Puppy Mail for You

Hello everyone, thanks for joining me today. I wanted to make a happy mail card using the new “Puppy Mail” stamp set from Gerda Steiner Designs.  I love to get happy mail (especially when it’s crafting supplies!), but a fun or loving note from someone is equally as good to receive and this stamp set is perfect for those cards.

Inside the card

I coloured my images with copic markers and added a few extra envelopes. I drew my envelopes but you could easily stamp the mailbox stamp again and use a few from the mail pile already on the stamp.

I then made a stencil from a “Bright Hearts” Memory Box die I had just received - in some happy mail! - and ink blended the hearts in Distress Oxide Worn Lipstick in the center of my card. Then I applied some Moonstone glimmer paste over this and let it all dry. Once it was dry I glued my puppy mail box image over the stencilled area and added a few extra envelopes to fill in the gaps. I stamped the sentiment just below my scene and the card front was done! 

I love it when there’s a little something extra on a card, so on the inside, I added the two puppy images. I stamped the “I woof you” sentiment on some white cardstock, and die cut it with a speech bubble die I had in my stash (I had to do a little partial die cutting to make it fit around the words).  I ran a black marker around the edges to highlight the speech bubble, and then glued it onto the inside of my card. This was a quick and simple card to make, and it’s just so nice to have some stamps in your supplies that can make a great “thinking of you” type of card. I hope you’ll give this card a try! 

Flip Sider Puppy Mail

Hello everyone, I’ve got an interactive card today featuring the “Puppy Mail” stamp set from Gerda Steiner designs. I’ve used all the puppy images in this set and have made a flip slider card with them. I love how this set can be used for a happy mail card but also a thank you card for someone looking after a dog.

If you would like to see a YouTube video of how I made this card, please CLICK HERE.

I started by stamping out the images with Copic friendly ink and colouring them in with Copic markers. I made sure to space my images out when I stamped them, because I used the “Selfie Square” die from MFT to cut them out into flip cards. I also die cut the “Polaroid Shaker Frame” from MFT out of Neenah 80# cardstock, to create a 2.5” frame for the cards. If you have a set of square dies, you could just use these to cut the squares and frames. I coloured in the background of the flip cards with Copic markers and then the frames with coordinating markers. Next, I cut four 2.5” squares of cardstock to adhere the flip card to and glued the frame around it. This makes the flip card sturdier and hides the copic bleeding on the back.

To create the mechanism for the flip cards, I cut out a rectangle from Neenah 80# cardstock that measured 2 1/4” wide by 8 1/2” long. I also cut a smaller rectangle that was 1/2” x 4” long.

I creased the larger rectangle starting from the left edge at the 2.5” mark and each 1/2” after that up to, and including, the 4” mark. Then I used a bone folder to really crease these folds. They all fold in the same direction, but need to be well folded. I corner rounded the ends on the long side of this rectangle piece.

Then I glued the smaller rectangle in its center 2.5”, and adhered that to the top of the very end of the larger rectangle, centering it over the first 2.5” square.  This becomes the tab that holds the flip slider in place, and should be folded and creased down over the long rectangle piece.

Next, I used double sided tape to adhere my flip cards. The first one was applied to the 2.5” square, and each card after that was adhered to one strip of tape applied along each fold line. The remainder of this long rectangular piece folds underneath the flip cards and through the small tabs.

I die cut the word “Pull” and glued it to the corner rounded end of the slider mechanism. I also stamped some paw prints onto this end so it would add interest when pulled out.

I die cut a cover die for the front of my card and glued it to some blue cardstock. Then I applied double sided tape to the 2 small tabs and also some glue over the tape. I would recommend having these tabs already folded over the long pullout end before glueing them as it gets messy. Then I adhered the flip mechanism to the front of my card - the 2 small tabs are the only thing adhering the mechanism to the card front. Scary, I know, but it works! I let this dry under some acrylic blocks, and then attached my sentiment.

This sounds like a  complicated card, but it’s really not that hard to make and it’s super fun to play with. I really hope you’ll give it a try!