Category: Crystal Komara

  • Birch Press Design & Memory Box | by Crystal Komara

    Birch Press Design & Memory Box | by Crystal Komara

    Hello crafty readers! This is Crystal Komara here with you today sharing two elegant cards created by mixing products from sister companies Birch Press Design and Memory Box. As Design Team members for Birch Press Design, we are fortunate to receive some products from both companies and today I’m showing you how beautifully they compliment each together. Do YOU mix products when you create? I love to mix stamp sets, papers and dies because it allows for an infinite amount of ideas and is a great way to use more of what you own.

    Card details:

    The base of this A2 sized card was made using 80 lb. Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. I die cut the first layer from white cardstock using Layer Plate A of the Viola Layering Plate dies. I adhered this intricate layer directly to the card base. Using the All the Happiness stamp set from Memory Box, I stamped the flowers in Versamark ink on black cardstock and heat embossed the image with gold embossing powder. I die cut the flowers using the coordinating All the Happiness dies and adhered it to the lower right side of the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension. I stamped the sentiment in Memento Tuxedo black ink on white cardstock and fussy cut the sentiment. I adhered the sentiment to the top left of the flowers.

    Here is the second card that I made using the same products, but a slightly different color combination:

    Card details:

    The base of this A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White smooth cardstock. I cut a 5 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ piece of black cardstock and adhered it directly to the card base. Using Layer Plate A of the Viola Layering Plates, I die cut this layer from white cardstock. I adhered this intricate layer directly over the black cardstock. Using the All the Happiness stamp set, I stamped the flowers in Versamark ink on gold foil paper. I heat embossed the image with black embossing powder and used the coordinating All the Happiness dies to die cut the flowers out. I adhered the flowers to the lower right side of the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension. I stamped the sentiment in Memento Tuxedo black ink on white cardstock and fussy cut the sentiment. I adhered the sentiment to the top left of the flowers.

    I hope you have enjoyed today’s elegant black and white cards and that you can see the magic you can create when you combine products. Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

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  • Butterfly Garden | by Crystal Komara

    Butterfly Garden | by Crystal Komara

    Hello readers and happy Monday! If you celebrate the Easter holiday, I hope you had a blessed weekend. This is Crystal here with you today sharing two cards in bright spring-like colors made using the Butterfly Garden Layering Plates.

    I am so in love with these beautiful layering dies and while while one layer is enough to make an impact, all three layers together is really stunning, especially when you add in a middle layer of glitter cardstock.

    Here is a step-by-step instructional video so you can see how both of these cards were made:

    I hope you have enjoyed these cards! Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day.

    Supplies

  • Petal Egg in 3 Colors | by Crystal Komara

    Petal Egg in 3 Colors | by Crystal Komara

    Hello friends and welcome back from the weekend! This is Crystal here with you today and I’m sharing three cards made using the beautiful Petal Egg Layering Dies for this trio of Easter inspired cards.

    Please continue reading to see how I made these cards:

    First, I die cut the three layers of the Petal Egg die. For the orange colored card, I die cut Layer A (the top layer) from white cardstock, Layer B (the middle layer) from a peach colored cardstock and Layer C (the bottom layer) from orange glitter cardstock.

    I did the same thing for the both the purple and yellow Easter eggs too. For the purple colored card, I die cut Layer A (the top layer) from white cardstock, Layer B (the middle layer) from a purple glittery cardstock and Layer C (the bottom layer) from lavender purple cardstock.

    Using a liquid adhesive (LineCo ph bookbinding glue) is my go to!) I began to adhere all the layers of each egg together and set them aside.

    Next I worked on the card base itself. The base of each card is made from 80 lb. Neenah White Solar Smooth cardstock and then I used a scalloped rectangle die to die cut purple, peach and yellow cardstock for a strong background. I dry embossed three pieces of 5″ x 3 3/4″ sheets of Neenah white cardstock to add more dimension to the background.

    I stamped a sentiment on thin strips of white cardstock and then I heat embossed the word “Easter” on coordinating sheets of peach, purple and yellow cardstock. I adhered the sentiments to the card using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension.

    I love how these cards turned out and even though I chose to make them in these three colors, you could use whatever monochromatic color scheme you would like for equally beautiful results!

    Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

    Supplies

  • Tulip Fields Layering Plate | by Crystal Komara

    Tulip Fields Layering Plate | by Crystal Komara

    Hello crafty readers and happy Monday! I hope you all had a lovely weekend. Today I am sharing my first spring inspired card using the beautiful new Tulip Fields Layering Plate.

    For this A2 sized card, I only used Layer C (or the bottom layer) of the Tulip Layering Plate dies. I love being able to use these dies together as a group of three, or as stand alone dies, so you get more for your money!

    To create this card, first I die cut Layer C from four different color of cardstock – white, peach, yellow and pink.

    I separated all the little tulip heads by color after running each color cardstock through my Big Shot machine.

    I placed a 5 1/4″ x 4″ piece of white cardstock behind the white Layer C tulip cut cardstock. I lined this paper with Tombow dot adhesive, so that when the tulip paper was placed on top, there were still sticky holes left for me to place each tulip head.

    I placed the tulip heads in yellow, peach and pink rows. Yes, I had to place them into position one-by-one, then I added a scalloped circle with a sentiment and voila, all done!

    I hope you enjoyed today’s card. Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

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  • Crystal Lingo Birthday | by Crystal Komara

    Crystal Lingo Birthday | by Crystal Komara

    Hello readers and happy Monday! I hope you all did something fun and crafty over the weekend. This is Crystal here with you today sharing a fun rainbow themed card I made using the new “Crystal Lingo” stamp set and coordinating dies. Yes, I’d like to think this new set was named after or even for me (though that’s likely not the case)! : )

    Here is a step-by-step tutorial for how to make this card:

    Step 1 – Using the Pinpoint Radial Layering plate, die cut the first layer from white cardstock.

    Step 2: Using Versamark ink, stamp the word “HAPPY” from the Crystal Lingo stamp set on scrap pieces of paper in rainbow colors and heat emboss the words with white embossing powder.

    Step 3: Using the coordinating Crystal Lingo dies, die cut the word “HAPPY” multiple times from each rainbow colored piece of cardstock.

    Step 4 (*Optional): I also die cut the word “HAPPY” six times from white adhesive craft foam. This will allow me to pop up my sentiment without having to cut down 3M foam tape to size, or by using little foam pieces of adhesive. It was an added step, but so worth it in the long run!

    The base of this A2 sized card is an 80 lb. sheet of Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. I layered the white cardstock (embossed with the Pinpoint Radial die) directly to the white card base and layered the words “HAPPY” in a rainbow ROYGBIV pattern from tp to bottom. Lastly, I heat embossed the sentiment in white embossing powder on black cardstock and adhered it to the center of the card.

    Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

  • Black & White Valentine’s Day Cards | by Crystal Komara

    Black & White Valentine’s Day Cards | by Crystal Komara

    Hello readers and happy Monday! This is Crystal here with you today. I hope you all found a little time to do something crafty over the weekend. Today I am sharing two simple and classic black and white themed Valentine’s Day cards using Layer A of the beautiful Kinsley Heart Layering Plates.

    Both of these cards were created the same way, I just alternated the background colors, so they look slightly different. Here is the first card I created:

    And here is the second card I created using the same products, just alternating the background cardstock layers:

    Here is a step-by-step breakdown of how I created these cards:

    Step 1: Die cut the Kinsley Heart Layering Plate A once in black cardstock and once in white cardstock.

    Step 2: Layer the white die cut Kinsley Heart background over a piece of black A2 sized cardstock.

    Step 3: Layer the black die cut Kinsley Heart background over a piece of white A2 sized cardstock.

    Step 4: Cut out two large hearts from red glitter cardstock.

    Step 5: Cut out the sentiments using the Big Hugs Sugar Script dies and the Handwritten Love You Outline dies from black cardstock and white cardstock. Adhere the two layers of the word dies together with a thin liquid adhesive.

    Pop up the large red glitter hearts using 3M foam adhesive for added dimension and then add your sentiments and you have two classic and elegant Valentine’s Day cards!

    Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

    Supplies

  • Ombre Kinsley Heart || by Crystal Komara

    Ombre Kinsley Heart || by Crystal Komara

    Hello crafty friends! This is Design Team member Crystal Komara here with you today sharing a beautiful Valentine’s Day card featuring the latest new release products from Birch Press Design. The focal point of this pink ombre card is the ink blended background peeking through the Kinsley Heart Layering Plate.

    On a 5 1/4″ x 4 1/4″ piece of Bristol smooth cardstock I ink blended Distress Oxide inks in the colors Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick and Candied Apple. I began with the lightest color (Spun Sugar) at the top of the cardstock and the richest color (Candied Apple) at the bottom.

    Using 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Crest cardstock, I die cut the top layer (Layer A) from the Kinsley Heart Plate.

    I placed this intricate heart layer directly over the ombre background adhering it with LineCo ph neutral bookbinding glue (my go-to liquid adhesive).

    Using the Lingo Thanks stamp set, I stamped the word “love” in Versamark ink on ballet pink cardstock and heat embossed it with white embossing powder. I used the coordinating Lingo Thanks die set to cut it out. I also stamped the sentiment “you’re in my heart” in Versamark ink on fuschia pink cardstock and heat embossed it with white embossing powder as well. I die cut one large white heart to serve as the center focal point of the card. I adhered the sentiments to the lower right corner of the heart using 3M foam adhesive. Lastly, I added a few iridescent sequins with glue dots to the card for added dimension and sparkle.

    I hope you will enjoy these beautiful new products from Birch Press Design! Thanks for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

    Supplies

  • Snowflake Poinsetta | by Crystal Komara

    Snowflake Poinsetta | by Crystal Komara

    Hello readers! This is Crystal here with you today sharing a unique way to turn the Pinpoint Snowflake die into a poinsettia or similar Christmas flower.

    The base of this A2 sized card is made from Cherry Red cardstock. I used a scalloped frame die to create the white scalloped background to allow the vibrant red Pinpoint Snowflake Poinsettia to POP!

    Here is a step-by-step instructional video showing how to use the Pinpoint Snowflake die to create this card:

    I hope you have enjoyed seeing a more non-traditional way to use this die while learning another way to get more use from your Birch Press Design products. Thanks for visiting and have a wonderful holiday season!

  • Nativity Star Trees | by Crystal Komara

    Nativity Star Trees | by Crystal Komara

    Hello readers and happy Friday! I hope you have fun things planned for the weekend ahead. This is Crystal here with you today sharing a whole new way to use the beautiful String Art Nativity Star die! I have used select pieces of this background die and fussy cut it to create some very stylish triangular Christmas trees! Please continue to the end of today’s post for a video showing I made these trees.

    This slimline card measures 8 1/2″ x 3 1/2″. Slimline cards are designed to fit inside a regular #10 business sized envelope and require no additional postage. The base of this slimline card was made from 80 lb. cherry red cardstock.

    Here is a step-by-step YouTube video showing how I created this card:

    I hope you have enjoyed seeing another creative way to use the beautiful Birch Press Design products. Thank you for visiting and have a wonderfully creative day!

  • Merry Christmas Ornaments | by Crystal Komara

    Merry Christmas Ornaments | by Crystal Komara

    Hello readers and happy Tuesday! This is Crystal here with you today sharing two very traditional Christmas cards using the Marisol Ornament Layering dies and the Twinkle Ornament Layering dies. I couldn’t be more excited with how elegant and sparkly these cards turned out using Evergreen and Cherry cardstock colors with lots of gold glitter paper. If you like a traditional holiday look, then these cards are sure to tickle your fancy!

    The base of each A2 sized card is made from 80 lb. Neenah Solar White Smooth cardstock. Using the Pinpoint Radial Layering plate, I die cut the first layer from white cardstock. This paper pierced die provided a subtle background to allow the ornaments to “pop!”

    There was no rhyme or reason to my die cutting madness. I simply die cut each layer of the ornaments (Twinkle A, B and C and Marisol A, B and C) from Cherry, Evergreen and gold glitter cardstock and then I began adhering the layers together. When I was all done, I had four completed ornaments, or enough for two cards.

    Once all the pieces are die cut, I use LineCo ph Neutral bookbinding glue to adhere the three (or sometimes four layers) together. You will find that a regular Tombow adhesive runner does not work well at adhering glitter cardstock, so try a liquid glue instead.

    On a side note, these ornaments would look just as lovely if I had tied a gold ribbon to the top of each one and used them as paper Christmas tree ornaments!

    I hope you have enjoyed these beautiful Christmas cards and are well on your way to creating all of yours!

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