Birch Press Design

Category: Stencils

  • Happy Easter | by Rosemary Dennis

    Happy Easter | by Rosemary Dennis

    Hello everyone! Rosemary here on the blog today. Can you believe that Easter is just days away?! Time is just flying by, lol. With Easter in mind I created a card using the beautiful new Floral Cross Layering die set.

    I used several new products on this card, including the new Lush Layer Contour Layers die set and a new set of products from Open Studio/Memory Box: Cheerful Floral 3d embossing folder and cutting die and Cheerful Floral stencil set. My original idea for this card was to have the beautiful Floral Cross layering dies layered on top of the embossed Cheerful Floral background. Unfortunately, I have a problem with my die cutting machine when it comes to 3d embossing folders. Sometimes with beautifully detailed ones like the Cheerful Floral my cardstock shifts in the folder and the bottom of the image is blurred. That happened this time. I tried multiple times and could not get a good image. In the end I decided to die cut the center flower from each attempt and use those instead. Nice save, I think!

    It was pretty easy to pop the die cuts into the stencil and color them up with a combination of pretty yellow inks. Below is a photo showing how it looks when you use the stencil with the die cut.

    For the stenciling I colored the first flower and then moved it to the next spot. I then placed the second flower in the stencil and colored it. Then I grabbed the next color, added it to the first flower, then moved everything to their next spot. I continued with that until the flowers were fully colored. I used a piece of cardstock from Greenery 6×6 cardstock pad. This particular piece was one shade of green on one side and a slightly different shade of green on the other side so I was able to use only one piece of cardstock for the leaf.

    The cross was die cut from white cardstock, pale yellow glitter cardstock and light yellow cardstock, then adhered together with liquid adhesive. I also used one of the flower dies from the Floral Cross set and die cut the layers from the pale yellow glitter cardstock. The pieces were layered. a light yellow rhinestone added to the center and then adhered to the center of the cross. I then began arranging all the elements on a panel of white cardstock. I used a combination of liquid adhesive and foam squares to adhere everything. The sentiment is a Memory Box die. I die cut it from white cardstock and adhered it with liquid adhesive.

    Supplies

    57537 Floral Cross Layer Set

    57521 Lush Leaves Contour Layers

  • Mixed Media ATC’s with Curved Leaf Branch | By, Natasha Vacca

    Mixed Media ATC’s with Curved Leaf Branch | By, Natasha Vacca

    Hello Birch Press friends, I am excited to be back on the blog today. I love creating with dies and today I am going to share some mixed media ATC’s (Artist Trading Cards) with you! For the focal image I will be using the Curved Leaf Branch Contour Layers die set. So let’s get started!

    I started by die cutting 3 of the Curved Leaf Branch layers using white card stock, as well as a set using the Vibrant Violet paper pad. Once the leaves were die cut, I set the white leaf branches aside. I wanted to keep these one layer. On the violet leaf branch, I added oxide ink to the leaves, as well as to the top layer on the leaves. I used several shades of ink to add contrast to the leaves. I adhered on the 2nd layer of the leaves using liquid glue and then set these aside.

    Once my leaves were die cut, I trimmed 3 different gelli prints into ATC size (2.5 x 3.5). On each of the ATC’s I added a variety of texture using texture paste and crackle paste. I added the paste using a spatula to the edges, as well as used the Gilded Grace Inside Stencil Set. I chose one of the stencils from the set and added the stencil to my backgrounds and applied texture paste through the stencil. I allowed the paste to dry completely before moving onto the next step.

    Once the paste was dry, I added a bit more texture by applying distress crayons and gold glitz to the paste areas. I continued to work on the areas until I was happy with the texture of my backgrounds. Once everything was dry, I added a strip of washi tape to each ATC, with a bit of white gesso for added distressing. I also added white splatters to a couple of the ATC’s as well.

    Next it was time to adhere the leaves onto the ATC panels. Under each leaf I used gold thread and adhered this to the panel with a glue dot. I then adhered the leaves onto each ATC on top of the gold thread. I added sentiments from my stash, as well as a stamped sentiment from the Gracious Floral Stamp and die set. I trimmed the sentiments and adhered them to my ATC’s.

    I added a butterfly die cut to two of the ATC panels. I die cut the Simple Butterfly Contour Layers die set using the Vibrant Violet paper pad. I added Distress Oxide ink to each layer of the butterfly and then adhered it together. I thought this was a sweet and simple addition!

    I hope you enjoyed stopping by today and learning how to create ATC’s, as well as how to use your layering stencils to add texture!

    Have a great day and I will be back soon!


    Supplies


    cl5280D Gracious Floral Clear Stamp and Die Set

    Supplies


    57513 Curved Leaf Branch Contour Layers
    57490 Simple Butterfly Contour Layers
    42036 Gilded Grace Inside Stencil Set

    Supplies


    sp1007 Vibrant Violet
  • 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

  • So Glad We’re Friends | By Allison Frazier

    So Glad We’re Friends | By Allison Frazier

    Hello, Birch Press friends! Today, I am sharing this beautiful muted card with a pop of sunshine yellow as the focal point. It’s like when the sun comes out after a dreary winter day! It features the new Morning Rose Contour Layers die and the Delicate Floral Buds Contour Layers die set. I also used the new Gilded Petalpoint Stencil Set.

    I started by stenciling the front of a light gray A2 card base. For the first stencil (with the largest openings), I used a light gray ink, just slightly darker than the card stock itself. For the second stencil, I used a medium shade of gray ink. And for the third stencil, I used clear Nuvo Glimmer Paste. I really love the tone on tone effect, but that Glimmer Paste really makes it special. This stencil actually matches up with the new Gilded Petalpoint Hot Foil Plate, but as you can see here, it looks great on its own, too!

    Next, I started making my die cuts. I used three shades of yellow card stock from the Memory Box “Sunny Orange” paper pack for the flowers. For the main flower, I cut two layers of each part of the flower so that I could stack them for dimension. I used two shades of gray for the leaves. By the way, the leaves come from the Tropical Hibiscus Contour Layers set. I love mixing florals and leaves from all of the different Contour Layers sets!

    And speaking of mixing up florals, I used the Delicate Floral Buds for my little flowers, again making two layers of each part of the flower. The Morning Rose actually comes with the “Triple Buds” dies, but I just wanted to mix things up today. I cut the stems/leaves for the Delicate Floral Buds from the darker shade of gray paper.

    Once I had all of my elements cut and the layers stacked, it was time to assemble the arrangement. This is probably the part that took the most time! Once I was happy with an arrangement, I started with the bottom by glueing the Delicate Buds first. Then I popped the main flower up on foam tape. This allowed me to then tuck the leaves in under that flower and still continue to make some last minute changes to the leaf arrangement. I finished the card by heat embossing a sentiment from the Lingo Thanks stamp set. I also added three fairy jewels to the center of the rose, just to tie in the shine from the stenciled background.

    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


    57493 Morning Rose and Triple Buds Contour Layers
    57492 Delicate Floral Buds Contour Layers
    57486 Tropical Hibiscus Contour Layers
    42037 Gilded Petalpoint Stencil Set
    cl8143 Lingo Thanks clear stamp set
    sp1002 Sunny Orange 6×6 pack

    Supplies


    jwl001 Clear Jewels
  • Cotoneaster Greetings | by Toni M Maddox

    Cotoneaster Greetings | by Toni M Maddox

    Hello, Birch Press fans! Toni here with you today sharing a floral card that reminds me of my cotoneaster bush.

    The blooms of my cotoneaster aren’t very exciting but the resulting berries are prolific and gorgeous.

    I cut the Sylvan Berries Contour Layers from Memory Box Glitzy Glitter 6×6 cardstock and leftover cardstock I had used Brushos on once upon a time. I cut the Sylvan Leaves from Memory Box Lush Green 6×6 cardstock.

    I used the negative of the leaves diecut as a stencil with Distress Oxide Rustic Wilderness. What an easy way to add additional depth!

    I spattered a bit of Copics Opaque White and Distress Oxide Spray Vintage Photo before adding the sentiment.

    For that I used one of the Spellbinders Glimmer Satin Pastel hot foils with the Hugs Sugar Script Hot Foil Plate & Die. I wanted a smaller outline so cut the sentiment with the Sugar Script Big Hugs die. Cool shadow, right?!

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

    Supplies

    57503 Sylvan Berries and Leaves Contour Layers

    57138 Big Hugs Sugar Script

    bpf513 Hugs Sugar Script Hot Foil Plate and Die Set

    sp1003 Lush Green 6×6 pack

    gp1007 Glitzy Glitter Pad

  • Stenciled Gilded Grace by April Antonio

    Stenciled Gilded Grace by April Antonio

    Happy Thursday! Today I am sharing a project using the beautiful, Gilded Grace Inside stencil set using some beautiful warm, Fall colors. I’ve been on a stenciling kick lately and am really excited about this stencil set.

    To start this card I used the Herbarium Plate Layer A die with an embossing mat to dry emboss it onto the a piece of A2 white cardstock.

    Next, I took a piece of white cardstock along with a stencil mat (I like the Waffle Flower one) and put the most open, top stencil layer from the Gilded Grace Inside Stencil set and secured the edges with tape. I used my lightest color ink to fill in the stencil with my blending brushes.

    Next, I took the middle stencil and used my medium ink, and then used my darkest ink with the last stencil (the one that is the least open).

    I then used a larger stencil die and cut out the stenciled circle.

    I am also fairly new hot foiling and am loving it! I used the Hot Foil Sugar Script Sentiments 1 and hot foil the ‘just a note’ sentiment with gold foil on white cardstock.

    I adhered the stenciled circle to my embossed card front, and the sentiment on top of that.

    If you have not tried some of the Fairy Crystals I would highly recommend using them! I used some sparkle brown crystals from the Autumn Fairy Crystals set at set places around the circle.

    That is it! I hope this project has inspired you to go and have fun creating!

    Supplies

    57458 Herbarium Plate Layer Set

    42036 Gilded Grace Inside Stencil Set

    bpf503 Sugar Script Sentiments 1 Hot Foil Plate and Die Sets

    Supplies

    cry101 Autumn Fairy Crystals

  • Stylized Sunflower | by Toni M Maddox

    Stylized Sunflower | by Toni M Maddox

    Hello, everyone! Toni here with you today sharing a card using the Gilded Grace Hot Foil Plate and dies along with the stencil set.

    The first thing I did was to use the Gilded Grace Outside Stencil Set with Distress Oxide Peacock Feathers, Mustard Seed, and Barn Door. On the last color, Barn Door, I also used Versamark with WOW! Primary Fuschia Fusion embossing powder.

    I used Distress Oxide Peacock Feathers and Mustard Seed to color up the center medallion as well. It totally looks like a stylized sunflower, right?!

    My last step was to hot foil the Sugar Script Sentiments 1 in magenta and pop it on top of the center. So pretty.

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

     

    Supplies

     

     

    BPF503 Sugar Script Sentiments 1 Hot Foil Plate and Die Sets

     

     

     

     

    BPF512 Gilded Grace Hot Foil Plate and Die Set

     

     

     

     

    42035 Gilded Grace Outside Stencil Set

     

     

     

     

    42036 Gilded Grace Inside Stencil Set

     

     

     

  • Rainbow Gilded Grace

    Rainbow Gilded Grace

    Hello, Birch Press Friends! I am thrilled to be back with you today sharing a few of Birch Press Design’s new products. Are you ready for some sparkle and shine?

    I started with the gorgeous Gilded Grace Hot Foil Plate set. There are actually two plates in this set, along with a die that cuts the bigger circle. I foiled both plates onto smooth white card stock with gold foil using my hot foil machine. The results, even before coloring, are just gorgeous! But, there are matching stencil sets that help you color the design. There is one set of stencils for the “outside” design (what you see in blue and green on my card) and another set of stencils for the “inside” design (what you see in yellow and pink on my card). These stencils line up with the two different hot plates that come in the set. I used both for my card.

    I started by planning which colors would go where. I wanted a rainbow design, so working my way out, I determined that green and blue would be the “outside” colors. So, I used that stencil set to color the main panel. I did have to be a little careful towards the bottom when I was working on the two different colors, but it was fairly easy to keep them separate by using small blending brushes. I used three different shades of each color, as there are three layering stencils in each set.

    Before coloring the “inside” colors on the panel that I foiled the big circle on, I used a circle die to cut out the inner circle (where you see pink on my card). This made it easier to keep the pinks and yellows separate while ink blending. When I was finished ink blending the yellow piece, I also cut that out with a circle die. I was then able to give dimension to both of these circles by stacking additional circle dies behind them before glueing them onto the main panel. I just love the results of adding that dimension!

    I used some pink paper from the Vintage Pastel Mirror Pad to gold heat emboss the sentiment, which comes from the Rainbow Days Lingo Notes stamp set. I then cut it out with a small circle die and glued it to the center of the pink blended design. I finished the card by adding some fairy jewels in matching colors to tiny circles in the foiled design.

    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


    BPF512 Gilded Grace Hot Foil Plate and Die Set
    42035 Gilded Grace Outside Stencil Set
    42036 Gilded Grace Inside Stencil Set
    fp1002 Vintage Pastel Mirror Pad 6×6 pack
    cl8159 Rainbow Days Lingo Notes clear stamp set

    Supplies


    JWL005 Christmas Fairy Jewels
    JWL004 Autumn Fairy Jewels
  • Swirling Waves of Thanks | by April Antonio

    Swirling Waves of Thanks | by April Antonio

    Hello and happy Wednesday! Welcome back to the Birch Press Design blog — April here bringing you some waves of crafty goodness with a new project.

    Today’s project features the new Curling Waves stencils, embossing folder and matching die set.

    I started today’s project by really wanting to use the new Curling Waves stencils. This was my first time using the stencils and I was intrigued by the two-tone look that could be achieved by using both together. The set comes with two stencils; one has larger waves, and the other smaller waves that fit right on top to give that 3-D wave effect.

    I aligned the first stencil with the larger waves over an A2 sized piece of white cardstock and ink blended using a light blue ink. Next I aligned the stencil with the smaller waves right on top, making sure to line up the waves, and ink blended using a dark teal color ink.

    The next important step I did involved the embossing folder. The stencil design actually matches up to the embossing folder exactly. I took the A2 sized piece of cardstock, carefully aligned it with the embossing folder waves, and used a piece of painter’s tape to keep it in place. Then I ran it through my die cut machine.

    Since this is a 3-D embossing folder, and is thicker than regular embossing folders, I used two plastic shims instead of two cutting plates to run this through. I am using Gemini die cut machine, and it worked beautifully.

    Next, I took a piece of teal colored metallic paper from the Vintage Pastel Mirror Pad and also ran that through my die cut machine with the Curling Waves embossing folder — the results? Wow!

    Now I have two A2 panels with the waves on them. I took the metallic A2 panel and used my paper trimmer to cut it at an angle starting at the bottom left edge. I took one of those pieces and cut a about 1.5″ off from the top.

    Now I had to metallic pieces with the exact same embossed pattern as my white A2 panel that I stenciled on. Using liquid glue, I lined up the metallic pieces in the top left and bottom right corners of the white panel, make sure to line up the curling waves embossed pattern so it would appear to continue on as one seamless pattern.

    Next, I took a piece of light blue metallic cardstock from the same Vintage Pastel cardstock pack and used the matching Curling Waves die cuts to cut out the individual waves. I glued these to the front of the card using liquid glue.

    Next, I adhered the entire panel to an A2 card base and used the ‘thank you’ from the Kind Hearts stamp set to heat emboss the sentiment to the middle portion of the card. In hindsight, I should have stamped the sentiment before dry embossing the white panel, but it worked out okay.

    My final touches were to add some gemstones from the Winter Fantasy Fairy set to the center of the curls.

    This card took a little bit more time, but it turned out great. I’m especially excited about using these new Birch Press 3-D embossing folders. I hope this has inspired you to get out there and craft. Have a great day!

    Supplies

    88624 Curling Waves Stencil

    EF1032 Curling Waves 3D Embossing Folder and Matching Dies

    GEM102 Winter Fantasy Fairy Gemstones

    Supplies

    CL8163 Kind Hearts clear stamp set

    FP1003 Rainbow Reflections Mirror Pad 6×6 pack

    fp1002 Vintage Pastel Mirror Pad 6×6 pack

  • You Lift Me Up | by Toni M Maddox

    You Lift Me Up | by Toni M Maddox

    Hello, everyone! Toni here with you today sharing a mixed media card as I felt like a change of pace. My garden is starting to awaken which had me thinking of spring, flowers, and butterflies plus a healthy dose of rain in the Pacific Northwest.

    The card front is a combination of Distress Inks, Ranger Archival and Catherine Pooler inks sponged through stencils like the Memory Box Open Studio Leafy Rows. I also used the smooshing technique with the flower and stripes stencils.

    I added some additional dots of Liquitex Acrylic Paint using the rounded end of my paintbrush handles. I love the texture on this card so very much!

    I finished the card base by embossing the Lovely Butterflies sentiment a few times in white and adding the top layer of the Honeycomb Bevel Plate Layer Set which I sponged with Distress Oxide Mustard Seed and Fossilized Amber.

    I stamped the Lovely Butterflies with Ranger Archival Jet Black on Memory Box Open Studio Watercolor Paper and colored them up with Zig Real Brush Markers 042, 052 and 070. I creased the wings along the body of the butterflies so they would stick up. The watercolor paper is sturdy enough I think they’ll pop back up after mailing too.

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

    Supplies

    8150 Lovely Butterflies clear stamp and die set

    56104 Honeycomb Bevel Plate Layer Set

    88615 Leafy Rows Stencil

    WP101 Watercolor Paper