Hello stampers! My, it has been way, way too long since I have written a blog post. My brand new Umbrella Days card kit has given me the inspiration to get back in the blogging saddle! Let me tell you how this kit has come about, it really is a bit of an epic journey.
Inspiration for a Card Kit
/
When I first moved to the Netherlands and had to transform my business to an online model, I decided to focus all my energy on my YouTube channel. While this was successful in that I got lots of subscribers and am even getting paid by YouTube for ads, it was not successful for getting online orders. My hope was that people would watch my video, be inspired and then click on the links in my description to order the products that they wanted.
When chatting with fellow demonstrators who were mainly from the States, they told me that I needed to offer card kits. I dragged my heels for a while because I didn’t want to stand there for hours die cutting and making packages, but now I feel that I really must give it a try. Here is my first kit!!
/
Tips and Tricks for working with Umbrella Days
Clear emboss the rain on a dark background, Basic Black, Night of Navy or Misty Moonlight.
White emboss the sayings on Basic Black Cardstock for a dramatic effect.
Paper piece the umbrella, either on its own or on the stamped image. You can do this with the dog coat, or the boots as well. To take it up a notch you can dry emboss these pieces as well, use two-tone white core cardstock or patterned paper.
Colour your stamped images with Blends, Watercolour Pencils and a Water Painter or Blender Pen, Water Painter and ink or Stampin’ Write Markers for the smaller parts like the hands, the hair and the boots.
For an interesting variation, leave your image black and white and just add colour to the umbrella!
Use Adhesive Sheets with several different colours of cardstock to create sticker diecuts with the small dies. This is so easy and useful!!
Lastly, did you know that if you choose option 2 for the starter kit you can choose $206 worth of products for only $135? This will allow you to get the Umbrella Days bundle, the Spring Corners Bundle AND the Everyday Arches bundle plus either a set of Blends in your choice of colour OR your choice of 12×12 two tone cardstock??
/
When you watch my video you will see how all the parts of the Umbrella Days bundle work and I will also make the bottom right hand card with you. I also share some details on the square card that I gratefully cased from the talented Jacque Williams from New Zealand. If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe to my YouTube channel. Trust me, I am way more active there than on my blog, but hopefully that will change in the future.
Shop with me
If you live in Canada, you can simply click on the easy links below to shop with me. As a thank you, you will get at least one pdf tutorial bundle AND you will get the six card kit shown above as long as your order is at least $75. Thanks so very much for stopping by my blog after I have been silent for so long. It’s good to be back!!
Hello stampers and happy Monday to you. Today I am sharing a lovely “Roodborstje” (which is a European robin) card with you that I made for my Cheer Corner last week. There are two things that I think make this card super special. The first is the detail on the birch trees that have been added with a blender pen and a black watercolour pencil. Secondly, the European robin or “roodborstje” has been coloured with watercolour pencils and Blends! Watch my video for the trick to make it easier to blend your colours together!!
Where is the greenery from??
The European robin, or roodborstje, looks quite natural perched in all this greenery. You may have various greenery already to choose from in your existing stash of stamps and dies, but this is what I used. You can thank me that all of the dies and the stamps for the greenery come from ONE bundle, Joy of Noel. It’s a fantastic bundle. You might want to add it to your order on Wednesday when you take advantage of the seasonal sale saving 10-20% on inks, paper, cardstock and ribbon from the annual catalog. This stamp set isn’t on sale, but you may as well add something fun to all the essentials that you will be ordering at a discount. Remember, if your order gets to $200, you also get host benefits even if it is only you ordering. What fun!!
The benefits of bundles
When you order the Joy of Noel bundle you will save 10%. That is because it is a current bundle in the holiday catalog. Perched in a Tree, the stamp set that the roodborstje or European robin comes from was bundled last year with the Aspen dies. It got carried over to the annual catalog and now it is no longer a bundle. No more ten percent discount. That is why I always encourage my customers and team members to buy the bundles when they are first offered as such.
Thanks!
Thanks for joining me today. I appreciate everyone who visits my blog. Please pin the cards that you like to Pinterest. It really helps me!! Have a super day and feel free to click on the links below in the product list to shop with me in Canada. Host codes for both Canada and Europe are on the left hand side of the home page of my blog. Don’t forget to tune into Cheer Corner every Monday at 10am EST in Canada or CET in the Netherlands. Hugs from Holland, Jackie
Hello stampers and happy Wednesday to you. Today I am sharing quite an incredible card with you. It’s called a double easel fold card, but my favourite part is the way the beautiful Aspen dies cut out creates the perfect backdrop for the pretty bird. This was NOT my original idea, it was cased from Jo Blackman. You can see her card here.
Double Easel Fold Card
Here is a photo of the card that I made. Soft Seedlings was the stamp set that Jo used for her leaves, but this set is now retired, so I used the Autumn Leaves bundle from the holiday mini. If you are Canadian you can simply click on the links below in the product list to order them for yourself!
Here you can see the side view. I added coins (10 cent euro coins) to add weight to the bottom of each fold so no mechanism is needed inside to keep the lovely fold.
Video Tutorial
You will find it most helpful to take a quick peek at my video so you can get the measurements and see how the card is put together. There are some great colouring tips for colouring with watercolor pencils as well. Take this opportunity to subscribe to my YouTube channel as well so you don’t miss out on any future videos.
Perfect for Christmas
Perched in a Tree as well as the Aspen dies would be truly lovely for your Christmas cards this year. Did you know that you can also alter the die to make it even more versatile? Check out this blog post to see what I did with it.
I am excited to play with these products a little more and create some stunning Christmas cards with it too. This set is so versatile since it can be used for many different seasons and occasions. Thanks for joining me today, have a super day!!
