Friday, 13 November 2026

Greeting Cards & boxes with EDY {by Martine Dubé}


Salut, c'est Martine! Aujourd'hui pour ma page de blog j'ai utilisé les étampes de EDY (Darcy) pour créer des coffrets de cartes de voeux. Avec le temps des Fêtes qui approche, ils seront de parfaits petits cadeaux à offrir à vos amis créatifs.

Hi, it's Martine! For today's blog post, I've used stamps by EDY (Darcy) to create sets of greeting cards. With the Holiday season approaching, these will make perfect little gifts for your creative friends.




Voici les planches d’étampes EDY20 et EDY21 que j’ai choisies pour les cartes, les parfaits petits personnages pour créer des cartes pour toutes les occasions. J'ai aussi utilisé les stencils PS309, PS329, PS394, PS421, PS428 et PS455 mais, vous pouvez utiliser un seul stencil pour faire toutes vos cartes. Pour créer les fonds et colorer les images, j’ai décidé d’utiliser les poudres Infusions  Black Night, Sleight Blue, Frankly Scarlet, Golden Sand et Magenta.

Here are the stamp sets EDY20 and EDY21 I chose for the cards , the perfect little characters for creating cards for any occasion. I also used stencils PS309, PS329, PS394, PS421, PS428 and PS455, though you could certainly use just a single stencil to make all your cards. To create the backgrounds and colour the images, I decided to use the Infusions powders in the shades Black Night, Sleight Blue, Frankly Scarlet, Golden Sand, And Magenta.






Pour commencer, j’ai préparé mes poudres Infusions avec un peu d’eau dans des petits contenants que je garde prêt à être utilisés comme une aquarelle liquide parfaite pour colorer des images. Pour la couleur chair, j’ai mélangé la poudre Golden Sand avec une toute petite goutte de Magenta. 


To begin, I prepared my Infusions powders by mixing them with a little water in small containers, keeping them ready for use, much like liquid watercolours, to colour images. For  skin tones, I mixed the Golden Sands powder with a tiny drop of Magenta.




Une fois que vous avez préparé vos couleurs, avec l’aide d'une pièce d’acétate ou d’un morceau d’emballage, appliquer la couleur choisie par taches de façon à créer une superposition de la même couleur en laissant des espaces blancs.


Once you have prepared your colours, use a piece of acetate or a scrap of packaging material to apply the chosen colour in patches, creating layers of the same colour while leaving some white spaces. 



Après avoir créé la première couche, appliquer de la couleur cette fois-ci sur le stencil en ajoutant de l’eau afin de faire une impression sur toute la surface et non d’autre taches de couleur. Bien éponger avec un papier à main.


After creating the first layer, apply colour, this time over the stencil, adding water to ensure an impression is made across the entire surface, rather than just creating isolated spots of colour. Pat dry thoroughly with a paper towel.



Bien presser le stencil avec un rouleau.


Press the stencil down firmly using a brayer.



La dernière étape pour finir les fonds, faire des éclaboussures.


The final step to complete the backgrounds is to add splatters.




Je me suis dit que savoir comment faire la boite pourrait être intéressant, même si ce n'est pas une technique. La dimension des mes cartes est 6po x 6po (15cm x 15cm ).


Not exactly a technique, but i thought it might be interesting to share how I made the box. My card measures 6" x 6" (15cm x 15cm)



Pour la base de la boite, prendre un carton de 12po x 12po ( 30x30cm ); le fond doit être légèrement plus grand que les cartes, mais aussi assez grand pour mettre les enveloppes. 


For the base of the box, use a 12" x 12" (30 x 30 cm) piece of cardstock; the bottom must be slightly larger than the cards, but also large enough to accommodate the envelopes.



Le couvercle doit être légèrement plus grand que la base d'environ 1/8po ( 3mm ). Pour la hauteur, c’est votre choix moi j’ai fait mon couvercle à 3/4po ( 2cm ) 


The lid should be slightly larger than the base, about 1/8 inch (3 mm). As for the height, that’s up to you; I made my lid 3/4 inch (2 cm) high.



Couper les coins en angles afin de faciliter le pliage.


Cut the corners at an angle to make folding easier.


Coller les coins et replier, puis coller les rabats.


Glue the corners, then fold over and glue the flaps.





Étampez les images choisies. J’ai étampé les personnages plusieurs fois pour faire mes séries de cartes. J’ai aussi étampé la maison et l’arbre pour pouvoir décorer le dessus de la boite.


Stamp the chosen images. I stamped the characters several times to create my sets of cards. I also stamped the house and the tree so I could decorate the top of the box.



Utiliser les poudres Infusions préparées plus tôt pour colorer les images. J’ai coloré les images avec les mêmes couleurs que mes fonds mais avec une touche de couleur plus intense ( Frankly Scarlet ) puis j’ai découpé les images en laissant  une fine ligne blanche sur le contour.


I used the Infusions powders that I had prepared earlier to color the images. I colored the images using the same colors as my backgrounds, along with an additional, more intense color (Frankly Scarlet), and then cut out the images, leaving a thin white border around the edges.



Préparer les messages à inscrire sur vos cartes. J’en ai préparé une série de différentes grandeurs et j’ai ensuite choisi celui qui allait le mieux sur chaque carte.


Prepare the messages to be written on your cards. I prepared a series in various sizes, then chose one that best suited each card.



À l’aide de ruban adhésif en mousse, collez les images et le message sur le devant de vos cartes.


Using foam adhesive tape, glue the images and the message to the front of your cards.




N'oubliez pas de préparer des enveloppes, J'aime bien faire un rappel avec les étampes pour les décorer.

Don't forget to prepare some envelopes; I like to use stamps to decorate them.



Voilà 12 cartes et 2 boites prêtes à offrir. J’ai toujours du plaisir à offrir des cadeaux faits main en espérant que cela vous inspire à en faire autant.

 

Here are 12 cards and 2 boxes, ready to be given as gifts. I always enjoy giving handmade presents, and I hope this inspires you to do the same.









Voici quelques photos en gros plan sur lesquelles on peut distinguer les différentes couches ainsi que d’autres détails. 


Here are a few close up photos where you can see the different layers and some other details.








J'espère que ça vous plaira!

Hope you enjoy!

Martine


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Monday, 9 November 2026

Expressions of Gratitude with France Papillon stamps {by Ann Barnes}


Hello everyone

Ann here with you today and I'll be sharing a few different ways that I like to express gratitude.




Autumn is in full swing where I live, and I am always so inspired by the beautiful colors this season brings. Pairing these colors with the gorgeous leaves from PaperArtsy France Papillon Stamp Set 029 (FP029) was perfection. I achieved my color by using PaperArtsy Infusions Dye Stains in Slime (CS13), Lemoncello (CS04), Just Walnut (CS25), and Terracotta (CS21). Then I used the Stamp Set 028 (FP028) to add sentiments to my pieces.


Every autumn, the beauty of nature that surrounds me instils a sense of gratitude for how fortunate I am to be alive and surrounded by those who love and support me. These feelings usually result in me setting aside time to make a few "expressions of gratitude" cards to send out.


While I was creating my cards, I thought it would be wonderful to also create a journal where I could take a moment each day to reflect on something I am grateful for. I will be sharing the process for creating this Daily Gratitude Journal as well.



To create a blend of gorgeous fall colors, I spritz a piece of PaperArtsy Smoothy (SCA4) with water and sprinkle Infusions onto the page randomly, letting the different dye colors spread into each other.


If there are areas that are too bold, add more water, and conversely, in the areas that need more color you can sprinkle more of the infusions. You can also use a brush to move the color.


Once the papers are dry you get a glimpse of the beautiful, bold colors.  


I had so much fun working with the Infusions, and ended up with a lot of papers! I even grabbed a few additional Infusions, Rusty Car (CS17), Golden Sands (CS05) and Orange County (CS06) for more interest.  The best part of creating with the Infusions is that every result is unique.



This beautiful Infusions dyed paper was the perfect background for an overall patterned paper. Using embossing ink, I stamped the various leaf designs from PaperArtsy France Papillon Stamp Set 029 (FP029) and sprinkled with fine detail gold embossing powder then heat set.
 

I also wanted a patterned paper where the leaf designs themselves were colorful. Using the various leaf designs and Distress Inks by Ranger, I inked up each stamp with multiple colors then stamped onto paper. I love how the same random stamping with different mediums can create totally different looks!


I cut up one of the sheets of embossed leaves into individual pieces.


With all the different pieces ready to assemble my cards, it's time to make the pages for my gratitude journal. I begin by stamping the branch design along the edge of piece of drawing paper. The paper is long enough to fold and only as tall as the stamp design. I use a stamping platform to ensure the correct placement, since there will be 30 pages in my journal.


Each edge is cut to mimic the outside edge of the design and then the pages are stacked together.


The journal uses an Australian reverse piano hinge binding. It sounds intimidating but is not difficult, and it does not require any stitching. The best part is that it allows pages to be removed and replaced easily. My binding is essentially a strip of PaperArtsy Crunchy waxed paper (WXPA5) accordion folded.
 

Each of the folded pages has a slit in the fold that the accordion slips into, then a strip of paper secures the page into place. There are many tutorials online for specific directions on how to create this binding.


My pages were folded to allow the branch design to extend beyond the front flap. I cut the book covers to those same dimensions (shorter front cover and shaped edge for the back cover) and then covered them with pieces of the Infusions dyed paper. Using PaperArtsy France Papillon Stamp Set 028 (FP028) I stamped and embossed the words "daily gratitude" onto the front cover. I also added a couple individual leaves.


The inside cover papers are old French papers with the leaves stamped on top of the original script in archival ink. 


I stamped the first journal page with the title "daily gratitude journal". 





I created three "thankful cards" to send out as well as a daily gratitude journal.
 

I love the way each of the three cards is unique yet shares similar elements.






I am looking forward to using this gratitude journal each day in November.


Lifting the cover to reveal the beautiful inside.


Coloring the branches and adding touches of gold.


Multi-colored inking of the various leaf stamps.


The contrast between the gold and the rich background color.
 

Any day a good day to express gratitude, I hope to make even more of an effort to acknowledge this gratitude and I think the daily gratitude journal will be a wonderful start! I hope that I have inspired you to create something. 

Thanks for stopping by, Ann   xx