So Many Giftables to Mail, So Much to Celebrate!

March 31, 2025November 5, 20257 Comments

It’s easy to fall into the rut of sending gift cards as the only flat thing to include in a handmade card for a present, but I’ve been making a list (and collecting) a whole stack of mailable items to share as ideas!

Let’s start with a gift you can make yourself: A bookmark tucked into the pocket of a card! Let’s allow the Stampin’ Up! “So Much to Celebrate” kit give us a place to begin.

This kit makes 9 cards, with all the supplies needed included in the box and no stamping required! However, you can always step-up a kit with coordinating card stock and ribbon, so I made it into this:

All I added was some Balmy Blue card stock, Petal Pink Scalloped ribbon and gold trim for the bookmark!

Watch how to quickly make this card and bookmark, then see all the mailable giftable ideas that I’ve linked below!

Now it’s time to think BEYOND a gift card as the first thing to send as a gift! Some items may have affiliate links, which means I would earn a small commission if you purchase.

Stampin’ Up! Embellishments: Brushed Brass Butterflies, Heart Sequins, Iridescent Discs, Party Dots, Peppermints, In Color Resin Dots
Stampin’ Up! Cut & Emboss Dies (Paper Pumpkin Add-on dies fit well in a medium envelope, subscribers only): Spring is in the Air, Merry Tags & More, Hugs Abloom
Clear ruler
Postage Stamps
Natural Life (Compressed Sponges, Letter Patches) – Get 20% off your order with this link
Letterbox Love jewelry – necklaces, bracelets, etc.
Cute Page Markers, Post-It Note Flags
Temple Recommend Holders
Seed packets
Handmade desk calendar– Use this link for discount at Taylored Expressions for 2026 mini calendars
Tags
Key Chains (with flat ring- you can take ring off key chain to mail)
Pretty Bandaids (or Bluey Bandaids for kids!)
Waterproof Vinyl Stickers for waterbottles or laptops – Crafty ones here
Temporary Tattoos
Mini Notebooks
Flower Post-it Notes
Handmade bookmarks
Lip Balm Holder
Eyeglass cleaning cloth
Mini Coloring Book
Photos and a handmade Magnet Frame to show them off!
Any flat Magnets
Balloons (to blow up)
Luggage Tag
Car Air Freshener
Christmas Ornaments in a Flip-Flap Card!

BOOKMARK or PIN this page, because I will come back and update it with new ideas!

If you think of something to add, scroll to the top of the post and leave me a comment (near the date).

Loaded Envelope for a Happy Bee-Day

March 17, 20251 Comment

As we continue with the BIRTHDAY theme for March, today’s project is a Happy B-Day LOADED ENVELOPE! You saw the mini version a few weeks ago, and this time we started with a 12″ x 12″ piece of Designer Series Paper to make pockets that hold all the goodies a crafter could want.

On the side of the paper that you want for the outside of your envelope, score on each side at 3-1/4″, then turn 90 degrees and score 3-3/4″ from the bottom edge. You can watch the video below for exactly how to do this.

NOTE: This project works best if the pattern on the outside of your envelope is non-directional, like the flowers on this paper, which don’t have a right-side-up. I did make sure the bee paper was vertical on the back side, so the inside of my envelope shows them the correct direction.

Fold both sides toward the center and press open the “collar” and connect the sides in the front with Tear & Tape. Next, fold up along the 3-3/4″ score line to create the lower pocket(s). You may choose to cut about 1-1/2″ along the right side score line before folding up the pocket, so you can fold it down, as I did on the sample above, which allows you to fold the right edge down, revealing the back side of the paper, and forming a 3rd pocket (where the sticker is inserted).

Add finishing touches to decorate the front of the envelope, like the smallest hexagon focal point above, with a bee, flowers and sentiment. Follow along as I demonstrate:

Stuff your gift with a handmade card, paper snips, adhesives, embellishments (like the Tiny Bee Trinkets!) and other crafting essentials…like chocolate (dressed up in a sleeve of matching paper)!

I hope you’ll have as much fun making one of these as I did! Which crafty friend would appreciate this gift?

Thank you for shopping for the supplies below ~ your support means the world to me as a creator.

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Arched Wishes Birthday Card, Color Challenge

March 10, 20251 Comment

Rubber stamps should come with a warning label. Once you get a bundle with a punch or set of dies, Stampin’ Up! releases ANOTHER stamp set that coordinates, and then you MUST have it, because it extends the use of the first bundle…and the addiction continues! That’s what happened to me, and look where I am now. 😂

With new Online Exclusive products in my Stampin’ Up! store for March 2025, the Arched Wishes stamp set coordinates with the Everyday Arches Dies (which are essential for every paper crafter):

The TGIF Challenge #tgifc515 is a color combination that felt like a party, so I ran with it!

If you can see the bit of shimmer on the cupcake, it’s from the Wink of Stella pen, and I wanted to use the arch I cut out of the front panel on the inside of the card, so the party continues when you open it up!

The Mini Corrugated 3D embossing folder gave the background a bit of texture and added interest, and there are a few other tips I shared in the “How To” video:

Switch it up and stamp the balloons on the back, or add a “Happy Birthday” sentiment in black (an afterthought following my live video). If you prefer not to fussy-cut the sentiment, make it a banner!

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve your creative needs! Because of your orders, I am able to continue helping you squeeze the most from your paper crafting art.

Product List

Arched Wishes Cling Stamp Set (English)

Everyday Arches Dies

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Summer Splash 8 1/2" X 11 Cardstock

Basic Black 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Summer Splash Classic Stampin Pad

Granny Apple Green Stampin' Pad

Fresh Freesia Classic Stampin' Pad

Uninked Stampin’ Craft Pad & Whisper White Refill

Blending Brushes

Basics Wow! Embossing Powder

Embossing Additions Tool Kit

Heat Tool (Us And Canada)

Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine

Mini Corrugated 3 D Embossing Folder

Summer Splash Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack

Granny Apple Green Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

Fresh Freesia Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush

Iridescent Adhesive Backed Discs

Stampin' Dimensionals

Multipurpose Liquid Glue

Toadstools on a Front-Step Pop-Up Card

January 27, 2025January 27, 2025Leave a comment

Opening an envelope to have a card pop out with a happy hello is enchanting, so when thinking of a fun-fold to feature for Live Crafting with the Stampin’ Up! Terrific Toadstool bundle (stamps & punch), this front-step pop-up card “popped” to mind!

One thing to QUICKLY NOTE: The Toadstool Gardens Designer Series Paper is a Stampin’ Up! Sale-a-Bration 2025 freebie (one you may choose with a $60 order), but is only available until February 28, 2025…so don’t hesitate to collect it!!

For pop-up cards, this is one of the easiest to make and I’ll walk you through it in this video:

Quick dimensions & measurements:

CARD BASE:

Card Stock: 11″ x 4-1/4″ scored at 1″, 2-1/4″, 4-1/4″ and 5-1/2″ along long side
Two pieces of Designer Series Paper: 4″ x 5-1/4″ for background and 4″ x 1-3/4″ for bottom front panel.

POP UP PIECE:

Card stock: 3″ x 5-1/2″ scored at 1/2″ and 1- 3/4″
Designer Series Paper: 2-3/4″ x 3-1/2″

Create a place to write your message on the back of the card, then it folds up to fit inside an envelope:

When you shop with a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator like me, you’ll gain a crafty coach and friend! I love sending thank you cards to my customers and when your order is over $50 this month, you’ll also receive a tutorial bundle via email with 38 incredible tutorials to try in your own craft room!

CLICK TO ADD SUPPLIES TO CART:

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Two Bee, or Not Two Bee?

January 23, 2025January 23, 2025Leave a comment

Shakespeare would have sent these Valentines!

These are called “Floating Vertical Bandstand Pop-up” cards, and when I watched Susan Campfield’s tutorial video, the bees popped into my mind and off to the craft studio I ran!

First: YES, these cards fit inside an envelope:

Once you take them out, they pop up, and the elements “float” in front of the stage:

“But where do you write on these cards?” you ask? On the back panel!

Whether you choose one bee or two, you’ll love the newly re-colored “Cute as Can Bee” Designer Series Paper released in the Stampin’ Up! Scrapbooking brochure. TIP: If you are planning to make valentines for 2025…THIS WEEKEND is the latest you should be ordering supplies to create them!

Stampin' Up! January 2025 scrapbooking Brochure

While I used the Bee My Valentine stamp set and Bee Builder punch (shopping links below), DON’T MISS the new Meant to Bee Bundle with two sizes of bees and NEW dies!

The Sale-a-Bration Purple Adhesive-Backed Sequins are a pretty way to add some sparkle, and they are a free option when your order reaches $60 before 2/28/25. I sprinkled them on the cards, along with a few hearts punched from the Petunia Pop glimmer paper:

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#creativechallengesu

Cards that Wiggle with Wobbles!

January 20, 2025January 20, 2025Leave a comment

Guaranteed: you won’t be able to keep your hands off these cards, and neither will the kids!

This simple Dutch-Door Fun Fold card features the Darling Dinos bundle (stamps & dies) from Stampin’ Up! AND a WOBBLE to make the dinosaur wiggle when you flick it:

The cards open like this:

The video tutorial is below. Here are the supplies needed for the basic card:

Card base: 4.25″ x 11″
White card stock: 4″ x 5.25″
Two pieces of Designer Series Paper: 1.75″ x 5.25″ and 2.25″ x 5.25″
Two circles- smaller one is 2-3/8″

The wobbles can be found on Amazon here. or if you prefer a die for making your own, try this one

Because the wobbles squish flat, they are able to fit into an envelope and CAN be mailed. Your post office may charge a surcharge if they feel it’s “too bumpy”, which is why I made the rest of the card as flat as possible.

It was so fast to make the Darling Dino Valentines that I had time to make one with the Terrific Toadstools bundle (stamps & punch) and the Toadstool Gardens Designer Series Paper that you could choose FREE during Stampin’ Up! Sale-a-Bration!

Don’t miss the chance to collect this paper to match the bundle- it’s gone 2/28/25!

If this inspired you, please allow me to serve your creativity by ordering the supplies from my Stampin’ Store to make your own. Click on the items to add to your cart, then watch your mailbox for a hand-stamped thank you card!

Product List

Darling Dinos Bundle (English)

Bright & Beautiful 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper

Petunia Pop 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Azure Afternoon 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

Azure Afternoon Classic Stampin' Pad

Petunia Pop Classic Stampin Pad

Brights Stampin' Write Markers

Mini Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine

Paper Trimmer

Terrific Toadstools Bundle (English)

Toadstool Gardens 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper

Pumpkin Pie 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Granny Apple Green 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

Granny Apple Green Stampin' Pad

Pumpkin Pie Classic Stampin' Pad

Poppy Parade Classic Stampin' Pad

Melon Mambo Classic Stampin' Pad

2 3/8" (6 Cm) Circle Punch

Friendly Seagulls Valentine Cards

January 13, 2025January 13, 20251 Comment

Now is the time to plan and create your Valentine cards, and since it’s Sale-a-Bration time at Stampin’ Up!, I knew you would enjoy using one of the products you could get FREE (with a qualifying order before Feb. 28th). The Friendly Seagull stamp set was the first thing I chose, because it’s so stinkin’ cute!

This card was speedy to put together because I followed the TGIF Sketch #tgifc507

A bit of diagonal embossing keeps the background clean and simple, but adds texture, while the seagull’s favorite snack becomes the added embellishment!

But if you dislike fussy cutting, I get it. When I don’t feel like trimming around an image, I reach for a punch to do the work, like the Heartfelt Hexagon. It made both the Simple and Stepped Up version of this card easy to create:

For the Stepped-Up version, I added dimension with the light Pool Party Stampin’ Blends marker and embossed the sentiments:

TIP: Order early in January to select Stampin’ Up! Sale-a-Bration items you love (like the Friendly Seagull stamp set), so you can order AGAIN in February for MORE FREEBIES! There are products to choose with each $60 you order, and some that are options at $120 orders:

Watch the tutorial for both cards here, plus get a sneak peek of a card I’ll be sharing later this week, then add the supplies to your cart below and start stamping your own:

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While the little heart patterned paper I used was leftover from the Bee My Valentine Paper from last year, there IS a re-colored version of the same paper just released in the January Scrapbooking brochure and it’s called “Cute as Can Bee”. You could mix up the colors and create a Petunia Pop/Bubble Bath version of these cards! The heart design is in the lower right corner:

Ready for MORE Valentines? Join me in Southern Utah this Thursday for the Love, Hugs & Valentine’s Class! RSVP TODAY!

Getting A Little Bit Festive & Free Ship Days

December 9, 2024Leave a comment

The holidays should be festive and fun, NOT stressful! These fast last-minute projects meet both requirements because the thoughtfully patterned paper AND ready-to-use elements are simply delightful to mix and match:

A Little Bit Festive Designer Series Paper pack is in the LAST CHANCE list and some folks claim to have created up to 30 Christmas cards from the pack, just by added card stock bases, as shown above. They will all be unique, as there are no duplicate images.

Step up your card creations with the Gold-Dipped Cards & Envelope pack: All you have to do is fold them in half and add your focal points! Heat embossing a greeting is one way to add more shine, and many of the Little Bit Festive ephemera pieces also have gold foil details:

Easier to see the shine in the demonstration video:

Two more projects I created with this pack were:

An 8.5″ x 11″ scrapbook page layout. This was still very simple to make, and I could write a whole journal about my hot cocoa obsession…just need to take a few photos and add them!

And finally, this true “Busted Canvas” home decor piece! While not quite as quick as the other projects, it really didn’t take much longer to create, once the Mod Podge was dried on the front.

Grouping a bunch of the die cuts together makes an adorable vignette of all things Christmas!

Happy News! There are THREE FREE SHIPPING DAYS on orders over $75 going on from Dec 9-11, 2024!

Free shipping automatically applies to your cart after the qualifying amount has been met, which is $75

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Ultimate Shabby Chic: Torn Paper

November 27, 2024Leave a comment

Celebrating the 500th TGIF Challenge with a birthday card I made for a dear friend, and my longest team member. Ann, if you see this, just act surprised when you open your mail!

Tearing – or ripping – paper was one of the first techniques I remember being taught at an EARLY crafting convention I attended. It’s so simple, and adds terrific texture, and while many things have changed in paper crafting styles, this technique has just grown more sophisticated.

To be honest, there were a few times I almost threw out this card to begin again, but I persevered, and surprisingly, I think the end result is “tres shabby chic”!

With a whopping 6 (or more) layers of card stock, Designer Series Paper, ribbon, and the birds (also die cut from the patterned paper, so I didn’t have to color them), this was much more detailed than I usually do, but the card needed all the fussy stuff, and Ann deserves a very special card.

Luckily, most of the elements came from the Nests of Winter Suite, so all I had to add was the pretty pompom ribbon. These items can also be ordered individually, which I will include in the supply list below.

Added a few more torn patterns to the inside of the card and the envelope!

Next time you are crafting, give Torn Paper a try. #tgifc500

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Spotlight Masking Technique

November 25, 2024Leave a comment

Using this reverse masking concept with blending & stamping to give your hand-crafted projects the look of layers without the bulk of extra paper! While I’m sharing projects used mostly with the November “Filled with Joy” Paper Pumpkin kit, I know you’ll find ways to try it with what you have.

Watch the video tutorial, then see the finished projects below.

A good paper crafter looks for new ways to use every piece of a kit, such as the piece that we popped the ornaments from in the kit – I used it as a stencil for blending ink onto this tag (from the coordinating Merry Tags & More dies), then stamped through the stencil before removing it:

Voila! A new ornament! Same technique on a card:

These stockings were included in the “Filled with Joy” kit – there were still some refills available to Paper Pumpkin subscribers at the time of this post – and DID YOU KNOW you could add texture to fabric by running it through an embossing folder?! The Eyelet 3D folder was adorable on these and the tag was another alternative idea that wasn’t shown in the video:

I’ll stuff these with some goodies for my primary class at church and for the sisters I minister to. That’s 8 gifts wrapped, thanks to a kit!

Paper Pumpkin subscribers who choose me as their demonstrator receive an exclusive “Pumpkin Patch” email each month with more ways to use the stamp set and ink pad from their kit.

You can “think outside the box” and use the supplies from a kit for different projects, like this quick gift card holder (demonstrated in the video):

If you missed subscribing for the November Paper Pumpkin kit, don’t worry…you could make the same gift card holder idea with the Festive Tags kit, which is available a la carte in the Kit Collection!

While you can order from the Kit Collection ANYTIME (new kits are added monthly!), you may not want to miss a month of our premium craft kit subscription…the December kit is called “Notes from the Heart” and here’s a sneak peek: