While the temperature in Nova Scotia is currently way above normal for early October I’m certainly not going to complain. However I know that it can’t last forever and freezing winter weather will be here soon enough. For most crafters our attention generally turns to Christmas, but having a daughter with a December birthday reminds me there’s lots more reasons to celebrate. So for today’s blog project I wanted to create a birthday card and the Nests of Winter 12” x 12” Designer Series Paper (DSP) is perfect for that.

Started by choosing a sheet from the Nests of Winter DSP with a variety of birds sitting on pine branches. From this sheet I cut a 3-1/2″ x 3-7/8″ piece featuring three birds. After cutting a 3-5/8″ x 4″ piece of Basic Black Card I mounted the DSP on top using Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow).

WINTER BRANCHES

Next I found a sheet of DSP with lots of budding branches and cut a strip 2-1/8″ x 4-1/4″. Then I cut a 2-1/4″ x 4-1/4″ piece of Basic Black Card and glued the second strip of DSP onto that, leaving an even border at the top and bottom.

I decided to coordinate my card base with the berries on the DSP and so cut a 5-1/2″ x 8-1/2″ piece of Cherry Cobbler Card. With the long side at the top I scored the card at 4-1/4″, then folded it along the scored line and sharpened the crease with a Bone Folder. Using liquid glue again I fixed the bud strip across the card front 1″ from the top edge. Then I glued the bird layer over the top. Below the bottom right corner of the bird layer I added three Iridescent Pearl Basic Jewels.

Having chosen my sentiment from The Right Words Stamp Set, I really wanted it to stand out. So I cut a 1/2″ x 2-1/2″ strip of Basic Black Card and stamped the “Happy Birthday” using VersaMark ink. Then I sprinkled the sticky ink with white powder from the Wow! Basics Embossing Powder pack. After tapping off the excess, I removed some stray specks then melted the rest with my Heat Tool on 2 (high).

Once the embossing had cooled I added it to the card front using Black Stampin’ Dimensionals.

Finally I went back to the bud patterned DSP and cut a piece 2-1/4″ x 6″. Using liquid glue I fixed the DSP to the flap of a Basic White Medium Envelope. Then I trimmed off the excess paper with scissors, using the edge of the flap as a guide. With that my birthday card project was complete.

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UPDATE April 2026: Sadly The Right Words Stamp Set has been retired. The Nests of Winter DSP is on the Last Chance list and now only available while stocks last.