Daffodils for Day of Reflection

March 23, 2021March 22, 2021 ~ Karen Young

Today marks one year on from the first UK lockdown, and the start of a National Day of Reflection.

Having lost someone close during this time, I will be reflecting during the day. My reflections will be for both me and my family, and for others who are also grieving.

Along with a minute of silence at 12 noon and shining a light at 8pm, another suggestion is to buy yellow flowers, Day of Reflection. Project designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

Rather than buy some flowers to mark the day, I have made some 3D punch art daffodils to put in my own window.

They are simply made from two punches, Perennial Flower Punch pieces in Daffodil Delight. It couldn’t be any other colour! The trumpets are from the Small Bloom Punch in Pumpkin Pie and the stems are strips cut from Granny Apple Green.

Day of Reflection. Project designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

There are so many extra touches that could be added to them, from additional layers, inking the edges and different colour ways. But I wanted to keep mine simple and create the essence of daffodils, rather than be really precise.

If you want to make your own daffodils, the products I’ve used are listed below.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies shown below, head to my Online Store

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Special Christmas Cards – Sweetest Borders Dies

December 2, 2020November 27, 2020 ~ Karen Young

This candle project is another design from my recent Special Christmas Cards class.

It’s a nod to the project on Page 21 of the August-December Mini Catalogue.

Pear Pizzazz and Crumb Cake provide the base card and layer, with Garden Green and Real Red for the holly.

The candles are made from Copper Foil Sheets, with flames from the Perennial Flower Punch.

I think the attendees are talking to me again after this project, as it was a little bit fiddly!

Using Tear and Tape on the back of the holly, leaving the backing on, each of the pieces was infilled with the opposite colour piece on the front.

Then, Real Red pieces were added to the back to fill in for the holly berries.

I’m not sure if you can see it very well as the Copper Foil Sheets are shiny, but I have embossed the candles using the scoring blade on my Paper Trimmer.

The flames have a Wink of Stella sparkle added to them before the candles are stuck to the Whisper White layer.

A length of Ribbon from the Basket Weave Metallic Ribbon Combo Pack is attached to back of the holly piece.

This piece is then attached using lots of Dimensionals to raise it above the candles.

Finally, Wonderful Gems are added to some of the berries for some extra sparkle.

All of the projects for this class included a box to be made too. This one had a Crumb Cake base with a Pear Pizzazz top that I have decorated.

Pop back soon to see the final project from this class.

Happy crafting

To order any of the supplies shown below, head to my Online Store

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Fabulous Florals – A Purple Posy Project

September 30, 2020September 28, 2020 ~ Karen Young

The third card from my recent Fabulous Florals Class is this pretty Purple Posy project.

Purple Posy is my main colour, with some Soft Sea Foam leaves.

A piece of the Playing with Patterns 6×6 DSP in Purple Posy is cut into 1 inch squares and placed in a square pattern. This is one of the select DSP packs that is part of October’s 15% off DSP sale – starts tomorrow.

Co-ordinating Purple Posy Ribbon from the Playing with Patterns Ribbon Combo Pack is added. Note how I’ve created more interest by using the stripes in the opposite direction to the stripes on the DSP.

A sentiment from the Itty Bitty Birthdays Stamp Set is inked using the Purple Posy Stampin’ Write Marker.

Using the Perennial Flower Punch, two Purple Posy shapes are cut, and then scrunched to make the flower.

The Soft Sea Foam leaves, from the Tulip Builder Punch are also scrunched, before being added to the back of the flower.

Tear & Tape is used to attach the flower to the project as it needs a stronger adhesive due to the scrunching and layers. You could also use Stampin’ SEAL+ for this.Finally, three Rhinestones add some bling to the centre of the flower.

The various layers under the flower, with the Rhinestones on top, make this quick a thick project. Make sure you double check is you need to use a large stamp before posting this Purple Posy project.

Why not join me at a future class. Head to my Class Timetable for full details.

Happy crafting

To order any of the supplies shown below, head to my Online Store

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Painted Poppies and Floral Essence for a Special Birthday

June 21, 2020June 20, 2020 ~ Karen Young

Today I’m sharing another special commission with you. I created this card using Painted Poppies and Floral Essence, plus a few punches.

It a special Birthday card for one of my regular class attendees and is based on this card I made previously.

The marble effect background is from the only Ink Pad I used on the project, Melon Mambo. The image is from the Painted Poppies Stamp Set, part of a 10% discounted Bundle with the Painted Labels Dies. Take a look at the Annual Catalogue to see all the available Bundles.

One of the dies from the Bundle, also cut in Melon Mambo is underneath the flowers. Highland Heather Sprig Punch shapes are also behind the flowers.

Floral Essence and the matching Perennial Flower Punch create the pretty flowers. A Blender Pen colours the flowers slightly by dragging the ink from the centre.

Well Said provides the sentiment and these are cut using the Classic Label Punch, then placing them in the ‘wrong’ way and creating a banner end. For the layers, these are cut using the Triple Banner Punch.

As the card was being hand-delivered, there were a lot more layers than I would create for regular post.

My favourite ribbon to colour, the Whisper White Crinkled Seam Binding has the colouring treatment with a Highland Heather Stampin’ Blend.

Finally, Wink of Stella is added to the centre of the flowers and a few Rhinestones for some sparkle.

Take a look at the various classes and kits I have available at my Class Timetable. Or, if it ‘isn’t your thing’ and you’d like me to create something for you instead, then take a look at my handmade cards page.

Happy crafting

To order any of the supplies shown below, head to my Online Store

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Mystery Pack – Pretty Petal Washi Tape

May 21, 2020May 18, 2020 ~ Karen Young

Last week’s Mystery Pack recipients received this bundle of items, including the retiring very pretty Petal Washi Tape. Along with these items, a sentiment could also be used to make a card.

I chose to use Merry Merlot, Mossy Meadow and Very Vanilla for my colour combination as they match the Washi Tape and Ribbon Combo Pack. I then added Crushed Curry.

Here is the project I made using the items from the pack.

Click on the video below to see how I put the project together, including the flower.

For the ribbon, I used one strip across the project and then added the twine at the top and bottom. I also cut the Merry Merlot Label Me Lovely Punch shape in half and put it behind the Crushed Curry piece to create a layered look.

The sentiment is from the Timeless Tulips Stamp Set using Merry Merlot ink. I think it just finshes the card beautifully and makes it a pretty project.

Don’t forget to get your hands on those retiring items, there are only a few weeks left. The flower centres have sold out and are no longer available.

If you want to join in with the next Mystery Pack, or get involved in any of my other classes, find out full details here.

Happy crafting

To order any of the supplies shown below, head to my Online Store

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Punch Art Easter Lamb

April 9, 2020April 8, 2020 ~ Karen Young

How cute is this punch art Easter lamb? It’s one of the projects from my Children’s Card Making Kits.

I designed two Easter cards for the kit and this is the first. These Children’s Card Making Kits are part of my Social Isolation Classes offering, currently replacing my regular face-to-face Card & Cuppa for Children Classes I would have been holding during the Easter holidays.

Although the project is designed with children in mind, it’s a perfect project for anyone to create!

Balmy Blue Sky, Garden Green Grass and a Daffodil Delight sun are joined by a Basic Black and Whisper White lamb.

Quite a collection of punches are used from Circle to Layering Circles Dies, there’s even Balloon Bouquet and Elephant Builder Punches used too. You’ll notice that it also uses the Small Bloom Punch from SAB that isn’t currently available. But, fingers crossed it will be making an appearance in the Catalogue again soon.

The project has an accompanying craft-along video that you can join in with too, where I take you through all the steps to make this punch art Easter lamb.

I hope you enjoy the project. Pop back soon to see the other card from this Easter Kit.

To join in with any of my classes, head to my Class Timetable for full details.

Happy crafting

To order any of the supplies shown below, head to my Online Store

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Last Week’s Card & (Your) Cuppa – Floral and Punches

April 6, 2020April 5, 2020 ~ Karen Young

Last week we held our first Card & (Your) Cuppa session. These are my new virtual classes where the attendees are posted a kit and we craft together from our homes over video link, instead of in person.

It was a strange experience, but it was lovely to ‘see’ and chat to the attendees as we crafted together.

At the moment, I’m unable send pre-stamped images in the kits, so the project is made from punched shapes to create the floral design.

I’ve used the Perennial Flower Punch, Starburst Punch, Sprig Punch, Circle Punches and Braided Border Punch. My colour combination is Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive and Calypso Coral, along with Whisper White.

The Braided Border piece has been cut into a pointed shape at each end, following the shape of the pattern. This could also be a banner shape if you’d like.

A length of Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon has been wrapped round the card to add some texture.

To add even more texture, leaves were scrunched before before being attached to the card.

More scrunching was needed for the two flower sections, before they were stuck together. The centre piece was a punched circle pre-coated with Wink of Stella and attached to Glue Dot for the attendees to add.

The layers and the flowers were stuck together and added to the card in one piece with Dimensionals.

Finally, three Rhinestones were added, to mirror the sparkle of the Wink of Stella and the subtle shimmer of the Ribbon.

To join me for my current classes, head to my Class Timetable for full details.

Don’t forget to check out the BRAND NEW product suite that has just been released. It’s a Suite from the new Catalogue that will be coming in a few months time.

Happy crafting

To order any of the supplies shown below, head to my Online Store

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Mum’s Birthday Card

January 30, 2020January 29, 2020 ~ Karen Young

My Mum had a birthday ending in ‘0’ recently, so I obviously made her a special card for the occasion.

Mum's Birthday Card. Project designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

This card was the starting point for a 2019 Card & Cuppa project.

It uses a combination of Balmy Blue and Blueberry Bushel with Very Vanilla.

As Mum is also a keen crafter, it puts a lot of pressure on what I make, so a lot of products were strewn across my crafting desk!

The card has stamped images from the Artisan Textures Stamp Set, Well Said Stamp Set and Floral Essence Stamp Set.

I also used the Leaf Punch, Classic Label Punch and Perennial Flower Punch.

A Pearlized Doily was coloured on the white side using a Sponge Brayer and the flowers were softened using a Blender Pen to give a variegated effect.

Baker’s Twine was coloured with a Dark Balmy Blue Stampin’ Blend for the bow. There were also strips of Lace Trim and co-ordinating Blueberry Bushel Ribbon too.

Finally, I added Clear Faceted Gems to the centre of the flowers.

As this card was delivered by hand, I built up the layers and created extra depth using Dimensionals. Normally, anything that is posted is thin enough to use a regular stamp.

It’s not a great picture, but it gives an idea of the various layers I created.

I decided to create a larger square card, instead of my regular rectangle and made a co-ordinating envelope from DSP too.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the product images below to go to my online store.

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Blueberry Bushel 1/8" (3.2 mm) Grosgrain Ribbon

Very Vanilla 3/8" (1 cm) Scalloped Lace Trim

Last Week’s Card & Cuppa – Floral Essence and Perennial Birthday

October 14, 2019October 13, 2019 ~ Karen Young

For last week’s Card & Cuppa Class, it was the turn of the Floral Essence and Perennial Birthday Stamp Sets.

Floral Essence & Perennial Birthday. Project designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

The Floral Essence Stamp Set is part of a Bundle with the Perennial Flower Punch.

A colour combination of Blushing Bride, Merry Merlot, Mossy Meadow and Whisper White work really well with this project. Petal Pink is also used for the colouring.

The background circle is from the Swirly Frames Stamp Set and draws the eye to the flower.

My trusty Detailed Trio Punch softens the project by rounding the corners.

Dots from the Perennial Birthday Stamp Set then add a path across the left of the project, leaving white space on the right-hand side.

Leaves and flowers are then stamped and punched. Stampin’ Blends in Petal Pink are used to quickly colour the flowers.

Wink of Stella is added to the flowers and flower centres before each flower is built. Although you can’t see it in the photo, the flowers were very sparkly!

On a separate piece of cardstock the sentiment is stamped before being added to the project.

Finally, the leaves and flowers are stuck to the project, with the central flower raised up on Dimensionals.

Despite not liking pink, I really like this project and think the colour combination works really well. I also think this design would work in other colours or with different sentiments too.

Join us for a future Card & Cuppa session. For full details and to book your place, head to my Class Timetable.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the product images below to go to my online store.

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Perennial Birthday Cling-Mount Stamp Set

Petal Pink Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack

Pretty Purple Posy

July 25, 2019July 23, 2019 ~ Karen Young

Isn’t Purple Posy a fabulous new addition to the Stampin’ Up! range as part of the In Color 2019-2021 Collection?

Purple Posy In Color from Stampin' Up! Project designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

This project was one from my annual Introduction to In Color Papercrafting Class I ran recently.

Purple Posy combines beautifully here with the subtle Soft Sea Foam and an existing In Color, Grapefruit Grove.

As the Stampin’ Pad is not currently available, we’ve used Versamark and the Artisan Textures Stamp Set to create a tone-on-tone background effect.

The flower from the Floral Essence Stamp Set is also stamped the same way and cut out using the Punch from the same Bundle. A small punched circle coloured with Wink of Stella completes the centre.

Corners are rounded with the Detailed Trio Punch and leaves are cut with the Sprig Punch and placed behind.

Two strips of the co-ordinating Scallop Ribbon are attached to the top and bottom of the sentiment from the Vibrant Vases Stamp Set.

These are then all attached to the background, with the flower added at the end with a Dimensional.

I’ aware that this project uses a lot of different products, but I really like the finished effect. You could amend it to use just one or two stamp sets or punches if needed.

If you’re wondering how Purple Posy fits into the colour range, here is a comparison I’ve put together with other current purples.