I love to send cards to people for no particular reason other than to make them smile. The Pocketful of Sunshine Photopolymer Bundle (item 145345) made me think of just that. I wanted to send cards to some special people in my life who just needed a bit of sunshine. The bundle doesn’t limit you to just sending “sunshine” cards but also opens up sentiments which are perfect for birthdays and thank you cards, also. I decided to set myself to work and make some little “sunshine” cards using some bright and happy products.

The first of the cards I made featured a beautiful color palette of Real Red, Lemon Lime Twist, and Bermuda Bay. I focused on using bright and bold colors that would be perfect for conveying a happy message as well as being perfect for the men in your life. My favorite thing I did with these cards was use the fun Sweet Soirée Ready Shreddie (item 145562) and colored it with some Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin’ Ink Refill (item 119672) using one of our great Stampin’ Spritzer (item 126185) tools. I love the fun effect of this poking out from my little pockets.

Some useful tips:

· Don’t be limited by colors of ribbon or paper products such as the Sweet Soirée Ready Shreddie. Take your refill inks and color them to your hearts content!

· Heat emboss the “buttons” on the pockets to make them look metallic, giving them an authentic look.

· Use a simple white background with colorful accents as it really helps make them “pop.”

· Use layered ribbon in the background to add more texture and another element to the card.

I accented my cards with some fun ribbons to add texture and a little additional color using the beautiful Lemon Lime Twist 1/2″ Finely Woven Ribbon (item 144135), Basic Black 3/8″ Shimmer Ribbon (item 144129), and the Bermuda Bay 3/8″ Mini Chevron Ribbon (item 144198). Additionally, I added some clouds from the Rainbow Builder Framelits Dies (item 145659) and added some beautiful Rhinestone Basic Jewels (item 144220) on top of the beautifully textured Whisper White background using the Polka Dot Basics Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (item 143709). I love the impact that placing these bright colors on the stark white gives the card. It really helps to make the colors “pop.”

Above is a close-up of one of the finished cards to show the dimension that placing the Ready Shreddie in the pocket gives the card. It helps to add a fun, somewhat interactive element while adding additional texture and dimension to the card.

Finally, I can’t be finished with a handmade card until it has a coordinating embellished envelope. I have a theory that when I spend a long time making a beautiful handmade card, it doesn’t take too much extra effort to make a matching envelope. For these I used the Whisper White Medium Envelopes (item 107301) which provide a great surface to stamp on. I also used some of the beautiful Fresh Florals Designer Series Paper Stack (item 144131) and love that these will now give a hint to the handmade goodness inside.

Kayla MacAulay 2018 Artisan Design Team