Christmas Ornament in a Flip-Flap Card

November 5, 2025November 5, 20251 Comment

There have been a lot of MAILABLE GIFT IDEAS shared on my website this year, thus, it’s fitting that we add an ornament featuring the large Gold Hoops (also from my store) that could be hung on a Christmas tree. Awesomely, Stampin’ Up!’s new 4″ x 4″ FLIP-FLAPS allow the ornament to double as the decoration for the front of the card, and I have a video tutorial to help you learn how to make one!

By folding the Flip Flap pocket over the front of the card, you can slide the ornament inside and lift the flap to open and get it out. NOTE: In my tutorial, I adhered the flip flap to the inside layer, but you’ll want to adhere it to the back panel inside the card instead, so the ornament doesn’t fall out until you open the flap!

Using the Modern Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper and “A Child is Born” stamp set was an elegant combination, don’t you agree?

This next version was inspired by an ornament my teammate Angaleen taught us in our November team virtual Stamp & Chat meeting, and uses the North Pole Delivery Specialty Designer Series Paper, which includes printed die cuts:

Here’s how it looks when you open it up, and the back side of the ornament:

I didn’t use the Gold Hoop on this version, but will on the last one. Use any punch or die for your leaves. The recently retired “Bough Punch” was on my desk, so that’s what I grabbed for both the North Pole card and the next one, featuring my favorite Designer Series Paper from last year (and still available online), Nests of Winter.

The birds were fussy cut from the patterned paper and the sentiments came from the Traditional Labels bundle. I added some Cherry Cobbler delicate details from the Branching Out dies along the top and bottom of the Flip-Flap for this card (TIP: Add a piece of adhesive sheet to the card stock BEFORE you die cut them out, to make the berry branch stick without mess!)

Here is the card opened:

Ready to craft along with me? Watch the video (and rest assured, I usually don’t have such a beastly time with Stampin’ Seal + !!!). THANKS IN ADVANCE for choosing to shop with me! It allows me to have the time and resources to share more ideas with you without charging for the tutorials.

If you find these instructions useful, please shop by clicking any of the links to the products listed above! Another way to show your support: Scroll back to the comment section at the top of the post near the date and leave a COMMENT!

FINAL TIP for this card idea: Score your 4″ x 4″ Flip Flap at 4-1/4″ (the score will be close to the side with adhesive) before you attach it to the inside back panel of your card, so it folds over the front and lays flat.

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Joy-ful Color & Sketch Mash-up

October 10, 2025October 10, 2025Leave a comment

Some punny jokes begin with “What do you get when you mix a ____ with a ____?” but in paper crafting, MAGIC happens when you are given two different starting points, like a color palette and a sketch!

This card was born by marrying the Global Design Project Color Challenge #gdp517 with the Freshly Made Sketch Challenge #FMS707 …AND combining the Abundant Joy Paper Pumpkin Add-On dies with with the Traditions of Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper! No stamping required for this project 😉

Hang in there…even though the Traditions of Christmas DSP is backordered right now, Stampin’ Up!®️ is rushing to have it re-printed and re-stocked mid-November. Meanwhile, get your Christmas Cards started by subscribing TODAY for the October Cozy Christmas Paper Pumpkin kit AND remember to include the optional Abundant Joy Add-On Dies (which coordinate with the October/November/December kits) to your next order!

October 10th is the last day to subscribe for the Cozy Christmas card kit, and the dies are darling on their own, with just a bit of pretty paper, and using a bit of glimmer paper for the JOY makes the season sparkle:

Next time you are needing some creative inspiration to strike, pick a color palette and card sketch and make your own mash-up!

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Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Funny Flamingo Missing Middle Card & Spooky Sweet Events

September 22, 2025September 22, 2025Leave a comment

Halloween is around the corner, but you don’t need to be limited to the Trick or Treat season when crafting with the Stampin’ Up!®️ Spooky Sweet products, and particularly the Designer Series Paper. This sheet has a flamingo dressed in a tutu that I’m going to use on a birthday card:

It’s TOO TOO cute when paired with the Not 29 Anymore stamp set for a card you can send to “THAT FRIEND” who is fiesty & fabulous:

This card is called a “Missing Middle” card, and is easier than it looks: Start with a 4-1/4″ x 8 1/2″ piece of card stock (mine is Granny Apple Green) and score it at 5-1/2″ and cut it at 7″… leaving you a 1-1/2″ x 4-1/4″ piece of card stock for the bottom of the card. (All the supplies I used are listed at the bottom)

Fold the top 1-1/2″ down and add a layer of Designer Series Paper, if desired. Lay the section you cut off at the bottom edge of the card, and attach a 2-1/4″ x 4-1/4″ piece of card stock to the top section and bottom section only. Then it will open like this and you can add a white layer inside to write or stamp on:

My flamingo is layered over a piece of retired Be Dazzling specialty paper, but any of our current Glimmer Paper brings the bling when you need it.

Heading into the Halloween season, there are a few events (online and in-person) you’ll want to know about:

First: The VIRTUAL Spooky Sweet Class happens Thursday, October 2nd, and the last day you can order the suite and be invited to join the class is September 24th! This gives me time to prepare and mail the supplies you’ll need, and for you to have the suite ready to use. Learn more at the event description on Facebook by clicking the image below, or on my event calendar HERE.

Second: Stamping is the best medicine to make you feel good, and you’ll stamp 3 FALL paper crafting projects at our Stamp Therapy sessions in Hurricane, UT on October 9th. Choose to attend the 10 am session or the 6 pm session, but register early, because these seem to fill up quickly. Class fee: $15.

Southern Utah crafters: Here’s another tasty opportunity for more Spooky Sweet crafting at the Cookies, Cards & Cocoa class on Oct. 16th at 6:30 PM at the Strap Tank Restaurant in St. George, UT.

Decorate 4 Halloween sugar cookies and stamp two paper crafting projects, while enjoying a beverage from the restaurant. Class fee: $35 ALL SUPPLIES PROVIDED! Click HERE to register by Oct. 9th

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Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Branches Through a Window for #gdp514

September 16, 2025September 15, 2025Leave a comment

There was one piece of Silent Snowfall Specialty Designer Series Paper left on my desk after cutting and mailing all the September paper shares, then I saw the Global Design Project sketch for the week, and imagined looking out a window on a quiet winter afternoon…

Here’s the prompt for the #gdp514 sketch:

Rummaged through more patterned paper for some worthy “wallpaper” and found the back side of one of the Autumn Toile papers would be perfect (isn’t the “front” or “back” irrelevant? The FRONT is whichever you want to use!).

Once it was adhered to the front, I cut the smaller arch from both layers, then added a dark wood window casing by cutting out two nested arches. In this picture you can really see the detail through the window:

The Silent Snowfall paper has a snowflake pattern dry embossed into it, so I heat embossed some random snowflake dots from the Branching Out stamp set over the debossed side to break up the repeating pattern and help it feel more natural and random. Once it was dry, I used a brayer to roll Cloud Cover ink over the top – the inlaid snowflakes are deep enough they don’t get any ink inside. I know that we don’t have a large Cloud Cover ink pad: You can use the refill to ink up an empty stampin’ spot, or use a piece of felt as the ink pad by squeezing some ink onto it.

Once the branches were stamped over the snowflakes, that layer was adhered to a 4″ x 5.25″ Cloud Cover card inside (8″ x 10.5″ when open), with the fold on the right:

This “card-in-a-card” design allows you to catch a few snowflakes on your tongue as you continue to unfold the greeting!

Finally, you open the inside to find a large area to write all the details a friend would love to hear from you.

Tomorrow, I’ll be mashing up the Branching Out bundle (there is a set of dies that coordinate with the stamp set) with another new bundle from the 2025 Sept-Dec Mini Catalog, and you’ll want to add it to your cart when you see how essential it is.

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Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Dynamic Backgrounds with 6×6 Patterned Paper

September 1, 2025December 27, 20252 Comments

Have ever looked at a stack of pretty designer series paper and think, “It’s too pretty to cut”? I hear you—but here’s the good news: when you do cut it, you can get the most out of every single sheet! I created this cutting map that turns any 6” x 6” piece of designer paper into perfectly sized layers for the front of your cards:

In my live video today, I walked through the process step by step and made the card shown here from the Autumn Toile pack of paper that will be available on September 2nd. (You’ll find the replay below if you want to craft along!) The cutting map is below so you can print it out, tuck it near your paper trimmer, and use it anytime you want to make lovely layers of backgrounds for your greeting cards.

Cutting guide for 6" x 6" Designer Series Paper

The first cut you make (circled) will be 3-7/8″ into the square. The second cut will be to cut the leftover pattern down to 4-1/2″ tall, then other cuts as shown.

Layer the two large rectangles on a contrasting card stock base, and the two long strips go on a piece of card stock that is 2-1/2″ x 4-3/4″, which can be attached with dimensionals to either the left or right side of the front of the card.

For my samples, I used a mix of Stampin’ Up! designer series paper. Four of the patterns come straight from the September Paper Share I’m offering — fifty-three 6″ x 6″ sheets of Stampin’ Up! Designer Series Paper, all cut down and ready for you to create with. It’s a perfect way to try every new design without committing to full packs, and it gives you plenty of variety for projects like this.

My last two examples of this sketch feature the Painterly Pears Suite and the Spooky Sweet Suite. Isn’t it terrific how the same cutting map works across completely different styles—fall-inspired pumpkins, happy holiday greetings, fresh pears, or playful Halloween motifs?! It’s proof that a simple template can stretch your supplies and spark new ideas.

Whether you’re making cards in bulk or just want a foolproof way to get more from your paper, this card design is one you’ll use again and again. Scroll down for the video, save all six card samples, and grab your trimmer—you’ll be amazed how quickly 6” x 6” papers can turn into a gallery of handmade cards.

The 1″ x 3-7/8″ piece from the cutting map goes INSIDE the cards, like this:

TWO more opportunities before you go:

The Autumn Toile paper (on the first card I demonstrated) coordinates with the September Paper Pumpkin kit, so if you adore autumn and those detailed designs, you will certainly want to subscribe by September 10th to receive a fall-filled box of coordinating crafting!
While the Spooky Sweet Suite paper is NOT included in the Paper Share, I *WILL* be teaching a Virtual Halloween class with the suite on October 2nd – Add the suite to your cart for an invitation to join the party, or visit the Facebook event page (link above) to find out how to register.

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

New at SU! CASING Annette with Sunflowers

August 20, 2025August 18, 20255 Comments

With so many brilliant crafters in our New at SU! design team, the inspiration is always at our fingertips and this month I’m CASE-ing (Copy and Share Everything) the very artistic Annette Elias (De Kijkkast) with my Sunflower card:

This was Annette’s Amaryllis card from our December 2024 New at SU! hop:

I admired the unusual square shape of the card (mine is 5-1/4″ square), and all the amazing layers and details, though my version is simplified. The torn Designer Series Paper across the front was really beautiful! You can compare our cards side-by-side:

You can tell I prefer quick and easy crafting while Annette is an AVID crafter, but we can be inspired by each other!

The Sunflower 3-D embossing folder has been pretty popular this summer, and the sunflower paper (from Floral Impressions Designer Series Paper) lays over embossed and stamped sunflowers. I cut out one of the flowers and leaves to become my focal point. By using a sponge dauber and Pecan Pie ink pad, I make the center darker, and defined the petals.

Use the corners torn from the DSP to embellish the front of an envelope to let the recipient know they are about to open a delightfully sunny surprise!

Now you can hop over the Annette’s post to see how she copied Rochelle (of Stampinflair.com) and remember to PIN your favorite finds from our blog hop!

August 2025 New at SU! Hop: CASE a Design Team Member

Previous Blog Next Blog

1.Creative Juice by Loni (US)- CASING Annette with Sunflowers

2.De Kijkkast (NL) – CAS-ing Rochelle with Shabby Roses

3.Stamping Flair (AU) – CASING Anke with Beautiful Gallery

4.scraphexe (DE) – CASING Diane with Artistic Leaves

5.247 Inkspiration (US) – CASING Karen with Florals In Bloom

6.Furry Cat Designs (UK) – CASING Jan with Painterly Pears

7.iHeartCards2 (US) – CASING Rachel with Spooky Sweet

8.The Joy of Stampin’ with Rachael (US)-CASING Amanda with Poppin’ By

9.Did You Stamp Today? (USA) – CASING Loni with A Little Banner Christm

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HINT: Both Floral Impressions Designer Series Paper and Darling Duckling card stock are 15% off this month during the 2025-2027 In Color Sale!

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Christmas in July: Snow Globe Card

July 30, 2025July 30, 2025Leave a comment

“The hot and the cold are just so intense, put ’em together, it just makes sense!” -Olaf ⛄️

Get ahead of the holidays by starting your Christmas cards now! The Jar of Joy stamp set (which coordinates with the Sweet Jar builder punch) will have you shaking up snow during the heat of summer:

Layers: 3.5″ x 4.75″ Designer Series Paper, 3.75″ x 5″ Real Red Card Stock

The way to make the jar shiny is by laying a piece of packing tape over the stamped image before punching it out (did the same for the sunglasses on my pop-up tote card here).

The way the snow globe pops through the front of the card from the inside is a delightful detail that gives the open card charm, as well.

This video shows how to create this card from start to finish in 90 seconds:

I am enjoying playing along with the Global Design Project “Christmas in July” #gdp507 challenge with this card! It’s simple enough you could easily make multiples at one time, too.

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Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

A”pear”ently Online

July 21, 2025July 5, 2025Leave a comment

Pears have long held a place in the world of art~ they’ve been painted for centuries as a way to capture natural beauty and evoke a sense of calm and abundance. Let me share a handmade card inspired by that same timeless charm—created with the brand-new Painterly Pears Suite from Stampin’ Up!®️

This easy card layout is one you could use with practically every stamp set you own that matches some beautiful Stampin’ Up!®️ Designer Series Paper!

Have you ever added watercolor pencil OVER your stamped image? To shade the pears and flowers, that’s just what I did, no water added. They do blend better when the tip of the pencil is dull.

Use a strip of the same pattern on the inside of the card to carry the theme all the way through:

Isn’t this pretty? Sometimes simple is the loveliest, and the Painterly Pears will make you feel like a classic artist, without paying tuition or spending years learning painting techniques (which is why I love rubber stamping).

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Painterly Pears Suite Collection (English)

Misty Moonlight 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Very Vanilla 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Misty Moonlight Classic Stampin' Pad

Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad

Petal Pink Classic Stampin' Pad

Watercolor Pencils Assortment 2

Perennial Postage Dies

Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine

<!——– CardSupplyList End ———

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Secret Garden Gate-Fold Thank You Card

June 28, 2025June 27, 2025Leave a comment

This week’s TGIF Challenge #tgifc531 is “Garden Gates” and I wanted to create a gratitude card that felt like you were walking into a Secret Garden:

After I created my card, I went back to the TGIF post and realized Wendy Weixler and I both had a similar idea for building the gate, but how delightful that both are unique!

The first type of card I thought of was the appropriately named “Gate Fold” card, so I had to think it through. I ended up cutting my gate in half, so you could enter the garden:

There are only 3 days left of the Suite BOGO Sale, so I chose to use the Impressions Abloom bundle and Designer Series Paper from the Floral Impressions Suite. Each piece of our suites also qualify for the sale, just remember that the lowest price suite or suite product will get the 50% discount!

Now enter the secret garden:

I used the arch die cut from the larger gate (cut for the front) on the inside, and let the profusion of flowers bloom on all sides!

Fun fact: The Secret Garden classic children’s novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett was one of my favorite reads as a child, and though I’m a huge musical nerd, I DON’T really love the Secret Garden musical play. The book is definitely best (and there are a few decent movie adaptations).

This card just gives all the wonder of finding a secret garden behind a locked gate!

Now, if you’ve procrastinated, here’s your reminder to shop the SWEET Suite BOGO Sale.

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Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Scrapbooking with Everyday Skies Suite & Virtual Event

June 23, 20253 Comments

Scrapbooking is about telling your stories and getting the photos off your phone! Myself, I tend to keep it simple to get it done. As part of our “Sweet, Suite Summer” series (since it’s the last week of our Suite BOGO50 Sale) I wanted to use the Everyday Skies Suite to show you how these products can be fantastic for memory albums!

My first page capturing a trip to Texas (many years ago) could NOT be more simple because the photo has the date and the front of the folder that the picture came in tells where it is. There are no Everyday Skies products on this page, but hold on…

On the second page, I start using the Everyday Arches dies, which is part of the suite. Cutting photos with the arches gives them a unique look. While my preference is 8.5″ x 11″ pages, you can do the same thing on a 12″ x 12″ page:

The title uses a few of our alphabet dies (listed in complete supply list, below) and a strip of the Everyday Skies Designer Series Paper makes it feel separated.

Moving to the third page (also the second page of the layout), I’ve added a whole 6″ x 6″ piece of the DSP to the lower corner to tie the colors together, and stamped the airplanes to indicate that we flew to Texas for this vacation:

To keep all the maps, ticket stubs and brochures together, page #4 actually acts as a pocket:

Just for fun, the postcard from the Alamo in San Antonio that I used on the bottom of the pocket page is 3-D, so when you move the page, a different image appears:

Try “framing” a larger photo with an arch outline, and watch the demonstration video to learn how I made the photo corners 😉

EXTRA! EXTRA! After the video, I made one more simple page to finish off my photos from that trip 21 years ago, and tie them together with the arches (and those photo corners show up again). This will face the Alamo page, completing the layout and telling the story:

The Everyday Skies suite was so popular when it launched a few months ago that it’s been out of stock. I’m super glad it is back in stock with time for you to get all of it (or just the parts you love most) before the BOGO50 Sale ends on June 30th!

If you are a scrapbooker, DON’T MISS the chance to join the VIRTUAL ALBUM RETREAT in July:

Don’t be put-off by the price: The kit includes FOUR stamp sets and 12 DOUBLE PAGE LAYOUTS (one pair for each month of the year) and the instruction you receive in the event will be worth the investment! Seriously….click to go check out the kit:

Month by Month Album Retreat Kit

Once you purchase the kit, you’ll receive an email in early July to the exclusive Facebook Event page, so make sure your account has the best email for you! ALSO: When you purchase the kit, you earn $25 BACK in Stampin’ Rewards (if you’ve opted in) to use on your next purchase, or save up for a binder to put your pages in!

You’ll be so happy you joined the Virtual Album Retreat – order your kit today before they run out!