Clean & Simple Cards With Essentials by Ellen

You’re already running late and need a quick quick card for a friend? We can help! Lisa Spangler has created some fabulous clean & simple cards with Essentials by Ellen Everyday Doodles, that you can whip up in a flash! And if you have a extra few minutes, you can make a whole set to give as a gift!

Hey all! It’s Lisa Spangler here, and I’ve got a clean and simple notecard set to share using the newly released EBE Everyday Doodles + Everyday Punnies – they crack me!

I just can’t seem to stop using them! I mean, that cactus! And the apple! (Gave a card with that sentiment to my sister who is a teacher, lol!) And the ice cream. All so good.

I’ve got a tip video for you – watch it here:

I couldn’t seem to stop giggling the whole time I was making the cards, could you tell? GRIN!

I plan to give this set of cards to a friend who loves to send out handmade cards – but doesn’t stamp! GASP! I know, right?

I love that they’re flat for easy mailing – no extra postage required.

I think a set like this would be the perfect teacher gift – especially the apple!

Here’s a recap of the tips I shared:

• Clean and simple cards work best when you keep the focus on just one or two elements like the the Everyday Doodles + Everyday Punnies, and then add a few unexpected twists like the die cut window and those EBE Mini Hearts! Those may be tiny lil things but they make such a BIG impact. Plus, hearts really do go with everything!
• I gotta have me the Jewel Picker when working with teeny tiny things like those hearts – first learned about this tool from JULIE and it has made using ‘em much more fun! I’m a total butterfingers lol!
• Along with the jewel picker, I also gotta have the On Point Glue. That cap is genius! It’s the first glue of it’s kind to not clog up and become unusable in our 100 degree Texas summers.
• Inks really do make the card – I love VersaFine onyx black ink because it really keeps all the little details, and then those clear and vibrant Catherine Pooler colors can’t be beat.
• When working with outline and solid stamps that you layer together I usually stamp the outline first – but since these stamps are offset a little I like to stamp the solid part first. It’s all up to you, of course!
• The new EBE Painted Stripes really ground your card – I can see myself reaching for them again and again. I like to stamp long border stamps like this over the edge of my card, so I put a spacer there along the edge of the MISTI so it has a gap for overlap.
• When adding glitter glue, I like to squeeze some out on a bit of scrap paper and then use a cheapie brush to apply it to my card. This prevents getting globs of glue and it dries faster to boot!
• I made bands to go around the cards and envelopes in the set by stamping on strips of regular old printer paper and then I tied them both together with twine. You could also get fancy and make a box to put them in with a score-pal.
• One last tip! I like to stamp a bunch of these and die cut them all at once. I store any extras in the envelope that the stamps come in – Essentials By Ellen stamps all come in super sturdy packaging – love that.

Thanks for sticking with me, and hope these tips help someone out there,

Lisa – and her cactus!

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