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| Two green flowers & green leaves |
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| Three yellow flowers |
Hello, Crafters.
I hope you’ve enjoyed a great weekend.
Yesterday I decided it was time to make another batch of thank you cards because I was down to my last one again!
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| Green flower & yellow circle, Blackberry Bliss flower & green leaves |
I always use Stampin’ Up! Notecards and Envelopes for my thank you cards because I think the size is ideal i.e. 5″ x 3.5″. Unusually for me, I didn’t have any idea of what I wanted to do except to use Designer Series Paper (DSP). I chose Painted Blooms DSP which is a retired design but every design in this pack is superb.
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| Pink flower |
I decided to cut a piece of DSP that measured 4 7/8″ x 3 3/8″ for each of twenty cards. Also, for each card, I cut a strip that was approximately half an inch wide and a minimum of 3 3/8″ long, maximum 4 7/8″ long. The plan was that I’d use one side of the design as the main piece and the design on the reverse side as the strip.
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| Everything created today |
I adhered the two pieces to the cards, mixing and matching which side I used for the main piece and which side for the strip. All the time I was doing this I was thinking about what I wanted to do next.
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| Three pink flowers |
Before I go on to tell you what I decided to do next, I need to explain my “filing” system. I keep all my coloured A4 cardstock in clear plastic folders (the kind that are open on the top and one side). All cut pieces and scraps of the same colour go into a punched plastic wallet (the kind with punched holes down one side – which I cut off! – and just one opening at the top) and then into the wallet with the A4 sheets. All the pieces of that colour that have been die cut, punched or stamped, either on self-colour, Whisper White or Very Vanilla go into a Ziplock bag and then into the wallet with the A4 sheets!
I decided I would choose the main colour for each design and look through the cardstock folder for that colour and use what I found in the Ziplock bag! I was able to use up a lot of my left-overs but still had to provide extras.
I’ve put captions under each photograph, listing which embellishments I found pre-made. Everything else was made today. The oval Thank You is from the Rose Wonder Stamp Set and the larger Thank You, You Wonderful Thing You is from the You’re So Lovely Stamp Set.
Although I’ve used quite a few pre-made embellishments, it hasn’t made a dent in my stock of them! I think I’ll have to do this exercise every now and again to try and use them, otherwise there’s no point in keeping them in the first place! What do you do with yours? Do you keep them or just throw them away when your tidying up on the day you made them?
That’s about it for today. Until tomorrow, happy crafting.
JanB.
What a pretty batch of cards! So bright and cheery! You're giving me more ideas, Jan! lol … DSP really helps to speed the whole process up, doesn't it? and we've such a gorgeous selection to choose from! Beautiful!! Thanks for showing us the possibilities of what can be done!! (again!)
My pleasure, Geraldine – I really don't like waste and this is a great way to use up retired designs. Happy crafting, JanB. ☺
LOL, I do exactly the same thing! Similarly, I put all the odd pieces of DSP into a baggie or plastic folder then back into the 12 x 12 packet where it came from! Sometimes all you need is a small piece and you know you don't have to cut into a new sheet!
That really is funny, SueB. I do the same with my DSP as I do with my cardstock although it's not often I have cut out shapes or stamped shapes. Like you, I don't like having to cut into a fresh sheet for just a small piece!