ThePowerOfACard

Tuesday, August 4, 2026

Layouts with Squares make Great, Simple Cards!

I love making cards with squares of patterned paper for several reasons. Firstly, these layouts are great for beginners as the cutting is simple and the layout is easy to follow. Secondly, squares use Designer Series Paper (DSP) efficiently because 3" or 4" squares can be cut evenly with no waste from a 12" piece of paper. Lastly, these layouts with squares are wonderful for mass production, like when you're making Christmas or Thank You cards and you need to make a lot! I mentioned that I'm working on an order of 1200 cards for a friend of mine and three of the layouts I'm showing in the video, I'm also using on his cards!

Gather your supplies:

Cardstock: Lemon Lime Twist 8-1/2" x 5-1/2"; Basic White 3-1/4" x 4-1/2", 4" x 5-1/4"; Artisan Sketched Garden DSP 3" square, 3/4" x 4"
Stamp: Nature's Symphony
Inks: Lemon Lime Twist, Memento Black
Embellishment: Shimmering Dots

This simple layout is one of my favorites! We have so many gorgeous printed papers and for this one, I'm using the Artisan Sketched Garden paper pack. It has floral patterns on one side and mainly geometric patters on the reverse, all in black and white. In the video, I paired it with Lemon Lime Twist, but my original sample used Poppy Parade. Pick your favorite bright color and your partnering options are plentiful!

Since I am working with a 3" square of black and white paper, I glued it to a piece of Basic White that's 1/4" wider than the square and proportional to the card base, which is a half sheet of paper folded in half. This leaves a good sized space at the bottom to add a sentiment (and a few embellishments!). Of course, you could also use colored cardstock instead of white and if it's too dark to stamp on, then just heat emboss your sentiment!

I added Dimensionals to this layer and attached it to the card front. You could add ribbon, or even a focal point (like a circle with flowers) if you want, but the card looks quite lovely without any further additions. For the inside white panel, I stamped leaves from the stamp set in Lemon Lime Twist and a little Thank in black ink. While the leaves aren't identical to the ones in the paper, they are quite similar and pair well. I added a 3/4" strip of the same paper. The envelope was decorated with a few more leaves. My original card (shown in Poppy Parade) was stamped with Forever Florals.

A fun fact about 3" squares is that when you turn them diagonally, they fit perfectly across the width of a standard 4-1/4" x 5-1/2" card. For this beauty, I used the Pretty Poinsettia bundle to make a non-traditional colored Christmas card. The dies in this bundle use the new Impressions Plate to create the deeply detailed petals and leaves of the poinsettia. I used a square of 2026-2028 Gingham Gallery DSP as a backdrop for the flower. The leaves were cut apart and tucked beneath the petals, while the sentiment was stamped on a 1-1/2" circle. In Color Dots and a Hydrangea Hue Bordered ribbon add the final touches. The flower was a little time consuming to make, but you could easily substitute an element from one of the ephemera packs and turn this into a quick card.

Staying with the 3" square turned on point, these next two cards start out with bases that are 4-1/4" x 11", scored at 5-1/2". Since the square of DSP fits perfectly, I trimmed the base so that you could see the inside of the card at the corners. To do this, score the top at 2-1/8" from the right side. Then make a mark on the right edge half way down (2-1/8"). Cut from this mark to the score line at the top and bottom edge. This will take off two triangles of the card base. After adding the coordinating DSP (from the Moonlit Flora pack), add the 3" square. It will fit perfectly over the base and line up with the edge you just cut. I used Blends to color the flower cluster from the Fern & Flora Bundle (Berry Burst, Bubble Bath, Smoky Slate and Old Olive) and added that with a label. The gems used to decorate the card are Dewdrops Embellishments. The envelope flap was embossed with the Fern& Flora 3D embossing folder.

For the next sample, I decided to show you some the new products coming to you in September! Unlike the first variation of this card, I simply cut off 2-1/8" from the right side of the card (instead of scoring and trimming off the triangles). Then I cut a 3" square of Cajun Craze and a 2-3/4" square of the Sunflower Fields DSP and glued them together. I cut a piece of Golden Glow and embossed it with the new Softly Woven 3D embossing folder and added that to the left side. Then I added dimensionals only on the left side of the sunflower square and attached it to the card front. I added a little sentiment from the Radiant Sunflowers stamp set and tied a knot with the Mossy Meadow & Very Vanilla Gingham ribbon. Adding just one more layer to the square is an easy way to step up your card to the next level.

I started this next card with a 3" square cut from the Wood Grain Wonders DSP pack (which is a great one for making masculine cards and one you may have missed in the catalogs). I then cut it in half both ways to yield 4 squares. I placed two of them with the dark side up, then added the flip side in the middle to make the backdrop for the pine boughs (and leaving one square unused). The Festive Cheer bundle has a variety of stamps and dies to make holiday cards, as I've shown here. I liked using the ornament in place of the O in Noel!

Now I'm switching to bigger squares! I love this layout for colorful prints that are bold in design and color. After cutting your 4" square, cut it on the diagonal and glue each triangle to the card front, leaving a diagonal gap. I've used a die from the Nested Essentials set, but you could easily have used a punch, or just a rectangle piece of cardstock for your sentiment. My card base is Secret Sea and I used a blending brush to add a little Timid Tiger ink to my label to coordinate with the flowers. My sentiments are from Scalloped Blooms and are stamped in Secret Sea.

This card started out with a base of Pool Party that is 4-1/4" x 11. Always remember to score the mid point when you are making cards with this orientation in order to get a nice crisp fold. The alignment of fibers in the paper prevent a nice fold unless you score (unlike when you start with a 8-1/2" x 5-1/2" base that folds easily without scoring). From the square of Beautiful Ordinary Life DSP, cut off the bottom inch. Adhere these to the card base, leaving a space for your sentiment. I stamped mine in Basic Gray ink and it's from You're the Best stamp set. For my ribbon, I didn't have one in Calypso Coral, so instead, I used the Barely Blush Bordered ribbon and colored it with a Stampin' Blend to turn it into a Calypso Coral ribbon! This is a great tip for getting more out of your supplies.

Next, I took a square from the Valley in Bloom DSP pack and cut it into four strips, each one inch wide. I angled them on my card base and glued them down. The sentiment, stamped in Granny Apple Green, is from Lily of the Valley. After flagging the ends, I added a thinner strip of Pool Party behind the sentiment for a pop of extra color. The Shimmering Dots make a nice addition to the label. Not all papers have designs that works great together when you use both sides at once, but when you have it, it makes this layout so simple to make! As a little bit extra, I used Wink of Stella on my flowers that I stamped on the inside. While you can't really see that in the video, the sparkle does show up in person!

My last sample shows off two new paper packs that are being released in September. The first one is called the Autumn Opulence Specialty DSP. It has five double sided designs, plus two different sheets of pre-stamped images you can punch out and add to your cards for fast and fabulous card making! I cut my square into four one inch strips and flipped two of the pieces over. Before adding them to the card, I used a little transparent tape to hold them all together - this makes for perfect placement when you need to glue them to the card base. To add a little extra to this layout, I used a small strip of the new Radiant Foils Specialty DSP to the bottom of the square. My sentiment is from the Radiant Sunflowers I used earlier.

I hope you've learned a few fun ways to use squares (especially 3" and 4" sizes) for your cards. They really are quite versatile (and I didn't really get into variations with using the triangles you can get when you cut them up!). Use up your paper and make lots of cards, then send them out so people get happy mail!

Karen

ThePowerOfACard@gmail.com

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Product List

Nature's Symphony Photopolymer Stamp Set (English)

[166919]

$19.00

Artisan Sketched Garden 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper

[167752]

$13.00

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[166780]

$14.00

Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad

[147145]

$9.00

Shimmering Dots

[167949]

$8.50

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$4.25

Take Your Pick

[144107]

$12.00

Multipurpose Liquid Glue

[110755]

$6.00

Paper Trimmer

[152392]

$28.00

Tuesday, July 21, 2026

Joseph's Coat Technique

Joseph's Coat is a fun heat embossing technique. I suppose it got it's name from the Bible story of Joseph and his coat of many colors. When you emboss a stamped pattern with clear embossing powder over a colorful background, those colors get trapped beneath the embossing. Then when you add a dark color over the rest of the paper, the patterns really pop off the paper! Most of the time, you see black ink used for this technique, but most of my samples show other colors just to illustrate how versatile and varied this technique is.

I am not assembling any cards today, and instead, am focusing on the teaching the technique. My first sample uses a background that is ink blended with three shades of green. As an alternative to creating your own background, you can use Designer Series Paper (DSP). This is certainly faster, but is a little more challenging to see where you've stamped with Verasamark ink (as you can see in the video!). My samples have a variety of styles, colors and patterns and one of them features our new Stampin' Hot Foil System! It's my favorite card. Which is your favorite?

Gather your supplies:

Cardstock: Basic White 4-1/4" x 5-1/2" (quarter sheet)
Stamp: Fern & Flora
Inks: Lemon Lime Twist, Granny Apple Green, Garden Green, Pretty Peacock, Versamark
Embossing Powder: Basics Wow! Embossing Powder
Tools: Blending Brush, Embossing Additions Tool Kit, Heat Tool

I like to start out with a larger piece of paper for my ink blending so that afterwards, I can cut it down to size and still have a little strip to use on the inside of the card. When adding the greens, start with the lightest color and work to the darker shades. Your blending doesn't need to be great since most of the paper gets colored with a darker color of ink - so quick and easy blending for this!

Get out your embossing buddy and really give the paper a good coating. I added a lot of ink to this paper and the extra coating will prevent powder from sticking where we don't want, particularly with the clear powder which is super fine. Next, start stamping the fern with Versamark ink. This ink stays wet a long time and is sticky to hold the powder. It's a bit difficult to see where you've stamped - move the paper around to catch the light so you can know where to stamp more ferns. You may want to pause partially through the stamping to add and melt your powder (which is what I did). Continue stamping, adding powder and melting until you have the coverage you want.

The next step is where the magic happens. Take your dark ink pad (I used Pretty Peacock) and do "direct to paper" to add color all over the background paper. You might get some edge lines, but just keep adding color to even it out until you get the depth of coverage you want. Then take a paper towel or microfiber cloth to run over the surface of the panel. This will remove the excess ink that is sitting on top of the clear embossed parts and make the design really stand out.

For my finished card, I cut the panel down to 3-3/4" x 5", which left me a strip to use on the inside. Before matting it with Lemon Lime Twist, I stamped the frame, sentiment and moths, then die cut them out (a great way to be conservative with your paper!).

The next way to do this technique is by using DSP instead of ink blending your own paper. There are so many papers with either a small pattern or swatches of color to use! The process is the same - stamp with Versamark ink and emboss with clear. It is a little more difficult to see where you've stamped since the color is printed rather than inked. Just heat more frequently so you can see the shiny images. The paper I chose in the video is from Beautiful Ordinary Life, so after stamping my stars and inking with Pretty Peacock, I ended up with a festive background with lots of colored stars. My original sample was made using the Garden Party DSP, which has less variation in coloring and inked with Blackberry Bliss. For both, I used the Balloon Festoon bundle to finish them. Which is your favorite between them?

https://ThePowerOfACard.blogspot.com Karen Sliwinski Stampin’ Up!®

This card started with a background inked in a triad of primary colors - Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight and Azure Afternoon. The benefit of using those three colors is the beautiful blending between them to make orange, green and purple! I chose the words from You're the Best for my clear embossing, and while I liked that, it did leave some large open spaces. Since there are no do dads in this stamp set, I grabbed a small flower from Springtime Scenes set as a filler. Once these were added, I did the traditional inking of the rest in black ink. I think this turned out so happy and know it will be a perfect graduation card!

I cannot lie. This next one is my absolute favorite. Stampin' Up!® recently introduced their Stampin' Hot Foil System - I got it and some of the new stamps/dies. The large leaf design is one of the stamps and it has a coordinating leaf that can be foiled over it. I wasn't sure the leaf design was ideal for this technique but decided to give it a try. After inking on my background (the same colors as my first sample), I embossed and colored the rest with Secret Sea. I love the choice of the dark blue - it's close to black, but just a bit warmer and richer. After adding the gold foiled leaves, I was blown away! I added just a little sentiment (also foiled) from the Sweetly Sentimental set and a Get Well from Classic Greetings on the inside. I have a dear friend who's having bypass surgery at the end of the month and this special card is headed his way.

Lastly, I created a fall card using the Simply Leaves stamp set. My inked background was done in Crushed Curry, Pumpkin Pie and Cherry Cobbler and then stamped with the two smallest leaves. After embossing, I inked the background in Pecan pie. Then to change up the look, I used two of the dies from the Flourish & Frames bundle to cut the label. My initial intent was to use the middle part (the space between the two frames) on the inside, but decided it was too big. So I just attached them to a piece of Two Tone Pecan Pie (the light side) cardstock before matting in Basic White and putting on a Pecan Pie card base. The fall colors look so inviting on that cozy brown base!

What are you going to try? Generally, stamps with bolder patterns work best, but sometimes, line stamps (like the fern) work great if there is a lot of line work. The possibilities are endless because you can create the underlying colors as you desire! Experiment and have fun.

Karen

ThePowerOfACard@gmail.com

Shop my Store!

If you don’t have an on-line account with me as your demonstrator, please go to my store and get one.

https://ThePowerOfACard.blogspot.com

Images Copyright Stampin’ Up!®

Find me on Facebook - The Power of a Card or

Join my Facebook Group (The Power of a Cardmaker): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1042676296088278/?ref=share

Product List

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[166780]

$14.00

Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad

[147145]

$9.00

Granny Apple Green Stampin' Pad

[147095]

$9.00

Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad

[147089]

$9.00

Blending Brushes

[153611]

$17.00

Fern & Flora Photopolymer Stamp Set (English)

[167739]

$25.00

Versamark Pad

[102283]

$9.50

Embossing Additions Tool Kit

[159971]

$27.00

Basics Wow! Embossing Powder

[165679]

$21.00

Heat Tool (Us And Canada)

[129053]

$32.00

Pretty Peacock Classic Stampin’ Pad

[150083]

$11.00

Balloon Festoon Bundle (English)

[167606]

$50.25

Beautiful Ordinary Life Designer Series Paper & Sticker Sheet (English)

[167560]

$17.50

Tuesday, July 7, 2026

Embossing Folders - Tips & Tricks!

I adore using embossing folders in my card making projects! They are very versatile, inexpensive, and can be used in so many ways. I am going to show you a variety of tips and tricks when using these folders, including some you may not have tried! The two sets of folders I am using are called Swirls of Magic and Seasonal Cheer Mini and both of them are from the July release of Online Exclusive products. Many of my samples feature other newly release products - enjoy!

Gather your supplies:

Cardstock: Azure Afternoon 4-1/4" x 11", scrap; Basic White 4" x 5-1/4", 3-3/4" x 5", 3/4" x 1-1/4"; Azure Afternoon Two Tone 4" x 5-1/4"
Stamp Bundle: Balloon Festoon
Ink: Azure Afternoon
Embossing Folder: Swirls of Magic
Adhesive and Tools including a blending brushes and cardboard

The first technique is partial embossing and there are two variations of this method. I want to give a shout out to Demonstrator Michelle Pepper, who reminded me of this variation I did years ago, but forgot about. In order to do this technique, you will need some cardboard, like the pieces you get in a specialty pack of Designer Series Paper (DSP). My card features a large balloon which is partially embossed, so I cut out four layers of the third largest balloon from the cardboard, cutting off the bottom "knot". When these are glued together, they equal the thickness of plate #3 and will replace one of them when we emboss.

Take the 3-3/4" x 5" piece of white and place it in the embossing folder. Place this folder on plate #1, then place the cardboard balloon where you want it, on top of the folder. Add the final plate #3 and run this through the Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine (SCEM). You will notice that the embossing extends out a little bit from the edge of the cardboard balloon, but that the remaining part of the white panel remains un-embossed. Now take the inside panel of white and turn it sideways so that just a little bit fits in the end of the embossing folder - I like to use the black line as a guide. Run this through the SCEM with the normal sandwich (plate #1, plate #3, embossing folder with paper, plate #3). Only the side of the panel has the embossed pattern.

Now it's time to color the balloon with a blending brush. If you want a softer look, just use a small brush to add color over the embossed shape. If you want a more defined edge, you'll need to make a stencil. On a scrap piece of cardstock, cut out the same size balloon as the cardboard. Draw a pencil line around the outside edge, about 3/16" from the edge and cut along this line. Since I didn't want the bottom part of the balloon, I placed tape over that section before cutting so it prevented me from adding color where I didn't want it. Place the stencil over your balloon and add color until you get the shade you want.

Before assembling, cut out a balloon string on the scrap of Azure Afternoon and adhere this to the balloon with a bit of glue. Add this white layer to the lighter side of the two tone cardstock, then add this to the card front. (As a reminder, whenever I have a card base in this "hotdog" orientation, I score it at 5-1/2" as this will give a nice smooth fold. If you don't, the grains of the paper will give you a bumpy crease!) Trim the string to the bottom of the card base.

Stamp the sentiment on the small strip of white and flag the ends as I show in the video. Pop this up on the right side of the balloon so that the points of the strip touch the right side of the card. Stamp the inside sentiment on the remaining white panel, then add two balloons (both stamped off) and their strings. Add this to the inside of the card. Stamp two more balloons (one full strength and one stamped off) on the envelope to finish the card.

My next two cards are also partially embossed with the Swirls of Magic. For the first one done in Barely Blush, I placed a panel of 2026-2028 In Color Pearlized Specialty paper about half way into the embossing folder and partially embossed like we did for the inside of the first card. The sentiment is from Sending Salutations (stamped in Basic Gray) on a label from the Forever Florals dies. I used the stars from Balloon Festoon to decorate the label before popping it up on the card front. Lastly, I tied some Barely Blush Bordered Ribbon around the shimmery panel before popping this up on the my Barely Blush card base. I used the sentiments from Reason to Celebrate to complete this gorgeous wedding card. The second card was partially embossed top and bottom, leaving an open space in the upper middle for my sentiment, which is from You're the Best stamp set. I heat embossed this sentiment in white (Basics Embossing Powder set) and added two Natural Matte Dots. My interior sentiments are from the Reason to Celebrate (this is a very useful sentiment set to have!).

This lovely leaf card uses the first of the three folders from the Seasonal Cheer Mini embossing folders and shows what I would call the traditional usage of an embossing folder. Because I wanted the embossed portion on the left side of my card, I had to emboss a panel in the same color as my card base and adhere it to the card front. Adding a subtle tone on tone texture really elevates your card. I used the Simply Leaves bundle for my leaves, which were stamped in Crushed Curry, Cajun Craze and Pecan Pie. The label is punched with the Rounded Rectangle punch and the embellishments are Adhesive-Backed Metallic Gems. I love the envelope for this one - you'll have to watch the video to see the edge stamped with cute little leaves!

For the second card using the leaf embossing folder, I started with a panel of Basic white and added Granny Apple Green, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Poppy Parade and Real Red with blending brushes. Then I spritzed this panel with water and let it dry completely before cutting it up into the shapes I needed. I embossed the upper and lower segments, but flipped them around so that the pattern of the colors was interrupted. My sentiment was stamped in black using You're the Best stamp set. After gluing the panels to the white piece, I spritzed it with Wink of Stella (I forgot to mention that in the video - darn!). For my inside, I did partial embossing of the leaves on the bottom and used sponge daubers to ink the sentiment in multiple colors. My envelope flap was also embossed with the leaves to finish the coordination.

The next tip is to use the brayer to color the raised portion of an embossed piece. I selected the bats folder and embossed a panel of white. For this technique, I recommend using a much larger piece of paper than you need. Ink up the brayer with black ink and roll it over the bats. You will notice that on the edges, the brayer often leaves extra ink - this is because there is nothing to support the brayer past the edge and hence, having a larger piece allows you to punch out a circle (aka moon) from the center and avoid the unwanted inked area. I used the Web of Fun bundle (which is not one I would normally get but my grandson wanted me to get the spider and his web!) to add my die cut sentiments and spider on the inside. The web is stamped on both the inside and envelope.

How do you get a full card front panel from a mini embossing folder? This next sample shows you how I did that! Partially emboss the bottom half of the panel of black, then turn the panel around and emboss the remaining half. Because I used the bats folder, you could hardly tell where the two embossings met. However, this seam would be more noticeable with other folders. To cover the seam, add ribbon or a strip of paper. My spider web for this card is cut from the Shimmering Stripes Specialty DSP, which has tiny little lines of glitter - so pretty! More spiders/webs and words complete the card, way ahead of time for Halloween!

The last technique was done on a panel of Real Red Two Tone cardstock using the candy cane folder. Because this paper has a white core, when you emboss, then sand off the top layer of color, you can get the stripes of white to show! My sentiments are from the Festive Cheer stamp set and the label is from Nested Essentials. The best part (in my humble opinion) is the Real Red & White Adhesive-Backed Peppermints! They really pop on the Smoky Slate card base!

Were any of these tips and tricks new to you? Think of the possibilities of using other shapes for partial embossing - so much fun! If you want to see more of the newly released line-up, check out my website. I appreciate your business and would love to see you at a class.

Karen

ThePowerOfACard@gmail.com

Shop my Store!