It’s Wednesday and time for another card! Can you believe we are already ⅓ of the way through September? Where does the time go? Here in Southwest Ohio, our mornings are cooler and some of the leaves are falling from the trees. It is a pleasant change from the scorching heat of July. I think today’s card is a nice transition between summer and autumn. Before you know it, we will be celebrating the holidays. Stampin’ Up! has released some Halloween products in their Online Exclusives, so be sure to check them out here. I will be featuring some Halloween cards in the near future.

I also wanted to mention that Stampin’ Up! is participating in World Card Making Day on Saturday, October 4 from 2:00 – 3:00 MT. You can register now, and they will send you the link for the Live Stream before the event. During this event, you can join SU in a craft along using the Handmade & Heartfelt Kit (166213), an all-inclusive kit that comes with everything you need to make lovely, all-occasion cards. Kits are only available while supplies last, so order ASAP! And you’ll want to order early to make sure you get yours in time for the event. You can order this kit through our website or purchase it from Terry. Now on to our card.

To make the card base, I cut a piece of Basic Beige cardstock to 4¼” x 11” on my Paper Trimmer, scored and folded at 4¼”, and burnished with my Bone Folder. I cut a piece of Secret Sea cardstock to 4⅝” x 3⅜” to act as my matte. I cut a piece of Lemon Lolly cardstock to 4½” x 3¼”. This piece will create my focal image.

I created a stencil with a piece of mylar stencil material (Amazon) by die cutting a 2″ circle from the center of a 6″ x 6″ piece. (I cut the 12″ x 12″ sheet into quarters to make four 6″ x 6″ pieces.) You could also use masking paper, but I like the idea of having a piece I can reuse over and over. I placed my Lemon Lolly piece on a sticky mat that I created from a Cricut sticky mat that I quartered. I placed the stencil so that the circle would end up where I wanted it about ½” from the top and left side. Because my stencil sheet was larger than my cardstock, the stencil stayed firmly in place while I inked. It also covered my entire piece of cardstock, so I didn’t have a bunch of stray ink marks.

I began blending with Lemon Lolly ink and a Blending Brush. I cleaned the ink off my brush before picking up the color by rubbing it on a dry paper towel. I used a heavier concentration of ink by the edges of the circle.

I wanted a more vibrant color, so I added some Peach Pie Ink. I liked the way it blended with the Lemon Lolly.

I removed the stencil and added the circle stencil over my inked spot by putting some temporary adhesive on the circle I cut from the middle of the stencil.

I blended some Daffodil Delight ink around the circle, with heavier concentrations by the edges.

When I was satisfied with the yellow, I added some Garden Green ink to the lower portion of the panel, once again with a heavier concentration towards the edges.

When I was satisfied with the inking, I removed the stencil.

I stamped the long grass from Prairie Grass stamp set in Secret Sea ink. The stamp is longer than my panel, so I made sure to fit the top of the grasses in and excluded the bottom portion. With the green inking, it looks grounded, so the elimination of the base wasn’t an issue.

I adhered this panel to my Secret Sea matte with my favorite adhesive (Multipurpose Liquid Glue or Stampin’ Seal). I adhered this to my card base.

I stamped the sentiment Sometimes life is just hard on a scrap strip of Basic Beige cardstock with Secret Sea ink. I die cut this out with my long narrow die from Textured Notes dies on my Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine. I adhered this to my card. I tied a small bow with Linen Thread and adhered this to my sentiment strip with half a Mini Glue Dot. I added two butterflies from Brushed Brass Butterflies for a bit of shine.

To finish the card, I stamped a sentiment on a 4” x 5¼” piece of Basic White cardstock and glued it inside my card.

I hope you liked this card!

For the complete supply list, click here.

Don’t forget to leave a comment. I have been having technical difficulties with the comments section and have hopefully fixed the situation. Our winner will be announced on Saturday’s post. Fingers crossed. I appreciate your patience!

Original version: