Sixth Street Sundries

Emily Midgett

christmas card

Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember Exclusive: Honey Bee Stamps!

Hi friends! I am back with another STAMPtember Collaboration Release today, and we’re celebrating Honey Bee Stamps in all of it’s gorgeously vintage glory today! I have gotten to know Melissa, the owner and caretaker of Honey Bee Stamps, as a member of her Design Team and as a friend over the last several years, and she is genuinely one of my favorite people in the crafty world. She is so kind and warm and such a talented human in so many ways! The STAMPtember collaboration product is just like her: filled with beautiful details and with a touch of vintage charm. Here’s a sneak peek:

The Holly Jolly Frames (click HERE to check it out!) product suite features a variety of intricate frames and holiday imagery with which to fill the openings. I thought that the gorgeous filigree frames would be absolutely perfect to create some elegant gift tags, and so pulled out my deepest Christmas red cardstock, gold embossing powder, and some jewels and created these pretties:

Don’t the gold embossed frames just look stunning against that vibrant red cardstock? Talk about festive and oh, so elegant! For each frame, I stamped the image on Rainbow Splash Scarlet cardstock using embossing powder, then added the luminous gold embossing powder and heated it. I love how those details pop so perfectly against that deep red. After embossing each frame, I used the coordinating dies to cut them out.

Because the dies come with detachable center circles, you can cut the detailed frames with a center opening or you can leave the center circle out and cut the solid image. I die cut one more of each frame from the same Scarlet cardstock, this time leaving off the center circle die and cutting a solid backer that would fit perfectly behind the frames. I used a blending brush to blend Cherry ink on the edges of each solid die cut, adding some vintage “distressing” to the background.

To adorn the center of each frame, I heat embossed some of the holiday imagery included with Holly Jolly Frames with the same opulent red and gold color palette and die cut them with their coordinating dies. I adhered the frames to their solid, blended backers with thin foam adhesive squares, then added the holiday icons in the center of each frame, turning the frames on the diagonal so that they were diamond-shaped instead of squares. I used my Crop-A-Dile to cut a hole at the top of each diamond, then threaded some sparkling gold twine through to create the loop to easily attach the tag to a gift. Finally, I added some sparkling Cherry Pawsitively Dazzling Gems for extra sparkle and luxury!! I think these look like they came directly from the North Pole!

Well, that’s all for my projects today. Wouldn’t these be so pretty in a variety of Christmas colors and given as a gift? Or as a collage on an A7 card front? So many possibilities with these pretty frames!!

Important note: these fabulous and exclusive STAMPtember collaboration sets are limited edition, meaning that once they sell out, they won’t be restocked. Don’t wait on these! You won’t want to miss out! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy STAMPtember!!

Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember Collaboration: Tim Holtz!

*I have gathered links to all of the products used at the bottom of the post for your convenience, using affiliate links at no extra cost to you. Thank you for shopping with my links! I truly appreciate your support for my work!*

Hello friends! It’s time to start sharing the ever-popular and highly-anticipated STAMPtember Collaboration Releases! For our first collaboration, we are starting off with a bang with a fan-favorite: Tim Holtz! (FYI: You can keep an eye on all of the collaboration sets by clicking HERE. Each new set will go live on a certain day of the month, so be sure to keep refreshing that page to see what new goodies come out at noon Eastern time!) The new illustrations from today’s kit release have a super unique, sketchy quality to them that is immediately recognizable as Tim’s signature style. (Click HERE to see this exquisitely curated kit!) I chose to create a vibrant holiday card with some mixed media flair and watercolored baubles for my project today. Let’s get started with the details!

To begin, I taped an A2 panel of Distress Watercolor Cardstock to my watercolor board using masking tape, leaving a 1/4″ frame around the edge of my panel. I then used Distress Ink Reinkers in shades of Kitsch Flamingo, Festive Berries, Mowed Lawn to create a watercolored panel, taking care to keep the green and red slightly separated so as to avoid creating a muddy mess! Once I had completed the watercoloring, adding multiple layers to make it look painterly and intentional, I allowed the panel to dry while still taped to the watercolor board to minimize warping. When completely dry, I added some gold splatters and stamped a few sparkles from the STAMPtember Exclusive Season of Magic stamp set using gold pigment ink. Once completely dry, I removed the masking tape from the edges, leaving a crisp white frame around my colorful watercolored background!

For the main focal point on the card, I used Gold Embossing Powder to heat emboss the baubles from the STAMPtember Exclusive Season of Magic stamp set twice on some more Distress Watercolor Cardstock. I used the same color palette of Kitsch Flamingo, Festive Berries, and Mowed Lawn Distress Reinkers to add color to the baubles, loosely reflecting the colors in the background, almost like they are reflecting the colorful lights from the Christmas tree! I also added some sparkling gold glitter watercolor on the bottom edge of each bauble for extra shimmer. Once the ornaments had dried completely, I used the coordinating dies to cut them out. I die cut several Pointy Pine Sprigs dies from two different shades of green cardstock and then layered the pine sprigs and the baubles atop the watercolored background to create a “branch” filled with gorgeous greenery and Christmas cheer!

After I had finished adhering the baubles and greenery to the card front, I heat embossed a greeting from the Season of Magic onto some more Distress watercolor paper using the same gold embossing powder. I die cut the finished sentiment with it’s coordinating die, then popped it up on the card front with a double layer of thin foam adhesive squares. The final finishing touch was a trio of Gold Pawsitively Dazzling Gems to add extra festive sparkle to the card!

Well, that’s all for my project today! As a reminder: these limited edition STAMPtember collaboration sets are not going to be restocked, so if you have your eyes on one, don’t let it slip away! You’ll be sad to have missed out! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember Release!!

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon! *I have gathered links to all of the products used at the bottom of the post for your convenience, using affiliate links at no extra cost to you. Thank you for shopping with my links! I truly appreciate your support for my work!*

Hi friends! Have you heard….. It’s STAMPtember!! Throughout STAMPtember® we will be celebrating every day posting exclusive collaborations, contests, prizes, special promotions, announcements, and more surprises on the Simon Says Stamp Blog! I am back todayvwith another project featuring some fabulous new goodies from the Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember release (click HERE!), creating an incredibly dramatic and vibrant holiday card using a super unique and fun color palette. Let’s get started with the details on my project!

Today’s project is a large A7 holiday card that features an analogous color palette of royal blue and peacock teal. I think these colors look so very striking paired together, and I couldn’t help but make a richly colored holiday card with them. I thought that the new Curled Blossom die set would create a truly gorgeous background, so I die cut several of the elements in both plain teal cardstock and glittering royal blue cardstock, cutting a variety of both colors in order to have lots of options when it came time to assemble the card!

Before I began assembling the foliage and glittering flowers, I die cut a larger A7 Notched Rectangles die from that same deep teal cardstock that I used to cut the foliage. I used a blending brush to blend Royal Pawsitively Saturated Ink around the edges, creating a striking contrasting edge that also fits in beautifully with the color palette. Using thin foam adhesive, I mounted the die cut in the center of a royal blue matte satin panel of foil cardstock cut to A7 size and mounted on an A7 card base.

For the greeting, I die cut the detail layer of the new Opulent Merry die set and placed it in the center of the notched rectangle, adhering it at a jaunty angle. I arranged the foliage and flowers around the sentiment to create a custom patterned background and adhered the pieces with a combination of liquid and foam adhesive for lots of dimension. The extra blending around the edge of the notched rectangle die cut really helps those teal foliage die cuts to pop nicely! Finally, I finished the project off with some sparkling Royal Pawsitively Dazzling Gems. So many different textures and sparkling embellishments on this project, which I think makes it just perfect for a holiday card!

Well, that’s all for my project today. You should absolutely check ou the massive and incredible Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember release (click HERE!) if you haven’t already… it’s so, so good. Be sure to pop back by tomorrow for the STAMPtember Blog Party! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Floral Holiday Inspiration with New Simon Says Stamp!


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

Hi friends! I am back today with some holiday inspiration using one of my new stamp sets from the Heart to Heart Release  from Simon Says Stamp (click HERE to check out the entire release!) called Loving You Bouquet. When I was originally illustrating this floral bouquet, I had envisioned it as a holiday bouquet, but Simon Says Stamp decided to accompany it with more versatile sentiments so that it could be used not just for Christmas, but for Valentine’s Day and beyond! The talented designers working with Simon Says Stamp have showcased it in a variety of beautiful colors, but I wanted to share my projects today using more traditional holiday colors, first with an embroidered ornament, then with a beautiful coordinating A7 watercolored card. It’s easy to customize floral bouquets to suit whatever your occasion might be with the appropriate colors and sentiment. Let’s get started with the details on my projects!

*I have gathered links to all of the products used at the bottom of the post for your convenience, using affiliate links at no extra cost to you. Thank you for shopping with my links! I truly appreciate your support for my work!*

An acquaintance of mine got married several years ago and shared photos of her wedding bouquet on social media, featuring utterly lush and luxurious red anemone flowers. I was instantly smitten with them and have seen them used in holiday floral arrangements all over Pinterest and the florist accounts that I follow on social media! That stunning red anemone was the inspiration for my projects today, featuring a beautifully creamy white gardenia paired with that lush scarlet anemone. I wanted to do some crewel work with needle and thread to create a holiday keepsake as well as a matching holiday card.

I stamped the bouquet from Loving You Bouquet onto some creamy white linen (an old cloth napkin that I found at the thrift store worked perfectly for this project!) using a light gray ink. I then placed the stamped cloth within a 5″ embroidery hoop and began my crewel work. I used what I call a “stained glass” technique, keeping each individual petal unique with one shade of thread on each petal, rather than trying to do too much elaborate shading with multiple shades of thread on each petal. Once I had finished embroidering the image, I added some metallic bronze seed beads from my stash to the flower centers and the tops of the berries. I love the additional texture and shimmer these beads add to the overall effect! I cleaned up the back of the ornament and added some ribbon to hang it from a tree, finally using my hot glue gun to add a coordinating red satin bow at the top. I think this will look so pretty on our Christmas tree next year!

For the coordinating card, I gave myself the freedom to do some detailed no-line watercoloring. When illustrating a new image, I try to add enough details and intricacies to the floral bouquets that they look lovely stamped on their own or with simple coloring, but I also love to just sit down and let my cares fall away as I become absorbed in super detailed watercoloring. I stamped the image from Loving You Bouquet onto some cold press watercolor paper using Inkon3’s Fadeout Ink, then used Karin Brushmarker Pro markers to color the images. With watercolor markers, I like to scribble the color out onto my glass craft mat or porcelain palette, then pick up the color with my damp paintbrush and apply it to the image. This technique allows me maximum control over the intensity of the color on my watercolor paper, as well as keeping the edges and contrast super clean and crisp.

Once I had finished coloring the images, I splattered the edges of the panel with some Simon Says Stamp Gold Splatter Medium. I also used my Simon Says Stamp T-Square to create a gold frame around the edges, bringing the eye towards the center of the card front. I trimmed the edges down slightly, then created a gold embossed sentiment slide using the Label Slides Christmas and coordinating Label Slides dies, through which I threaded some gold cord and adhered to the center of my card, securing the gold cord around the back of the panel. Once everything was complete, I mounted the finished panel on a piece of A7 Rainbow Splash Scarlet cardstock, giving a thin red accent frame around the exterior of the watercolored panel. Finally, I added a gold cord bow beneath the sentiment slide, then added some Gold Pawsitively Dazzling Gems for additional sparkle!

Well, that’s all for my projects today! I am always tickled when I can use the same stamp set for multiple occasions. It’s so important to be able to get as much bang for your crafting buck, and my new Loving You Bouquet definitely fits that bill! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!

Holiday Thank You Notes with Simon Says Stamp + SALE!

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

Hi friends! I am back today with a trio of holiday thank you notes featuring some beautiful snowflake embossing folders from Simon Says Stamp. These beautiful snowflake embossing folders are such a great, cost-effective addition to your craft room; you can use them in so many different ways, letting them be backup to the main focal point or allowing them to be one of the main focal points as I’ve done today! I kept these quick and simple to show you that a simple thank you note can be just as special as a more involved one, as long as you are intentional with the little extra details and textures. Let’s get started with the details on my projects!

*I have gathered links to all of the products used at the bottom of the post for your convenience, using affiliate links at no extra cost to you. Thank you for shopping with my links! I truly appreciate your support for my work!*

For all three cards, I used the Fancy Thank You die set, which comes with a detailed top layer and a shadow layer. The generous size makes it easy to create a focal point with the sentiment, allowing you to add simple accents to create a cohesive project! These work perfectly with the detailed embossing folders and metallic cardstock, which enhances the details of the 3D embossing folders amazingly.

For the first card, I ran a panel of pearlescent white cardstock through my die cutting machine using the newer Pine Needle Snowflake Embossing Folder. The coating on this pearlescent cardstock picks up those embossed details beautifully. I also die cut the Fancy Thank You detail layer from white glitter cardstock and adhered it to the shadow layer, cut from shimmering vellum, using thin foam adhesive squares cut to fit.

To enhance the die cut greeting, I stamped the “grateful for you in every season” sentiment from The Small Things on a strip of white cardstock using metallic silver ink. I adhered the thank you die cut to the embossed panel with more foam adhesive and tucked the sentiment strip beneath it. I added some Clear Pawsitively Dazzling Gems and a bow tied using Simon Says Stamp Silver Cord for additional sparkle! Those winter whites look perfect for a holiday thank you with the different textures and touches of metallic shine!

My second project switches to a different metallic cardstock: Simon Says Stamp’s Gold Matte Metallic cardstock, which is another lovely coated cardstock that instantly makes those gorgeous details from the embossing even more visible. I paired this A2 panel of Gold Matte Metallic cardstock with the older-but-still-lovely Shimmer Lattice embossing folder, and I think those details look magnificent on this gorgeous gold cardstock!

I again used the Fancy Thank You and The Small Things sentiment combination, with a glittery white detail die cut layer, shimmery vellum shadow layer, and gold stamped sentiment strip, this time orienting the card in a vertical format. I added a glittery gold twine bow and some Opal Pawsitively Dazzling Gems to the card front for additional texture and sparkle!

For my final project, I used the new Pixie Snowflake embossing folder that was released earlier this month as part of the Card Kit of the Month. The kit itself is sold out, but Simon Says Stamp allows you to buy most of the components of the kit a la carte, so you can mix and match which pieces you like if the kit sells out! I embossed the Pixie Snowflake on an A2 panel of the Simon Says Stamp Holographic foil cardstock, keeping the metallic theme going through this final project. I think those embossed details on the metallic cardstock really do so much of the work for you on these somewhat simple cards, making it even easier to get an assembly line going for those holiday thank you notes!

I arranged the Fancy Thank You and The Small Things sentiment pieces in the center of the embossed snowflake, allowing those pretty snowflake details to kind of “explode” behind my sentiment focal point. I added a few Prism Pawsitively Dazzling Gems and another silver bow created with Simon Says Stamp Silver Cord.

Well, that’s all for my projects today! If you’re in need of a lot of thank you notes quickly, I highly encourage you to check out your embossing folder stash; those gorgeous details will do much of the work for you and allow you to get back to eating Christmas leftovers and watching your favorite comfort shows quickly!

Reminder: The fabulous DieCember Sale is still happening!! Through 11:59 on 12/31, you can take 20% off your entire Simon-branded die purchase by adding code DMR25 at checkout! Click HERE to see all of the dies eligible for the sale!

Thanks so much for stopping by today, and happy week-between-Christmas-and-New Year’s!