Altenew September 2019 Stamp/Die/Stencil Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hi Folks! There are SO MANY good things in the Altenew September Stamp and Die Release!! I went absolutely nuts in my craft room and before I knew it there were all these cards that I'm dying to share with you! You may have come from the very talented and sweet Kathy Racoosin who I'm sure colored the heck out of several things, but if not feel free to start at the beginning with the Altenew Card Blog

1. Birch Impressionism (with Tall Alpha Dies)

Birch Impressionism Stamp Set

Tall Alpha Dies

As soon as I saw the Birch Impressionism Layering Stamps I knew I had to have them! I'm such a fan of birch trees, and nearly cried when I found out the new owners of our first house cut them all down. I even have birch branches in my home decor.

I got this idea late one night in bed and was so excited the next morning to make my Birch, Please cards! : ) When I google-searched the phrase, I saw someone made the trees anthropomorphic and I had to try that as well. (Irenka made a shirt like this on Threadless, but sadly it's no longer there when I click the link.)

I just drew the arms in, and then picked a place for the eyes and mouth.

For the "birch" on this card I was happy to hack the "birthday" sentiment from Mega Greetings 2 by stamping "bir," then the "c" from "can do it," and finally the "h" from "holidays."

The Tall Alpha Dies are just the perfect size. Love that they're tall enough to carry the card, and that they're narrow enough to fit both words on a standard A2-sized card. These totally crack me up! And are so easy to make.

Here's another idea with this versatile Birch Impressionism set; use the layering stamps for a background!

What a simple, easy background this makes for the Mega Happy die and the newest Build-a-Flower Hellebore.

Another idea is to just use one of the solid trees as a stripe and stack whatever colors make you happy!

Couldn't be easier with the Mega You die and sentiment from Mega Greetings 2. This would be perfect for masculine and teen cards as well.

Not even a birch tree in sight on these Birch Impressionism cards.

Lots of options here. Lots of stretching of supplies.

2. Candy Cane Stripe Cover Die

Candy Cane Stripe Cover Die

This Candy Cane die makes a fabulous background on its own, but when you double it up you get some really fun looks! All you have to do is pick the colors. 

 

Here's a blue, white and gray winter birthday card. On a gray card base I layered a white Candy Cane die, and then FLIPPED OVER the blue Candy Cane die. Wouldn't you know, it makes a fun plaid!

Look at all the awesome texture!!

To step it up a little more, I made some snips in the blue stripe diecut and tucked those under the white stripes in the bottom corner. Again, easy-peasy. A flower from the Plumeria Stamp and Die set tucks in the corner nicely.

Here's another version of the card that I made for my godson at University of Illinois. It's masculine enough, with the plaid, and the school colors are orange and blue. I know he'll appreciate the custom card.

The possibilities are endless with this formula for the Candy Cane Stripe Die ... and only two passes through your die cutting machine!

3. It's For You

It's For You Stamp Set

Faceted Stars Stamp Set

Altenew's layered florals are amazing, as we all know, and now you have the option for a layered telephone!

How cute is this with the typewriter font sentiment?! And of course a "hello" by the receiver.

The background is filled with some of the leftover Camellia Japonica flowers on my desk.

Here's another card with the Mega You die and a faint Faceted Stars background stamp.

The phone is dimensional, and IT VISUALLY RINGS!!! Check out how it moves:

When I saw the "ring, ring" stamp in the set I knew I wanted to make the phone ring back and forth like on the cartoons, but I didn't have any of the wobblers. Well, turns out you can make your own! Use a very fine guage wire (26 or 28) and wrap it around a pencil 6-7 times. Then attach one end to the card base and one end to the phone and you have your own wobbler! So fun to make the phone "ring" ... and since the wire is so fine, the ringing motion lasts for many seconds. It also will be flat for mailing.

Such a charming look for these vintage phone cards!

4. Modern Poinsettia Stamp Set

Modern Poinsettia

As if the poinsettia isn't beautiful enough, the small scripty sentiments make it an unbeatable combination for your Christmas cards.

Embossing the sentiment and pointsettia in gold was an easy choice. Also, do you notice the background ... our chameleon birch trees again!

I used a few different reds to watercolor the poinsettia, as well as some yellows and greens.

Here's another look for the Modern Poinsettia ... this time with white leaves and a red sequin center.

The background is an impression of the beautiful Mid-Century Frame Die. What a simple card!

This set is great for showcasing some quick holiday watercoloring.

Well, I know that was a lot to digest, but like I said, this is a heck of a release! Please read on for a free gift offer and prize information.

Limited Time Offer! Get a FREE mini inspiration guide with every order from the September 2019 Stamp/Die Release collection! Shop HERE. Free gift will be added to cart automatically. One gift per order. While supplies last!

Prizes:

To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or Altenew Scrapbook Blog by 9/10/2019 for a chance to win.

We’ll also draw a winner to receive a $20 gift certificate from the comments left on each designer’s blog on the blog hop list below. All winners will be announced on the Altenew blogs on 9/13/2019.

Your next stop on this hop is Kelly Janes!

Thanks so much for stopping! If you enjoyed your time here, I'd welcome you to follow me on Instagram for all my latest projects!

-Kelly

Supplies Used (with affiliate links at no additional cost to you. Thanks so much for your support!!):

Birch Impressionism Stamp Set

Tall Alpha Dies

Candy Cane Stripe Cover Die

It's For You Stamp Set

Faceted Stars Stamp Set

Modern Poinsettia

Altenew Build-A-Flower: Hellebore Release Blog Hop + Giveaway

Hi Folks! Back to school, back to the craft room!! Amiright?!? So excited to kick off being back in the craft room with a fabulous Altenew Blog Hop ... the latest Build-a-Flower Hellebore is just gorgeous! You may have just come from the blog of Reiko Tsuchida, but if not you are welcome to start at the beginning with the Altenew Card Blog.

This new set has two flowers, one bud, and three different leaves so you can really vary the bouquets you create. Let's take a look!

I wasn't familiar with the Hellebore, so I did a google image search and found these flowers are usually white, or really dark reds and purples.

So glad, as I normally would not have gone that dark, and I'm pretty happy with the result. It reminds me of a vintage seed packet, especially since the reds are a little more muted vs. vibrant.

After stamping the flowers, I went back and added details and shading with colored pencils. A first for me! Yay! I shaded on each end of the petals, and then added shading and dots to the centers.

Some shading for the background, with a few gold spatters, and a b&w sentiment. The flowers are so pretty that if you just put several on a card, you know it's going to look good!

A quick word about the leaves ... unless I have an efficient way to stamp them, I tend to get lazy and skip the leaves. What a shame! Once they're on the card I think they add so much to it. So one way I cut down on time is to arrange the first solid layer of leaf stamps on a stamping block, and stamp them on a scrap piece of paper. Then, on the paper, I arrange the second layer of leaf stamps face down. When they are in place, I put another stamping block on top of them. Same for the third layer of stamps. I arrange them face down where they belong on the stamped piece of paper, and put a stamping block on top. Now I'm ready to stamp three times, and have three triple-layer leaves!

Not pictured are my dies, which I also arrange on top of the stamped piece of paper and tape together. Then I can cut all three leaves at the same time.

Back to the cards, my second project is a beautiful "vase" of flowers. I say "vase" because I've totally cheated, and really my vase is nothing more than a gray rectangle! But I think it gives a modern edge to the card.

The background is from the Molded Lines stencil. The sentiment is from the Pen Sketch Mandala.

I love having the buds in this set. Sometimes you want to add another flower, but it would take up too much room. Like on this card, I originally had two blooms, wanted a third to have an odd number, but there wasn't any more room. Three little buds were the perfect size, and they also added up to an odd number. It was also another great way to get a darker shade of red in there.

Since this was a more modern card, I didn't shade the petals with colored pencils like the other card, but I still added some details to the centers.

This is such a great set for creating big, beautiful bouquets. I really like that you can use it to make a traditionally beautiful card, or a more modern, clean card. 

If you're not sure you have enough shades of each ink color for the Build a Flower set, you can also purchase the set with coordinating ink cubes at a 5% discount.

Subscription Plan:
There is also a monthly subscription plan for the Build a Flower sets! When signed up, you are guaranteed a spot in the monthly Build a Flower releases (which often sell out) and will receive the stam and coordinating die at a special discounted price ($35.00 -> $29.99). See Altenew site for further details.

Prizes: To celebrate this release, Altenew is giving away a $30 gift certificate to 6 lucky winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog for a chance to win.

We'll also draw a winner to receive a $15 gift certificate from the comments left on each designer's blog. All winners will be announced on the Altenew blogs on 9/7/2019.

Now I am very happy to send you to the blog of my dear friend, Virginia Lu, who no doubt has put her heart into something very special to share with you!

 
Thanks so much for stopping by. If you enjoyed your time here, I'd welcome you to follow me on Instagram for all my latest projects!

-Kelly

Supplies Used (with affiliate links at no additional cost to you. Thanks so much for your support!!):

BAF - Hellebore