I love it when I can find several uses for one product, and punches are fantastic for that very reason! They are so versatile! Did you know that you could make the prettiest little tulips from the Extra Large Bird Punch? It's true! I found some cute projects online and had to try it for myself!
They are made from the bird wing! Layer two, three, or four wings together to make tulips in various stages of bloom. I punched them from two different Designer Series Paper packages: So Saffron gingham from the Pawsitively Prints (from the Build-A-Bear Collection) and Dusty Durango checks from the Sweet Pea Stack.
By the way, if you like smaller prints on your decorative paper, the Pawsitively Prints paper has a very nice selection that's perfect for cards and small projects. Sometimes the images on the Designer papers are so large they compete with your stamping, sometimes overpowering it. These have simple patterns in great colors!
OK—Back to the tulips! After adhering the "wing" petals together, I used my bone folder to shape them for some dimension, then attached them with Dimensionals. The greenery is made from the Little Leaves Sizzlit. It's easy to cut the leaf die-cuts into smaller branches to fill in the blank areas.
I used the Polka Dot Impressions Folder behind the tulips, because I can't get enough of the polka dots! The "friend" stamp, from With All My Heart in the Mini Catalog, was colored with markers then stamped and punched out with the Scallop Oval punch. The coordinating scallop edge border, tucked under the trimmed edge of the card cover, barely peeks out to really tie it all together!
Thinking Alike!
I was SO excited to bring my tulip card to my demonstrator meeting last week to show my team how Too Cool it was. Coincidentally, fellow demonstrator Carmen DeBruce had been working on a similar project that she brought as a swap.
I love her version! The colors are so bright and Springy! She used Rose Red, So Saffron and Orchid Opulence card stock, sponged on the edges with the same color ink to add depth. (On screen, this card looks like Lovely Lilac, which would also be nice, but it really is Orchid colored) She also used the branch from the Bird Punch for the stems, which makes more sense than using a different die.
Do you think that maybe we were looking at the same card sample for inspiration? How else do you explain us both doing the Polka Dot texture on white?! Great minds…! Either that, or she has a thing for polka dots, too!
She used the Scallop Square Bigz Die to create the scalloped layer (I "need" to get that die!), and Old Olive Patterns Designer Series Paper on the background. Thanks for sharing, Carmen!
I'd love to see what YOU are working on! Send me a photo of your project (or, I readily accept a real sample to keep!), and I may feature on my blog!
Stamp with you soon! ~Angie