hey, friend...

 Hey there!  Popping in with a very simple card for several challenges:  Freshly Made Sketches, Just Us Girls and Inkspirational.   Let's have a look at what I made.

When I started making this card I was only going to post it to Freshly Made Sketches, Just Us Girls and the Simon Says Stamp February Instagram challenge.  The SSS IG challenge is to use watercolors this month so I decided to do so simple watercoloring on a die cut.  The die I used is from Simon Says Stamp and I have had it for a long time.  I don't even know what it is called, but I immediately thought of it when I saw the FMS sketch.  I die cut the image from watercolor cardstock and then chose two colors from my Jane Davenport watercolors set to color up the die cut.  I went with blue/green color called Mermaid and a dark blue called Indigo.   

After I had finished up watercoloring the image I left it to dry and decide to check out a few additional challenges to see if there was another one I could enter.  I was delighted to find that I could also add this to the current Inkspirational challenge.  They are sharing a pretty mood board this week.  So, I'm using some of the colors in the mood board, as well as woodgrain.  The challenge at JUGs is to use the word friend, so I went with the sentiment "Hey, Friend Happy Birthday.    I put all the elements together and then finished with some tiny gems in a blue-green color. 

Well, that's it for me.  Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

The BPD Blog is Back!

 Hello!  The Birch Press Design blog is back!  I have a post on the blog today and here is a little peek:

I hope you will head over there to take a look at the full card.  Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!

clean and simple birthday cards...

 Hello!  Popping in today with two cards for several different challenges.  Both cards ended up being very clean and simple and birthday cards.  Let's have a look at the first one. 

This card is for Freshly Made Sketches and Color Throwdown.  I wanted to use some of my stash that hadn't been out in a while.  I pulled out the Simon Says Stamp Fab Flower die set and to my surprise I had a set of the solid and outline flowers in brown in the envelope!  With that I had a start on this card.  I die cut the flowers from Hero Arts Peony Pink cardstock and another flower from PaperTrey Ink Dark Chocolate and then layered the flower as you see on the card.  Pulled out my oldie, but goldie Swiss Dot embossing folder for the background.  The sentiment is one from the EZ Strips Birthday stamp and die set from Simon Says Stamp.  I thought it would be fun to attach the sentiment as you see and I'm glad I did.  I really like it.  I added gems to the center of the flowers.  The gems are dark brown and pink, but only the brown one looks brown.  I adhered the panel to my cardstock base and I was done!

On to the next card!  This one is for the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge (have a heart) and the JUGs challenge to use a die (heart).  

Again, I used an older product on this card, the Simon Says Stamp Deco Heart die set. I had some scraps of cardstock in shades of blue on my desk so I used those for the heart.   Just like the first card I didn't want a plain background so I pulled out the Simon Says Stamp Blossom Swag embossing folder to add the interest.  I placed the heart on its side inside the swag and then added the sentiments, also from the EZ Strips Birthday stamp and die set.  Those two products are really getting a work out, lol!  I really like how this card turned out.   

Well, that is it for me!  Thanks for stopping by and have a wondeful day!

happiest birthday...

 Hello from snowy Western Washington!  Thankfully in the lower Puget Sound area where I live there isn't a lot of it.  Rain is set to return soon.  That is the PNW!  I have a card today for a few challenges:  Color Hues/Inkspirational collaboration challenge and Pinkfresh Studio February challenge.  Let's have a look at what I made.

My sweet friend, Greta, was the lucky winner of the Pinkfresh Studio essentials dies release and she was so kind and offered the Blanket Stitched Bracket dies set to me.  I was intrigued by these dies and the possibilities they presented so I said "yes"!    After a rather long trip from her home in Oregon to my home in Washington (a trip that should take about 2 days but took 7 days this time!) they landed in my mailbox on Friday, January 31st.  I immediately put them to work making my card using the colors from Color Hues/Inkspirational.  I pulled out my favorite pink cardstock (Hero Hues Peony) and a dark red Memory Box cardstock and die cut my layers using the small Blanket Stitched Bracket die.  To provide a finished look I die cut some of the dark red using a label die to create the stop strip.  Everything was layered together and then adhered with glue and thin foam squares to a white cardstock base. 

Then I got started on the second part of my card and this is where the Pinkfresh Studio challenge comes in.  They recently changed their monthly challenge to anything goes, but they will still have colors and a theme that you can use on your project.  The theme this month is Transparent Treasures so I decided to use some thick vellum combined with touches of the pink and red cardstock for my cherry blossom branch from Pinkfresh Studio.  As I was working on the cherry blossom branch, I wasn't sure if it would work, but once I had it completed, I was really pleased with the look.  That branch was adhered using glue and then I finished with the sentiment from the Simon Says Stamp EZ Strips Birthday stamp and die set.

That's it for me.  Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day!