Pinkfresh Studio “Delights & Doodles” Release Blog Hop
Hi and welcome back to my blog, for a summer fun themed blog hop celebrating the June Pinkfresh Studio release!
It’s a hop so if you came here from the fabulous Emily Mydlowski you are on the right track, and the next stop on the hop is Pinkfresh as I’m the last one. You can find the whole lineup via the InLinkz link here.
There is a fabulous giveaway to celebrate! You can win the entire release by commenting on the Pinkfresh Studio blog post and YouTube video. There is also a chance to win one of TEN $50 gift cards by leaving comment on the blog stops along the hop!
Winners will be announced on June 20th on the Pinkfresh GIVEAWAY page, good one to bookmark for the future for sure! Make sure to check this around the date and claim your prize within two weeks if you are one of the winners.
For my card I have used the adorable seal from the Seaside Cones set. It comes with layering stencils and a coordinating diecut.
I have gone somewhat ‘natural’ with a grey look for the seal, with the layering stencils, and a summery look colour wise.
I kept it very simple with using only a few ink pads but building up the colours for contrasts and details.
I also made a soft background by ink blending some sunshine, a blue sky and a soft beach. I splattered some gold on it too because hey, when is that not a good idea?
To complement the gold splatters I heat embossed a sentiment in gold, from the Ice Cream Truck stamp set. Behind the seal and the sentiment I have added an oval of white card stock, cut out using the Elongated Ovals Double Stitched diecuts.
With that I am done for today, but I hope you will enjoy the rest of the hop and fingers crossed for that grand prize! Someone will win it so why not you??
Thanks for stopping by today, and as always, love and light from your girl Erica
PS I will be doing a big destash sale soon (which I have been planning for a long while, I know) and if you want to get in on the action, make sure to bookmark the DESTASH page here.
Life update and a bit of this and that…
A little behind the scenes updates
Hi, how are you? I hope you are doing well, or at least as well as you can be.
The reason I’m sounding a bit deflated with just that one paragraph is simple… Life has been a roller coaster for the last 2.5 years and there has been a few very unexpected plot twists along the way, like perimenopause doing a huge number on my mental and physical health, adding Tiny Tina to the girl gang and big plans not working out. There has been a fair few blows that have taken my focus away from building my brand/online presence and as a result I find myself in a financial predicament to say the least.
Making a living in Spain has been more difficult than I predicted, and at the moment it does look like I will have little choice but to take a big step back from the card making and creative path I have been on for the last 10 years. Unfortunately, it is not paying nearly enough to make a living on. I need to make more money in order to be able to pay my bills and take care of the girl gang. This doesn’t mean I will stop creating all together, but I will have to spend my focus on where it makes the most sense, ie paid work. Both for design teams and for myself.
I will be doing that destash I have been planning for over a year now. I need to clear space in my studio, and not hoard things ‘just in case’. Being realistic about how much time I actually have to just play is key here. I did ask people to email me about getting notifications for the destash boxes going up for sale, but technology has once again exacted its vendetta against me and I can’t find the emails sent to me asking to be put on the list. I can only profusely apologise for this and hope you can forgive me. If you are one of the ones who wanted to get notified about the destash boxes, please do email me again at erica@ericaabdesigns.com with the subject ‘DESTASH’ and I will give you guys first dibs.
After many requests, I will also be doing private reels tutorials and classes. If this is something you are interested in, you can also email me at erica@ericaabdesigns.com with the subject ‘reels class’. Please note that these are available in 30 and 60 minute classes, and cost $45 for the 30 minutes, and $80 for the hour. You will come away from these classes with new found confidence and lots of tips and tricks on how to make your reels stand out!
A big thank you to everyone who has been following along, cheering me on, used my affiliate links when you have shopped, and shown up with likes, comments and encouragements. It really means the world to me and has been a life line when things have been heavy and it’s been hard to find the motivation to carry on. A kind word has more than once shone a light when I have been drowning in the darkness of depression and anxiety, so thank you from the bottom of my heart.
With love and light, sparkle and creativity, and the biggest, squishiest hugs from your girl Erica
Pinkfresh Studio Sunshine & Smiles Release blog hop and GIVEAWAY!!
Hi and welcome back to my blog! Today I am hopping along with Pinkfresh Studio and friends to celebrate the May release!! It’s full of really creative and inspiring products, as usual.
I have a video on my YouTube channel showing the full release, as well as a quick reel on my Instagram page. In the YouTube video you can also catch the making the card I’m sharing here.
Of course it’s not a release celebration without a generous giveaway!! One lucky winner will win the entire release, as seen below.
Another TEN winners will each win a $50 gift card to the Pinkfresh Studio shop! Please note that to be in with a chance to win the grand prize, you need to comment on the Pinkfresh release blog post, and for extra luck, comment on the Pinkfresh Studio YouTube video too.
As this is a hop, and the more you hop and comment the bigger your chance of winning one of these fabulous prizes, you can find the whole lineup via the InLinkz list below.
As soon as I saw the gorgeous, and VERY aptly named, Petal Perfection set I knew I’d love it. It’s a layering stencil and diecut set only, and oooooh, let me tell you, it is so fun to play with!
I am very partial to Sparkling Rose and Bubble Gum pink inks, and I have used them for the pink petals and then a mix of Limoncello and Olive for the stems and leaves. It is a great combo if you ask me. So fresh and bright, I adore it.
The fun thing about this set is that you use the layering stencils first and then you cut out the images with the coordinating diecut, and this adds some gorgeous details to each piece. Truly genius. Thank you, Inna Moreva!
For the background I have used the Stitched Basket Weave cover plate, but I didn’t want to just use it to add some interest, I wanted a fun little detail too. Instead of using it to cover the entire background I have off-set it so that it has left some flat space on the card stock. Think turning it about 30-40 degrees or so, from being straight.
On this panel I have also used one of the Single Stitched Rectangle dies, the third biggest one, to cut out the middle essentially. This piece I have ink blended with a bit of Limoncello ink to create a slight ombre look from the left bottom corner.
To glue these to the card base I have used the brand new 0.5 oz Precision Glue from this release! I also used it to glue the flowers and stems together, as well as onto the card itself.
The sentiment is from the Sunshine & Smiles stamp and diecut set, and I have heat embossed it in gold for a little sparkly touch. I also used the coordinating diecuts to cut it out, alongside two more pieces to stack it with. These are also glued together with the Precision Glue, and adhered to the card.
That’s it from me for today but I hope you like the card and will enjoy the rest of the hop! Don’t forget to check out my Youtube video too!
With love and light, sparkle and creativity,
your girl, Erica
Pinkfresh Studio “Good Times” Release Blog Hop
Hello, hello and welcome to a jolly Good Times blog post! Today is release day for Pinkfresh Studio, and the April collection is called Good Times. I’m part of a blog hop celebrating this gorgeous release and there is a generous giveaway too!
The grand prize winner will be drawn from the comments on the Pinkfresh Studio release blog post, as well as the release YouTube video, so make sure that you like and comment on both of those posts.
One lucky winner will get the whole release!! Yep, that’s everything in the photo below! Every single product. How cool is that?
Another 10 winners will get a $50 gift card to the Pinkfresh Studio shop, and these will be drawn from the rest of the blog hop. The more you hop along and comment, the bigger your chance of winning one of these.
Winners will be drawn and announced on April 23rd, on the Pinkfresh Studio GIVEAWAY page. Good luck!!
I have got two cards to show you today, using the lovely Bluebonnet Bliss product suite. It has a stamp set, a Press Plate, layering stencils and coordinating diecuts, so something to suit everyone’s style and skills.
I ended up using the Bluebonnet Bliss stamp for these two cards, as well as the coordinating layering stencils to add pops of colours and the diecuts for one to change things up a little.
On my YouTube channel you can find a YouTube video for these as well. If you get a chance to watch it, you will both see and hear the cogs turning and grinding and reversing and going forward again… I started out with an idea and things quickly took a turn, as they often do in my craft room. I’m not hating the results though, so yay me.
Both cards have the images stamped up with black ink on white card stock though, and colours added with the layering stencils, but after that, they ended up taking completely different roads.
The first one is pretty Clean & Simple, but with an Erica twist. Life is short, and I am making a point of trying to not hoard all my pretties for ‘a special occasion’ because why not make every day a bit sparklier if I can?
I couldn’t resist adding quite a bit of bling here, and maybe it’s just me, but with the placements they sort of blend into the flower a bit. Especially as I tried colour matching the gems to the inks I had used. The dark blue ones are called Stargazer and the green ones are called Emerald City.
What do you think about this? I’d love to hear if you would still consider this Clean & Simple or if I’m overreaching.
I did also use the Essentials: Nested Rectangles Diagonal Stitched dies on the panel I had stamped and ink blended the image on. This is one of the things I do to get around the ‘the card is naked’ feeling I get when there is a lot of white space. A bit of texture and I’m ok with it.
The second card is very me, though. There is only so many (ok, one seems to be my limit) CAS cards I can make before I need to bling it up, LOL.
As luck would have it, the AMAZING Scalloped Grid cover plate is back in stock too, so if you have been eyeing it up, grab it fast before it sells out again.
On the back of this I added 1” wide Instant Dimension Foam Tape to hold all the little bits in place and then I have splattered it with gold water colours for shimmer and sparkle.
For this card I made two Bluebonnet Bliss flowers, and both have been cut out with the coordinating diecut, and one has been layered up with two diecut pieces for some height. The sentiment is also diecut out, and stacked, so they are on the same level.
This card wasn’t sparkly enough… I know, I know, I have a bling problem but as the self-appointed Mayor of Bling-Town I have a reputation to uphold wink, wink
These pretties are the Metallic Pearls : Matte Gold, and I adhered them with the Dual Tip Embellishment Tool and some liquid glue.
That’s it from me for today, but don’t forget to hop along for more amazing inspiration and creativity. The next stop on the hop is the amazingly talented Emily Midgett!
If you want to grab any of these pretties for yourself, I have linked everything in the post with compensated affiliate links, at no extra cost to you. If you shop with these links I get a small commission directly from the company, as a thank you for directing you to them. This is their way of saying thanks for promoting their wonderful products, and every little makes a difference for me so THANK YOU if you chose to support me by using these links. I really, really appreciate it and it means the world to me.
With love and light, sparkle and creativity, and big crafty hugs from
Erica
Alex Syberia Designs BetterPress Release Blog Hop & Giveaway
Today I am delighted to be taking part in a blog hop to celebrate the Alex Syberia March BetterPress release!
There is a giveaway too, Alex Syberia Designs is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 1 winner and a $15 gift card to 3 lucky winners.
Open internationally. All 4 winners will be drawn from the entrants that have played along with this Blog hop by midnight BST April 6th, 2025. Winners will be announced on the Alex Syberia Designs blog 'Giveaway Winners' page on April 7th, 2025.
If you came here from Erin you are on the right track. The next stop on the hop is Emelie, and if you find any broken links along the hop, you can find the whole lineup on the Alex Syberia blog post.
Ok, so for my card, and yes, I only have one. My package arrived on Monday and I just haven’t had time to make more just yet, but I will for sure because have you seen these goodies?? Insert heart eyes here!
I started out by hot foiling the absolutely stunning Abstract Background press plate, in Matte Gold, on white card stock. This pattern is simply lovely, and I adore it.
To add a little bit of colour, and I really mean ‘a little’, I used the coordinating layering stencils and mostly leftover ink on my blending tools. I wanted a soft pastel look, and while I did have to add a little bit more from a couple of ink pads, it really is mostly leftover ink!
When I was happy with the panel, I trimmed it down to just a touch smaller than 4.25”x5.5”, to get that lovely white frame around it. On the back of this I added the 1” wide Instant Dimension Foam Tape from Altenew, and then adhered this to a card base.
For the sentiment I wanted to keep it really simple, and I went back into my Alex Syberia Designs stash and dug out one of my fave word dies that simply says ‘smile’. This one seems to be discontinued, so excuse me while I go cry in the corner!!
This is cut out of Brushed Gold metallic card stock, also from Altenew. It’s also layered up with two pieces cut out of white card stock.
With some liquid glue, this is a sneak peek of the new glue coming to Altenew in June, I adhered these all together and then added it to the card.
One final little touch, because when can I say no to sparkle and bling?, I added some Stellar Sequins in Dazzling Diamond. These are also a sneak peek from Altenew, these are probably being released in June too.
This Abstract Background Press Plate will definitely get a lot of use from me, I have so many ideas on how to use it!
That’s it from me for today. I hope you enjoyed this little card and that it made you smile! Don’t forget to leave me a comment down below, to be in with a chance to win the giveaway and then hop along the rest of the hop to see more amazing projects and be inspired.
With love and light, sparkle and creativity from your gal Erica
celebrating parents card drive with altenew | Blog hop and giveaway!
Hi and welcome back to my blog!
Today I am blog hopping with Altenew and friends to Celebrate Parents Card Drive. Altenew will generously donate $1 with every order from the Sentiment Stamps collection from 3/7/2025 until 4/22/2025 to the Food Bank of Central New York to support seniors in need.
There is a giveaway as well, to celebrate, and there are $200 in total prizes! To help support this card drive, Altenew is giving away a $50 gift certificate to 2 lucky winners and a $20 gift certificate to 5 winners! Please leave a comment on the Altenew Card Blog and/or each designer’s blog post on the blog hop list below by March 31, 2025 for a chance to win. Altenew will draw 7 random winners from the comments left on each stop of this blog hop and announce the winners on the Altenew Winners Page on April 2, 2025.
As I mentioned before, this is a blog hop and you can find the whole lineup in the InLinkz link below, or in the Altenew blog post.
I’m going to show you a card I made with one of the smallest diecuts in the Fun Little Envelopes set. I simply cut the hearts out of a panel five times, and on the back of this I adhered strips of coloured card stock so they would peek out of the hearts.
This is a MUCH easier way of adding coloured hearts than do inlaid diecutting, where you have to puzzle each heart into the correct shape to avoid any gaps.
The sentiment is from the Scripted Sentiments diecut set, and it simply says ‘sending love’, which I thought was kind of perfect for this cause.
There is a Youtube video for this card, and another, over on the Altenew Youtube channel, if you want to see them come to life.
That’s it from me for today, but I hope you enjoyed this post and that you will enjoy the rest of the hop.
With love and light, creativity and sparkle from Erica
Currently you can save up to 50% off some amazing goodies in THIS SECTION. Click on the picture and it will take you to the sales site.
Pinkfresh Studio “Joyful Blooms” Release Blog Hop
It’s time to bring spring into the studio with the Joyful Blooms release from Pinkfresh Studio! Join me for a blog hop with tons of inspiration and an amazing giveaway!
Exploring the Pinkfresh March Release: Cards that Blossom with Creativity
The Pinkfresh Studio March release has arrived, bringing a delightful array of products that inspire creativity and floral elegance. Among these new offerings, the very Pinkfresh-esque floral washi tapes stand out! These gorgeous washi tapes, alongside the coordinating stamps and diecuts, provide the perfect tools to create unique and vibrant greeting cards in minutes! I was thrilled to dive into this release and craft two distinct cards that truly embody the name of the release: Joyful Blooms.
Card 1: Grateful for you always
For my first card, I wanted to showcase the intricate beauty of the new floral washi tape Flowers For The Soul and the gorgeous new addition to the Essentials range: Elegant Circles. I began by diecutting out several sheets of the washi, separated the flowers and set these aside. Next up, I also diecut out the biggest of the Elegant Circles out of crisp white card stock.
These beautiful flowers became the focal point of my card design, and the Elegant Circle diecut brings the eye to the flowers.
After ink blending some Sage ink over about half of a card panel, I arranged the big bouquet of flowers so it was coming up through the circle, which is popped up with foam tape. The vibrant colours of the flowers really pop against that soft, pastel background.
As a finishing touch, I incorporated a charming sentiment from the Flowers For The Soul stamp set. I heat embossed the sentiment “Grateful for you always” in platinum onto white card stock, which I then diecut out and adhered across the bottom of the card, creating a harmonious balance with the florals. One final flourish was a few Champagne Glitter Drops to coordinate with the platinum heat embossing.
Card 2:
For the second card, I opted for a less subdued approach. I began by creating an interesting background by stamping the Dainty Plaid cling stamp in Sage ink on white card stock. Then I again selected the Flowers of the soul washi tape flowers to decorate my card with.
Here I used the ‘leftover’ panel from when I diecut the Elegant Circles diecut out of a panel of white card stock, to create a peek-a-boo look. This negative space panel was placed over the Dainty Plaid background, with Instant Dimension Foam Tape to add some height.
Next, I took the Flowers of the soul washi florals and decorated the front of the card generously. On this card I used another sentiment from the coordinating stamp set, this one says ‘Flowers say what words cannot’, and it’s also heat embossed in Platinum. The contrast of the patterned background, against the white front, and then all of these lovely flowers, makes the sentiment stand out beautifully.
To add some sparkle the card's overall aesthetic, I added some Glitter Drops in Leaf. These accents provide a touch of dimension and bling at the same time.
Quick Summary
The Pinkfresh March release is brimming with inspiration and versatility. Each product used in these two cards allowed for creative expression, while also providing a cohesive look that brings each design to life. Whether you prefer bold and vibrant layouts or simple elegance, there’s something in this release that can cater to your crafting style. Embrace the beauty of the new stamps, die-cuts, and washi tapes, and let your imagination blossom!
This post is part of a blog hop celebrating the new release, and you should have come here from TaeEun Yoo and the next stop is the amazing Carly Minner! The full list can be found on the Pinkfresh Studio blog post, as well as down below via the inLinkz link.
There is a very generous GIVEAWAY to celebrate this release as well. Pinkfresh Studio is giving away THE ENTIRE RELEASE to one lucky winner!! You must make sure to comment on the Pinkfresh Studio March release blog post, and for an extra entry, also comment on the release YouTube video!
If you hop along the blog hop and leave comments, you will also be in with a chance to win one of TEN $50 gift cards to the Pinkfresh Studio shop! The winners will be drawn on March 19th, and make sure to check out the Pinkfresh Studio GIVEAWAY PAGE and email them within two weeks to claim your prize! Good luck!
I also made a YouTube video to showcase the gorgeous Peony Perfection washi tape suite, and I went a tad crazy… which if you know me, is an understatement. I made SIX more cards! Check out the video on my channel if you want to see just how easy it is to create stunning cards, that look like you have spent hours on them, in a jiffy!!
Now, that really is it from me, thank you so much for stopping by today!
With love, light and creativity from Erica
Diecutting, ink blending and foam Tape =3 cards!
Hi!
I’m popping in with even more Craft-A-Flower Bearded Iris cards as I couldn’t stop myself while making them.
This is honestly one of the most stunning layering diecut flowers I have ever played with. The level of detail and thought behind this is crazy and I’m here for it!
I have used pretty much the same inks for all of them, Shades Of Purple and Whispering Woodlands Fresh Dye Ink bundles, and a little bit of of yellow.
The backgrounds are different, one is ink blended with the Dancing Drops stencil, one is done with Shimmer Relief Paste over the same stencil and finally I have also used the Foil Leaf Stencil with the Whispering Woodlands Fresh Dye Inks.
Look at that shine and shimmer!!
I have used lots of Instant Dimension Foam Tape to layer them up and create all those luscious layers.
Pinkfresh Studio “Pure Bliss” Release Blog Hop & Giveaway!!
Hi and welcome back to my blog!
I know that last month I told you that things would be different for the Pinkfresh Studio releases this year, and that the blog hops would stop but it seems the people have spoken and by popular demand, they are back!!
So first things first, this is a blog hop so you should have come here from the insanely talented Emily Midget and the next stop is the one and only Rachel Alvarado. The full hop list can be found via the inLinkz link and also on the Pinkfresh Studio blog post.
There is a very generous giveaway as well to celebrate! TWO lucky winners will win the entire release! To be in with a chance for this incredible prize, you will need to comment on the Pinkfresh Studio blog post and on the release video on the Pinkfresh Studio YouTube channel.
Furthermore, TEN $50 gift cards to the Pinkfresh Studio shop will be given to randomly drawn names from across the blog hop stops.
Winners will be drawn and announced on February 19th on the Pinkfresh Studio Winner Announcement page. Make sure to check it and if you see your name there, you have two weeks to email Pinkfresh to claim your prize.
For my card I have used the You Are My Rainbow product suite, which is a lovely sentiment set. There is a stamp set, and coordinating diecuts to give that lovely detail of each sentiment being perfectly cut out.
If you know which sentiment you are going to use on your card, it makes sense to just stamp that one, but if you are prepping for a big card making session, why not stamp up several in one go? Heat embossing these look fabulous, by the way.
I made a video showing off the release as well as the process for my cards. I have used the Floral Field product suite as well, for two different cards. They both have You Are My Rainbow sentiments on them.
The Floral Field set comes with layering stencils and a coordinating diecut, and for my first card I used Sage, Eucalyptus, Spruce Tips, Lemon Whip, Sunshine, Sweet Mustard, Sparkling Rose and Bubble Gum.
After ink blending the Floral Field image, I used the coordinating diecut to cut it out, and while I had my diecutting machine out I also used the Stitched Basket Weave cover plate on a piece of white card stock for the background.
I heat embossed the sentiment in Rich Gold embossing powder and used the coordinating diecut to cut it out, as well as a couple more pieces to layer it up.
I also added a few Ballet Slipper and Sunshine gems on the card and with that, the card was done.
The second card is using the same Floral Field product suite, only with different colours. This time I used Mint, Meadow, Emerald City, Lemon Whip, Sweet Mustard, Sparkling Rose and Raspberry Bliss.
I used the Floral Field coordinating diecut again, but for this card I had a differed idea for the finished card. I wanted to create a bit of a stained glass window look, so first I cut out the biggest oval from the Essentials Nested Ovals Double Stitched out of an 11”x4.25” piece of card stock.
First you need to score the card stock as you would a normal card base, and then open it with the front facing down. Glue down the floral diecut and then layer it with a panel of vellum.
This sentiment, Wishing you a bright, beautiful birthday, is also heat embossed in Rich Gold, but not layered up, and the card is finished off with Glacier gems.
That’s it from me for today, but don’t forget to hop along for more inspiration and check out my YouTube video too! If you shop the new release from Pinkfresh Studio, I’d be so grateful if you use the compensated affiliate links I have used in this blog post. They don’t cost you anything extra at all, but the earrings I get from these are essential for the running costs of this website, VPN, filming equipment and software etc. You know, the boring but necessary stuff.
Lots of love and creativity, sparkle and light from Erica
Altenew February Release, Giveaway, video and new fave craft-a-flower!!
Hi and welcome back to my little blog. Today’s post will be quite short, as I am just popping in with a little one to let you know I’m part of a YouTube Hop to celebrate the Altenew February Release!
First off, there is a generous giveaway and Altenew is giving away $300 in gift cards to give winners! One grand prize winner will get a $100 gift card and four additional winners will get a $50 gift card each!
All you have to do to enter is comment on the Altenew video, but the more you comment along the hop, the bigger your chance to win!
You have until the 11th of February 2025 to comment, and winners will be announced on the Altenew Winner Page on Feb 13th!
I instantly, and I really mean INSTANTLY, fell heads over heels for the Craft-A-Flower Bearded Iris Layering Die Set! Oh holy cannoli, does this make my florist heart sing with happiness!
The Shades of Purple Fresh Dye Ink Bundle is a match made in heaven for this gorgeous set, and I have diecut and ink blended my little heart out.
I couldn’t stop making these… they are so gorgeous and I’m absolutely BRIMMING with inspiration!
There are also some fabulous stencils in this release, and I absolutely adore stencils. They are affordable, versatile and take up very little space in your craft room which is always a big plus. Another fabulous product coming in this release is the Shimmer Relief Pastes.
This is the Dancing Drops Stencil done with the Whispering Woodlands Fresh Dye Ink Bundle.
I have made so many projects with this month’s release and I will be sharing them throughout the next week, so make sure to keep an eye on my social media, like Instagram and Youtube!
With that, I hope you get a chance to watch the YOUTUBE VIDEO and hop along with us!
Lots of love and creativity, sparkle and light from Erica