The VSN is happening again this weekend on splitcoastsampers.com. Today is day 2 of the fun challenges. I hope you come join the fun. It is called Go for Gold. You can find all the challenges HERE.
JAN26VSNE - Goldfish
For this challenge, I worked with an adorable Unity Stamp image, colored with Copics and carefully fussy cut. I set it over a gold glitter heart for a bright, celebratory layer, and added a wobble behind the fish so it gives a playful little wiggle.
To finish the card, I included two coordinating sentiment banners that share a sweet message of love for Valentine’s Day.
Goldfish Love
JAN26VSNF - Wave Your Flag: use any flag
For this card, I die cut all the pieces of the seagull and walrus and layered them together to create the scene. They are layered on a designer paper that looks like whimsical clouds and a few dimensionals are added for interest in the scene.
The card is finished with the birthday sentiment popped up on dimensionals.
Birthday Walrus and Friend
JAN26VSNG - practice, improve your skills: new version of an old card
I chose this CARD as my inspiration. I loved the layout, image, and colors from the original, but when I sponged in the ground and sky, they seemed to distract from the playful focal image. For this version, I kept things cleaner and let the image shine on its own.
After coloring the image with Copics, I paired it with a couple of beach‑themed designer papers and framed each layer with coordinating bright, happy colors to match the sunny feel of the design.
A few sequins finish the card with just the right touch of sparkle.
Life's a Beach
JAN26VSNH - Warm Up! cocoa, coffeeFor this card, I used a fun coffee cup die from My Favorite Things, cutting all the pieces from coordinating scraps. The assembled cup is popped up on dimensionals, then set into a playful layout built from a mix of purple designer paper scraps.
The sentiment is stamped in purple to tie everything together, and the card is finished with several purple sequins for a little extra sparkle.
Your Kindness Warms My Heart
JAN26VSNI - Jump for Joy: leaping, pop-up, celebrationFor this special request, my aunt asked for a 70th birthday card for a good friend, and a fun pop-up design felt perfect for such a milestone celebration. I kept the outside clean and simple, using a gorgeous, patterned paper with a retro 70s vibe. A die-cut "70" in gold mirror cardstock, popped up for dimension, echoes one of the metallic stripes in the paper. The front is finished with a stamped sentiment along the bottom.
The inside is where the real celebration happens. I used a Karen Burniston twist pop-up die and continued with other patterns from the same paper pack as the front. It is not the same design, but it carries the same colors and gold accents, keeping everything cohesive. After assembling the twist mechanism, I added a gold mirror "Happy Birthday" die cut along with a few balloons and hearts for extra festivity. A sentiment panel and a couple of gold glitter hearts complete the inside and tie the whole design together.
70th Pop Up
JAN26VSNJ - ICY: acetate or glossy accents, etc.
For this card, I wanted to get a head start on graduation designs for my nephew’s girlfriend, who will be graduating from Ball State University next year with a chemistry degree. To create the beaker, I combined a rectangle die cut with an oval die cut, cutting both from white cardstock to form the classic beaker shape. On the base layer, I sponged in a rich red to mimic liquid behind the beaker, then added tiny hearts to turn it into a playful shaker element.
The card is finished with a congratulations die cut along with a cap and tassel to celebrate her achievement.
Chemistry Graduation
JAN26VSNK -
Gold Mining (Mountains, pioneers, gold nuggets, panning)For this card, I reached for a retired Impression Obsession silhouette that has a wonderful mountain feel. It made the perfect backdrop for a setting sun, so I blended yellow and orange distress oxide ink and masked the circle to build that glowing horizon.
After the scene was complete, I added coordinating yellow and orange layers for warmth, then finished the design with a crisp black frame and a birthday sentiment popped up on dimensionals.
Hiking Birthday
JAN26VSNL - Watercolor BokehFor this card, I used the Watercolor Bokeh technique from the tutorial on Splitcoaststampers.com. I started by adding red, orange, and yellow watercolor to a panel of watercolor paper. Once it was completely dry, I used two different circle templates to sponge white ink and build the soft bokeh effect. After the circles were in place, I sealed them with clear embossing for extra definition and shine.
I trimmed the panel, layered it onto a black card base, and finished the design with a white heat‑embossed Get Well Soon sentiment.
Get Well Soon
JAN26VSNM - Cool ColorsThe inspiration photo for this challenge immediately caught my eye. The colors were such a perfect match that I knew exactly which paper I wanted to use. The pattern includes many of those hues, plus a few extras and even has touches of gold that tie beautifully into the VSN theme.
I trimmed the paper and layered it on black cardstock for contrast, then added a narrow strip of soft light‑blue designer paper I found in my scrap bin. The subtle color shift adds just enough extra interest without competing with the main panel.
My son recently gave me these adorable 3D kitty stickers, and their playful expressions and colors were a perfect match for this design. They add such a fun, whimsical touch to the finished card.
The birthday sentiment is popped up on dimensionals to give it a little lift and balance the dimension from the stickers.
Cool Cats
JAN26VSNN - Closing Ceremonies (Beauty In Action)For my final VSN card today, I created a spinner card. For the front, I started with a gorgeous rose designer paper, layered it on pink cardstock, and mounted everything on a white card base. Pink and white bakers twine is wrapped around the panel, and the sentiment from DRS Designs is stamped in coordinating pink. I finished the front with a white tag and a pink heart tied onto the twine, along with pink candy‑dot hearts on the sentiment panel for a soft, sweet touch.
Inside, I used the Surprise Inside Spinner design. A pink cardstock layer forms the base, topped with the black spinner frame. I added the same rose paper to the center of the frame and attached the “love” heart spinner using the pink and white bakers twine. To finish the inside, I added two white panels, a strip of the rose paper along the bottom for trim, and a single black heart for balance.
Anniversary Love
Thank you for stopping by to see my cards today. Your thoughtful comments are always appreciated. If you leave a note, a visit to your blog will follow.
