Fun Floral Crafts this Summertime!

It's no surprise how much I love florals! I'm fairly certain my obsession level is well-known if you know my crafting projects. When I was asked to highlight some of my favorite floral Dies from Chapter 2, I couldn't wait to show you all a fresh spin on a few Die Sets that have recently been released. Get ready to discover some Floral Crafts ideas in this blog!

There is an abundance of florals in this Chapter as they are truly the evergreen shape of the crafting world. Not only can they be changed seasonally but Floral Crafts work perfectly for any celebration. From weddings to birthdays, to baby or bridal showers, florals can be utilized alongside fresh techniques to create soft, bold or realistic makes. Below I will walk you through a few makes I created and the techniques I used to bring these die sets to life in a unique Summer-themed color palette.

Project One: Floral Shaker Card

One of my favorite ways to create dimension and focal points on makes is to incorporate 3D elements. Our new Circle Shaker Panes and their corresponding Circle Frames Framelits Die Cutting Set provides the perfect combination for simple and interactive features on a make. I've filled my Shaker Pane with a mixture of Sequins and Beads that coordinate with the color palette I have used.

The Window Box Framelits Die Set featured below is one of my favorite Summer florals because you can stamp the flowers, and color them in with Watercolors or Colored Pencils to customize the color palette. You could even consider using Clear Embossing Powder with the Stamp Set to create a resist effect with various mediums such as Distress Inks or Watercolor paints.

Another fun way to use florals is to pair them with the 3D Embossing Folders. I would recommend simple or repetitive background patterns so that they don't clash with what you are using as your focal point.

Project Two: Embossed Mini Slimline Card

In the below project, I used the Flower Power 3-D Embossing Folder as my background but I wanted to add a gentle effect to the embossed design to make it stand out. Using our Lilac Rainbow Luster Wax, I applied a light layer of wax on top of the raised portions of the embossed panel to create an iridescent sheen for the backgrounds. What's beautiful about this particular wax is that it takes on different appearances depending on the cardstock color it is applied to, offering a variety of end results! I trimmed the folders to create mini slimline card bases.

I loved the idea of pairing the embossed cardstock piece with some micro florals so I selected the Pass The Bouquet Thinlits Die Set and Tea Cups Thinlits Die Cutting Set to bring a strong focal point to the card. These Die Sets also look fantastic alongside our Muted Cardstock and Good Vibes #4 Stamp Set which I also opted to use.

Project Three: Summer Floral Birthday Card

Is there anything better than a cake decorated with flowers? The Build-a-Cake Thinlits Die Set is one of my favorites for year-round making. The interchangeable layers can be color customized, the flowers and decorative elements can be added for whimsical or sophisticated style and the different cake bases all lend themselves to evergreen makes.

As this project was for Summer, I chose a bright color palette for this birthday card (although it could also be Halloween-themed) and wanted to decorate the cake with a variety of flowers that I paper sculpted to appear more life-like. I paired the cake from the Die Set with the Flower Power 3D Embossing Folder in White Cardstock to create a simple, clean background that would allow the cake to stand out. I love how embossing folders can stand on their own even in plain white.

To add dimension and shadows I blended various Distress Inks across all flowers on the cards and also added an inked edge to all of the stamped sentiments to help them stand out from the background.

Project Four: Layered Colorful Floral Card Front

A great way to anchor flowers on a card front is to put them in a vessel, choose the perfect one for your makes whether it be a vase or cup die cut - putting florals in something they flow out of creates a bit of scene. I loved the tall, stemmed flowers and various tea cup and coffee cup shapes from the Tea Cups Die Set. Pairing colorful florals with black also helps to make them pop on any project.

Now it's your turn! I hope you found some fun and new inspiration for crafting with our newest Chapter 2 Dies in this Fun Floral Crafts Blog! I'll soon be filming a video highlighting even more Summer and late Spring ideas using flowers, so be sure to check out our social channels in the coming weeks.

Be sure to share your take on these Floral Crafts project ideas so please share them with me using the hashtag #mymakingstory. Also, don't forget to use my Discount code ALEXIS20 if you want to get your hands on any of the products I have used in the projects above!

Until next time...Happy Crafting!