On Saturday afternoon, I hosted my monthly Zoom call with my Paper Pumpkin customers. These calls are always a highlight for both my subscribers and me.
During our Pumpkin in the Fungeon gatherings, I share a few creative ideas using the monthly kit, and my customers always bring incredible inspiration of their own. I’m continually amazed by what everyone creates. I only wish I could bottle up the creativity, laughter, and friendship from these calls and share them with all of you.
About The Kit
The Hooray for Birthdays Paper Pumpkin Kit includes a variety of cards featuring bold sentiments, beautiful flowers, and nine fun-fold easel cards. I was blown away by the gorgeous colors and delicate floral images in these designs. The cards are absolutely beautiful just as they’re designed.
Here’s a look at the finished cards included in the kit:
The fun shapes, gorgeous colors, and interactive easel folds make these cards a delight for both the maker and the recipient. And just look at those flowers! They’re perfectly lovely.
Alternative Projects
It’s a funny thing—when a kit features simple single-fold cards, I tend to create fun folds with lots of interactive elements (I made two easel cards with last month’s bicycle-themed kit). But when Stampin’ Up! gives us fun-fold cards right out of the box, I almost always turn them into simple single-fold cards instead. It’s possible I just enjoy bucking the system. 🙂
Here are the two cards I shared during our Pumpkin in the Fungeon call over the weekend:
I had so much fun creating these designs, and I’m excited to show you a closer look at each one.
Hugs & Wishes
The card bases in this kit featured grid designs in soft, washed versions of Hydrangea Hue and Melon Mambo. I loved them both, so it only made sense to cut up one of the card bases and combine the two designs on a single card.
Here’s a closer look:
I cut three panels from the card bases, each measuring 2″ x 4-1/4″, and popped them up on an Old Olive card base with Stampin’ Dimensionals. I arranged a variety of flowers and leaves from the kit across the panels and finished the design with a sentiment from this month’s stamp set.
Three Iridescent Pearl Basic Jewels add just the right amount of sparkle.
I was especially taken with the combination of Hydrangea Hue and the soft Melon Mambo in this kit. While designing this card, I experimented with Basic White, Hydrangea Hue, Melon Mambo, and Crumb Cake as the card base. They all looked fine—but the moment I tried Old Olive to coordinate with the leaves, I knew I’d found the winner.
If you love this combination of Hydrangea Hue, Melon Mambo, and Old Olive as much as I do, I hope you’ll save it for future inspiration.
Birthday Wishes
The second alternative card stays fairly close to the original layout, but with a few changes that make it feel completely different.
Here’s a closer look:
I trimmed 1/2″ from the bottom of the arch included in the kit and brushed Hydrangea Hue ink across the entire piece to create the look of a beautiful sky. What a fun surprise! I hadn’t noticed the glossy detail around the curved edge until I started blending the ink, and suddenly that border came to life.
I stamped the sentiment along the lower-right edge of the arch and finished the card with a trio of Rhinestone Basic Jewels for a little extra sparkle.
Just like the first card, I spent far too much time deciding on the perfect card base. I auditioned Hydrangea Hue, Melon Mambo, Timid Tiger, Basic White, and Old Olive. None of them quite clicked. Then I took a complete shot in the dark with Darling Duckling—and immediately knew the card was finished. ♥
If you love this combination of Hydrangea Hue, Old Olive, and Darling Duckling as much as I do, I hope you’ll save this color combination for a future project.
Refills available
Refills of the Hooray for Birthdays kit are currently available for subscribers. These include everything except the stamp set and ink spot, making them perfect if you’d like to create even more cards with these beautiful supplies.
To learn more, CLICK HERE.
Sign Up for Paper Pumpkin Today
I love that Stampin’ Up! offers such a wonderful variety of projects in these monthly kits. Next month’s kit is already shaping up to be another crowd favorite. Here’s a little preview of what’s coming in August:
When you subscribe, you’ll be invited to join my monthly Pumpkin in the Fungeon calls where we share inspiration, laughter, and creativity. You can subscribe month-to-month or prepay to earn Stampin’ Rewards.
CLICK HERE to subscribe to Paper Pumpkin.
If you’d like to craft along with us each month, I’d love to welcome you to Pumpkin in the Fungeon. If you have questions or need help getting started, just send me an email at [email protected].
Last Thoughts
One of my favorite things about Paper Pumpkin is that every kit gives us permission to see the supplies in a completely different way. Sometimes the best alternative project starts with nothing more than trimming a card base, trying an unexpected ink color, or reaching for the card stock you almost didn’t choose. Those little creative detours often lead to my favorite finished cards—and I hope these projects encourage you to take a few detours of your own.
Thanks for stopping by today!
Brian
Summer 2026 One-for-One Card Swap
If you are here today for inspiration from the projects in my Summer One-for-One Card Swap, there will be more! If you missed the prior posts, you can see them here:
- DAY ONE: Summer 2026 One-for-One Card Swap
- DAY TWO: Summer 2026 One-for-One Card Swap – Fancy Folds
- DAY THREE: Summer 2026 One-for-One Card Swap
- DAY FOUR: Summer 2026 One-for-One Card Swap – Fancy Folds
Don’t Miss July’s Product of the Month
When you place a $75 order (before shipping and taxes) in July, you can select the new Product of the Month for just $5. Here’s a look at this sweet Two-Stampin’ stamp set:
To read more about this sweet set and see a collection of Stampin’ Up!-designed samples, CLICK HERE.
Foiled!
Stampin’ Up! has released its new Stampin’ Hot Foil System – and it’s a winner! Products are now available for a limited time. I’ve enjoyed creating with my new products, and I am pretty certain you’ll enjoy them, too!
To learn more, click on one of the links below:
