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I love quilting and enjoy spending a great deal of time every day creating virtual quilts using Electric Quilt. However, I decided I needed to spend a little bit of time away from quilting to explore expressing my creativity in a new medium.
So, this last year I have taken up card making. I am finding that card making allows me to play with different colors and textures. Some of the same things I love about quilting. I have become hooked on Stampin Up and have watched a ton of You Tube videos where demonstrators share various techniques to create works of art in their cards. I've purchased a fair number of stamps and the entire collection of current ink pads (because who wants to be missing a crucial color in the midst of card design). I was so excited when I discovered that Stampin Up offers kits -- which they call Paper Pumpkin. What is Paper Pumpkin?
Paper Pumpkin is a monthly kit that includes all the supplies necessary to create a series of cards around a different theme each month.
Just like in quilting I found it easy to feel overwhelmed by some of the projects I found on YouTube. Paper Pumpkin solved that overwhelm, because everything you need for your project is included in your monthly art box. All you have to do is open it up and get started. You’ll be able to make cards, treat bags, and so much more from this monthly subscription. It even includes the envelopes for mailing your cards. Among the items in each Paper Pumpkin monthly craft kit is a set of reusable rubber stamps. So after you’re done creating your monthly craft, you’ll have a valuable stamp to add to your collection. You even get a free clear stamping block with your first craft box. Plus, you get a different color small ink pad every month as well. January 2022 Kit - Kisses and Hugs
The January kit was Kisses and Hugs. The Kisses & Hugs Paper Pumpkin Kit contained trifold heart-shaped cards. The printed gold foil designs added a timeless touch to these cards that you could use year-round as this kit isn’t bound to just Valentine’s Day—it works for all love occasions like anniversaries, weddings, birthdays, or those “just because” days.
I made one of each of the cards following the instructions in the kit. (There were enough supplies to make 5 of each.)
These were beautiful, but I really wanted to see what else I could design with the remaining supplies from the kit.
To add to the kit, I decided to draft a series of hearts in Electric Quilt 8. And then transferred the designs to Cricut Design Space to save time cutting everything out. My free video this week will take you through the process of drafting a group of hearts using Electric Quilt 8 along with the transfer process. Bonus -- there are two options for transferring the designs.
No Electronic Cutting System: If you don't have an electronic cutting system (Cricut, Silhouette, or Brother Scan and Cut), you could still print out your hearts created in Electric Quilt on cardstock. Just color everything white in Electric Quilt 8 before printing. And you will want to turn on outline patches. Then use your favorite paper snips to cut the designs (never use those fabric scissors for this). :)
Inkscape
The extra piece of software I used for creating the SVGs is Inkscape. Inkscape is a professional vector graphics editor for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. It's free and open source.
Inkscape can seem overwhelming to use when you open it for the first time. However you only need to use a couple of tools within Inkscape -- so this really is a piece of cake. You can download Inkscape here. Inkscape will allow you to create an SVG file which may be used in any electronic cutting system (Cricut Design Space, Silhouette Studio, or Brother Canvas Workspace). So what is an SVG file? An SVG file is a graphics file that uses a two-dimensional vector graphic format. Unlike raster formats such as JPG, GIF, and PNG, an SVG image remains crisp and clear at any resolution or size. My Paper Pumpkin Alternative Cards
The first two alternatives primarily used supplies from the kit. The only items added were card stock and ribbon.
The remaining cards used some pieces from the kit -- but I added some of the Electric Quilt designed hearts (cut out in a variety of cardstock). I also had some fun with both heat embossing (the sentiments) and dry embossing (the added texture to the paper). Notice that I even cut some of the EQ hearts from some of the card stock in the kit.
I still have a lot of extra supplies from the January kit. I will be doing some additional playing this week before mailing off my Valentine day cards.
Paper Pumpkin
If you would like to start card making, I suggest starting with Paper Pumpkin. You don't need to think through a huge list of supply options to figure out what you need first. Everything you need to get started will be in your box. Subscribe by the 10th of any month to receive that month's kit. The first box will even include a mounting block that will work with all the stamps.
Stampin' Up offers both monthly subscriptions and prepaid subscriptions. In both situations, you can pick the months you want to participate. It is super easy to opt out of a month that doesn't interest you. Stampin' Up prices for Paper Pumpkin will be going up on March 1st. As a result the prepaid subscription is a great value. Essentially you are pre-buying a number of boxes at the current price. Then you can decide which months to apply them to. Click on the links below to purchase any prepaid subscription. The prepaid subscriptions are non-renewing unless you elect to renew.
You may also make any other purchases of Stampin Up products while you are on the Stampin' Up website. If you purchase Stampin Up product using my host code during February 2022, you are eligible for a special thank you gift from me, plus purchasing bonuses from Stampin Up.
Kari's Thank You Gift
Being a quilter, I really love the look of stitched lines around a shape. It could be one of the heart shapes from today's tutorial. Or a square, rectangle or even oval shape for stamping a sentiment. Learn my process for adding those stitched lines to your shapes with an exclusive tutorial for those purchasing with Host Code W7FGRTYW. You must use the host code when checking out with Stampin' Up to be eligible for the bonus.
Tutorial will be sent to you the first week in March. Bonuses from Stampin' Up
My first card from this set was a "fun fold". It folds up to 5-1/2 x 4-1/4 (standard card size). The bottom section folds down, which means the card can stand up for display purposes. The bird was colored with alcohol markers. The personal sentiment goes on the back. Inspiration was a tutorial by Cindy Brumbaugh.
These cards were stamped on vellum and heat embossed with black embossing powder. The stamped bird and flower were painted with Whisper White craft ink on the back side of the vellum. Inspiration was a tutorial by Cheri Stojkovich.
'Stampin' Up Check Out Process
This quick video will walk you through the check out process. Make sure to enter the host cost W7FGRTYW when checking out. This will ensure you are eligible for the free Inkscape tutorial on adding stitching lines. This will also explain how to add your Sale-a-bration rewards to your order.
Please feel free to send me an email with any questions on your Stampin' Up order. I can be reached at Kari.Schell@onpointquilter.com
If you use Electric Quilt to design either the hearts (or another image) for cardmaking, I would love to see your designs or cards. Feel free to post in the Learning EQ Facebook group using this link.
Mary Ann
2/5/2022 11:02:06 am
Kari, I was so thrilled to see today's video. I have been a Stampin' Up demonstrator for about 5 yrs.Just recently had to drop out since I can't afford to quilt and buy Stampin UP. But I have tons of supplies for card making. I also receive a Paper Pumpkin kit each month! I am new to EQ8 and trying to learn it since I've recently gotten back to sewing and embroidering. so excited to see you incorporate both! Thank you!
Alicia Key
2/5/2022 06:46:51 pm
How did you know?!?!? I've gotten interested in card making also but when shopping, it's SO overwhelming! So ...yep....I signed up! Comments are closed.
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Kari SchellElectric Quilt Expert and Educator and Pattern Designer. Categories
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