Birthday Cupcake Fun-Fold Card

July 11, 2025July 5, 2025Leave a comment

A simple card can be transformed by an easy fun-fold element, and in today’s free tutorial, I’ll show you how to make someone’s birthday brighter!

Behind this simple facade lies a fancy surprise as you open the card:

The Everyday Arches dies are the star of this card, and an essential set of paper crafting tools that belong in every stamper’s arsenal.

Let me know if you like this idea by leaving a comment (top of post, near posting date), order the supplies you need below the button, then download the tutorial and give it a go!

Download Cupcake Fun-Fold Tutorial

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Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Sunflowers & Tractors

July 2, 2025July 2, 2025Leave a comment

Did you know Stampin’ Up!®️ releases NEW products every other month? July is one of those months, and I wanted to mix two of the new items together for a large slimline card: The T ractor & Co. bundle (photopolymer stamps + dies) and the fabulous Sunflower 3D embossing folder!

To make the sunflowers pop, after you’ve embossed an 8.25″ x 3.25″ of Darling Duckling card stock with this extra-large embossing folder, drag the Garden Green ink pad across the flat side (where the flowers are pushed down, not up).

An 8.5″ x 3.5″ Garden Green Mat behind the sunflowers frames it nicely, and the tractor is popped up with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

The Pool Party card base is 9″ wide and 8″ tall, scored in half at 4″. This fits into a legal sized envelope.

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Those are just two of the new products launched yesterday! Also check out the two new KITS for July (click on images to see the kits):

One more thing I’m looking forward to this month is the Sweeter With You Paper Pumpkin kit! In case you aren’t familiar with Paper Pumpkin, it’s a craft kit subscription by mail, and each kit includes an exclusive stamp set, ink spot and all the supplies prepared for you to enjoy a stress-free moment of creativity!

Each quarter, a coordinating set of dies is also offered to Paper Pumpkin subscribers, and they match all the kits released in those three months. The Circle of Seasons die set is only $12 and the strawberry die will also create an acorn (hint at the September kit!):

My Paper Pumpkin subscribers also receive a special email from me on the last week of the month, with ideas to use the stamp set, ink spot and add-on dies AFTER the kit is complete! I know you’d look forward to a kit in your mailbox each month, so give it a try!

Check out all the new products released this month HERE:

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Mailable Gift for Men

June 12, 20251 Comment

Adding to the growing “Mailable Gifts” list (you’ll want to PIN or bookmark that link) ~ this time it’s one a guy would appreciate!

Since it’s Father’s Day, I like to remember my sons and sons-in-love (I do the same for the girls on Mother’s Day). A gift card for a CAR WASH doesn’t break the bank (when you have many gifts to mail), and when I was at Quick Quack Car Wash purchasing gift cards, I saw that they also had AIR FRESHENERS for just $1!!

Of course, I had to come back to make a slimline card that would fit both the Duck Scent and the gift card! The Stampin’ Up!®️ Party Alphabet dies are large enough to show off the contrasting pattern on the front, and this is the inside of the card style:

I did have to cut off just a bit of the bottom of the “Duck Scents” to fit into a small envelope (as shown) – it’s a 6 3/4″ security envelope, like you can buy a box of at Dollar Tree. The card size is 3.5″ x 6.25″ when folded, and I’ll give you material measurements in just a moment.

One thing you will have to do is manipulate the sentiment on your clear block, so it will curve around the first letter, and fit on the Designer Series Paper. That’s easy to do with Stampin’ Up!®️ photopolymer stamps, like the Everyday Arches set I used for this card. Make sure to stamp this sentiment close to the left side of the patterned paper so you have room for the letters!

I’m here to make all the mistakes so you don’t have to- I had to make this card style 3 times before I got it right! Once I got it down, I made multiple versions. Here are the measurements:

11″ x 3.5″ cardstock for card base, scored at 6.25″ and 9.75″ (fold the smallest flap over and secure edges with Tear & Tape adhesive to create a pocket for a gift card).
Designer Series Paper for front layer: 6″ x 3.25″
Cardstock for inside of card: 5-7/8″ x 3-1/8″
Designer Series Paper AND card stock for 3 letters (and the shadow behind them): 2.5″ x 5″

Stamp any designs you want on your letters (like the birds) BEFORE you offset the card stock behind them for a shadow effect, then pop them up on the front of your card with dimensionals.

These cards turned out terrific with a combination of papers from the Everyday Skies 6″ x 6″ Designer Series Paper pack! Supplies listed below, and the SON card uses Cajun Craze, Blueberry Bushel and Cloud Cover (inside) card stock; the DAD card uses Azure Afternoon, Blackberry Bliss and Basic White (inside) card stock.

Would you give this card style a try? Leave me a comment (at top of post, next to the posting date) to let me know how you like it.

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Fantastic Dad Slimline card with Stampin' Up! Party Alphabet dies

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Sweet Suite Simple Thank You Cards

June 9, 2025June 9, 2025Leave a comment

“Summertime! And the Stampin’ is Easy!” (if you sang that in your mind~ Greetings, fellow musical geek!)

Since Stampin’ Up!®️ Suites (and suite products) are BOGO50 during June, I’ll be sharing some SIMPLE ways to use our current Suites for sensational summer stamping projects. In today’s video, I’m also revealing a BEAUTY SECRET!

Crafting in June, July & August has to be easy & breezy, so coordinated products in a suite bring a speedy card together in moments. Using the Impressions Abloom stamp set, you can keep this Thanks card ultra simple, or add layers and leaves:

The only thing to stamp on the second card is the sentiment! If you die cut a few extra pieces while catching up on your favorite television episode, you’ll have all the pieces prepared to put an “I appreciate you” card together in seconds:

Embossing a piece of Stampin’ Up!®️ Two-Tone card stock with the Pressed Flowers embossing folder and rubbing it with an emery board to reveal the white center makes this background terrific and touchable.

Some of the Impressions Abloom Dies have detailed inserts, so you can die cut them from cardstock, or remove the details to cut out the stamped image.

TIP: Washi tape keeps both the outline and the details together while you run them through the Stampin’ Cut & Emboss machine.

All these products are part of the Floral Impressions Suite, and can be purchased as a complete collection or individually:

REMEMBER: For the Buy-One-Get-One-50% off special, the LOWEST priced items will receive the discount, so shop smart! Make separate orders and purchase 2 suites together in the first order (to get one suite half price), then use the *Stampin’ Rewards you earned on your first order for an additional discount on your second order, where you may order individual items from other suites (like more Designer Series Paper or embellishments).

*Stampin’ Rewards: Make sure you’ve OPTED IN to earn 10% back each time you shop! Save them or spend your rewards next time!

Scroll back up to the top to the comments (under the posting date) to tell me if you took the beauty secret and tried it!

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One more day to SUBSCRIBE and receive the Floral Charm Paper Pumpkin kit in the mail!

Paper Pumpkin is a complete stamping experience in a box, and the June kit actually coordinates with a new Suite coming to my store in July: the Floral Charm Suite. If you are a current subscriber, you will also want to include the Hugs Abloom add-on die set to your next order, as it coordinates with the 2025 April-June kits:

Subscribe to Paper Pumpkin

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

It’s a Sweet Suite Summer- BOGO50 Sale!

June 5, 2025Leave a comment

There’s sweet offer during June on Stampin’ Up!®️ Suites – AND individual products from the suites! It is a bit tricky, so read carefully to understand how this BOGO sale works, then I’ll share summery stamping projects using the suites all month long!

What is included in the Buy One, Get One 50% off sale? All available suites and suite products from the 2025–2026 Annual Catalog and Online Exclusives. If a suite product is out of stock, there is no rain check, but come back often during the month to see if they return!

Which item will be half off? The 50% off discount will apply to the lower-priced item (for example, if you buy a full suite collection and a stamp set from a suite, the suite would be full price, and the stamp set would be 50% off).

Do the products I choose have to be from the same suite? NO- you can mix and match products from any suite!

How can I tell which item will be 50% off? The lowest priced item(s) will always get the discount, and the discount will appear in your cart once you’ve added two items within the sale parameters to your cart. You might choose to place separate orders: One with higher-priced items bundled together, and another with less expensive suite products.

I’ll be sharing simple projects with the Stampin’ Up!®️ Suites throughout the month, so let’s start with the Turtle-y Cute Suite and a fun-fold card you can create quickly, without doing any coloring, thanks to the Designer Series Paper:

Download Card Tutorial

The designs on the paper cover every occasion from weddings to picnics, and everything in between! My favorite pieces of the suite (after the DSP) are the Turtle Textures embossing folder and the Shades of Green Hexagons – a delightful little detail with a nod to a turtle shell!

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊🧡– Loni Spendlove

Crafting Cards with Party Dies

May 19, 20251 Comment

Sometimes you have to invest in your hobby, and when you are ready to do so, may I suggest the Stampin’ Up! Party Banners Dies and Party Alphabet Dies? You’ll save 10% when you bundle them together in one purchase, and, as I mention in the instructional video below, you can claim them as “exercise equipment” 😅

A shaped card is as fun to create as it is to receive! The 5th largest banner die is just about 5.5″ x 4.25″, so these cards fit into the basic white Medium Envelopes:

We made the Pretty Peacock version (left) in the live crafting video, then when we were done, I looked at it and realized that the Damask Designs Embossing folder probably needed to be turned vertically, so created a second with the “Thanks” from a previous Paper Pumpkin kit Add-On die set called “Thanks & Beyond” (shoutout to my PP Craft Kit subscribers!).

This week is high school graduation in southern Utah, and I’m still making cards for grads! This Shy Shamrock card is the banner turned sideways, with letters cut from 2024-2026 In Color Glimmer Paper, and the lock/key/sentiments from Tags to Go.

Finally (for today, at least), I demonstrated this slimline card to remind you of the Eclipse Technique with alphabet dies:

A card for any cake-consumption celebration!

Learn how to make all these banner-themed cards in this video:

If I’ve inspired you to add the Party Die bundle to your list, please shop in my Stampin’ Store!

Better yet…choose these dies as part of a Starter Kit and only pay $99! The other perks of being a demonstrator are even better than the discount: A community of friendly crafters, the opportunity to create a business you love – or a hobby that brings you purpose and passion.

Keep your creative juices flowing! 🍊- Loni Spendlove

For 2025 Grads: CASH in a Window Card!

May 12, 2025Leave a comment

There won’t be another opportunity to gift cash like this until the year 2050, so CREATE THIS CARD FOR EVERY GRADUATE YOU KNOW!

This clever card includes a pocket AND a window to see the gift, and I can’t think of another year that could be more ideal: You could give $45 (two twenties and a five) OR $27 (a twenty, a two dollar bill and a five). Either way, it spells “twenty-twenty-five”.

All the stamps and dies come in the Stampin’ Up!®️ Birthday Celebration Bundle:

I’ve walked you through exactly how to create this card in the video, and remember, you can always pause the video, slow it down or speed it up (click the gear icon on YouTube) and order all the supplies you need TODAY in time to make these cards for your 2025 Seniors.

You can modify this design to match the school colors of your graduate. While I used glimmer paper, you could also use foil sheets or Designer Series Paper – if you don’t have anything fancy on hand, peruse the specialty paper available now.

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Loyal customers are wonderful, but I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t let you know the BEST DEAL for any avid crafter is the STARTER KIT. Throughout May, it’s an even better value, for you can choose $165 in product (literally everything I used today…and MORE) for just $99 plus tax (shipping is included!).

It’s not “just” a great discount you’ll get on your future Stampin’ Up! purchases, it’s ALSO a family of creative people who cheer for you, experiences and events to look forward to, and personal growth that you will be grateful for.

There is no “catch”. There is nothing to “lose”…but a lot of JOY to GAIN!

Tell Me More About Joining Stampin’ Up!®️

Welcome New 2025 In Colors

May 9, 2025May 12, 2025Leave a comment

Before we get to colors, a quick reminder that tomorrow afternoon (May 10th) is my Annual Open House & BOGO SALE in Hurricane, UT. This only happens once a year, so you won’t want to miss it:

Meet the New Stampin’ Up! In Colors for 2025–2027

One of the most anticipated moments in the Stampin’ Up!®️ community is the annual debut of the trending HUES —and this year’s collection does not disappoint. These five colors offer a mix of fresh energy, soft sophistication, and playful charm that will breathe new life into your projects.

I appreciate that they work well together, as shown by this bold-striped card to mail to someone (like a teacher) who may be taking a well-deserved summer vacation:

The die cut images and stamps from the Notes & Totes bundle evoke a relaxing day on the beach!

As always, the In Color lineup includes ink pads, cardstock, Designer Series Paper, Stampin’ Write (water-based) AND Stampin’ Blends (alcohol-based) markers, embellishments, and more—so you can match your materials perfectly for a polished finish.

Shop all 2025-2027 In Color Products

There is ONE small glitch, but don’t worry…we have a workaround! CLOUD COVER will NOT have a coordinating Ink Pad, and here’s why:

One more option: For my card, I used a VERSAMARK stamp pad to add the floral background across all the colors. Versamark ink is like a watermark: It makes the color you are stamping on just a deeper tone of the same color-

Also, I may have already been through an entire package of those flat pearls, and we are only 3 days into the new catalog year…

Ready to start crafting with the 2025–2027 In Colors? You can begin collecting them here, and sign up for my newsletter to receive a new COLOR COACH, which includes 3 color combinations for all 51 of our amazing colors (153 combinations in all)!

IF YOU LOVE THE COLOR COACH, from June-October, each month you place an order of $50 or more, you’ll receive a set of 10 tutorials USING THE COLOR COACH, just like this one (a freebie for Basic Beige):

Download Basic Beige Color Tutorial

MAY ORDERS OVER 50+ will also receive a set of tutorials, but not focused on color. June – October customer gift tutorials will be color-palette centered.

A Sketch to Show a Palette

May 5, 2025May 15, 2025Leave a comment

As I prepare for my annual Stampin’ Soiree & BOGO Sale this Saturday (featuring a NEW Stampin’ Up!®️ Catalog and Online Exclusives), I wanted to make a few samples with some of the fresh products coming tomorrow, May 6th! Since multi-tasking is the only way this one-woman show can get things done, I chose a simple sketch, which doubles as a way to show the color palette, and used it for my lunchtime live crafting video, too:

The first card I demonstrated was inspired by the #tgifc523 color challenge of Petnunia Pop, Balmy Blue and Daffodil Delight:

Starting simple – no mat on this card (though you certainly could add one), I stamped flowers from a new Online Exclusive bundle, Impressions Abloom on top of the 3-1/2″ x 4-1/2″ panel, then added 1-3/16″ squares of the colored card stock to the bottom:

When crafting from a sketch, give yourself some freedom to make changes! I didn’t add the palette to the Poppin’ By card, but used the darling filmstrip die to add the border at the bottom:

My favorite thing about this set is probably the tennis shoes you could add to the bucket of popcorn:

Moving along, let’s take that sketch and turn it SIDEWAYS, which is what I did for the Notes & Totes bundle from the new catalog, which I paired with the 2025-2027 In Colors (from bottom to top: Secret Sea, Timid Tiger, Cloud Cover, Darling Duckling & Strawberry Slush):

And finally, I used some Celebration Expressions Memories & More Cards to make this Happy Birthday card, and my friend Barb’s Million Dollar Stamp Set Layered Thoughts, this time putting the color palette below the main panel:

To see me create two of these cards (and share some tips), watch this:

If one of these new items or colors is something you must have, visit my Stampin’ Store starting on May 6th to make an order, or click on the Stampin’ Supplies link under any card you love.

See all these samples IN PERSON – and MORE – at the Stampin’ Soiree, Saturday May 10th in Hurricane, UT. It’s FREE and open-house style, so plan to drop in with a friend between 1-4 pm!

One more announcement: If your wish list is long, the best value for Saavy Stampin’ Shoppers is the STARTER KIT, and starting tomorrow, May 6th, you can choose MORE in your starter kit, with no strings attached!

Card Sketch & More Mailable Gifts

April 21, 20251 Comment

A sketch is a springboard for creativity, and today I dove into creating cards from my stash of Designer Series Paper using this sketch:

Card #1 was a sympathy card using some gilded botanical patterns that have been around Stampin’ Up! a long time, and I wanted to show it off! The Nature’s Sweetness Specialty Designer Series Paper only needed an embossed sentiment added to make this greeting card perfect:

It made me smile to combine something old and something new for Card #2! I used the retiring Friends of the Ocean Designer Series Paper with the new Online Exclusive Pattern of Friendship stamp set for this version of the sketch:

You’ll notice that circle shapes draw the eye when used with rectangles!

Card #3 brings us to another “mailable item” idea: BALLOONS!

In my demonstration video, I suggested blowing up a balloon and writing a message on it, then deflating it again to include inside the card. It’s double fun to have to blow it up to read the greeting! You could also “reveal” what experience you have planned to celebrate with (“I’ll pick you up for birthday lunch on me this Friday at noon!”) by writing it on the balloon.

The birthday card used the Wildflower Birthday Specialty Designer Series Paper and Birthday Celebration stamp set.

And finally, since Graduation season is imminent, Card #4 was created with the On the Go Suite Collection and includes a LUGGAGE TAG:

This will be for my niece who is graduating from High School this month and off on a grand European adventure to celebrate (remember when we were just happy to have cake & ice cream to mark a milestone like graduation 👩‍🎓 😂?)

I added the tassel after the demonstration in the video, and think the detail is adorable.

Missed the LONG LIST (and growing) OF MAILABLE GIFT ITEMS? Check it out HERE!

If you enjoy learning “how-to”, here’s today’s sketchy tutorial:

Thank you for choosing to shop with me. Most of the products used were linked throughout this post – just click on a product to add it to your cart…and watch for an exclusive tutorial bundle from me when you spend more than $50 in one month!