Stylized Birthday… Step-it-Up!

Stampin’ Up!® Demonstrator Karen Robinson | Stylized Birthday – Step it Up!

When you begin exploring a new craft, the amount and cost of equipment that seem to be needed for the simplest project can be quite daunting. I’ve been slowly building up my paper craft resources for over five years now and have a pretty good selection of products to choose from, but I remember when I was starting out and how frustrated I would become when I would see amazing ideas online and just didn’t have enough products to even come close to recreating them 😦

I was reminded of this when I was looking through the *new* Annual Catalogue and saw some of their Step-it-Up! samples and wanted to share how you can still create beautiful projects with limited supplies and then add to those simple designs as your stash grows – and it does grow, much to my husband’s dismay 😉

So I thought I would start a monthly Step-it-Up! post to give those just starting out some simple designs, that can be built upon in the future.

I’ve started with a group shot of all the cards together and you’ll see that even the final version is still quite simple and not too far removed from the original. I’m going to go through the different supplies I used for each card below, so feel free to skip ahead to the one that interests you the most 🙂

Card One:

The first card uses only five products (not including adhesive and cutting supplies) and even though I’ve kept this set monochromatic you could definitely change-up this design with the same supplies in a different colourway.

The card base (29.7cm x 10.5cm, scored @ 14.85cm) is Thick Whisper White and I used that for the sentiment square (2-7/8″ x 2-7/8″) as well. I cut my base with a top fold but you could cut your cardstock the traditional way (21cm x 14.85cm, scored @ 10.5cm).

I added a layer of 10.5cm x 14.85cm Color Theory DSP to the front of my card and adhered a 3″ x 3″ Crushed Curry cardstock square and the sentiment offset layered and flat onto this.

The sentiment is from Stylized Birthday, this is a single, wood-mount only stamp and I love that it’s big enough to be used by itself. I stamped this in Crushed Curry ink as this is one of the coordinating colours in this DSP stack.

Card One Supplies:

1. Stylized Birthday (wood-mount only) // 141828
2. Color Theory DSP Stack // 144193
3. Crushed Curry ink pad // 131173
4. Crushed Curry cardstock // 131288
5. Thick Whisper White cardstock // 140490

Total: 5 (excluding adhesive and scissors)

Card Two:

This version uses the same supplies as in Card One with a few additions to step-it-up a little.

The sentiment has been stamped in three colours this time, So Saffron, Daffodil Delight and Crushed Curry to copy the ombre look of the DSP. Basic Black Baker’s Twine was wrapped around the middle three times – there’s 22.9m on each roll, so you can be generous – for some contrast and texture and the cardstock squares were popped up with Dimensionals to add even more texture.

Card Two Supplies:

1. Card One supplies +
2. Daffodil Delight ink pad // 126944
3. So Saffron ink pad // 126957
4. Basic Black Baker’s Twine // 141682
5. Dimensionals // 104430 (for 300) OR
   Mini Dimensionals // 144108 (for 720)

Total: 9

Card Three:

The final version – and my favourite I must admit – uses the supplies from Cards One and Two but this time I’ve die cut the sentiment and created a frame from the coloured cardstock using the Stitched Shapes Framelits.

After I’d layered these with dimensionals over the baker’s twine I added a few Glitter Enamel Dots for some sparkle and to add a little softness to all the straight lines on this card.

Die cutting is one of my favourite things to include in nearly every project I make, but it does mean an investment in equipment. The Big Shot is an awesome tool and I highly recommend it, but beware – it’s very addictive 😉

– Note: If you were considering buying a Big Shot through Stampin’ Up!, I would strongly suggest you considering purchasing the Stampin’ Up! Starter Kit. The Big Shot is $159 AUD and the Starter Kit is $169 AUD, but you get to choose $235 worth of product + FREE shipping + basic business supplies.

If you’d like more information about joining Stampin’ Up! have a look at my Demonstrator Website under Join The Fun or email me and I’ll answer any questions you might have, I’d love to have you join my team.

Card Three Supplies:

1. Card One & Two supplies +
2. Big Shot // 143263
3. Stitched Shapes Framelits // 145372
4. Glitter Enamel Dots // 144200

Total: 12

I hope you enjoyed my first Step-it-Up! post and I’ll make sure to include some 3D projects in this series as well. Let me know if there’s a particular stamp set or design you’d like to see stepped up, I’d love to hear from you 🙂

If you’d like to purchase any of the products I used today, please visit my online store. I’d love to be your Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator in Australia and remember to use June’s Host Code: 2GHYH7RE when you shop with me to receive your Customer Rewards.

Cheers,
Karen

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