Karen Burniston Designer Challenge 70: Baby or Wedding

Welcome to our June Designer Challenge with a theme of Baby or Wedding. The team's cards are, as usual, wonderful creations!

For my card and video I am showing how to style the Iron Fence Pop-up as a rainbow.

Watch the video below to learn how to make this card:

My card measures 5" x 5.5" when closed. The front of the card features rainbows made from the Circles - Crosshatch die. Other dies used on the front include Border Blends - Trims, Baby Charms, clouds from Landscape Scene and Welcome.

When the card opens, two rainbows pop up, made by adding strips over the Iron Fence die. Clouds are from the Landscape Scene and Outdoor Scene. The borders are from Border Blends - Trims. 

The baby blocks are from Baby Charms and the stork is made by altering pieces from the Beach Charms. 

As mentioned in the video, I was reminded to try this technique after seeing a clever card by Sandy Diller using the Iron Fence as a vase. The arching mechanism lends itself well to other interpretations - perhaps a wishing well or a bridge. Or try the rainbow styling in other colors and themes.

Ready to give this card a try? Here are the dies used on my card:

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Now let's take a look at the wonderful Baby and Wedding inspiration by our talented Design Team. In each case you can click the designer's name to open their blog post in a new window. On their blog posts you'll find additional photos, supply lists and, in some cases, even videos!

Suzanne Smit chose wedding anniversary for a theme and I love her adorable Tiny Gnome couple in the Adirondack Chair. Using a hippo tutu to make a lacy wedding dress is particularly clever! Be sure to click over to Suzanne's blog to see her second version of this card. Lovely!

Sandy Diller created an exciting Slider Box and stacked Surprise Cube combo as a gender reveal. I love how she also added a Bam Box Pop-up on top of the stack of cubes for even more excitement when the drawer pulls out. Be sure to click over to Sandy's blog to see a video of this card in action. Fabulous!

Sue Small-Kreider cleverly created a pop-up cradle swing by combining dies in unique ways. The cradle itself is made using a Bam Box, so it can be flattened for mailing but will pop into a cradle as soon as the card is opened. Click over to Sue's blog for a photo tutorial of how she made this card. Love it!

Jen Webster stacked Surprise Cubes inside a card to make an exciting baby blocks card. The front of the card is also adorable, so be sure to click over to Jen's blog to see all the details including a video of this card in action. I love the sparkly letters on the alphabet blocks. Adorable!

Lois Bak created a gorgeous 3-page Landscape Rectangle Accordion for a baby girl card. I love how Lois uses Border Blends dies to decorate the outside frames and as shimmery corner details in the center panel. What a precious pink keepsake!

Nicky Foden made a wedding card in non-traditional but beautiful colors. I love this idea of customizing the card to favorite or wedding colors plus the addition of shimmer and embossed elements. As usual, Nicky has included a full photo tutorial for how she created this lovely Little Twist Panel card. Love it!

Frances Byrne has the perfect mix of papers, stamps and dies in this lovely baby girl card using the Paper Frames Pop-up. The addition of the Safari Animals is so sweet and I love her use of a partial label as a place to sign the card. So precious!

Fran Sabad made me go "Awwww" with this super sweet baby card featuring a Mini Ball Lion sitting atop a Surprise Cube. The front of this card is equally awwwdorable, so definitely click over to Fran's blog to see all the photos.

Well hopefully you're inspired to celebrate some new arrivals and new beginnings with these card ideas. Join us next month, on July 5, 2023 for our next Designer Challenge with a theme of COLLECTION PACK CREATIONS. We sent each Design Team member a patterned paper collection pack to incorporate into their challenge card. 

Also be on the lookout for the Mission Poppable challenge for June. It will go up next week. Check out the May Mission Poppable challenge here - you still have a week to add your cards to the album to be in the running for website cash!

Happy Crafting!

Karen Burniston Designer Challenge 69: Bejeweled!

Welcome to our May Designer Challenge with a theme of BEJEWELED! The team is incorporating items that are sparkly and/or shiny into their cards.

For my card and video I am showing a fun window card idea using the old timey TV from our Memory Charms die set.

Watch the video below to learn how to make this card:

My card measures 4.5" x 4" when closed. There is a corner tuck closure and you can glimpse the fast food framed in the TV's.

Untuck the corners and the Bam Box pops up inside the card and lifts up the table.

The card's interior includes the Fast Food Charms on the table and a greeting cut with Word Set 14 - Hugs. An oval charm from the Memory Charms set provides a place to sign the card. There is also a built-in pocket to hold a gift card.

Want to give this card a try? Here are links to the dies and supplies used in the video:

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Now let's take a look at the wonderful BEJEWELED inspiration by our talented Design Team. In each case you can click the designer's name to open their blog post in a new window. On their blog posts you'll find additional photos, supply lists and, in some cases, even videos!

We extend a fond farewell to Karen Aicken with this challenge. Karen has been on my various design teams for a decade and I treasure her friendship in addition to her amazing talents. Karen is freeing up more time to focus on family and travel. We will miss her incredible creations and out-of-the box ideas as an official member of the Design Team, but just like with all former members, we hope to welcome her back from time to time as a guest designer. We love you, Karen, and wish you beautiful vistas, doggy snuggles and plenty of hugs and carefree laughter in all your upcoming adventures!

Karen Aicken created this shimmery slimline anniversary card using the Heart Pivot Panels die set with a shortened front flap to allow the greeting to be viewed with the card closed. I love all the different types of mirrored and shimmer stocks used on this card for a vibrant and elegant feel. Click over to Karen's blog to see a video of this card in action!

Frances Byrne is a pro with teacher thank-you cards and I especially love this mirrored and sparkly slimline. She's used the Little Labels Pop-up and the Bookworm among other dies. I love the bright colors and shimmers plus the addition of jewels for even more sparkle. Perfection!

Nicky Foden made this wonderful shaker card using the Swirls Pattern plate in very unique ways. I love all the layers and the bright colors and all the sparkly bits in the shaker. This is such a clever use for the pattern plate for a vibrant and fun card. Love it!

Fran Sabad created a marvelous fairy garden window card using the Katherine Label Pop-up. I love her stenciled cloud background and all the flecks of shimmery paint in the sky. She also bejeweled the centers of the flowers from the Backyard Charms. Click to her blog post to see the front of this fabulous card.

Lois Bak used the Spinner Square Pop-up to pour a glass of wine on this congratulatory window card. I love how the wine is made from rhinestones! Lois also incorporated a rhinestone flourish on her card. Be sure to click to her blog post to see the front of the card. So cheerful!

Jen Webster creates such dimension on die cut pieces by coloring them with Comic markers. I love this gorgeous Flower Pot Pop-up card with rhinestone sparkle centers to the flowers. Jen also mixed in the Flutter Charms into her sweet bouquet. Click over to her blog to see the rest of this amazing card.

Sue Small-Kreider has this jaw-dropping amazing Mother's Day flower cart that she constructed by repurposing other dies! It's so brilliant that you simply must click over to her blog to see her step-by-step photo instructions. Absolutely incredible!

Sandy Diller created this gorgeous slimline card featuring the Purse Pop-up and Dolled Up Charms, but also a big oval mirror animated with a Bam Box. Click over to Sandy's blog for a video of this card in action. It's such a wonderful example of how our dies build on each other for new looks. So cute and clever!

Suzanne Smit has plenty of shimmery sparkles in this elegant Cupcake Pop-up card. What a wonderful soft and pretty color scheme for this pop-up. I love how she added floral elements as well. Exquisite!

Well we hope you feel inspired to bejewel and bedazzle your next card. Join us next month on Wednesday, June 7, 2023 for our next Designer Challenge with a theme of BABY OR WEDDING. The team has been challenged to make a card featuring either theme.

Also be on the lookout for the Mission Poppable challenge for May. It will go up next week. Check out the April Mission Poppable challenge here - you still have a week to add your cards to the album to be in the running for website cash!

Happy Crafting!

Karen Burniston Designer Challenge 67: Vacation!

Welcome to our March Designer Challenge with a theme of VACATION! I challenged the team to create their perfect vacation in a card. You're going to be blown away by their clever die combinations.

For my card and video I'm showing a fun doubling technique for our Flip Frame Pop-up die set. My card theme is cruising, but this card could easily be adapted to any other theme. 

Learn the technique by watching the YouTube video here:

My finished card measures 5" x 7" and can be mailed in an A7 envelope. The patterned paper is an older one from my stash by Bo Bunny called "Weekend Adventures Beachy", but any type of swirl, polka-dot or waves paper would work. The front of my card features the decorator frame and rectangle from the Flip Frame Pop-up, the waves from Tropical Scene and the Cruise Charms. Our new Rectangles and Labels - Crosshatch is sized to fit 5x7 cards.

As the card opens the double pop-up starts to expand.

Inside, pop-ups on both sides of the card are revealed. I took inspiration from the cruise ship charm to craft a similar large version using shape dies. (Watch the video to learn how I did this) The background uses the same large crosshatch rectangle and the decorations are created using combinations of Tropical Scene, Flip Frame Pop-up and Cruise Charms.

I mentioned in the video that I'll be an instructor on a cruise next year. You can find all the information on the Cruise and Crop website here.

Want to give this card a try? Here are the dies and supplies used on the card.

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Now let's take a look at the wonderful VACATION inspiration by our talented Design Team. In each case you can click the designer's name to open their blog post in a new window. On their blog posts you'll find additional photos, supply lists and, in some cases, even videos!

Jen Webster created this absolutely delightful cabin by a lake in the woods and I want to go there right now! Her coloring on the Tiny House is exquisite! Be sure to click over to her blog post for more information about this card and to see the equally stunning card front.

Frances Byrne has me longing for sand and surf with this wonderful beachy birthday card. Frances is showing just how seamlessly new dies (Sea Charms, Beach Borders, Beach Bar, Word Set 16) coordinate with what came before, in this case the Adirondack Chair Pop-up, Nature Edges and Outdoor Scene. I also love her custom greeting.

Lois Bak created a Photo Collage card with images of her dream vacation destinations. This is so clever! It's a card version of a memory or vision board. Click over to her blog for the card front, with more destinations. Love this!

Sue Small-Kreider created this absolutely stunning train ride through the Canadian Rockies as her dream vacation card. I love how the patterned paper creates the background and her combination of the Train Pivot Panels with the Twist Panel creates a dynamic double pop-up. Sign me up for this trip!

 

Fran Sabad made this Circle Tag Book decorated with Cruise Charms as a "Miss you" card. I love the nautical colors and the clever two-part greeting. (Click over to her blog to see the card front) Fabulous!

Karen Aicken used the Slider Box so cleverly to house an accordion fold card with a shimmery sea theme. It even has a shaker front! Click over to Karen's blog for a video of this project in action. What a wonderful keepsake birthday card!

Sandy Diller amped up her Beach Bar pop-up card by adding a Bam Box pop-up to animate the palm trees. I love the texture she created on the sand! Click over to Sandy's blog and let her transport you, via video, to her beach oasis. Love it!

Nicky Foden created an entire scene by the lake for this wonderful Father's Day card. This is the perfect way to mix dies from multiple sets to create a custom scene. Nicky has a full photo tutorial for this card on her blog post, including some great tips for creating a cloud stencil, styling the animals and charms, and creating the foamy surf. This is so creative!

Suzanne Smit made a great card to send to someone embarking on a vacation. She used the House Pivot Panels but also mixed in some pre-made elements that match the theme. I love the bright colors and happy feel to this card! 

Hopefully you feel inspired to plan your next trip! Join us next month on Wednesday, April 5, 2023 for our next Designer Challenge  with a theme of BUNNIES. The team has been challenged to make a card featuring a bunny.

Also be on the lookout for the Mission Poppable challenge for March. It will go up next week. Check out the February Mission Poppable challenge here.

Happy Crafting!

 

Karen Burniston February 2023 Blog Hop

Welcome to our Karen Burniston Products - KB Riley LLC February Release Blog Hop. The Design Team (plus me!) have come together today for a fun blog hop to celebrate the release of 6 new dies. Sneak peeks of the new release started last week, and the dies are available to order NOW!

 

This small but mighty release hits all of our die categories, including:

• 1 new Charm die set
• 1 new Word set
• 1 new Tiny House Add-Ons sets
• 1 new Pop-up die set
• 1 new Crosshatch shape die set
• 1 new Border die set

Dies are available to order now at KarenBurniston.com 

 

For my project I'm sharing the assembly video for our new Beach Bar Tiny House Add-ons set. This die is the sixth Add-ons set to fit our popular foundation Tiny House Pop-up.

 

Learn the assembly by watching the video here:

 

 

In addition to the new Beach Bar Tiny House Add-ons, I also used three more of the new release dies - Beach Borders, Word Set 16 - Beach Happy Hour, and Rectangles and Labels - Crosshatch. The foundation die (required) is the Tiny House Pop-up.

 

 

My card measures 5" x 6" when closed and can be mailed in an A7 envelope. The front features the cocktail border and crabs from the Beach Borders, the scalloped rectangle and labels from Rectangles and Labels - Crosshatch, a palm tree and flamingo from Beach Bar Tiny House Add-ons, and a greeting from Word Set 16 - Beach Happy Hour.

 

 

Open the card and the Beach Bar pops up, complete with thatched roof, sand, palms, flamingos and fancy drinks. 

 

 

Here's a closer look at the Beach Bar. I also used the thatched roof die to make a fringed edge for a little beach towel.

 

 

The thatched roof can be styled with as much windblown and curled thatch as desired, as you can see in this similar card (the packaging sample) which is a 5x5 square card. To attach a cluster of drinks on the bar I used a strip of transparency attached to a side of the opening and then the drinks attached to the transparency.

 

On April 15, 2023 I'll be teaching a Zoom Class featuring three of the new dies, including the Beach Bar Tiny House Add-ons. Find the details on our Events Page. Kits must be purchased through a participating store.

 

GIVEAWAY:

To celebrate the release each participant will be giving away a $25 Gift Certificate to some lucky person who comments on our blog posts, so make sure you join the hop and comment on everyone's blog post. Winners will be randomly chosen from ALL of the blog hop comments received on our blog posts by Monday, February 27, 2023. Lots of chances to win some goodies, so just leave a comment on this post or any other blog hop posts to enter! Don't forget to leave some way for us to contact you, in case you are a lucky winner!

 

Karen B. <--- YOU ARE HERE!

Lois Bak

Sue Small-Kreider

Karen Aicken

Frances Byrne

Suzanne Smit

Sandy Diller

Fran Sabad

Nicky Foden

 

Here are the dies and supplies used on my card. The waves paper is an older PhotoPlay design from my stash called "Cool Off" (#FS2528). 

 

Sneak Peek - Karen Burniston February 2023 Release

Today we are starting a week of sneak peeks for our February 2023 release. We have a small but mighty release of six new dies that will start shipping to stores this week. For those without a local store option, the dies will be available for ordering from our website, KarenBurniston.com, starting February 20, 2023.

Learn about these dies by watching the preview video here:

Throughout this week the Design Team will be sharing ideas for the new dies on their blogs. You'll find links to the designer blogs in the sidebar of this blog.

Next Monday we will have a blog hop that includes prizes for leaving comments and the new dies will be available for purchase from our website. 

Stay tuned for lots of ideas and videos this week!

Happy Crafting!

Karen Burniston Designer Challenge 66: Doublewide Slider Box

Welcome to our February 2023 Designer Challenge with a theme of Wedding, Anniversary or Valentine's Day. I challenged the team to make love cards and I predict you're going to fall in love with their creations!

For my project I'm teaching how to double the width of the Slider Box die set so it becomes a large square slider box perfect for holding a ball character made out of either the Mini Ball Pop-up (I used the Mini) or the Bitty Ball Pop-up. (The Surprise Ball is too large to fit)

Learn this doubling technique by watching the video tutorial here:

For bird assembly, watch the Mini Ball Pop-up Assembly video here:

My doublewide Slider Box measures 4.5" x 4 3/8" x 7/8" and can be mailed in a bubble mailer for extra postage. For the sleeve I made sure to use heavyweight cardstock and also reinforced with sturdy patterned paper (Photo Play) that is wrapped around the open edge and into the sleeve. The hearts are from our Hearts- Crosshatch set and the greeting is our Happy Valentine's Day greeting.

For the drawer I used our Squares - Crosshatch set plus the Slider Box long rectangle to decorate all sides of the drawer. Inside I also added two strips of paper using pop dots on the ends and placed the paper strips to be able to hold down the base heart on the bird.

The bird itself is made entirely with the Mini Ball Pop-up die set, which includes the eyes, wings, hearts, feet and bow tie to style the bird. The finished bird is glued to a heart from the Hearts Crosshatch set and is removable from the box for display. After removing the bird another heart is revealed with an XOXO greeting from our Word Set 9 - Love die set.

Ready to give this card a try? Here are the dies and supplies I used in the video.

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Now let's take a look at the wonderful LOVE inspiration by our talented Design Team. In each case you can click the designer's name to open their blog post in a new window. On their blog posts you'll find additional photos, supply lists and, in some cases, even videos!

Sandy Diller made this wonderful gatefold wedding card featuring the Church Tiny House Add-ons, Wedding Charms and a Bam Box to animate the couple off the fold. I love how she used the intertwined hearts charm atop the church and the way the card is personalized to the couple. What a great keepsake!

Jen Webster creates cards that are full of happy and this Valentine is no exception. I love her combination of dies here with the Mailbox Pop-up and Safari Animals. She's done her signature shading to the pieces as well. Delightful!

Nicky Foden chose non-traditional colors for her super sweet "love you more than ice cream" Valentine. The Ice Cream Sundae Pop-up is perfect for the theme and I love all the hearts sprinkled throughout the card. Wonderful!

Karen Aicken cleverly added Crosshatch Banners to the Waterfall Card die set for a different look. The colors on this card are so bright and happy - just perfect for a Valentines. Be sure to click over to Karen's blog to watch a video of this card in action!

Suzanne Smit made two versions of this fabulous heart card using the Spinner Square Pop-up and a clear shaker heart window. What a wonderful explosion of hearts!

Fran Sabad created several Slider Box and Surprise Cube combos decorated with the Love Charms and others. These are such fun Valentines!

Lois Bak made this wonderful Valentine featuring a window to show a decorated label that then pops up on a Bam Box when the card is opened. Lois used magnets hidden under the papers to keep the card closed until the big reveal. Be sure to click over to her blog for more photos of this charming card.

Sue Small-Kreider cleverly created a Heart Flower Valentine using the Crosshatch Hearts die set. Make sure you click over to her blog to see this card in action along with a picture tutorial. This is such a clever and unique card with a fun reveal!

Frances Byrne created this stunning wedding card featuring the Church Tiny House Add-ons, Wedding Charms and the Long Flap and Closure used as a decorative border (what a great idea!). I love the warm colors on this card!

Hopefully you feel the love in the air with all this inspiration! Join us next month on Wednesday, March 8, 2023 for our next Designer Challenge  with a theme of VACATION. The team has been challenged to make a destination type card. Will it be the beach? The farm? The great outdoors? Tune in next month to see!

Also be on the lookout for the Mission Poppable challenge for February. It will go up next week.

Happy Crafting!

Karen Burniston Designer Challenge 65 - Rubber Band Pop-ups

Welcome to Designer Challenge 65 with a theme of RUBBER BAND POP-UPS. I challenged the team to use any of our die sets that utilize a rubber band. There are five dies to choose from: Surprise Ball Pop-up, Bitty Ball Pop-up, Mini Ball Pop-up, Surprise Cube Pop-up or Bam Box Pop-up. Once again their creativity is off the charts!

For my card and video I'm showing how to combine the Tiny House Pop-up with the Bam Box Pop-up so the house will pop up in the card independent of a card fold. This is a fun alternate assembly for the house that allows it to be placed facing forward in the card instead of the normal assembly diagonal over a card fold. I decorated it as a doghouse using our Doghouse Tiny House Add-ons set.

Learn how to make this card by watching the video tutorial here:

My card measures 5"x 5" when closed, so it will fit in an A7 envelope. The two flaps for the card front are held together with magnets. An alternate closure could be a belly band or a string closure. I decorated the front with pieces from the Doghouse Tiny House Add-ons set, Backyard Charms and Squares - Crosshatch.

Open the card and the doghouse and Bam Box pop up at the same time, powered by rubber bands. I used our Mini Alphabet and Numbers set to spell out the greeting.

The Bam Box next to the doghouse animates the dog, grass and flowers. I used the same paper as the background so it would blend in. The patterned paper is an older Echo Park design called Peek-a-Boo.

The flat position for the tiny house is as shown below. It is connected to the card using the tapered tab on the left side of the house.

Want to give this card a try? Here are the dies and supplies used on my card:

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Now let's take a look at the wonderful rubber band pop-up inspiration by our talented Design Team. In each case you can click the designer's name to open their blog post in a new window. On their blog posts you'll find additional photos, supply lists and, in some cases, even videos!

Frances Byrne used the Surprise Cube Pop-up to fashion a fashionable birthday card that's pretty in pink! The Dolled Up Charms work perfectly on the Surprise Cubes and I love how Frances used the Purse Pop-up decorator pieces on the front of the card. Click to her blog for more details on this dynamic card.

Sue Small-Kreider rang in the new year with a fun Surprise Cube card celebrating 2023. I love the iridescent paper and the feather confecting that is loose in the card. Click over to Sue's blog for more info, including her double belly band closure.

Lois Bak used the Bam Box Pop-up for a shimmery wedding card. I love how she added bubbles over the champagne flutes! Click over to Lois's blog to see the lovely card front and a video of this card opening.

Fran Sabad combined a Surprise Ball and Bitty Ball and fashioned an adorable ladybug! What a sweet little bug. I especially like how she did the eyes with a hole punch cut out for the catchlights. Adorable!

Suzanne Smit combined the Coffee Cup Pop-up with a Bam Box to animate a cupcake next to it. This is such a great illustration of how the Bam Box can be used to add elements around a traditional pop-up. I love the colors and styling on this card, especially the coffee beans atop the cupcakes!

Karen Aicken created a wedding card using the Surprise Cube to pop-up her greeting label. I love her color choices here and how the elements are so warm and vibrant. Click over to Karen's blog for more information on this card, including a video walk-through.

Nicky Foden made a spa day card featuring three stacked Surprise Cubes. I love how she styled the Princess with a mud mask! So many great details on this card and if you click over to Nicky's blog you'll find step-by-step instructions for this lovely card.

Sandy Diller created a Slider Box with birthday Surprise Cubes inside. She also added a Bam Box to the bottom of the Slider Box to pop-up the greeting. Such a great combination of dies and I love how Sandy used the decorator pieces from the Bam Box on the sides of the cubes. Click to her blog for a video of this box in action!

Jen Webster knows her way around a Copic marker and her card is no exception. I just adore how she created pop-up cupcakes with Bam Boxes and then created so much depth and character with her coloring skills. She even created the swirl suckers. Amazing!

Well we hope you are inspired to create some rubber band pop-ups of your own. Join us next month on February 8th for our next Designer Challenge with a theme of WEDDING, ANNIVERSARY OR VALENTINES. Love will definitely be in the air!

Happy Crafting!

 

Karen Burniston December 2022 Blog Hop

Welcome to our Karen Burniston Products - KB Riley LLC December Release Blog Hop. The Design Team and I have come together for a fun blog hop to celebrate the release of 11 new dies. Sneak peeks of the new release started last week, and the dies are available to order NOW!

 

 

This release includes:

• 2 new charm die sets
• 1 new stand alone die set
• 2 new Tiny House Add-Ons sets
• 2 new Pop-up die sets
• 1 new Woven Box Basket die set
• 2 new Crosshatch die sets
• 1 new Box die set

For my project I'm sharing the assembly video for our new Bam Box Pop-up die set. This small yet mighty little box will allow you to pop up anything, anywhere in the card.

 

Learn the assembly by watching the video here:

 

My gatefold card measures 5" x 6" when closed and can be mailed in an A7 envelope. The closure is magnetic, with one magnet sandwiched in the loop of the ribbon and the other under the patterned paper on the right flap of the card.

 

 

Lift the ribbon or just open the card to disengage the magnets. The Bam Boxes will start to lift up the pop-up labels, decorated with Big Birthday Charms

 

 

Once open the two pop-ups stand up (BAM!) in the card. The greeting is from our Word Set 2 - Birthday set.

 

 

I took inspiration for the card from the one I made for the packaging, which has the same dimensions but uses our Flutter Charms and Thank You sets instead.

 

 

GIVEAWAY:

To celebrate the release each stop on the hop will be giving away a $25 Gift Certificate to some lucky person who comments on our blog posts, so make sure you join the hop and comment on everyone's blog post. Winners will be randomly chosen from ALL of the blog hop comments received on our blog posts by Monday, 19th December 2022. Lots of chances to win some goodies, so just leave a comment on this post or any other blog hop posts to enter! Don't forget to leave some way for us to contact you, in case you are a lucky winner!

Keep hopping and commenting to see tons of inspiration and for a chance to win prizes.

Karen B <---- YOU ARE HERE

Lois Bak

Sue Small-Kreider

Karen Aicken

Jennifer Webster

Frances Byrne

Nicky Foden

Sandy Diller

Suzanne Smit

Fran Sabad

 

Karen Burniston Designer Challenge 64 - Fireplaces through the year

Welcome to Designer Challenge 64 with a very fun theme. I challenged the team, plus our two guest designers, to each take on one month of the year to deck out our Fireplace Pop-up for that month. The creativity will astound you! 

This is also Sneak Peek Week for our December 2022 Release so you'll see some of our brand new dies in some of the cards. 

The only rule of the challenge was that the Fireplace Pop-up had to be used. You'll see that some of the cards have converted the fireplace into another item. It's a very versatile die set that is a favorite year-round foundation die.

My month and theme was May for Mother's Day. In addition to the Fireplace Pop-up, I also used the new Bam Box Pop-up, which is shipping to stores this week and will be available on our website starting Monday, December 12, 2022. 

Learn how I made this card by watching the YouTube video here. I recently polled our Facebook group, Karen Burniston Pop-up Peeps, about their preferences for video length and content. One of the suggestions was to add Chapter Marks for easier navigation. It was a great idea, and going forward all videos will include chapter marks. Thanks for the feedback!

My card is a top fold 5" x 6" card with a small foldover flap at the bottom with a magnetic closure. The front of the card is a simple lead-in to the magic inside. The greeting is from Word Set 9, the shapes are from the Bam Box Pop-up and the basket of flowers is made using Fireplace Extras 2. 

Release the closure and the Bam Box will pop up (Bam!) inside the card. I recommend a #8 Firm Stretch rubber band for the Bam Box, but it will also work with a #12 Soft Stretch Rubber Band. We will offer both sizes in small baggies on our website under Tools and Accessories.

Once open, the Fireplace pops up, decorated with floral bouquets befitting the theme. Three hearts from the Bam Box Pop-up dangle in front of the fireplace, suspended from the greeting using thread. The greeting is our Happy Mother's Day die and the watering can is from our Garden Charms set. The rug is made with shapes from the Bam Box and the rest of the decorations are elements from Fireplace Extras 2. The papers are from Carta Bella - woodgrain (older) "Stay Awhile" and floral "Farm Grown".

As I mention in the video, this technique is very transferable to other occasions. Simply swap out the greeting and decorations and this could make a great Birthday card or any other occasion. Ready to give it a try? Here are the products used in my card:

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Let's take a look at the rest of the year and the cards made by our talented Design Team plus two guest designers. If you click on a designer's name their blog post will open where you will find more photos, including the equally impressive card fronts, supply lists and, in some cases, videos or photo tutorials. 

Karen Aicken chose the JANUARY WINTER theme and my jaw dropped when I saw this beautiful card. There are so many gorgeous elements to this, from the wall decor to the candle sparkles to the coal from the Holiday Charms used as stones. Click over to Karen's blog for more on this stunner!

Nicky Foden took on FEBRUARY - VALENTINE'S DAY and made this delightful scene complete with bare feet, champagne, chocolate and a bear skin rug! I love the wedding photo on the wall and the snow-capped windows. Click to Nicky's blog for a full photo tutorial. Love it!

Kelly Booth has retired from the Design Team but joined us this month as a guest to take on MARCH - ST. PATRICK'S DAY. Kelly shares a birthday with this holiday and her name is also a shade of green so I knew this theme was perfect for her! Check out this fun leprechaun's hearth, including a fun close-up photo on the mantel, a Friend banner on the wall, and a hat full of shamrocks. We're very lucky to have Kelly back this month. Click to her blog for more details.

Lois Bak chose APRIL - EASTER as her theme and made this super sweet slimline fireplace scene. Notice her clever use of a Slim Frame over scenery paper to create a windowscape. The Easter baskets on the mantel is another great touch. Click over to her blog for the equally impressive card front. So sweet!

MAY - MOTHER'S DAY is my card, shown at the top of this post.

Sue Small-Kreider took on JUNE - FATHER'S DAY and her card is absolutely epic. She converted the fireplace into a big screen TV for a game day theme and then added another card inside the card to animate the Family Room Pop-up. Notice her pizza box on the end table, the suede paper carpeting and the bears on the couch watching da bears! Click over to her blog post for more photos and a great download for how to operate the card. Amazing!

Suzanne Smit chose JULY - PATRIOTIC as her theme. Because Suzanne is from The Netherlands, she decked out her card with all the patriotic images of her country. I love how she added stacks of books to the mantel. (Those can be found in our new Bookworm set) and the red, white and blue tulips and pots. Click to Suzanne's blog for more details on this lovely card!

Jen Webster took on the AUGUST - BEACH theme and completely converted the fireplace into a tiki hut! As usual, Jen shows off her amazing skills with alcohol markers and inks to add shading to the dies. Notice the way the water turns to sand. I love her creative repurposing of the Fireplace into something completely different. Click to her blog post for more details. Fabulous!

Sandy Diller chose SEPTEMBER - SCHOOL and cleverly converted the fireplace into a teacher's desk. She chose a vintage theme for her school card and even recreated vintage school desks using Bam Boxes and snowman hats. So much cleverness in one card! Be sure to click to her blog for a video about this card. Love everything about this!

John Watterson joins us as a guest designer crafting for OCTOBER -HALLOWEEN with a spooky fireplace scene. He combined the fireplace with the floating floor from the House and Fence die set. He created the custom Halloween characters by combining pieces from several sets, and I love the witch's cauldron in the fire. John's card is made even more epic by having back-to-back pop-up scenes inside. Here is a short YouTube video of the card in action. Amazing!

Fran Sabad took on NOVEMBER - THANKSGIVING for her card and the autumn splendor on display is so pretty! The colors on the fireplace are perfection and I love the fruit and pumpkin medley on the mantel. The turkey warming by the fire (hey - not too close!) is so cute, and you'll definitely want to click to Fran's blog to see the equally charming card front. Fabulous!

Frances Byrne ends the year with DECEMBER - CHRISTMAS and uses the Bam Box in her festive room to animate a stamped girl wrapping presents. I adore how Frances incorporated a Christmas tree next to the fireplace and the wonderful wall and mantel decor. Click over to her blog for more on the Christmas creation! Love it!

Well we hope we've convinced you of the fun and functionality of the Fireplace Pop-up for cards throughout the year. Join us next month, on Wednesday, January 4th, 2023 for our next Designer Challenge with a theme of RUBBER BAND POP-UPS. We'll be making cards using any of our pop-up dies that require a rubber band, including our ball dies, Surprise Cube and Bam Box pop-ups. 

Happy Crafting!

Sneak Peek - Karen Burniston December 2022 Release

Today we are starting a week of sneak peeks for our December 2022 release. We have eleven new dies that will start shipping to stores this week. For those without a local store option, the dies will be available for ordering from our website, KarenBurniston.com, starting Dec. 12, 2022.

Learn about these dies by watching the preview video here:

Throughout this week the Design Team will be sharing ideas for the new dies on their blogs. You'll find links to the designer blogs in the sidebar of this blog.

Next Monday we will have a blog hop that includes prizes for leaving comments and the new dies will be available for purchase from our website. 

Stay tuned for lots of ideas and videos this week!

Happy Crafting!