Tips and Techniques – Punches & Sentiments

Today I want to talk about punches and sentiments. Punches make creating easy. You can easily stamp an image on some card stock such as a Daisy, as shown or a moose, a heart, butterfly etc and with a click you have punched it out and you are done. Easy right?

I love all of my punches but I sometimes find it frustrating to find that perfect punch for the sentiment I want to use. So with that in mind, I am sharing something I am working on today and thought you might find it useful too. Below is the punch template I am talking about.

First of all, I covered a sheet of thick card stock on one side, with a self laminating sheet to provide protection and reduce wear and tear. I then cut out my template sheets at 3 1/2″ x 3 1/2″ so they will all be uniform in size. I used my punch in the bottom corner to punch out the image (in this case a 2″ circle) I then labelled the back with the name of the punch and the catalogue item number for easy reference. When I have completed. all my templates, I will punch a small hole in the top left corner so all the templates can be added to a binder ring and kept together easily. This way I can add more as I get additional punches.

By creating these templates, it will be quite easy to lay it over a stamped image to see if it fits and makes designing a card a little simpler. With a quick glance, you can see the two images on the right are not big enough for this sentiment. However the two on the left do fit, so I now have two options to choose from.

With just a little bit of advance preparation, I will have on hand, an easy reference tool for my stamped images. It may seem like a bit of work initially, but I will be able to use this over and over again so it will be well worth it. As I acquire additional punches, I’ll be able to easily add a template to my binder ring (I have blank templates made up as well)

Once you have them all together, it allows you to easily flip through your punch openings to see what will fit over your stamped image or sentiment by placing the label openings over it. You can also line it up on your card front to see which label will fit best with your design. This will save you time and frustration and make card making just a bit easier.

Now if you don’t have a lot of punches or labels for your sentiments, I want to introduce you to the Many Messages stamp and die bundle. This is a new product in the Mini Stampin’ Up! catalogue (Jan-Jun 2021) and I love all the different stamped sayings and the varied outlines. This stamp makes it so easy to craft quick cards with no fuss. You can prepare your stamped sentiments for a variety of occasions ahead of time so you are always prepared.

This bundle comes with just one rubber stamp and one die cut so you can stamp all the sentiments at once. I suggest you stamp it several times if various ink colours, then die cut them all out at the same time to use immediately or save for future projects, AND you know they will fit perfectly. For a different look, you could stamp your card stock as a background on your card base. To die cut the images, all you need to do is line up the little stars and heart over the stamped image for a perfect fit. How easy is that? A word of caution though, this stamp set is large so you will need the acrylic block “F” or a large surface to mount it on, such as a flat cutting plate or your stamparatus plate. This particular block is currently on back order due to it’s popularity but you can order it with your regular order and it will be shipped to you automatically when it becomes availalable (no extra shipping charge)

You can purchase just the Many Messages Stamp or the Many Messages Die, separately, however by purchasing them as a bundle, you will save 10%. Don’t forget, during Sale-a-bration, you will also be able to earn FREE products from the Sale-a-bration brochure with every $60 or $120 qualified purchase from either the mini or annual catalogue. To visit my online store click here When placing an order, please use my January HOST code – BXA2GN37, so you will automatically be entered into my January draw to win a prize from me.

I hope you have enjoyed these tips and I invite you to like and follow my blog so you won’t miss out on future posts. I post new “Helpful Tips” every Tuesday and a “3D project” or “Fun Fold” card every Friday.

I welcome any suggestions for future posts. If you are wondering, someone else might be too, so please don’t hesitate to contact me with your concerns, I am here to help.