic marker around the edge of the finished blended flowers, then used the coordinating die to die cut the floral bouquet.

When I am working with new hot foil products, I always try to hot foil with several different colors of foil and cardstock, so that I have lots of options when the time actually comes to start creating with the new goodies. I had hot foiled the beautiful new Floral Lace Hot Foil image onto some black cardstock using matte platinum hot foil from Spellbinders, and I had also hot foiled the greetings from the new Wonderful Sentiments Hot Foil set using the same matte platinum foil so that the two designs could work together nicely. I trimmed down my hot foiled panel, then popped it up on an A2 black card front using foam adhesive.

I added a sparkly black glitter foam die cut border cut using an Essentials: Lacey Edgers die. I adhered the floral bouquet to the card front with some more foam tape, creating a double layer of height, then added the greeting (creating a triple layer of foam-eek!) and a few Champagne Glitter Drops for some sparkle! I love how adding that simple black edge around the die cut makes those lovely peachy blooms pop from the dramatic dark background. Such a simple step, but I think it makes the card so much more interesting.

My second project features my new Wonderful In Every Way stamps and the coordinating dies. I wanted to do some simple watercoloring to show how much fun these stamps are to color! Because I had already hot foiled my black and platinum sentiments using that matte platinum hot foil and the Wonderful Sentiments Hot Foil, I heat embossed the large poppy image from Wonderful In Every Way using platinum sparkle embossing powder, which matches the platinum foil beautifully, onto some Arches cold press watercolor paper.

I taped the panel down to my watercolor board and used my Daniel Smith paints in shades of bright coral and red with olive green for the foliage to watercolor the large, open image. I love how easy the watercoloring for this image can be; the large petals of the flower and simple foliage help simplify the coloring process and give you plenty of area in which to work with those nooks and crannies! I used a black Karin watercolor marker to color around the edges of my image before die cutting, again using that black die cut edge to keep the color scheme true.

For the card base, I heat embossed the poppy image from Wonderful In Every Way along the edge of a black A2 card front using the same sparkling platinum embossing powder. This adds almost a lacy effect to the background, creating an intricate pattern, but maintaining the dramatic black and not adding any extra colors to the background helps to keep the focus on those watercolored poppies.

I die cut a coordinating platinum foil frame using the Fancy Circles die. I popped up the circle on the black embossed background using foam tape, then added the watercolored floral die cut over the top, allowing the simply embossed images on the card front to peek out from behind the colorful watercolored image. I added another greeting from the Wonderful Sentiments Hot Foil set, which I also die cut with the coordinating dies. The last touch was a few sparkling Champagne Glitter Drops.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! I have another project for you tomorrow, featuring my new Wonderful In Every Way Hot Foil Plate with the layering stencils, so I hope you will come back tomorrow to take a peek.

Now for some fun giveaway information! Pinkfresh Studio is giving away their full release over on the Pinkfresh Studio Blog and YouTube channel, as well as ten $25 gift cards to the shop drawn from comments left along the hop! Simply leave a comment at each stop on the hop to be eligible to win! Winners will be announced on the Pinkfresh Studio Blog on January 31, 2023.

Here’s the full list of hop participants:

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Simon Says Stamp Hugs & Kisses Release Blog Hop + Giveaway!

Hi there! I am thrilled to be a stop on Day 1 of the Hugs & Kisses Release Blog Hop! You should have arrived here from Alberto Gava, and your next stop is Vicky Papaioannou. You can also start back at the beginning at the Simon Says Stamp Blog. After a little holiday break, we are celebrating both the Simon Says Stamp Hugs release from December 2022 and the brand new Kisses release from January 2023! Both of these releases are love-themed, and many of the products work beautifully together. I have two blushing projects to share with you today, so let’s get started with the details!

Every few weeks, we get little glimpses of springtime with some lovely mild temperatures, and I was channeling those memories of pleasant spring days when I worked on these projects. I realized after I created them that the color palette was very similar to my projects from the November Holiday Sparkle Blog Hop, this time with a floral springtime vibe! I can’t seem to get enough of that blushy cardstock paired with metallic accents, and both of these cards feature that soft pink, this time paired with the new Champagne Matte Cardstock and a ton of new and old goodies!

My first card features the Heart Panes die from the Hugs release, die cut from the new Champagne Matte Cardstock. The heart opening in the center is the perfect size to fit the “sending love” greeting from the new From the Heart Messages stamp set. I cut a piece of blush colored cardstock down to A2 size, then arranged my champagne cover plate die cut over the top of the blush background and placed the entire panel inside my MISTI. I placed the stamp from the From the Heart Messages set in the center and closed the door, then removed the die cut.

I heat embossed the greeting using Metallic Platinum Sparkle embossing powder, which was a near-perfect match for the Champagne Matte Cardstock. After I had embossed the greeting in the center, I lightly blended some Cheeky ink around the edges to add a little extra dimension to the background. I adhered the cover plate die over the top of the blended, embossed background panel.

To accent the heart, I wanted to add some simple die cut flowers from that same blush cardstock. I die cut the Etched Magnolia Blossom and Blossom Vine dies from the blush cardstock, then die cut some foliage from the leftover panes of Champagne cardstock using the Privet Branch die. I lightly blended some more Cheeky ink around the edges of the die cut magnolia pieces using a small blending brush and adhered the pieces using both liquid and foam adhesive for lots of dimension. I arranged the die cuts in a swag around the foil heart and sentiment, adding a sentiment strip and some Champagne Glitter Drops for some more sparkle!

My second card features the same color scheme, this time using the Flourishing Bloom cover plate die to create a lovely floral background! I began with another A2 panel of the blush cardstock, blended around the edges with Cheeky ink to add some extra interest to the background. I then die cut the Flourishing Bloom cover plate die from the Champagne Matte Cardstock and mounted it on the blush background using liquid adhesive.

To accent the foiled foliage, I die cut the Flourishing Bloom cover plate from another panel of the blush cardstock, then used my sharp scissors to trim each of the individual flowers off of the large die cut. I used the same small blending brush with Cheeky ink to add some extra dimension to the blooms. This helps them pop from the background a bit! I adhered all of the die cut blooms to the floral background using foam tape to help give them even more interest and dimension.

For the greeting, I used the brand new Hi There sentiment die set. I die cut the background layer from some heavyweight vellum, then adhered the detail layer cut from some Champagne Matte Cardstock. I popped the sentiment up with some thin strips of foam tape, hidden behind the solid portion of the die cuts to keep it from showing through the semi-transparent vellum! I also added some Champagne Glitter Drops to the center of the flowers. Lots of height and texture on this card’s background!

Well, that’s all for my projects today! Now for some fun giveaways and freebie information!

Simon Says Stamp is giving away a $25 coupon to each stop on the hop. The winner will be selected from the comments and announced on the Simon Says Stamp blog on January 25, 2023! To be entered to win, simply leave a comment on each blog across the hop. The more comments you leave, the more chances you have to win!

Simon Says Stamp is also adding a sweet little freebie with purchase. Simply add code RBW23 at checkout to receive the Rainbow 3×4 stamp set with your order!

Your next stop is Vicky Papaioannou Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy hopping!

Simon Says Stamp Kisses New Release!

Hi there! Tonight, Simon Says Stamp is releasing their latest product collection: Kisses! This new collection is full of fun products to create cards filled with love for the recipient. I used the new Painted Heart Wreath stamp to create two super-shiny, watercolored projects today, so let’s get started with the details!

Both of my projects today feature the Painted Heart Wreath. I began by stamping this beautiful new cling stamp using Contour Ink from Hero Arts onto a 6×6 panel of watercolor paper. This solid stamp stamps as one complete image, so in order to create a multicolored finished product, I did some watercoloring on the individual elements. The Contour Ink stamps in a very light gray, and it does not interfere with the colors of the watercoloring itself! Score! I used my Tombow Dual Brush markers to add lots of vibrant color to these individual images, scribbling color onto my glass work surface and picking it up with my damp paintbrush, then moving the color around on the solid images of the stamped panel. Once those had dried, I got out my handmade, super shiny, metallic watercolors from IUILE and added some sparkles over the top. I love the finished effect!

For my first card, I trimmed the Painted Heart Wreath panel that I watercolored down to mini-slimline size. The 6×6 panel was the perfect size for this mini-slimline card, and I even had leftovers!

I stamped one of the greetings from the From the Heart Messages stamp set using Platinum Sparkle embossing powder from WOW! Embossing. This glittery not-quite-silver-but-not-quite-gold worked beautifully with the sparkly watercolored elements. To add a touch of extra texture and sparkle to this relatively-simple card front, I added a few Milk Glass gems.

My second card uses some of the leftover pieces from my Painted Heart Wreath panel. There wasn’t quite enough left of the stamped pattern to use the full panel for a card, so I trimmed out a few of the elements using my sharp scissors to use them as sparkly accents!

Using the same shades of Tombow Dual Brush markers, I watercolored a vibrant-but-still-soft lilac ombré on some more watercolor paper. I die cut it out using the Big Hugs die from Simon Says Stamp, then, keeping the die cut within the negative space, I added some super sparkly watercolor over the top. The sparkles are very subtle, but they catch the light so beautifully, as you can see in the photo above. I die cut the same Big Hugs die twice more from some plain white cardstock scraps and layered all three die cuts together to create a dimensional die cut greeting.

Using the new Matte Champagne Foil cardstock from the Kisses release, I die cut the new Heart Chain die, reserving the full size negative hearts from the centers of the die cut. I adhered the Heart Chain with some liquid adhesive to the white A2 card base, then began arranging the sentiment die cut and watercolored, sparkling Painted Heart Wreath leftovers with foam adhesive. I added the heart die cuts from the Heart Chain die cut using foam adhesive, as well, which remind me of bubbles floating from the focal point. The final touch was to add a few more Milk Glass gems for a bit more texture and sparkle!

Well, that’s all for these projects! I hope you’ll check out the new Kisses release over at Simon Says Stamp. So many unique and fun new products that are full of beautiful images, poignant and clever sentiments, and creative dies. And be sure to come back later this week for the blog hop! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!