A Birdhouse For Spring!

Hello!  Over the last few days the garden has really started to come back to life, and with all the birds starting to return I thought what better project to work on this week than a decorative birdhouse!  I started with a pre-painted birdhouse from Dollarama, which I repainted, and added die cuts made using several current, "coming very soon", and retiring Stampin’ Up!® die sets.  After completing the birdhouse I glued it to a wood slice base, also purchased at Dollarama.  The birdhouse measures 9 3/4" tall (from base to roof peak) x 4 5/8" wide (at the widest point of the body of the birdhouse) x 3" deep; and the wood slice base is 6 3/8" in diameter.  Although I forgot to take a "before" picture of the birdhouse I did find a couple of photos online showing partial images of the same style of birdhouse - these birdhouses are found in the outdoor seasonal aisle and come with a screw eye hook in the top of the roof through which is tied a twine hanging loop.  To prepare the birdhouse I first removed the screw eye hook and hanging loop and sanded the birdhouse using a medium grit sandpaper, adding a few primer coats of white acrylic paint before adding the final two coats of brown acrylic paint to the body and under roof, and then adding splatters of black acrylic paint. The 118 ml (4 fl. oz.) bottles of DecoArt Crafters+'s Acrylic White, Cinnamon Brown, and Black paint were picked up from the craft supply aisle at Dollarama, as was the wood slice.

For the roof I embossed two panels of Smoky Slate cardstock (item 131202),  which I had first lightly shaded with Basic Gray ink (item 147118) and Pecan Pie ink (item 161665), using the recently retired Lovely Stripes 3D Embossing Folder (item 167179).  After trimming the embossed cardstock panels to 4 3/4" x 3 7/8" I applied additional Basic Gray and Pecan Pie ink.  I used a 3 7/8" x 3/4" wide strip, trimmed from one of the embossed panels, and scored down the middle at 3/8", to cover the roof ridge. 

I used 3/16" wide strips of Basic Black cardstock (item 121045) to cover the edges of the birdhouse's roof panels.

Before adding the die cuts to the birdhouse I added along the bottom of the front, back, and both sides of the birdhouse torn edged strips of Mossy Meadow cardstock (item 133676) on which I had stamped the splatter image from the Gears & Textures stamp set (item 166851) using Mossy Meadow ink (item 147111).  I shaded these strips with additional Mossy Meadow ink before gluing them to the birdhouse.

For the die cuts I used the following die sets:

• Gears & Textures dies (item 166853) - for the circle frame around the birdhouse opening, and the decorative "ladder" Basic Black cardstock die cut strips glued under the roof peak on the top of the front and back of the birdhouse.  The circle frame was die cut from Crumb Cake cardstock (item 120953), stamped with the Gears & Textures splatter stamp image using Crumb Cake ink (item 147116), and shaded using Crumb Cake ink and Early Espresso ink (item 147114);

• Online Exclusives Scalloped Wishes dies (item 167452) for the distressed faux silver metallic dragonfly die cut - cut from Basic Black cardstock that had first been covered with silver foil tape picked up in the plumbing aisle of my local Home Depot - I have included the link back to my December 19, 2025, blog post that provides a brief description of the technique for distressed faux silver metallic die cuts (https://archiesatelier.blogspot.com/2025/12/getting-in-gear-sneak-peek-of-gears.html);

• Online Exclusives Help Me Grow dies (item 167166) - garden trowel and fork, soil, foliage, flowers, plant signs, and flower pot die cuts.  For the blade of the trowel and the tines of the fork I used Smoky Slate cardstock (item 131202), shaded with Basic Gray ink (item 149165); for the handles I used Crumb Cake cardstock, shaded with Crumb Cake and Early Espresso inks; for the handle "collars" (trimmed sections from partial handle die cuts) Early Espresso cardstock; and for the handle loops, Basic Black cardstock.  For the trimmed soil strip, used in the top of the three stacked flower pot die cuts on the back of the birdhouse, I used Early Espresso cardstock.  For the plant sign I used Early Espresso cardstock for the framing die cut, and Very Vanilla cardstock (item 166784), shaded with Crumb Cake ink, for the smaller die cut.  For the three flower pot die cuts I used Pecan Pie cardstock (item 161717), shaded with Early Espresso ink, and highlighted with Craft Stampin' White Ink (item 147277) applied with one of the finger Sponge Daubers (item 133773 - package of five).  For the foliage die cuts I used Mossy Meadow cardstock (item 133676) and Old Olive cardstock (item 100702), all shaded with Mosssy Meadow ink. For the flower die cuts (which were added to the Sweet Bugs stems) I used Daffodil Delight cardstock (item 119683), shaded with Pumpkin Pie ink (item 147086);

• Sweet Bugs dies (item 167001) - mushroom, small flowers (added to Fern & Flora stems), and tall stem die cuts.  For the mushroom stem and gills I used Very Vanilla cardstock, shaded with Crumb Cake and Early Espresso inks.  I used an Early Espresso watercolour pencil (Watercolour Pencils Assortment 1 - item 161700) to draw lines on the stems.  For the mushroom caps I used Poppy Parade cardstock (item 119793) and Cajun Craze cardstock (item 119684), all shaded with Cherry Cobbler ink (item 147083).  For the small flowers that were added to the Fern & Flora stems I used Azure Afternoon cardstock (item 161719), shaded with Misty Moonlight ink (item 153118).  For the tall stems used with the Help Me Grow flowers I used Old Olive cardstock, shaded with Mossy Meadow ink;

• Fern & Flora dies (item 168991), which will be featured in the May-August 2026 Catalogue - three styles of fern die cuts as well as the small four-leafed stem die cuts that were used with the small Sweet Bugs flowers. For the fern die cuts I used Lemon Lime Twist cardstock (item 144245), Old Olive cardstock, and Mossy Meadow cardstock, all shaded with Mossy Meadow ink.  For the small stem die cuts I used Mossy Meadow cardstock, also shaded with Mossy Meadow ink; and

• retiring - and currently available as one of the discounted Last Chance Products - Gliding Garden Swing dies (item 167136) - four tall cedar-like foliage die cuts (all used on the front of the birdhouse).  I used Mossy Meadow cardstock, shaded with Mossy Meadow ink, for these die cuts. 

I used Small Blending Brushes (item 160518 - package of three) to apply Classic Stampin' inks to shade/colour the cardstock die cuts.  To add a little additional visual texture to some of the shaded die cuts (i.e. foliage and mushroom cap die cuts) I lightly misted the shaded die cut with water using one of the Stampin' Spritzers (item 126185 - package of two), either allowing to air dry or blotting dry with paper towel.

After gluing the majority of the die cuts to the birdhouse I wrapped around the base of the birdhouse some cheesecloth that I had coloured using Crumb Cake ink refill (item 121029) and Pecan Pie ink refill (item 161669), each mixed with water.  Into two separate small spray bottles I squeezed a few drops of ink refill and then added water.  I first wet the cheesecloth with clean water and then sprayed it with the two ink refill/water mixtures.  I picked up the cheesecloth in the baking supply aisle of Dollarama - don't underestimate the variety of supplies you can find for your projects at your local dollar store!  After tucking the four Fern & Flora/Sweet Bugs stems and flowers into the cheesecloth on the front and back of the birdhouse I wrapped some jute twine over the cheesecloth, tying the bow on the right lower side of the front of the birdhouse.  I used a strong white glue to secure the completed birdhouse to the wood slice base.

Just a brief note of the additional basic tools and supplies I used to complete my projects this week:

• Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine (item 149653) - for all die cutting and embossing;
• 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
• for the main adhesive, Multipurpose Liquid Glue (item 110755). 

And finallly . . . 

For my Archie project this week, shared at the bottom of this blog post, I stamped the image from the retired Peace Within stamp set (item 114312 - featured in the 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalogue) on watercolour paper, colouring the image panel with Pumpkin Pie ink refill (item 105229) and Basic Gray ink refill (item 149166), mixed with water and applied with a small paint brush.  I used the largest of the square dies from the Stylish Shapes dies (item 159183) to cut the window opening in the 6 3/8" x 4 7/8" watercolour paper panel over which I had first glued a 6 3/8" x 2 1/2" strip of a Basic Gray patterned paper from the recently retired Online Exclusives Botanical Textures 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper (item 165545).  I used double-sided tape (Tear & Tape Adhesive - item 154031) to attach the image panel to the back of the window framing mat, and to then attach the matted image panel to the consecutive matting panels:  6 1/2" x 5" Basic Black cardstock (item 121045); 7" x 5 1/2" Basic Gray cardstock (item 121044); 7 1/8" x 5 5/8" Smoky Slate cardstock (item 131202); and 7 3/4" x 6 1/4" Basic Black cardstock.  I used strips trimmed from Foam Adhesive Sheets (item 152815) to attach the fully matted image panel to a cardboard background panel that was covered with one of the Basic Gray patterend papers from the retired Magic In The Night 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper (item 153517 - featured in the August-December 2020 Mini Catalogue).  The cardboard panel had been trimmed to fit the 10" x 8" inside back dimensions of the black wood thrift store frame, glass removed.  To the bottom of the window framing mat I added Basic Gray cardstock and Smoky Slate cardstock decorative die cut strips cut using the Gears & Textures dies (item 166853). I added five of the small Basic Gray dots from the retired Classic Matte Dots (item 158146), and a distressed faux silver metallic dragonfly die cut that was cut using the Scalloped Wishes dies (item 167452) from foil tape-covered Basic Black cardstock.

Thank you for visiting my blog!  I certainly had a lot of fun working on my decorative spring birdhouse this week!

May-August 2026 Catalogue

The digitial version of the Stampin’ Up!® May-August 2026 Catalogue will be available for you to access at your convenience on my website (https://archiesatelier.stampinup.net/) as of Tuesday May 5, 2026!  With the launch of this Catalogue Stampin' Up! will also be introducing the five 2026-2028 In Colours:

• Peaceful Pine,
• Golden Glow;
• Crisp Cantaloupe;
• Barely Blush; and
• Hydrangea Hue.

These new In Colours will be available in the following products:

• 8 1/2" x 11" cardstock;
• 12" x 12" Two-Tone cardstock; 
• Classic Stampin' Ink Pads (with the 2026-2028 In Colour Ink Pads Stampin’ Up! is introducing new magnetic ink cases:  these magnetic ink cases can be easily opened and closed, and stacked, and have firm felt ink pad surfaces);
• Classic Stampin' Ink Refills;
• 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper Stack (item 167755 - twenty sheets in total:  for each of the five colours there are two sheets each of two double-sided designs);

• Shimmer Brush;
• Stampin' Blends Combo Pack; 
• Bordered Ribbon;
• 2026-2028 In Colour Butterflies (item 167656); and

• 2026-2028 In Colour Dots (item 167546).

May 2026 Online Exclusives Product Release

Exciting new Online Exclusives Products will be released on May 5, 2026!

May Product Of The Month

The Berry Botanical Vellum 12" x 12" Specialty Designer Series Paper (item 167985 - three sheets each of four single-sided designs for a total of twelve sheets) is the May Product Of The Month.  This exclusive Product Of The Month is available, while supplies last, starting May 5, 2026, for purchase for $7.00 CDN with a purchase of $100.00 CDN or more (before applicable taxes, shipping, and after the redemption of any Stampin' Rewards or other discounts) of Stampin’ Up!® products made during the month of May.  There is a limit of one Product Of The Month purchase per month per Stampin' Up! account holder. 

Unfortunately Stampin' Up! advises that the following products I used this week are not currently available but I have included below the dates by which Stampin' Up! expects the products to again be available for ordering: 

• Gears & Textures dies (item 166853) - week of May 18, 2026; and
• Scalloped Wishes dies (item 167452) - week of May 18, 2026.

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 January-April 2026 Mini Catalogue, and the digital version of the May 2025-April 2026 Annual Catalogue, will remain available on my website until May 4, 2026, for you to access at your convenience.  Starting on May 5, 2026, the digital version of the May-August 2026 Catalogue will be available for you to access at your convenience on my website.  If visiting the online store don't forget to check out the full range of Online Exclusives Products - including all the new products released last month as well as the new products to be released as of May 5, 2026 - as well as the updated Last Chance Products Listing!  A reminder that all Last Chance Products are 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!! 

"By associating with the cat, one only risks becoming richer."

- Colette -