Fun Folds

I’m calling today’s card a hybrid because it looks just like last week’s card but it doesn’t have a pocket and it’s a Gate Fold Card because the two sides fold in like a gate.  Here’s the link to last week’s Angled Pocket Card and here’s the link to a Belly Band Gate Fold Card that I made.  If we have to give this hybrid a name, let’s call it the Horizontal Angled Gate Fold.  I like to name the fun folds so that I can tell them apart.  😊

I love the way this card turned out.  It screams “Spring!”.  Just like on last week’s Angled Pocket Card (see link above), I wanted to find a piece of designer paper that I could use both sides.  Flowering Fields Designer Paper to the rescue!  Since I was using the tulip designer paper, I decided to try my hand with the Tulip Dies.  Instead of trying to figure out what dies I needed to use to make the different tulips I did a little search online and found a chart.  Thank you Lisa Schmid! 

The base of the card is made just like last week’s Angled Pocket Card.  The only difference is that you don’t make the pocket.  Stop before you reach that point.  Then you need to make a belly band and a focal point.

For the belly band I used 2 pieces of 6 ½” x 1 ½” pieces of Pumpkin Pie cardstock.  I adhered the pieces together by overlapping the pieces by about 1/2” or so.  With the card base closed and laying on top of the belly band (seam centered) I carefully wrapped the belly band around the card.  It should be snug but not too tight.  I then adhered the two ends together.  You should use a strong adhesive like SEAL + or Tear & Tape to make the belly band.

The focal point of my card started with a die from the Hippo & Friends Dies (which is retiring).  The tulips are added to the largest Layering Circles die.  So fun!

To add a little texture to my die-cut tulips I used a Blending Brush to add a little Pumpkin Pie ink to the Mango Melody pieces before assembling them.  I think this softened the Mango Melody cardstock a little.

The Flowering Tulips stamp set and the Tulips Dies are both continuing into the upcoming 2022-2023 Annual Catalog.  However, the Flowering Fields Designer Paper is not.  

I hope you enjoyed this lovely, springtime fun fold card!  Have a great day.  Take care and Happy Stamping!

Today’s card is a Pocket Fun Fold and it’s easy!  The base of the card is one piece of 5 ½” x 8 ½” card stock scored at 2 ½” and 6 ½”.  That’s it!  Fold along both score lines to the center of the card.  The smaller 2” section will form the pocket of the card.  You will need to use a strong, narrow adhesive like Stampin’ Up!’s Tear & Tape close to the edges of the cardstock so that you have room for the card insert.  Once you have the card base formed you will notice that closed card is only 5 ½” x 4” instead of the usual 5 ½” x 4 ¼”.  This is because the larger flap overlaps the pocket portion of the card.

To decorate the card you need to pieces of coordinating designer paper.  The larger piece is 5 ¼” x 2 ¼”.  The smaller piece is 5 ¼” x 1 ¾”.  I used the Abstract Beauty Designer Series Paper on my card.  I love the black and gold together.  The flowers on my focal point were punched using the Strawberry Builder Punch.  The centers were punched with a ¼” Circle Punch (retired).

The gold foil portion of the card insert is 4 ¾” x 3 ¾”.  The Basic White portion of the insert is 4 ½”x 3 ½”.  Both sentiments that I used on my card are from the Peaceful Moments stamp set.

Fun and simple.  My kind of fun fold!  I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s card!  Have a great day.  Take care and Happy Stamping!

I love fun fold cards.  This fun fold card is called the Swing Arm Fun Fold and is quite easy to make.  The base of the card is the basic 5 ½” x 8 ½” piece of cardstock folded in half at 4 ¼”.  To make it a fun fold you just need to add a label (or focal piece) and the swing arm.

On my card I used Stampin’ Up!’s beautiful Symbols of Fortune Specialty Designer Series Paper from the January – June Mini Catalog. One side of each sheet of this paper has a gold foil design on it. So pretty!

Both the “best wishes” on the front of the card and the “happy birthday” on the inside of the card are from the Artistically Inked stamp set in the Annual Catalog.

The circles are die cut using the Layering Circles dies and the decorative label is die cut using the Hippo & Friends dies. I have to admit that I purchased this die set because of all the layering dies in it. One of these days I may purchase the coordinating Hippo Happiness stamp set. 🙂

The swing arm on my card measures 1″ x 4 3/4″. It’s scored at 3″. The smaller section is adhered to the inside of the back section of the card. The long section is what folds over to the front of the card. When attach the swing arm to the label you want to make sure that you adhere the swing arm to the top of the label. The arm will be sandwiched between two layers so that you can’t see the end of it.

Swing Arm Fun Fold. So easy. So fun! Have a great day! Take care and Happy Stamping!

How can you not sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow while looking at this fun fold card?  So many rainbows!  I’m going to be sad when Sale-a-bration is over on February 28^th and I won’t be able to get any more of the fun Sunshine & Rainbows Designer Series Paper. The paper coordinates perfectly with the Rainbow of Happiness Bundle of products from Stampin’ Up!’s January – June Mini Catalog. I’ve used the Rainbow of Happiness stamp set, the Brilliant Rainbow dies and the Cloud Punch on my card.

This second picture gives you a top view so you can see all of the panels a little better.

This fun fold is pretty easy. Start with a card base that is 4 1/4″ x 8″. Make sure the length is 8″, not 8-1/2″. I made that error the first time around and couldn’t figure out why my “bridge” piece wouldn’t fit! Sheesh!

With the long edge of the card base at the top of your Simply Scored scoring board score the cardstock at 1 1/4″, 2 1/2″, 5 1/2″ and 6 3/4″. Fold the two outside score lines into mountain folds and the two inside score lines into valley folds. The “bridge” piece of cardstock is 5 1/2″ x 1″. The width of the “bridge” piece of cardstock can be any dimension that works for your design. The key is to make sure the length is 5 1/2″.

The four designer paper panels measure 4″ x 1″. The designer paper piece on the “bridge” measures 5 1/4″ x 3/4″. The Basic White piece of cardstock in the center of the card measures 4″ x 2 3/4″.

To adhere the “bridge” to the card you want to fold the card like in this picture. The sections on one side of the center piece of the card base should be “open” and the sections on the other side should be folded closed.

Make sure to put adhesive only on the areas of the “bridge” that will be adhered to the two outside panels.

The way the card is folded in this last photo is also the way you will fold it to slide it into an envelope.

Let me know if you have any questions on this fun fold. Have a great day! Take care and Happy Stamping!

Tropics are definitely on the brain this week.  With two days of snow this week I’m ready for a tropical vacation.  Since I don’t have one scheduled, I’ll just look at this lovely tropical card and imagine a Mai Tai in my hand and the sandy beach under my toes!

It’s Friday today and I usually do Fun Folds on Friday.  This swap is perfect to share today.  My downline Karen created this card for our Mini Catalog Swap.  Didn’t she do a nice job?  The Fun Fold may look familiar.  I shared it with back in September.  It’s funny how different the fold can look when you use different products.  You can view the original post on this Overlapping Flap Fun Fold card here.  The original post will give you dimensions as well as a quick video on how the fun fold was made.

One fun feature that Karen added to her fun fold was the Velcro-type fastener to hold the top flap closed.  Sometimes with a lot of layers things don’t stay closed like you want.  Another option that would have worked would be tiny, thin magnets to hold things closed.  The nice thing about magnets is that you can hide them under cardstock.  I like the fasteners that Karen used because they’re almost clear.  You can hardly tell that they’re there.

Karen used some of the products from the Artfully Composed Suite in Stampin’ Up!’s new Mini Catalog on her card. So much fun to be had with Artfully Layered stamp set, the Tropical Layers dies and the gorgeous and fun Artfully Composed Designer Series Paper! I love the soft colors and bold designs of the paper and can’t wait to play with it.

Are you itching for a tropical vacation after seeing Karen’s card? I sure am! Have a great day. Take care and Happy Stamping!

Last Spring I started sharing Gatefold cards with you and there were many different types.  Today’s card is a slight modification to the original Gatefold card.  To see my post on the original Gatefold card just click here.

Today’s Full Pane Gatefold card differs from the original Gatefold card in that the front focal piece of the card is larger.  It’s also slightly easier to make because on the original Gatefold card you decorate both side panels with designer paper and need to place them so they align together at the center opening.  On today’s modification you just need to choose your favorite piece of designer paper, layer it on a coordinating piece of cardstock and adhere it to the left flap of the card.  Easy Peasy!  This card is a great way to showcase Stampin’ Up!’s gorgeous designer series papers while at the same time featuring a fun fold.

Here you can see the inside of this fun fold. The base of the card is the regular 5 1/2″ x 8 1/2″. Instead of scoring in half at the 4 1/4″ you want the card folded at 2 1/8″ from each side. To make sure the edges of my card meet up perfectly in the center when closed I make one score mark at 2 1/8″. I then fold the card along that score line and then instead of scoring another mark I just fold the right side of the card closed and make sure the edges meet up and then just crease well. This way you know those edges will match up perfectly. Sometimes when you score you may not have the paper lined up exactly and the edges don’t meet up exactly. Just a quick little tip.

I used the same supplies on this card as I did on a Make-It-Mine card a few weeks ago. I love this pattern of the Beauty of the Earth Designer Papers and this color scheme. The sentiment is from the Time of Giving stamp set.

Have a great day! Take care and Happy Stamping!

Ah, the colors of Fall.  That’s what I like best about Stampin’ Up!’s Beauty of the Earth Designer Series Paper….the colors!  This Strap Fold fun fold was the perfect choice for highlighting this paper because I got to use two large panels of it.  Doesn’t this paper design remind you of a pile of leaves that you can jump in?  Ok….that your kids or grandkids could jump in?

This fun fold is pretty easy to make.  You just need to be a little strategic when adhering the strap so that you don’t see it when you open the card.  For the card itself, not including the focal point label and leaf and the inside piece for you message, you only need three pieces of cardstock and two pieces of designer paper.  Here are the dimensions:

Cardstock:  5 ½” x 4 ¼”, 4 ¾” x 3 ½” and 1 ½” x 4 ¼” scored at 1 ¼”

Designer Paper:  5 ¼” x 4, 4 ½” x 3 ¼”

The small section of the strap will be sandwiched between the large base piece of cardstock and the large piece of designer paper.  When you adhere the strap to the cardstock be sure to line up the folded edge of the strap with the left edge of the cardstock.

The large section of the strap will be sandwiched between the smaller front piece of cardstock and the small piece of designer paper.  To make sure I got everything lined up straight I used temporary adhesive to adhere the top piece of cardstock to the base.  A sticky note or two will work also.  I then folded the strap over the top piece of cardstock and used a pencil to lightly draw around the edges.  This showed me where to place the adhesive on the cardstock piece.  Once I had applied the adhesive I again “closed” the strap and then adhered the small piece of designer paper.  The basic card is now complete and ready to be decorated!

The label on my card is die-cut using the Tasteful Labels dies and the leaf is die-cut using the Stitched Leaves Dies.  Such a fun card!  The inside piece of Basic White cardstock is 4 ½” x 3 ¼”.  It needs to be slightly smaller than the front piece of cardstock so it doesn’t show when the card is closed.

Happy Fall Y’all and enjoy those colors!  Take care and Happy Stamping!

Another descriptive name for a fun fold card….the Overlapping Panel Fun Fold or if you prefer you can call it the Overlapping Tri-Panel Fun Fold. Three score marks make three front panels that show off your favorite designer series paper.

When I saw the Blackberry Beauty Designer Series Paper in Stampin’ Up!’s July – December Mini Catalog I wasn’t overly impressed. I thought it was a little busy and the I didn’t like the birds on it. Fast forward to actually seeing the paper in person and using it. I still don’t really like the birds on it but the paper is gorgeous! Deep purples and gold foil. A lovely combination. Have you seen this paper in person? What do you think of it?

I die cut the foliage on my belly band from Gold Foil using the Forever Flourishing Dies and adhered it to a label die cut using one of the Tasteful Label Dies. The purple cardstock used on my card is Blackberry Bliss.

In this photo you can get a better idea of how the card is folded and how the three different sections will overlap. I added a layer of gold foil to the inside white piece of my card to really set it off.

Here’s the template to show you where to score and in which direction to fold your score marks.

Start with a piece of cardstock that is 5 1/2″ x 11″. Score at 1 3/4″, 5 1/2″ and 9 3/4″. The designer paper measurements for the panels are 5 1/4″ x 1″, 5 1/4″ x 1 1/2″ and 5 1/4″ x 3 1/2″.

Above is a quick video showing you how make this fun fold card. It shows you in which direction your folds should go and where to apply the designer paper. Enjoy!

Have a great day! Take care and Happy Stamping!