Birch Press Design

Author: birch press

  • Just a Note | By Natasha Vacca

    Hello Birch Press Friends, I am super excited to be back up on the Birch Press Designs blog today! Today’s card features a few floral dies from the latest collection. I had a lot of fun creating today’s card, so let’s get started!

    For today’s card I started with 4 die collections and 2 pads of colored card stock from Memory Box. I am using the Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers, Mixed Berry Contour Layers, Delicate Floral Buds Contour Layers, and the Sylvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers. I used 2 pads from Memory Box: Berry Red and Lush Green. I love these pads of paper! The colors are amazing and they die cut beautifully and they are super easy to add ink blending on top as well! From each of the die sets listed above I die cut the leaves and stems using 2 shades of green paper from the Lush Green pad. Then for the floral dies (shared above) I used 2 shades of pink from the Berry Red paper pad.

    After my leaves and florals were all die cut I laid them out on my ink blending mat. For the green die cuts I used a combination of a light and green dye ink. On the pink layers I used a combination of dark pink and a purple dye ink. Once all the inking was completed I added water droplets to add a bit more texture to each piece. I added the water droplets, then picked up the color with a paper towel.

    I set each piece aside and allowed them to dry. Once dry I adhered the leaves and floral layers together with liquid glue. I then added metallic gold splatters to the flowers. I allowed these to dry.

    Next I chose a background from my gelli print stash. I trimmed the gelli print panel down, then adhered this to a piece of cream colored cardstock and adhered this to an A2 card base. I then worked on the arrangement for the flowers, stems, and leaves. Once I was happy with the layout I adhered all the layers down using liquid glue and foam tape onto the gelli print background.

    To complete my card I chose to use the foiled sentiment Just a Note from the Sugar Scripts Sentiments 1 die set. I foiled the sentiment then adhered this to my card front using foam adhesive. Finally I added a few Fairy Drops to finish my card.

    I had a lot of fun creating today’s card! I hope you like it! I will be back soon to share more crafty inspiration!


    Supplies


    bpf503 Sugar Script Sentiments 1 Hot Foil Plate and Die Sets
    57492 Delicate Floral Buds Contour Layers
    57527 Mixed Berry Contour Layers
    57507 Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers
    57503 Sylvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers
    sp1003 Lush Green 6×6 pack
    sp1001 Berry Red 6×6 pack

    Supplies


    drp101 Fairy Drops
  • Bold Butterfly | by Rosemary Dennis

    Bold Butterfly | by Rosemary Dennis

    Happy Friday everyone! I have a bold jewel toned card to share with you today. Let’s take a look.

    I love the new Gilded Petalpoint stencil set. You can use it in combination with the Gilded Petalpoint hot foil plate or by itself like I did on my card. I decided to go with a bolder color palette for this card and chose shades of purple with a pop of blue.

    I don’t often make the decision to use the color purple, but it is so pretty in combination with the blue. I inked up the first stencil with a medium shade of purple and then started to blend on a slightly darker shade, but it wasn’t showing up so I switched to the darkest shade of purple I had. With the third stencil I used a bold blue embossing paste. It has a little bit of shine to it in real life.

    Once the stenciling was done I set the piece aside to dry. Thankfully even with the addition of the embossing paste there wasn’t much warping of my cardstock. After the piece dried I trimmed it down to fit my card front. I then moved on to doing a little bit of hot foiling. I used the medallion from the Gilded Pinpoint hot foil plate set and the sending hugs sentiment from the Sugar Script Sentiments 1 hot foil plate for these elements. The medallion was foiled using purple foil and the sentiment using dark blue. I used the darkest purple ink and blended it on the medallion after I die cut it with the matching die.

    Now it was time to create my butterfly using the Eloquent Butterfly layering die set. I die cut the top butterfly from a dark blue glitter paper from the Memory Box Glitz Glitter pad. To make sure that everything matched I used the inks that I used for the stencil to ink up some white cardstock. I used the direct to paper method in order to get good saturation of the cardstock. I let the cardstock dry and then die cut the second and third layers. I adhered the layers together with a dot of glue in the center of the butterfly. I then layered the medallion on to the main panel, added the butterfly and the sentiment. I finished off the card with a purple-blue Fairy Jewel to the center of the butterfly.

    I hope you enjoyed my project today. Thanks for stopping by and have a lovely day!

    Supplies

    BPF516 Gilded Petalpoint Hot Foil Plate and Die Set

    BPF503 Sugar Script Sentiments 1 Hot Foil Plate and Die Sets

    57426 Eloquent Butterfly Layer Set

    42037 Gilded Petalpoint Stencil Set

    GP1007 Glitzy Glitter Pad

  • Rainbow Roundabout | by Crystal Komara

    Rainbow Roundabout | by Crystal Komara

    Hello readers! This is Birch Press Design Team member Crystal Komara here with you today sharing some rainbow inspiration using the Roundabout Layer Set. I love creating rainbow colored cards, I just find them so cheerful and uplifting!

    Card details:

    The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock. Using the same Neenah white cardstock, I cut a 5 1/4″ x 4″ piece and ran it through my Big Shot using the Blooming 3D embossing folder from Memory Box Co. (a sister company of Birch Press Design).

    Continue reading below to see how I created and assembled the rainbow roundabout itself, it was a little bit tricky!

    Step 1: Die cut Layer A of the Roundabout Layer Set from white cardstock.
    Step 2: Die cut Layer B of the Roundabout Layer Set from gold glitter cardstock.
    Step 3: Die Cut Layer A from the Roundabout Layer Set from all the colors of the rainbow – ROYGBIV. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet.
    Step 4: Save the large solid circles for another card!
    Step 5: Adhere Layer A (white cardstock) over Layer B (gold glitter cardstock) using a fine-tip liquid glue.
    Step 6: Piece all the little shapes back into the die in a rainbow array.

    I then adhered 3M foam adhesive to the back of the roundabout and adhered it to the center of the card.

    Using the Hello Honey Script word die, I die cut the back shadow layer from black cardstock and the thinner top outline from white cardstock. I adhered both layers together with a fine-tip liquid glue and then adhered the entire sentiment to the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.

    I also created a second card using the leftover solid circles that were die cut from the Roundabout Layer Set.

    This mini slimline card measures 6 1’2″ x 3″. Honestly, I made up my own dimensions on this card, so don’t take these measurements as being any sort of a “professional” size! I placed all the die cut circles leftover from the Roundabout Layer Set in a rainbow array horizontally across the card. I stamped the sentiment “sending you sunshine, laughter and hugs” in Memento Tuxedo Black ink. This sentiment is from the Kind Hearts clear stamp set.

    Using the same Hello Honey Script word die, I die cut the back shadow layer from black cardstock and the thinner top outline from white cardstock. I adhered both layers together with a fine-tip liquid glue and then adhered the entire sentiment to the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.

    I hope you have enjoyed these two very colorful ways to use the Roundabout Layer Set. Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

    Supplies

    56124 Roundabout Layer Set

    CL8163 Kind Hearts clear stamp set

    57310 Hello Honey Script

    SP1002 Sunny Orange 6×6 pack

    SP1001 Berry Red 6×6 pack

    SP1003 Lush Green 6×6 pack

    SP1005 Ocean Blue 6×6 pack

  • Bold Color Palette | By Allison Frazier

    Bold Color Palette | By Allison Frazier

    Hello, Birch Press friends! Today, I am sharing this colorful card featuring the Petal Triangle Layer Set. This color palette is something I have been wanting to try for awhile, but I was a bit apprehensive. I decided that a layering die set would be the perfect way to try it out. And, I’m really happy with the results!

    The first step was to cut all of the triangles. There are 3 layers and four total triangles, so that is a total of 12 triangles to cut out. I used white card stock for Layer C, purple card stock for Layer B, and lavender card stock for Layer A. I then glued the three layers of each triangle together with liquid glue. I mounted the finished triangles onto a 4.25″ square card base that I had made from a dark orange card stock.

    Next, I created three flowers using the Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers Set. I used the same orange color to create the base of the flower. I cut the detail pieces out of a deep red card stock. The small center pieces were cut from the lavender card stock. I adhered all of those together and set them aside for final assembly.

    I used the Hugs Honey Script Die for my sentiment. I used two layers of white card stock for my shadow layer. I cut the main layer from black glossy card stock. I adhered the sentiment to the center of my card panel. Finally, I arranged the flowers around the sentiment and added a clear fairy jewel to the center of each flower.

    Thank you so much for joining us today. I hope this card inspires you and brings a smile to your face! 

    Wishing you a crafty day,
    Allison


    Supplies


    56107 Petal Triangle Layer Set
    57507 Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers
    57300 Hugs Honey Script
    sh44004 Black Glossy Paper
    sp1008 Twilight Purple 6×6 pack

    Supplies


    jwl001 Clear Jewels
  • Phlox Hugs and Smiles | by Toni M Maddox

    Phlox Hugs and Smiles | by Toni M Maddox

    Hello, Birch Press fans! Toni here with you today sharing a card that just makes me happy–I love the colors and the blossoms. So pretty!

    I cut out randomly size strips of Memory Box Sunny Orange and Stormy Blue 6×6 cardstock which I adhered to the card base, leaving empty areas so the white base acted as another color strip.

    I used the die that comes with the Gilded Petalpoint Hot Foil Plate to cut out a “sun” which I sponged with Distress Oxide Mustard Seed. I stamped one of the Brush Sentiments on top of that in Versafine Clair Nocturne.

    I cut out the Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers using the same cardstock, then adhered them randomly over the card front, nestling them in and around the sun. Easy, peasy!

    I hope you enjoyed today’s card and have a great rest of your week!

    Supplies

    57507 Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers

    bpf516 Gilded Petalpoint Hot Foil Plate and Die Set

    CL8158 Brush Sentiments clear stamp set

    SP1002 Sunny Orange 6×6 pack

    sp1006 Stormy Blue 6×6 pack

  • Clean and Simple Spring Florals Part 1 | by Colleen Balija

    Clean and Simple Spring Florals Part 1 | by Colleen Balija

    Hi friends! Today I want to share a Clean and Simple Spring Floral card!

    A good Clean and Simple card utilizes white space creatively. And it’s hard to add detail and interest without over-doing it!!! I tend to create cards that are filled from top to bottom with details, but I fall in love with designers like Dee Nacar and her expert use of white space, so I’m giving it a try today, and I hope you like it!

    Today I’ll be using Morning Rose & Triple Buds die, Eucalyptus Stem & Berries die, Phlox Blooms & Leaves die, Sylvan Berries & Leaves die, and Rainbow Days stamp. All of these items will be linked at the bottom of my post!

    First step was to decide on the layout for my card panel. Once that was decided upon, I die cut my floral pieces and ink blended each piece with shades of coral and mint green. While it’s easier to ink blend a card panel first and then die cut second, I like to do the opposite because I can add more depth this way. I create an ombre effect with color that brings my flowers to life. And that’s one of the details you’ll need in a Clean and Simple card! Take a look at the photo above to see what I mean about adding depth.

    Next, I added more detail to my white background card panel by using the same die cuts from earlier as an embossing tool. To do this, I placed the die cuts where I wanted them on the card panel, taped them into place so they wouldn’t move, and then ran them through my die cut machine with an embossing pad that comes with my machine (each machine is different, so look for an embossing pad that goes with your die cut machine). The embossing pad allows the image to be embedded into the card panel without cutting all the way through. This is another fun and creative way to use your die cuts! Look at the photo above and below to see the embossed images peeking out from behind the flowers and leaves!

    Another option to add detail to a white card panel is embossing with embossing folders. You’re adding detail without losing the white space. It’s a great technique!

    The final step was to place the flowers and leaves where I wanted them, along with the sentiment. I wanted to keep the sentiment simple, so I went with a stamped one rather than die cut one. The leaves are placed off-center from the embossed image so that a tiny bit of the embossed image peeks out from behind them. Then I added gold metallic splatters and sequins to add shine! You can see the splatters and sequins in the photo below. Some of the sequins are clear to look like rain drops on the leaves. The splatters and sequins are another subtle way to add detail without busying up the card panel! I was careful only to splatter around the flowers and leaves, leaving a good part of the white card panel alone.

    I’m pleased with how this Clean and Simple card turned out! To summarize, here are a few pointers to keep in mind when creating Clean and Simple designs:

    1. Emboss the white card panel with embossing folders or dies
    2. Use splatters sparingly to add interest without overwhelming the card panel
    3. Add detail to the focal point by ink blending to create depth and life to your florals
    4. Keep the sentiment simple and small
    5. Add sequins or a Nuvo Shimmer pen to add shine and shimmer to your focal point
    6. Keep one half to one quarter of the card panel white and untouched

    Thanks for stopping by today!

    Supplies

    CL8159 Rainbow Days Lingo Notes clear stamp set

    57493 Morning Rose and Triple Buds Contour Layers

    57496 Eucalyptus Stem and Berries Contour Layers

    57507 Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers

    57503 Sylvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers

    DRP101 Fairy Drops

    DDP101 Christmas Fairy Dewdrops

  • Spring Green | by Rosemary Dennis

    Spring Green | by Rosemary Dennis

    Happy Spring everyone! Today I’m sharing a sweet card showcasing the new Slyvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers dies and the Thank You Noted Script hot foil plate and die set.

    Over my years of crafting I have learned a couple of things that help me when it comes to ink blending on small die cuts. One of those things is that when I die cut the pieces I do not remove them, but flip my cardstock over and add some kind of low tack tape to the back to keep them in place.

    As you can see from the above photo it isn’t very pretty looking, but it is so very helpful in allowing you to ink up those small pieces. The next photo shows some of the inking and masking that i did on the die cut cardstock.

    Using this method also allows you to be able to add more ink in some areas and less in others. I wanted the very top leave on the sprig to not have alot of ink and I was able to do that by keeping the die cut in place. I used two shades of light green ink for the leaves and two shades of yellow for the berries. For a bit of contrast I used a brighter green for the stems of the berry sprigs. After I inked up all the pieces to my liking I removed them from the cardstock and got to working out the placement of all of the elements. As I was working this out I decided that I wanted to add some interest to the background. I pulled out the Viola Plate die set and die cut the top layer from white cardstock to use for the background, but didn’t like it. Then I looked at the bottom layer of the die set. Inspiration hit… emboss it! The bottom layer has piercing on it and once embossed created a lovely background. Don’t forget that when you are embossing with dies you need to use a flexible embossing mat and the embossing sandwich that works for your machine.

    Once the background was set I worked on determining the placement of all the elements. As you can see from the photo above I didn’t have the berries and leaves completed and the sprig arrangement is slightly different from the finished card. Doing the initial arrangement is just a good way to make sure that you are happy with your idea and you can take a photo of it for reference when you complete your card. I assembled the berries and leaves using liquid adhesive.

    I adhered all the stems and berries using liquid adhesive. I used the die that comes with the Thank you foil set to die cut two additional layers that I adhered to the foiled one. Liquid adhesive was also used to adhere the sentiment and the little bow tied with some spring green baker’s twine. I finished off the card with some tiny yellow-green Memory Box Fairy Jewels. I must say that I took my inspiration for this card from the cheerful yellow daffodils that are blooming everywhere here in western Washington. I hope I was able to inspire you today!

    Supplies

    56128 Viola Plate Layer Set

    BPF511 Thank You Noted Script Hot Foil Plate and Die Set

    57503 Sylvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers

  • Golden Sylvan Berries | By Seeka

    Golden Sylvan Berries | By Seeka

    Hello and welcome! Seeka here again with you today, this time sharing a card featuring the Sylvan Berries And Leaves Contour Layers die set.

    I started off by cutting the berries and leaves layers from green, yellow and orange cardstocks. I glued the layers together and then set them aside.

    Next, I die cut the Arista Layer B plate three times from white cardstock, then I glued the layers together and then glued the resulting piece to a panel cut with the Pinpoint Contour Plate.

    I arranged and glued the leaves and berries onto the background, trimming the stems where needed. Then I added a sentiment from my stash before gluing the card front to a top-folding card base.

    Thank you very much for visiting!


    Supplies


    57503 Sylvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers
    57511 Pinpoint Contour Plate
    57418 Arista Layer Set
  • Framed Crocus | By Seeka

    Framed Crocus | By Seeka

    Hello and welcome! Seeka here today sharing a card featuring the Sprouting Crocus Contour Layers die set.

    I started off by creating seven crocuses in shades of purple and blue cardstock (some nice options are available in the Ocean Blue and Twilight Purple 6×6 paper packs). I used light purple and blue cardstock for the flowers’ centers, and then used a small blending brush to ink blend a bit of darker purple and darker blue inks towards the bases of those pieces. The result is a bit of shading and dimension at the base of the inner petals of each flower. Next, I cut the leaves from green cardstock and then used glue to adhere the pieces of each flower together.

    For the background, I used the Pinpoint Radial Plate to cut a piece of white cardstock. Then I used a circle die from my stash to cut out a window from the panel. Next, I blended an aqua ink over a 4.25″ x 5.5″ panel of white cardstock, concentrating the color towards the bottom of the panel and letting it fade up towards the top. Using foam tape, I adhered the window panel to the aqua panel.

    To finish the card, I tucked the blooms into the window and then used foam tape to hold them in place. I added a small sentiment from my stash and then glued the card front to a top-folding card base.

    Thank you so much for visiting!


    Supplies


    57384 Pinpoint Radial Plate
    57523 Sprouting Crocus Contour Layers
    SP1005 Ocean Blue 6×6 pack
    SP1008 Twilight Purple 6×6 pack
  • Blue Willow Floral Thank You | by Colleen Balija

    Blue Willow Floral Thank You | by Colleen Balija

    Hi friends! Today I want to share a card that reminds me of my Mom’s Blue Willow dishes! I loved those dishes, and I’ve been seeing this color frequently and just fell in love with it all over again! Let me show you how I achieved the look!

    Since I already had my color palette chosen, I picked my design elements for the card. I’m using Sylvan Berries & Leaves, Mixed Berry Contour, Phlox Blooms & Leaves, Thank You hot foil plate, and Gilded Petal Point stencil (which also comes with the hot foil plate). All the links to the products here will be at the end of my post for you!

    First step was to create my background to look like Blue Willow dishes (if you don’t know what these are, go look them up and you’ll love them!) Using the Gilded Petal Point 3-layer stencil and inks in light, medium, and dark blue, I ink blended my background onto white cardstock. Then I trimmed the card panel and placed it over a slightly larger black card panel. Both layers went onto a 5.5×4.25 white card base. Already I’m in love with these colors and designs!

    Next up, the flowers!

    I die cut the Phlox onto white cardstock and ink blended them using the same inks as I did on the background. You can see in the photo above how I played with the variation of light to dark with my ink blending. Don’t be shy about adding contrast of color to them! It adds so much detail and depth to your flowers!

    I wanted just a pop of a different color to add some variety, so I die cut the berries using a colored card panel that I had on hand in shades of red. For the leaves, I ink blended in shades of green in a similar way that I did with the Phlox. Then I adhered all the layers together. Birch Press Design layered flowers are really easy to put together!

    Now I was ready to place everything onto the card base! Before adhering everything down, I staged the foliage where I wanted them around the hot foil Thank You sentiment. Then I slowly glued everything into place using liquid glue. Liquid glue gives you a little more time to get the exact placement before it dries, so I always use it with my flowers. I finished with a few sequins from Memory Box over the flowers and the Thank You sentiment.

    Blue is such a fun and bold color to use on cards, and the color can be used from Sympathy to Happy Birthday greetings! Thanks for stopping by!

    Supplies

     

     

    57503 Sylvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers

     

     

    57527 Mixed Berry Contour Layers

     

     

    57507 Phlox Blooms and Leaves Contour Layers

     

     

    42037 Gilded Petalpoint Stencil Set

     

     

    BPF511 Thank You Noted Script Hot Foil Plate and Die Set