Thursday, April 5, 2018

Sneak Peek Week: Introducing Berry Bliss & Background Basics

Hello there!  Only one more "sleep" until the big day!  I have been anxiously waiting for today to arrive because I am seriously giddy over our newest stamp layering set called Berry Bliss which includes everything you need to create strawberries, blueberries, raspberries & cherries that look juicy enough to eat (available for purchase April 6th).

We also have a new background stamp set called Background Basics that I have fallen so madly in love with that it was hard to resist the urge to use it on nearly every card this week.  It is perfect for when you just need a little snippet of patterned paper and I love all the different looks I was able to create from this single 4x6 set.  I don't think I've made a dent in all the variations you can achieve!

For my first card I wanted to use all the stamps in the Berry Bliss set to create a yummy border.  I’m a huge fan of bold black and white prints with pops of color so the striped border stamped in Versafine Black Onyx Ink was the perfect compliment.  For my sentiment I paired our new Hello Word die with the word sweetie from the set.

Sunny Studio: Berry Bliss Color Layering Strawberry, Cherry, Blueberry & Raspberry Card with B&W Stripes using Background Basics stamps

Up next is another clean & simple card using the gingham border from the set.  Sadly in this example my ink pad was a bit over-inked so some of the definition disappeared, but I think it's a fun look either way--It sort of reminds me of lattice which goes so well with the fruit theme.  ;)

To dress up my panel down the center, I die-cut small zig-zag borders using our Ric Rac Border dies.  To help my fruit stand out and add some dimension, I adhered each one to my card using foam tape.

Sunny Studio: Berry Bliss Color Layering Strawberry, Cherry & Raspberry Card with Green Gingham Borders using Background Basics stamps

For my next card I took inspiration from Gymboree and one of my many favorite collections of theirs from over a decade ago.  My daughter had these sandals way back when (I swear I was obsessed with them) which I based the feel of my card on.

For my card I die-cut the three windows using our Window Trio Square dies.  I then backed the background for each, alternating yellow gingham and polka-dot using the Background Basics stamps.  For the sentiment I borrow a stamp from our Fresh & Fruity set and die-cut my scalloped edge using our Stitched Scallop dies.

Sunny Studio: Berry Bliss Color Layering Cherries Red Gingham Card by Mendi Yoshikawa (using Fancy Frames Oval dies, Fresh & Fruity and Background Basics stamps)

For this card highlighting the cherries from the set, I paired them with the cherries from our older Fresh & Fruity set which I heat embossed with VersaMark ink and clear embossing powder on red cardstock.  I then took a Copic Marker in a slightly darker shade and added some quick swipes with my pen to give light definition to them.

I was very strategic when stamping my gingham background.  While this border doesn't invisibly repeat, you can line them up to form a continuous background--You will just see the seam were the two solid triangles line up to form a diamond.  With this in mind I was able to position the layers of my Fancy Frames Oval dies so that you would never know there was a seam or notice the gingham was actually stamped three times across.  To perfectly match the scalloped edge of my oval I used the long edge of the Fancy Frames Rectangle Dies for the bottom edge of my card.

Sunny Studio Blog: Thank You Cherry Much Red Gingham Oval Cherries Card (using Berry Bliss & Background Basics Stamps, Fancy Frames Oval Dies)

For my last card of the day I wanted to play with different ink colors for my fruit.  I love that you can switch things up and create the look of raspberries, boysenberries and blackberries all with the same set of stamps!  I used our newest exclusive Fancy Frames Rectangle dies to form the lacy edge of my card base and then clear heat embossed the polka-dots and stripes from the Background Basics set to form glossy tone-on-tone prints.  As a final finishing touch I stamped my sentiment with stamps from our Sweet Shoppe set which has so many phrases that play nicely with these images.

Sunny Studio: Berry Bliss Color Layering Strawberry, Boysenberry & Raspberry Card (paired with Background Basics stamps & Fancy Frames Stitched Scallop Rectangle Dies)

When I first started stamping with the polka-dot border I was having trouble judging where to position my stamp to achieve a continuous background without any strange gaps. Then I discovered a fabulous trick!  If you line up the edge of the back of the stamp with the bottom of the previously stamped polka-dots it will line up perfectly.  There's a strange illusion that it's too close and that it should be moved further down, but as you will discover the edge achieves perfect spacing (which I learned the hard way after several failed attempts).  ;)

Sunny Studio Stamps: Background Basics Polka-dot Guide secrets to lining up perfectly every time

Here's a layering guide to help you line up the Berry Bliss stamps (you can click on the photo below to view it larger).  For all the fruits, except the blueberry, I stamped them starting with the lightest ink color, working to the darkest.  The black outlines indicate where that layer touches the previously stamped layer.  :)
Sunny Studio Stamps: Berry Bliss Strawberry, Blueberry, Cherry & Raspberry Stamp Layering Guide

I frequently am asked which ink colors I used for my layered images.  While I think there are so many great options out there that can provide good results, these are the colors I used today for my stamped images (in the ordered shared from lightest to darkest)...

Blueberries
Colorbox Sky

Colorbox Blueberry
Colorbox Atlantic Blue


True Red Strawberries
Colorbox Bubblegum
Colorbox Candy Red
Colorbox Cranberry

Berry Red Strawberries
Colorbox Bubblegum
Stampin' Up Melon Mambo
Colorbox Red Devil


True Red Cherries
Colorbox Strawberry

Colorbox Candy Red
Colorbox Cranberry


Berry Red Cherries
Stampin' Up Melon Mambo
Colorbox Blossom
Colorbox Red Devil

Red Raspberries
Stampin' Up Melon Mambo
Colorbox Blossom

Colorbox Red Devil
Colorbox Cranberry

Pink Raspberries

Colorbox Candy
Colorbox Pinkolicious
Colorbox Very Berry

Colorbox Dark Cherry

Boysenberries
Colorbox Burgundy
Colorbox Dark Cherry
Colorbox Deep Grape

Versafine Nocture

Olive Green Stems
Colorbox Tree Frog
Colorbox Artichoke


Dark Green Stems
Colorbox Grasshopper

Colorbox Golf Course

I'm so excited you've joined me for today's sneak peek and I'd love to give a $25 gift code to one lucky winner.  Make sure to keep checking back all this week for more peeks & prizes for up to five chances to win.  The contests run through Saturday at Midnight PST with winners announced here on Sunday, April 8th. :)


a Rafflecopter giveaway
Here's a sneak peek at the new Berry Bliss stamps & coordinating dies and Background Basics Stamps featured today (which will be available for purchase tomorrow).


Sunny Studio: Berry Bliss Strawberry, Blueberry, Cherry & Raspberry Color Layering 4x6 Clear Stamps  Sunny Studio Stamps: Berry Bliss Steel Rule Dies  Sunny Studio Stamps: Background Basics Stripes, Polka-dot & Gingham Border Prints 4x6 Clear Stamps

Before you head off to shop tomorrow morning, don't forget to stop here first for one last sneak peek, a giveaway, and a special offer.  ;)

Other Sunny Studio Supplies Used:

Fresh & Fruity Stamps
Fresh & Fruity Stamps
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Stitched Scallop Dies
Stitched Scallop Dies
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Sweet Shoppe Stamps
Sweet Shoppe Stamps
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Ric Rac Border Dies
Ric Rac Border Dies
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Fancy Frames- Ovals
Fancy Frames- Ovals
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Fancy Frames- Rectangles
Fancy Frames- Rectangles
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Window Trio- Square Die
Window Trio- Square Die
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Hello Word Die
Hello Word Die
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Wednesday, April 4, 2018

Sneak Peek Week: Introducing Party Pups & Devoted Doggies

Hello there!  Welcome to day 3 of sneak peeks.  We're officially half way through our new products coming out on Friday.  I hope you've enjoyed everything so far.  Today I have two new Dog themed stamp sets and their coordinating dies to share!

Up first is a fun card combining our new 4x6 Party Pups and 3x4 Devoted Doggies sets with our previously shared Window Trio Circle dies and new 6x6 Paper Packs.

I am a huge fan of tone-on-tone papers so I'm completely smitten with the simple diagonal grid pattern found in our new Classic Gingham paper pack.  They also match so well with the patterns in our Rainbow Bright paper set like the one used here.  I can't wait to start using these papers more!  

I really love the look of having the balloons pop out beyond the circles.  Before adhering them to my card front, I figured out my general placement and then drew lines with a ruler and my 0.1 Copic Multiliner pen.  Isn't that dog bone cake so fun?!
Sunny Studio Stamps: Party Pups Puppy Dog Birthday Balloons Card by Mendi Yoshikawa

Up next I used that same combo of products, this time turning my card on the vertical and die-cutting a second row of the Window Trio Circle dies. My paper is from the same pack, this time using the reverse side for the fun gingham prints.  For my sentiment I heat embossed it onto black cardstock which had been die-cut using the banner from our Little Angels dies.
Sunny Studio Stamps: Party Pups Dog Grid Style Birthday Card (using Window Trio Circle Dies & Classic Gingham 6x6 Papers)

I love that these little dogs don't have to be used just for birthday cards!  For the most part the hats and accessories come separate so you can create everyday cards with them too (except for the fact that I couldn't resist adding a hat on my dog in the end after all).  

My stamped background was inspired by a card my daughter made for her friend.  I think many of the dogs would work well with this style of repeat stamping, but I was so excited to realize they fit together perfectly like a puzzle!
Sunny Studio Stamps: Party Pups Corgi Hot Diggity Dog Card by Mendi Yoshikawa
My next card highlights Devoted Doggies exclusively.  I blended distress oxide inks for my background and then stamped the little paw print from the set which was heat embossed with a clear iridescent pearl powder. I completely lucked out when I discovered that Offray's Sunburst Rainbow ribbon was a perfect match!

For my sentiment I die-cut a stitched label using our new Sunny Studio website exclusive Fancy Frames Rectangle dies together with Studio Katia Iridescent Bubbles.  This sentiment can be used a couple different ways-For example, the word "ruff" can also be rearranged to say "I ruff you".  :)
Sunny Studio Stamps: Devote Doggies "Heard You Had A Ruff Day" Rainbow Puppy Dog Card by Mendi Yoshikawa

Up next is one of my favorites... Seeing all those doggies from the two sets peeking around our Fancy Frames Rectangle Dies makes me smile every time!  In this case, I fussy cut my dogs out, but I think it would also work well if you wanted to stamp the dogs onto a large piece of cardstock, create a mask for inking and then crop it down.  My blue sky was sponged on using tumbled glass distress ink and my favorite Jumbo dauber.  For my card background, I repeatedly stamped the bone on the diagonal from the Devoted Doggies set onto Neenah Desert Storm cardstock and then lightly sponged that same ink around the edges for extra definition between the layers.
Sunny Studio Stamps: Party Pups & Devoted Doggies "For My Favorite Human" Dog Card by Mendi Yoshikawa

For this card I had a blast creating my colorful striped background using the Versafine Clair inks and our new Background Basics stamps which will be fully unveiled in tomorrow's post.  Because I wanted to line up each striped panel so they seamlessly connected together, I lost about 1/4" in length as I moved my strips up or down to match.  

To solve the issue of my card panel not quite covering an A2 card, I created a fun candle border to bridge the gap using the single candle stamp from the Party Pups set.  I colored in a circular motion outside the lines, over each flame, using a lighter yellow copic marker to give the appearance my candles are glowing and then colored the candles and balloons to match my background. 
Sunny Studio: Party Pups & Devoted Doggies Birthday Card by Mendi Yoshikawa (featuring stripes from Background Basics stamps & Fancy Frames Oval dies)

My last card of the day was made special for my sister and her sweet fur babies, Maggie, Lucy & Layla. For my shaker I used some of my favorite rainbow confetti by Studio Katia and patterned paper from Echo Park's Hello Easter & Celebrate Easter collections.
Sunny Studio Stamps Party Pups Pomeranian & Papillon Birthday Wishes & Puppy Dog Kisses Shaker Card

I'm so excited you've joined me for today's sneak peek and I'd love to give a $25 gift code to one lucky winner.  Make sure to keep checking back all this week for more peeks & prizes for up to five chances to win.  The contests run through Saturday at Midnight PST with winners announced here on Sunday, April 8th. :)


a Rafflecopter giveaway
Here's a sneak peek at the new Party Pups 4x6 stamps & coordinating dies and the Devoted Doggies 3x4 Stamps & coordinating dies featured today (which will be available for purchase on Friday, April 6th).


Sunny Studio: Party Pups Puppy Dog Birthday 4x6 Clear Stamp Set     Sunny Studio Stamps: Party Pups Coordinating Steel Rule Dies

Sunny Studio Stamps: Devoted Doggies 3x4 Puppy Dog Clear Stamp Set     Sunny Studio Stamps: Devoted Doggies Coordinating Steel Rule Dies

Other Sunny Studio Supplies Used:
Little Angels Stamps
Little Angels Stamps
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Fancy Frames- Ovals
Fancy Frames- Ovals
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Fancy Frames- Rectangles
Fancy Frames- Rectangles
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Window Trio- Circles Die
Window Trio- Circles Die
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Window Trio- Square Die
Window Trio- Square Die
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Background Basics Stamps
Background Basics Stamps
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Sunny Studio
Classic Gingham 6x6 Paper
Classic Gingham 6x6 Paper
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Rainbow Bright 6x6 Paper
Rainbow Bright 6x6 Paper
Shop at:
Sunny Studio