All About The Sunflower!

Hello!  The sunflower - in all its varieties - is a flower that enlivens any landscape, and is very versatile from a creative standpoint as it is a welcome harbinger of both late summer and of early fall! Today I am sharing a few projects I worked on this week using the Stampin’ Up!® Online Exclusives Sunflower 3D Embossing Folder (item 166145).

A translucent plastic folder with a design embedded into it, an embossing folder is a quick way to add some dimension to a paper crafting project.  An embossing folder offers two options for the dimensional design: a piece of cardstock or other paper that is embossed using an embossing folder will have a raised or "embossed" design on one side, and a recessed or "debossed" design on the other side, either of which you can choose to use as the "right" side for your project.  A 3D embossing folder is quite a bit thicker than a standard embossing folder because a 3D embossing folder has a deeper etched design, and more levels of depth in the embedded design than does a standard embossing folder.  The dimensional designs created using a 3D embossing folder are more emphatic or dramatic than those created using a standard embossing folder - so it all depends on what your desired effect is for your project - a more subtle or more dramatic dimensional design. Different "sandwiches" (combination of plates) will be required in the Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine (item 149653) and the Mini Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine (item 150673) when embossing cardstock or other paper using standard or 3D embossing folders.  For easy reference these "sandwiches" are detailed on the base plates for each machine.

The Sunflower 3D Embossing Folder at 6" x 8 1/2" is great for embossing larger panels - whether for card making or other paper crafting projects, and, as with all other embossing folders, there are lots of different techniques to try, and of course with lots of design area there are many areas of the design that you can choose to highlight!  With my projects this week I have only started to play but I did decide to make the dimensional designs the focus of each of the projects.  The techniques that I had fun playing with:

• embossing watercolour paper, and colouring the dimensional design with a combination of Classic Stampin' inks and Classic Stampin' ink refills, mixed with a little water, and applied with small paint brushes, and then using one of the Blending Brushes (item 153611 - package of three) to apply another shade of ink over the coloured design.  For a little additional visual texture I lightly misted the coloured dimensional design with water (Stampin' Spritzers - item 126185 - package of two), blotting dry with paper towel for a slightly mottled effect;
• embossing watercolour paper that I had previously coloured using one of the Classic Stampin' ink refills, and then using both a Craft Stampin' White Ink Pad (item 147277) and the same colour of Classic Stampin' ink pad as ink refill used to colour the base panel to highlight the embossed design.  To highlight the embossed design I rubbed the ink pads directly across the embossed design.  Although it was accidental, I found that by using the Craft Stampin' White Ink Pad first and the Classic Stampin' ink pad next I ended up with a softer or more pastel final colour;
• embossing watercolour paper, and rubbing my Memento Tuxedo Black Ink Pad (item 132708) over the debossed design;
• embossing a darker shade of cardstock (Shaded Spruce - item 146981, and Basic Black - item 121045), and using the Craft Stampin' White Ink Pad to highlight the embossed design;
• embossing a lighter shade of cardstock (Lemon Lolly - item 161720), and using one of the Blending Brushes to apply a slightly darker colour of Classic Stampin' ink (Daffodil Delight - item 147094) to shade portions of the embossed design; and
• embossing Very Vanilla cardstock (item 166784), adding a little glimmer by painting portions of the embossed design with my Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush (item 141897).

To complete my projects I also used the following Stampin’ Up!® dies and stamp set:

• Stylish Shapes dies (item 159183) - square and circle dies to cut square and circle frames, and window openings in matting panels; and one of the banner dies to cut the "Thanks" sentiment banner on the Shaded Spruce card;

• Gallery Blooms dies (item 165212) - cardstock and watercolour paper foliage die cuts; and

• Online Exclusives Impressions Abloom stamp set (item 165605) for "Thanks" sentiment, stamped using StāzOn Jet Black Ink (item 101406);

Just a very brief summary of the additional basic tools and supplies I used to complete my projects this week, in addition to the Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine that was used for all embossing and die cutting:

• Paper Trimmer (item 152392) - for trimming cardstock, watercolour paper, and DSP, and for scoring card fold lines.  To ensure crisp folds I used my Bone Folder (item 102300) to burnish the scored and folded lines;
• Take Your Pick Tool (item 144107) - the spatula and tacky putty tips are definitely a great help for manipulating and placing small die cuts and embellishments; and
• for the main adhesive, Multipurpose Liquid Glue (item 110755).

On with the projects!

Additional supplies used to complete this 5 1/2" square top-fold card:

• Early Espresso cardstock (item 119686) for the card base, and the 5 1/8" square matting panel with 2 3/4" square window opening;
• wood grain patterned paper from the Country Woods 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper (item 163393) for the 5 3/8" square matting panel, front panel's 5 1/8" x 1/2" strip, and inside panel's 5 1/4" x 3/4" strip - all edges of the DSP panel and strips sponged with Early Espresso ink (item 147114);

• Very Vanilla cardstock (item 166784) for the 5 1/4" square inside panel;
• Daffodil Delight ink refill (item 119672), Old Olive ink refill (item 100531), Azure Afternoon ink refill (item 161668), and Pecan Pie ink (item 161665) to colour the embossed design.  After colouring the embossed watercolour paper panel I shaded the entire panel with Crumb Cake ink (item 147116) - I wanted a toned-down vintage effect;
• strips trimmed from Foam Adhesive Sheets (item 152815) to attach the Early Espresso cardstock matting panel; and
• two of the small and one of the large dots from the retiring - and currently available as one of the discounted Last Chance Products - Adhesive-Backed Textured Dots (item 163338) added to the front panel's DSP strip.

Additional supplies used to complete this 5 1/2" x 4 1/2" top-fold card:

• Old Olive cardstock (item 100702) for the card base;
• Mossy Meadow cardstock (item 133676) for the 5 5/16" x 4 1/4" matting panel;
• watercolour paper, Soft Sea Foam cardstock (item 146988), and Old Olive cardstock for foliage die cuts - all shaded with Mossy Meadow ink (item 147111);
• Very Vanilla cardstock (item 166784) for 5 1/8" x 4 3/16" matting panel, and 5 1/8" x 4 1/8" inside panel;
• Lost Lagoon/Old Olive patterned paper from the Timeless Plaid 6" x 6" Designer Series Paper (item 164678) for front panel's 4" x 1 1/8" strip, and inside panel's 4 1/8" x 1" strip;

• Old Olive/Mossy Meadow patterned paper from the recently retired Season Of Green & Gold 12" x 12" Specialty Designer Series Paper (item 164324) for the front panel's 4" x 5/8" strip, and inside panel's 4 1/8" x 1/4" strip;

• Old Olive ink refill (item 100531), mixed with water, used to apply horizontal stripes to watercolour paper panel prior to embossing.  Old Olive ink (item 147090), in addition to Craft Stampin' White Ink, to highlight the embossed design.  The embossed panel was trimmed to 5" x 4"; and
• Linen Thread (item 104199) wrapped around the DSP strips on the matted front panel before it was glued to the card front.  The knotted ends were secured with tiny dabs of Multipurpose Liquid Glue.

Additional supplies used to complete this 4" square top-fold gift card:

• Basic White Thick cardstock (item 159229) for the card base; 
• Basic Black cardstock (item 121045) for the 2 3/4" square frame with 1 1/2" square window (both cut using the Stylish Shapes dies); and
• strips trimmed from Foam Adhesive Sheets (item 152815) to attach and pop up the framed debossed panel.

Additional supplies used to complete this 6" x 5 1/4" top-fold card:

• Basic Black 12" x 12" cardstock (item 166786) for the card base;
• Basic Black cardstock (item 121045) for the Stylish Shapes circle frame, and 5 1/4" x 4 1/2" matting panel (edges scraped with the blade of my craft knife);
• Shaded Spruce cardstock (item 146981) for the embossed panel, the 5" x 4 1/4" matting panel (with 3" diameter circle window), the sentiment banner, the 5 5/8" x 4 7/8" matting panel (edges scraped with the blade of my craft knife), the three pieces of die cut foliage, and the inside panel's 5 3/4" x 3 5/8" partial matting panel;
• Cloud Cover patterned paper from the Beautiful Gallery 6" x 6" Designer Series Paper (item 165196) for the front panel's 5 3/8" x 4 5/8" matting panel, and the inside panel's 4 3/4" x 1 1/4" strip;

• Shaded Spruce patterned paper from the recently retired Regals 6" x 6" Designer Series Paper Stack (item 163774) for the front panel's 1 1/2" x 3/4" and 1 7/8" x 3/4" strips (both ends of each strip torn), and the inside panel's just under 4" long x 1/2" strip - right end torn; 

• before anything else was added to the 5" x 4 1/4" Shaded Spruce cardstock matting panel, or the panel glued over the embossed image panel, I added splatters to the panel by flicking the brush tip of the Basic Black Stampin' Write Marker (item 162481) against the marker lid; and
• strips trimmed from Foam Adhesive Sheets (item 152815) to attach the Shaded Spruce cardstock matting panel (with embossed image secured to the back) to the Basic Black cardstock matting panel.

The three buttons were from my stash.

I used a wood frame from Dollarama, glass removed, with inside back dimensions of 7" x 5" to frame this embossed Basic Black cardstock (item 121045) panel.  From another frame I salvaged a 7" x 5" white cardboard mat with a 4 1/2" x 3" window, and to give the mat a little visual interest I gently dragged my in-need-of-re-inking Basic Gray ink pad (item 149165) over the mat's surface, highlighting the slight texture of the mat's surface.  

Additional supplies used to complete this 5" square top-fold card with embossed Lemon Lolly cardstock (item 161720) panel:

• Daffodil Delight cardstock (item 119683) for the card base;
• Basic White Thick cardstock (item 159229) for the 4 1/2" square matting panel with 2 3/8" square window, and the 4 3/4" square inside panel;
• script paper with gold splatters from the recently retired Nature's Sweetness 12" x 12" Specialty Designer Series Paper (item 162616) for the 2 7/8" x 1 1/4" strip (edge torn) added behind the 4 1/2" square matting panel's window on the left side, and the inside panel's 4 5/8" x 1 1/4" (widest point on torn edge) strip.  To secure the DSP strip behind the matting panel's window I used double-sided tape (Tear & Tape Adhesive - Item 154031); and

• strips trimmed from Foam Adhesive Sheets (item 152815) to attach the Basic White Thick cardstock matting panel to the card front over the embossed image panel (which was glued directly to the card front).

And finally . . .

To complete this 5 1/2" square top-fold card I used Very Vanilla cardstock (item 166784) for the card base, the 4 3/4" square matting panel with 2 13/16" square window, and the embossed image panel.  I used some leftover retired Distressed Gold 12" x 12" Specialty Paper (item 159237) for the 5" square matting panel; and before adding the strips trimmed from Foam Adhesive Sheets (item 152815) to attach the Very Vanilla cardstock matting panel to the card front over the embossed panel I wrapped some leftover gold card from the retired Simply Elegant Trim (item 155766) around the bottom left side of the matting panel.  

For my "Archie" project this week, included at the bottom of this blog post, I used images from the retired Grace's Garden stamp set (item 151513) that was featured in the January-June 2020 Mini Catalogue to build a small garden scene.  I used StāzOn Jet Black Ink (item 101406) to stamp the images on watercolour paper, and coloured the images using Crumb Cake ink refill (item 121029), Basic Gray ink refill (item 149166), Old Olive ink refill (item 100531), Daffodil Delight ink refill (item 119672), Real Red ink (item 147084), Highland Heather ink refill (item 147167), Misty Moonlight ink (item 153118), and, of course, Pumpkin Pie ink (item 147086).  For the image mat I trimmed a piece of watercolour paper to fit the 6" x 4" back opening of a wood frame from Dollarama, glass removed.  I used the retired Stitched Rectangles dies (item 151820) to cut the 2 1/4" x 3 1/2" window in the mat, adding splatters by flicking a paint brush loaded with Crumb Cake ink refill mixed with water over the mat.

Updated Last Chance Products Listing!

The Last Chance Products listing was updated earlier this week with the addition of more retiring products - and quite a few of these products  have been substantially discounted!  Here are a few of my favourite of the newly retiring - and now discounted - products:

• Tags To Go dies (item 165576);
• Storybook Friends stamp set (item 164668);
• Storybook Friends dies (item 164674);
• Storybook Garden Patch stamp set (item 164663);
• Storybook Garden Patch dies (item 164666);
• Elements Of Text stamp set (item 164774);
• Full Of Life 6" x 6" Designer Series Paper (item 163357);
• Country Lace 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper (item 163415);
• Plaster Painting 3D Embossing Folder (item 164656); and
• Adhesive-Backed Textured Dots (item 163338).

2025-2027 In Colours Sale!

Just a reminder that until August 31, 2025, Stampin' Up! will be offering select products featuring the 2025-2027 In Colours (Cloud Cover, Darling Duckling, Secret Sea, Strawberry Slush, and Timid Tiger) for 15% off, and that these select products include Designer Series Papers, cardstock (including two-tone cardstock), inks, ink refills, Stampin' Blends Combo Packs, Stampin' Write Markers, ribbon, embellishments, and kits! You can view the full range of products featuring the 2025-2027 In Colours on my website by selecting from "Menu":

1. "Shop By"
2. "Colour"
3. "In Colours 2025-2027"
4. select "Shop All" if you would like to see the full product selection, or click on one of the individual colours if you would like to see only products in or featuring your favourite colour!

Thank you for visiting my blog!  I had a lot of fun playing with the Sunflower 3D Embossing Folder - and there are so many more possibilities to explore!

Stampin' Up! advises that the Impressions Abloom dies (item 165610) that I used this week are not currently available, but are expected to again be available for ordering the week of August 11, 2025.

If you are interested in purchasing any of the available Stampin’ Up!® products I have used in my projects, and you live in Canada and do not have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, please do not hesitate to visit my online store found on my website https://archiesatelier.stampinup.net/ at your convenience, or simply click under the "Shop With Me" tab on the right sidebar of my blog, which will take you directly to my website and online store.  I very much appreciate your business and would be very pleased to be your demonstrator! If you need any assistance please do not hesitate to contact me (lmccoyarchie@gmail.com) and I will try my best to help!  The digital version of the May 2025-April 2026 Annual Catalogue is available for you to access at your convenience on my website.  If visiting the online store don't forget to check out the updated listing of Last Chance Products - but just a reminder that all Last Chance Products remain available only while supplies last! 

Have fun creating!

Laurel

*It has come to my attention that quite often email correspondence from me is delivered to the recipient's spam or junk mail folder - if you have corresponded with me I have replied so be sure to check your spam or junk mail folder!  Thank you!! 

"A garden without cats, it will be generally agreed, can scarcely deserve to be called a garden at all."

- Beverley Nichols -