Stamping With KarenHaving Fun With Paper, Ink, and Stamps2026-06-13T03:34:45Zhttps://www.karenstamps.com/feed/atom/Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[LAST DAY! FREE SHIPPING!]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=338342026-06-13T03:34:45Z2026-06-13T12:00:00Z
Free shipping is for three days only. You must place your orders between June 11 and 13 to qualify.
Free shipping automatically applies to the shopper’s cart after the qualifying amount has been met, which is $75 USD (before tax).
All orders must meet the qualifying amount to be eligible for free shipping. Coupon codes and Stampin’ Rewards will lower the total amount of an order.
Craft Classes do not have shipping charges. Purchasing a Craft Class will increase the total cart amount but will not contribute to the free shipping qualifying amount.
The additional cost for expedited shipping is NOT covered by this promotion.
Prepaid 3-, 6-, and 12-month Paper Pumpkin subscriptions and month-to-month subscriptions do not qualify for free shipping. Refills, past kits, and add-ons do qualify toward free shipping, but you must be a subscriber to purchase. Subscriptions billed and shipped this month will be charged for the normal amount + tax.
Make your shopping list and get your order ready so you don’t miss out!
]]>0Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[Artisan Sketched Garden Black & White Birthday Card]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=338322026-06-11T18:25:10Z2026-06-12T10:00:00Z
Sometimes just black and white together look classic and elegant, so if you make a card like this Artisan Sketched Garden Black & White Birthday Card, you will have a beautiful card without all the color matching and coloring. This card is easy to make as is, and if you did want to add color in any of several ways, you could do that.
This card starts with a Basic Black card base. You will need to add a Basic White layer inside the card for a stamped greeting or written personal note. The paper I used is the Artisan Sketched Garden Designer Series Paper. It has all sorts of flowers and other generic designs you can use on your projects, cards, or scrapbook pages. I chose a white floral design for the top section and a white polka dot strip for the bottom part. This is a basic design you can use for any easy card showcasing two different patterns of designer series paper. The bottom strip is about 1 1/2″ wide but you can make it any size you want. Since I didn’t have any white ribbon, I added a narrow strip of Basic White across the seam where the two DSPs overlap. I think that adds a nice finishing touch when you have two papers meeting up or overlapping a bit.
The flowers are stamped with Memento ink and fussy-cut from the Lovely Arrangements Stamp Set and fussy-cut, as we say. Just cut around the edge, not right on the outer stamped line. Cut just a smidge outside the flower border so you can still see the stamped edge. These are popped up with Stampin’ Dimensionals across that white seam.
The birthday greeting is stamped on a scrap of Basic White from the same Lovely Arrangements Stamp Set, but you could use whatever you have or whatever occasion you want the card to be for. I cut it as narrow as I could, with one flagged end so it would fit nicely at the bottom of the card.
That’s all there is to this card. You could add some black or white dots if you really wanted to but I’m not sure how well they would show up. Just keep this one simple!
Remember, Free Shipping is going on at Stampin’ Up! right now through June 13. That’s Saturday! You must have a minimum order of $75 and if you deduct any Rewards, it still has to remain above $75. You can read all the terms of free shipping HERE.
]]>0Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[FREE SHIPPING at Stampin’ Up! June 11-13!]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=338272026-06-11T02:02:32Z2026-06-11T07:00:00Z
FREE SHIPPING at Stampin’ Up! will be happening beginning today,
June 11, 2026!
Free shipping is for three days only. You must place your orders between June 11 and 13 to qualify.
Free shipping automatically applies to the shopper’s cart after the qualifying amount has been met, which is $75 USD (before tax).
All orders must meet the qualifying amount to be eligible for free shipping. Coupon codes and Stampin’ Rewards will lower the total amount of an order.
Craft Classes do not have shipping charges. Purchasing a Craft Class will increase the total cart amount but will not contribute to the free shipping qualifying amount.
The additional cost for expedited shipping is NOT covered by this promotion.
Prepaid 3-, 6-, and 12-month Paper Pumpkin subscriptions and month-to-month subscriptions do not qualify for free shipping. Refills, past kits, and add-ons do qualify toward free shipping, but you must be a subscriber to purchase. Subscriptions billed and shipped this month will be charged for the normal amount + tax.
Make your shopping list and get your order ready so you don’t miss out!
]]>0Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[Last Few Hours to Sign Up for Paper Pumpkin June 10th!]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=338152026-06-11T01:35:19Z2026-06-11T01:35:18Z
The June Paper Pumpkin Kit is called Bikes & Blooms! This is a kit to make cheerful all-occasion cards with feel-good sentiments and shiny silver foil details and embellishments. I always think it is fun to see what embellishments come in a Paper Pumpkin Kit! And this looks like an especially cute kit with the bicycle image in it!
Kit Details:
These cheerful cards with standout silver details are made for feel-good moments.
• Makes 9 cards: 3 each of 3 designs with 9 coordinating envelopes
• Silver foil and precut paper pieces
• Silver butterfly embellishments and linen thread
• Coordinating colors: Calypso Coral (Classic Stampin’ Spot), Crushed Curry, Lost Lagoon, Misty Moonlight, Old Olive, Pecan Pie
This Paper Pumpkin Kit looks like a good one to me!
TRY Paper Pumpkin for one month and see how you like it! There is no obligation to continue for any number of months. You can even skip a month in your account and then reactivate it. Very easy! Once you are a subscriber, if there are any past kits or “refills” (everything except the stamp set and ink spot) that you want to purchase, you can do that. I especially love the holiday kits!
If you want to make an extra-special card, make one like this Velvet Meadow Happy Birthday Card. This is one where you can let the designer paper do the work! This Velvet Meadow Specialty Designer Series Paper features soft, muted colors, papers that can be cut apart into panels for cards, and specialty flocking you can feel, giving your card a soft, touchable texture to elevate its style! It will be beautiful used as scrapbook pages as well.
This Velvet Meadow DSP is part of the Velvet Meadow Suite Collection. If you want to have it all, from paper to stamp set to dies to embellishments, plus velveteen paper, the Suite is easy to order with one number instead of ordering each item. Anything you make with this paper or Suite will be something special.
This card has a card base of Bubble Bath cardstock. The paper layered in the background is one of the soft, neutral patterns on the “other side” of the floral side of the paper. This one really makes the card design look so soft. The flowers at the bottom are fussy-cut from the bottom of one of those panels which you can cut from the special 12″ x 12″ sheet into three 4″ strips, then cut each top and bottom to measure 5 1/4″, which will leave a little bit of scrap from in between.
You don’t need to fussy-cut “perfectly” around the flowers, just use a small pair of scissors, turn the paper back and forth, and don’t worry about it. I popped it up on Stampin’ Dimensionals, which, I think, gives it a fancier look!
Since I popped up the flower panel at the bottom of the card, I adhered the greeting flat on the card. But first, to help it stand out a tiny bit, I used a Bubble Bath Stampin’ Blend marker to lightly draw the brush end around the diecut to give it a little border or faux layer. For an embellishment, I added three of the little Dreamy Flowers on the diecut, two in Bubble Bath and one White.
Click HERE to see a simpler card I made with this paper.
This turned out to be a very pretty card, just starting with that floral pattern cut from that one sheet. The greeting was the right size to take up some space at the top of the card, and the popped-up panel at the bottom gives an extra-special look.
Talk about a quick & easy card to make! This Sincerely Noted Ephemera Happy Birthday Card is it!! I only added one extra thing that you could eliminate if you didn’t want to do ANYTHING extra. Just make a basic card with designer paper and slap on an ephemera greeting! That’s it. Now, usually we like to add more elements and sometimes fancy things up quite a bit. But if you are a beginner or you are in a big hurry to beat the mailman, this very basic card is just fine!
Let me give you the “detailed” instructions! Make a card base with Basic White cardstock. Adhere a 4″ x 5 1/4″ piece of the Everyday Essentials Designer Series Paper. This package of paper has no particular theme, as most of our designer papers do, but instead is a variety of patterns in soft, easy-to-use colors in lots of ways. I bought it because I loved the little floral paper with pink flowers, but I also liked the stripes and the notebook paper pattern. You’ll find this paper in the new Stampin’ Up! catalog in the Mix & Match section with the ephemera. It’s a good package of paper to have for when you want something neutral or subtle.
For the greeting, no stamping! Not that we don’t love stamping, but sometimes you want something quick that will still look very nice. This greeting is from the Sincerely Noted Ephemera Pack. There are quite a few packs to choose from in the catalog plus older ones in the Last Chance category, maybe on a slight discount. They are fun to use as well as being quick and handy! For this card, I chose the “Happy Happy Happy Birthday” piece. These even have adhesive on the back if you peel off the backing, which makes them like stickers. If you have difficulty removing the backing, just use adhesive or Dimensionals.
To add a little more color to the card, I adhered the greeting onto a piece of Calypso Coral cardstock, one of the coordinating colors of the ephemera pack. Since the greeting is a hexagon shape, I cut around the edge, leaving a slight margin, to provide a colorful layer underneath. I just used a scissors; you could also use the Paper Trimmer. I think a larger scissors works better for something like this. You could also just use a square or rectangular piece of Calypso Coral as a layer if you didn’t want to cut it to match the shape.
That’s it! Card done! Just stamp or write a message inside to send!
Now if you got this far and want to embellish it a little bit, add some dots or gems or tie a little bow or knot at the bottom of the greeting with ribbon or linen thread.
Talented Stampin’ Up! instructors will showcase four unique projects that you can make using the new Scenic Coast Suite Collection (167786) and other select products. Watch live on June 18 or watch the recording later at your convenience! A product list will be available which you can purchase before the class if you wish.
Class: Scenic Coast Craft Class (171476)
Class Price: $30 USD (Suite not included)
Class Purpose: Explore the versatility of suites with four different paper crafting styles: shabby chic, artful, traditional, and modern
Available for Streaming: June 18 at 2:00 p.m. (MT) Watch LIVE!
The class will be available for purchase before and after it streams on June 18.
Where: An exclusive Facebook group
No purchase is required if you just want to watch the class! Recording will be available. Or watch the class and then purchase the materials you need, if you are not sure right now!
“Want your floral projects to look effortlessly hand-painted? The Shaded Petals Kit is ready to work its magic! Layer precut petals, add soft shaded color with Sponge Daubers, and finish with coordinating sentiments that pull everything together. From cards to tags to sweet giftables, it turns simple ink blending into petals that look beautifully handcrafted.”
DETAILS – Makes 9 cards: 3 each of 3 designs – Folded card size: 4-1/4″ x 5-1/2″ – Colors: Calypso Coral, Daffodil Delight, Garden Green, gold, Highland Heather – Sentiments printed in Dutch, English, French, and German
“Craft thoughtful thank-you cards featuring gorgeous watercolor designs with the Washes of Gratitude Kit. Heartfelt sentiments of gratitude help you express your appreciation, while precut floral and greenery pieces add delicate dimension. The envelopes include a coordinating printed inner flap for a beautifully finished look.”
DETAILS – Makes 10 cards: 5 each of 2 designs – Folded card size: 5-1/2″ x 4-1/4″ – Colors: Calypso Coral, Darling Duckling, Flirty Flamingo, Peaceful Pine, Secret Sea – Sentiments printed in English, French, and German
The Kits in the Kits Collection are perfect for anyone to make, you don’t have to be an expert stamper or papercrafter to make these Kits!
These Kits are available in the Online Store as long as they are available, whereas the Paper Pumpkin Kits are a monthly subscription that are mailed out each month, and only if there are kits leftover can you purchase another kit or a refill. But Paper Pumpkin Kits are easy for anyone to make, also!
]]>0Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[Paper Pumpkin Sparkling Celebrations Cards May 2026]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=337762026-05-31T03:49:57Z2026-05-31T12:00:00Z
My May Paper Pumpkin Kit was a little slow in getting here, and now I have finally gotten around to making the cards. Truthfully, I wasn’t interested in this Paper Pumpkin Kit. It didn’t appeal to me, and I’m not planning any celebrations. But I forgot to “Skip a Month” in my account, so it came. But, as with all Paper Pumpkin Kits, it was actually fun to make anyway! It reminded me of cards for Chinese New Year with the lanterns!
As with all Paper Pumpkin Kits, once you have the kit, you can do anything you want with your supplies. A lot of people make maybe one each of the cards as designed, but then they may make alternative versions. These cards were great for that because the card bases were printed on both sides. So if you wanted to use some of your own supplies, you could have cut the card base in half and used what would have been the front and back to make two cards instead of one!
These cards were easy to make. The first card with the fireworks were just diecuts, large and small, to adhere on mini dimensionals to pop them up, a stamped greeting, and some sparkly gems for the fireworks. The card with the arched window actually pops open a little bit which is fun. I almost ruined it by trying to punch out the whole thing and not just the window panes! The bottom card just has stamping at the bottom, a lampost die and three extra little lights to add. Plus two had the banner greetings. I changed one from “You’re invited” to “Wishing You Happiness” which was supposed to be on one card.
Once you are a Paper Pumpkin subscriber, you can go in the Online Store under Paper Pumpkin Refills and Past Kits and see what is available. Full kits aren’t always available, depending on inventory, but the refill is pretty good because you get the supplies minus the little ink spot and stamp set. You can substitute something you already have in your stash. Sometimes I have bought the refill if I wanted to make more of the project, such as Halloween treat bags, Easter treats, or Christmas gift tags, for example.
If you haven’t subscribed yet to Paper Pumpkin, now is the time so you don’t forget! You can read all about the next kit for June HERE in this post recently. Just sign up by June 10th!
]]>2Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[SAVE THE DATE! NEW SCENIC COAST CRAFT CLASS! ]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=337562026-05-29T05:05:54Z2026-05-29T12:00:00Z
Talented Stampin’ Up! instructors will showcase four unique projects that you can make using the new Scenic Coast Suite Collection (167786) and other select products. Watch live on June 18 or watch the recording later at your convenience! A product list will be available which you can purchase before the class if you wish.
____________________________________________
Class: Scenic Coast Craft Class (171476)
Class Price: $30 USD (Suite not included)
Class Purpose: Explore the versatility of suites with four different paper crafting styles: shabby chic, artful, traditional, and modern
Available for Streaming: June 18 at 2:00 p.m. (MT) Watch LIVE!
The class will be available for purchase before and after it streams on June 18
Where: An exclusive Facebook group
No purchase is required if you just want to watch the class! Recording will be available. Or watch the class and then purchase the materials you need, if you are not sure right now!
CHECK THE ONLINE STORE ON TUESDAY, JUNE 2 TO BUY THE CLASS!
This Subtles Painted Patterns Friend Card is a very easy card to make! Yesterday in my stamping newsletter, I showed a card that I planned on illustrating how you could make a quick & easy card using one of the ephemera packs at Stampin’ Up! Well, the card I made would be easy for anyone to copy, but it was one of those cards that I could not get the design to come together to my satisfaction! Many cards can be like that, but since I was trying to make a super-simple card, I was easily frustrated not getting it right in my eye!
However, THIS card came out how I expected that card for my newsletter to come out! For this card, I just chose the designer paper, the color cardstock for the card base, adhered pieces of paper and slapped on an ephemera greeting! Done! And it still looks cute!
Every year Stampin’ Up! has a 6″ x 6″ pack of designer paper with all the colors in each color family. With this catalog, those packs are all 12″ x 12″, and I love the patterns they chose! I’d like to have all the colors, but I only bought the Subtles. It’s the Subtles Painted Patterns Designer Series Paper. I really like these patterns of polka dots, little dots, lines, stripes all in a watercolored look.
For this card, I chose this pattern of Calypso Coral small dots and therefore, a Calypso Coral card base. I chose this greeting in the Sincerely Noted Ephemera Pack in the new May-August Stampin’ Up! Catalog. You get lots of different greetings in many different shapes in muted colors so you can use them in lots of ways. It is so great if you are making a card, especially a quick & easy one, if you can just grab an appropriate greeting in an ephemera pack and finish off your card with it.
After I had the dotted designer paper adhered to the card front, I pulled out the paper with the wide and narrow stripes, thinking I would put it on the left side. But on impulse, I placed it on the right side of the card and liked it. This strip is 2″ x 5 1/4″. You can choose your own measurement. Since I loved the big polka dots also, I wondered if I could use a strip of that on the card, too. I meant to adhere is a little off the left edge of the card, but forgot, and glued it in it’s “normal” place, along the left edge of the card, which was fine. I really like the three different patterns of paper on this card, and yet it was so quick and easy to do. The polka dot strip is only about 1/2″ wide.
The ephemera greeting is a lovely sentiment and is popped up on Stampin’ Dimensionals. I also added a bow, which happens to be the new Barely Blush 3/8″ Bordered Ribbon. I think it really looks good on this card with the other colors, even though it is not officially a coordinating color. I think you could easily add some iridescent gems, something clear but sparkly, to add a little bling to the card, but it isn’t necessary.
You could make several cards in this design with either the same pack of designer series paper and different patterns, or use different DSPs, then just add an ephemera greeting or quickly stamp your own, and in not much time, you’ll have a good stack of cards to keep on hand for when you need one!
]]>0Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[Memorial Day 2026]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=337302026-05-25T14:13:20Z2026-05-25T14:13:19Z
Today isn’t just a day for us to have a vacation, host a picnic, or shop the sales. It’s a day to remember those in the United States military who gave their lives while serving our country and protecting our freedoms. When I was growing up it was called “Decoration Day”. In 1971, Memorial Day became an official federal holiday.
Did you know Stampin’ Up! has a stamp set and dies in a Bundle called Service Essentials? You will find it in the Stampin’ Up! Online Store in the Online Essentials. This Bundle or just the stamp set can be used for anyone you want to celebrate as a hero – people who are military personnel, first responders, healthcare professionals, and maybe people serving your community. This set features bold sentiments, dog tags, stars, crosses, and rank insignias to add meaningful detail to thank-you cards, remembrance layouts, and patriotic paper crafting. As you can see, it is not just meant for military but it’s nice to have something to celebrate them especially.
]]>0Karen Fontinelle<![CDATA[Garden Poetry Thank You Card]]>https://www.karenstamps.com/?p=337172026-05-23T04:50:54Z2026-05-23T12:00:00Z
I made this Garden Poetry Thank You Card a little while back, but don’t think I posted it. It’s a slightly different design and certainly easy to make. It has a top fold with a shorter card front for a different look. This paper is quite colorful and beautiful, and the patterns are in many colors! You’ll find it in the Online Exclusives when you shop at Stampin’ Up!
The card base is Crushed Curry cardstock, a color I don’t use very often. Start with a piece of cardstock cut at 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″. Score at 5 1/2″. The interesting thing to do is to cut off 1 1/4″ from the bottom of the front of the card. Adhere a 4″ x 4″ piece of designer paper to the card front. I used the Garden Poetry Designer Series Paper. These papers have vibrant florals and greenery in really rich colors, and the “other side” of the paper has the colors but not the images to use as beautiful backgrounds. This paper is part of the Garden Poetry Suite Collection.
For the greeting, I stamped the “Thank You” from the Paradise Garden Stamp Set and added a few flowers as well, all with Crushed Curry ink for that watermark look. On the inside, I added a Basic White 4″ x 4″ piece to the inside of the card, lined up so it wouldn’t show from underneath the card front. I stamped one flower on it. You can write a note or stamp some additional message inside the card.
The ribbon is some retired white ribbon. It is just wrapped around the card front. If I had thought of it before I adhered the designer paper on the front, I would have wrapped the ribbon just around the designer paper and then adhered the paper. But the way I did it is okay, too! You could add a few gems among the flowers.
Another change you could make would be to add a Basic White strip where the stamped greeting is, which would be 1″ x 4″ or even just 3/4″ wide. You could stamp the greeting on that.
You can make this style card for almost any occasion! And it’s a little different, so that makes it extra-special!
A fun new product in the Stampin’ Up! May-August Catalog are these Scalloped Window Boxes! As you can imagine, you can decorate them as simply or as fancy as you would like. Then just put your treat or gift inside because the front scalloped design is a window so your treat is protected. These are food safe and come eight in a package.
These come flat and unassembled like the photo above so storage is not an issue. You will easily see how to fold up the box. All the lines are scored and no adhesive is needed! If you wanted to when you are finished, you could apply some glue or Stampin’ Seal if you really wanted to, but it is not necessary. The assembled box measures 3 1/2″ x 3 1/2″ x 1″. It’s a nice size for some pieces of candy, a cookie or two, or any little gift you want to put inside.
To decorate this box, I used the Lovely & Beautiful Specialty Designer Series Paper. You can just search for it in the Stampin’ Up! Online Store or look under Online Exclusives. It is not in the catalog, but it is still available as I write this. You can measure your own box before cutting the designer paper because exactly 3 1/2″ x 3 1/2″ might be a tiny bit too large. I trimmed off 1/8″, then went down to 3 1/4″ x 3 1/4″. You can diecut a circle or a scallop out of that piece of paper for the top. Be careful centering the die on the square paper evenly so it will fit around the scallop on the box. Just a plain circle might be easier, but you still would want to center it on that DSP. I used the Scalloped Bloom Dies. You will want these dies! I used the fourth die from the center.
If you want to decorate the sides of the box, you can use the same designer series paper or use cardstock, or even leave it plain. I accidentally cut one strip at 1″ wide and the others at 3/4″ wide, but it really doesn’t matter. My strips were 3 1/4″ long. I could have also just tied a ribbon around the sides.
For the flower decoration, you might not believe it, but it is from the other side of this pretty floral design I used for the box! The other side of this floral is a whole sheet of white with gold foil flowers of all sizes and kinds. I cut out one flower and some of its leaves and then colored them. The flower is colored with the Petal Pink Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers and the leaves with Old Olive. Petal Pink is pretty light, but adding the dark combo helped a little bit. Petal Pink is one of the coordinating colors with the paper.
Be a little careful with your adhesive in attaching the flower. I used Stampin’ Dimensionals to pop it up, but I didn’t want the Dimensionals showing from the inside through the window. I simply estimated where the Dimensionals would not show and put them under the flower and leaves. You can check from the inside of the box and make sure. I just wanted a small greeting, so I chose this one, on Basic White, stamped with Petal Pink ink, from the Banner Sayings Stamp Set. I kind of curled it a little to make it 3D. To avoid adhesive showing through the inside of the window, I put glue on the top of the end of the greeting so that it would be adhered underneath the flower petal, not to the box.
These Scalloped Window Boxes will be handy to have in your stash for that time when you need a cute little gift box!
If you want to make a quick and easy card, this Velvet Meadow Easiest Ever Birthday Card is the one for you! And so pretty and elegant, even if you couldn’t find an easier card to make! It’s all about the Velvet Meadow Specialty Designer Series Paper!
This paper is exceptional because it has soft flocking as part of the design on the paper. You can feel it, and it is lovely! What makes this card so easy to make is the way the design is printed on this paper, which Stampin’ Up! has been doing pretty frequently with the designer series paper. The paper is printed with a design at the top and bottom of the page so that you can cut it into 6 card fronts. Depending on what measurements you want, you can cut up this paper and have something similar and pretty on each card or project.
The card I made has a card base of Berry Burst, one of the coordinating colors with the Velvet Meadow paper. The designer paper is cut at 4″ x 5 1/4″. If you know you want to make six cards in total with this paper, just cut three strips vertically at 4″. Then trim down to 5 1/4″. You will have some plain middle pieces left but you can use the six cut pieces on card fronts.
Before adhering the designer paper to the card (just to be on the safe side!), stamp a greeting directly on to the card in the empty space. No label or anything necessary. Just stamp. I used the birthday greeting in the Scalloped Blooms Stamp Set. You’ll find it on page 46 in the new Stampin’ Up! May-August Catalog. It is part of a Suite, the Bloom Boutique Suite on page 16. You can buy it as part of a Bundle with the Scalloped Blooms Dies.
Since the card was SO easy to make, I had plenty of extra time left over from cardmaking to add just a few little embellishments, three Dreamy Flowers. You will find these in the Velvet Meadow Suite Collection. The flowers come in White, Berry Burst, and Bubble Bath. I used the Berry Burst.
That’s all there is to it when you use this particular pattern of paper that can be cut apart to make similar cards! The florals are so colorful and pretty already, but adding the flocking will make the cards extra-special!
