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Sixth Street Sundries

Emily Midgett

3D embossing folder

Winter Whites with Simon Says Stamp!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon!

Hi friends! Today, I have a pair of projects using lots of gorgeous holiday dies and the Holly & Pine Embossing Folder from the Simon Says Stamp All the Joy release, showcasing the beauty of the ultimate monochrome: white-on-white! I love a good monochromatic card, and white on white is one of my favorite ways to challenge myself to incorporate as many textures as possible to keep things from being blah. Let’s get started with the details!

“Winter Whites” are definitely having their moment in fashion right now, along with all monochromatic styles, and I tried to channel that into these two projects. I did end up adding some minty green to the tag, but otherwise both projects are white-on-white-on-white!

I began my card by running an A2 panel of Hammermill white cardstock through my die cut machine using the Holly & Pine Embossing Folder. I splattered the background with some super sparkly iridescent white watercolor and set it aside to dry. Next, I pulled out the Airy Pine Needles and Bountiful Berries along with a large assortment of iridescent, glitter, shimmer, and vellum cardstocks and set about die cutting. When working with these limited-color palette projects, I try to add as many textures and finishes as possible, which keeps the white elements from all blending into each other.

After I had die cut and assembled all of my foliage and berries, I worked on the sentiment. Keeping the two dies together, I die cut the beautiful Fancy Happy Holidays die from some white shimmer cardstock, making sure to reserve all of the pieces, including the interiors of the letters. I then die cut the full background piece from some heavweight vellum and adhered the outline to the complete background piece, creating almost a reverse die cut. I popped the greeting up on the embossed card front using foam adhesive, then added a sentiment strip from Typed Christmas Sentiment Cards beneath it. I arranged the winter foliage around the greeting and added a few shimmering gems for more sparkle!

For a quick and cute tag, I die cut the Label Tags dies twice from white cardstock, embossing one using the Holly & Pine Embossing Folder. I sandwiched the tags together so that the scratched sides would be facing each other. This double layer also helps to add some extra stability to the hole at the top!

I die cut the Bountiful Berries dies from white cardstock and added some minty green alcohol marker coloring to the leaves, then arranged the berry cluster and foliage on the embossed side of the tag. For a quick greeting (perfect for a tag!) I added a Typed Christmas Sentiment strip “from me to you.” I popped all of the pieces up with some foam tape and added a few iridescent white gems to add some sparkle. I think this would look so pretty adorning a package or gift bag!

Well, that’s all for my projects today. I encourage you to shop in your paper stash to see what kinds of coated and textured papers you have that will work together to create monochromatic cards. I am always on the lookout for papers with gorgeous finishes! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Altenew November 2023 Marvelous Monthly Series Release Blog Hop + Giveaway ($300 in Total Prizes!)

Hi friends! Today, I’m delighted to be hopping along with Altenew for their November 2023 Marvelous Monthly Release Blog Hop! You should have arrived here from the Altenew Blog, and your next stop is Agnieszka. This month’s release features some classic beauties, like the Craft-a-Flower: Layering Dogwood dies and some flowers that are new (to me, anyway): the Build-A-Garden: Cheerful Coreopses. I have a light and airy project to share with you today featuring the gorgeous blooms of the Craft-a-Flower: Layering Dogwood set, so let’s get started with the details!

I began by die cutting the flowers from the Craft a Flower: Layering Dogwood dies from plain white cardstock. Each piece on the flowers contains a different keyhole shape so that you can perfectly and easily line up your die cuts to create three differently-shaped blooms. Each bloom only has two main pieces, so assembly was super quick and easy! After adhering the pieces of each bloom, I used small blending brushes to lightly blend Buttercream Fresh Dye Ink around the edges of the petals and Dusty Pink in the centers, creating those gorgeous blooms that embody springtime! I used colored cardstock to cut the foliage and flower centers, blending some deep green ink on the leaves to add some extra dimension.

Next, I ran a panel of white cardstock through my die cutting machine using the Basic Plaid 3D Embossing Folder. I trimmed down the long edge of the embossed panel and added some thin strips of Sparkling Peach glitter paper from the Fairy Dust Glitter Paper Pack. This pastel peach shade coordinates beautifully with the subtle ink blending on the flowers. I adhered these cardstock pieces to the center of a full size A2 card front using Ultra Sticky Double Sided Tape.

For the greeting, I pressed one of the sentiments from the Classical Sentiments Press Plates using the black ink included with the Better Press system, then cut it out with the Classic Greetings coordinating dies. I arranged the flowers in a cluster on the embossed strip on the card front, adhering them with some foam adhesive to add extra dimension and using a double layer of foam tape for the greeting. Finally, I added a few sparkling pale peachy-pink gems for some sparkle!

Well, that’s all for my project today. Now for some fun giveaway information:

$300 in total prizes! To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $100 gift certificate to 1 lucky winner and a $50 gift certificate to 4 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by 11/22/2023 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 5 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on 11/24/2023.
*The winner of the $100 gift certificate will be chosen from comments left on the Altenew blog. 

Here’s the full link list in case you get lost:

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Greenery Swag with All the Joy!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon!

Hi friends! I have been dealing with a stomach bug (thanks kiddos for sharing those germs… not what I meant when I said I wanted you to share!!), but I wanted to pop in quickly with this project featuring some dramatic die cutting using goodies from the new Simon Says Stamp All the Joy release. This card doesn’t have a smidge of stamping on it, just lots of die cuts and textures from different cardstocks. Let’s get started with the details!

To start, I die cut the different elements using the new Greenery Swag die from some different shades of green and sparkling red glitter cardstock. I love adding botanical elements to holiday cards, and the Greenery Swag die set features some classic holiday botanical imagery in a lovely swag. I always like to customize my die cut cards by snipping them apart to create unique arrangements, and there are lots of elements in the Greenery Swag die set that can easily stand alone depending on where you snip them off!

To add some interesting texture behind my botanical arrangement, I ran a panel of Rainbow Splash Black cardstock through my die cut machine with the new Twining Berries embossing folder. I also die cut the center of another A2 panel of black cardstock using the Nested Domed Arches die, reserving the actual die cut for another project and adhering the frame from the negative space to my embossed panel using black foam adhesive. I arranged the botanical die cuts to the bottom of the frame, adding some more individual leaves off of another die cut to allow them to peek from behind the arched frame.

After I had added all of the leafy bits to my card, I die cut the detail layer of the new All the Joy die cut from black glitter paper, then die cut the background outline piece from heavyweight vellum. I added the die cut greeting to the card with more black foam tape, then added a sentiment strip trimmed down from the Reverse Christmas sentiment card set. Finally, I accented the centers of the flowers and a few other spots with some Onyx gems for a bit of extra sparkle!

Well, that’s all for my project today. Do you like to customize your die cuts by trimming them and arranging them on your project in a unique group? It’s one of my favorite ways to customize my cards! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Simon Say Stamp Season of Wonder Blog Hop-Day 1!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon!

Hi friends! I am so excited to be a stop on Day 1 of the two day Season of Wonder Release Blog Hop for Simon Says Stamp! You should have arrived here from Suzy Plantamura, and your next stop is Lisa Addesa. You can also start back at the Simon Says Stamp Blog in case you get lost. This month’s Season of Wonder release is filled with stunning, classic autumn and holiday imagery, and I’ve used a few different products to create these two vibrant holiday cards. Let’s get started with the details!

I am a sucker for a gorgeous floral embossing folder, and the new Free Falling Floral Embossing Folder is an absolute stunner. I began by running an A2 sized panel of Hammermill cardstock through my die cutting machine, which was lovely on its own, but I couldn’t resist using my Copic markers to do some no-line coloring on the pretty flowers. I wanted to create a holiday floral background, so I decided to make them a deep red with beautiful jewel bright greenery to emote that holiday aesthetic. I added some white gel pen to the tips of the black stamens, adding a bit more texture and dimension to the image.

For the greeting, I kept things very simple, die cutting the detail layer of the Fancy Tidings of Cheer die from some Black Glitter Paper Basics by Hero Arts and the larger outline layer from Heavyweight Vellum. I popped the sentiment up with some foam tape, allowing it to hang slightly over the edge. I love the decadent feeling that little extra hanging off creates on your card!

To add to the festive feel and add another element of texture to the super textured and detailed card front, I tied a cherry red twine bow and tucked it beneath the sentiment at a jaunty angle. Finally, I added some more shine with some Onyx gems. I love the simplicity and crazy amount of texture on this card!

My second card features the darling new Deck the Halls set designed by my friend Alberto Gava! His illustrations are so adorable and really capture such a sweet attitude. I tend to try to keep my holiday cards a bit simpler, preferring a more graphic style rather than building a detailed scene, but I couldn’t resist creating a sweet holiday scene, perhaps a group of cousins decorating grandma’s Christmas tree. I stamped the images from Deck the Halls onto a panel of Hammermill using Hero Arts Contour Ink, then used my Copic markers to color the image.

In order to create the baubles on the tree, I used shimmery Star Spark Pens to color little glittering circles on the tree. I love that these pens are opaque enough that they can be layered over the top of colorful cardstock or coloring. I also used the Star Spark Pens to add sparkly details to the bows on the gifts! Once I had finished adding my shimmering details, I adhered clear droplet baubles over the top of the glittery circles to create a 3D effect on the tree. I think it adds such a fun textural element to the scene!

After I had finished coloring and die cutting, I used the Soft Plaid Background with Hero Arts Iridescent Blue embossing powder to heat emboss a subtle pattern on the 5″ square card front. This gorgeous embossing powder creates beautiful, subtle shimmer, perfect for allowing the colorful holiday die cuts to be the star of the show! For the greeting, I stamped the large calligraphy sentiment and sentiment block using Altenew Obsidian pigment ink, then covered it with clear embossing powder to make them nice and crisp. I die cut the embossed sentiments, then adhered all of the die cuts on the embossed background panel using both liquid and foam adhesive. Such a fun and festive card, perfect for a special friend or family member!!

Well, that’s all for my projects today! To celebrate the Simon Says Stamp Season of Wonder release, Simon Says Stamp is doing a special gift with purchase promotion:

Simply enter code HOLLY at checkout to receive the Graceful Holly 3D embossing folder with any $25 or more purchase. This gift with purchase will expire 10/8 at 11:59 pm EDT. While supplies last.

Simon Says Stamp is also sponsoring a $25 coupon giveaway at each stop on the hop! Leave a comment at each stop on the hop for maximum opportunities to win. Winners will be announced on the Simon Says Stamp blog on Wednesday the 11th of October. Winners should email Simon Says Stamp to claim his/her prize 🙂

Your next stop on the hop is Lisa Addesa. Thanks so much for stopping by today, and don’t forget to check the Simon Says Stamp blog tomorrow for Day 2 of the hop! Happy hopping!

Adding Shimmer and Detail with Karin Star Spark Pens!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon!

Hi friends! In the midst of my newfound rainbow craze using the new Rainbow Splash products from Simon Says Stamp’s STAMPtember release, I have found myself itching to get back into my more typical color palette as sort of a palate cleanser. (Don’t worry if you were enjoying the rainbows; I have more Rainbow Splash inspiration to share with you later this week!) I’ve spent most of my creative time this month creating projects that are a little more simplistic, a little more approachable, so as to be easily replicated by both new and seasoned crafters alike. Today’s project combines some simple techniques to create a really vivid, eye-catching card using the gorgeous Lilac Clusters Embossing Folder. Let’s get started with the details!

I began by running an A2 panel of Hammermill cardstock through my die cutting machine using the Lilac Clusters Embossing Folder from Simon Says Stamp. This 3D embossing folder creates such incredibly beautiful details that easily can speak for themselves on your card front. My initial instinct with these gorgeous floral folders is always to reach for my favorite coloring mediums to make as immersive and dimensional a card as possible, but today I thought I’d simplify the process and the amount of time spent by doing some ink blending. For the sky, I blended Cadette and Ocean Pawsitively Saturated inks, the combination of which creates the most luscious, summery blue sky. On the flowers themselves, I blended first Lilac ink with a larger blending brush, then blended Orchid ink with a smaller brush in some of the more shadowed places on the blooms. Using the lighter and darker inks helps to add a little extra interest and dimension to the flowers. I blended some Pearfection ink on the foliage, keeping things simple.

To accent the somewhat simplistic blended “coloring” on my lilac images, I used the new Karin Star Spark pens to add extra details to the individual flower petals, stems, and veins on the leaves. These pens are so shimmery and are basically opaque, so they make adding details on top of your stamped or colored images super easy! I accented the pretty purple blooms with a frame cut from purple foil using my favorite A2 Thin Frames dies, which I popped up using foam adhesive.

For the greeting, I used the Fancy Giving Thanks die, cutting the detail layer from deep purple cardstock and the outline background from heavyweight vellum. I also trimmed down a greeting from the Sassy T-day sentiment cards and lightly blended the strip with some residual purple ink left on my blending brush to help it work more cohesively with my super colorful card front. The final touch was a few shimmering gems for even more sparkle!

Well, that’s all for my project today! I hope you enjoyed this foray back into my more usual world of secondary colors (instead of primary rainbow colors, haha!). Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!