A Wintry Surprise Inside

With the new product release Tuesday, there are so many fun new products to share! I've got some new products from the September-December catalog and the new Online Exclusives in one pretty fun fold card.

I love a card with a little surprise, and this one definitely has one! At first glance, it looks like a pretty winter card, but when you open it...ta-da! A shadow box pops open inside! Even better, the whole thing folds flat to fit into an envelope, so it’s easy to mail but also makes a beautiful little display once it arrives.

The gorgeous Whispering Woods Designer Series Paper really sets the mood for this card. The watercolor-style trees and wintry shades were perfect for the little scene I wanted to create. And this paper is extra special because it is Stampin’ Up!®’s give-back product this year. For every pack of Whispering Woods Designer Series Paper sold, Stampin’ Up!® will donate $3 to organizations that help “spread a little holiday cheer.” I love it when pretty paper can do a little good, too!

I paired the paper with the Winter Adventures Bundle, using the trees inside my shadow box and the pretty pine sprig and pinecones on the front.

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Here are the paper dimensions you’ll need to create the shadow box card:

Pretty Peacock cardstock:

-11" x 4 1/4", scored at 5 1/2" and 9 3/4"

-6 3/4" x 4 1/4", scored 1 1/4" from each end

Basic White cardstock:

-4" x 4" (inside)

-1 3/4" Circle

-Scraps for pine bows

Garden Green cardstock:

-Two trees from the Winter Adventures Dies

Whispering Woods Designer Series Paper:

-4" x 4" (outside)

-4" x 4" (inside shadow box)

-1 1/4" x 4 1/4" (spine)

Now for a couple of fun little tricks! I wanted the pine sprig to have Garden Green pine needles with Pecan Pie stems and pinecones. Since we no longer have water-based markers to color directly onto our stamps, I grabbed a cheap cotton swab. And I mean cheap—the ones without a giant wad of cotton on the end work best! I dipped one end into Pecan Pie ink and the other into Garden Green, then used them to carefully ink the different parts of the stamp. It worked beautifully!

I ran into another little dilemma with my sentiment. “Warm Winter Wishes” wouldn't fit inside my 1-3/4" circle without completely ruining the vibe. Nope. Not happening. 😂

So I pulled out my new Pecan Pie Stampin’ Spot (now 50% bigger, store themselves upside down, and the lid stays on!) and inked and stamped one word at a time. “Winter” needed a little more precision, so out came that cotton swab again to ink just that word.

One VERY important tip if you try this one word at a time stamping thing: clean your stamp really well between every word! Even a tiny bit of leftover ink can leave a faint ghost image where you definitely don’t want one.

A few extra steps? Yep. Worth it? Absolutely! And I especially love that the recipient gets a pretty winter card AND a little shadow box to display. ❤️

You can watch my What's Up! Stampers where I make this card!:

Happy new products!

Amy