Peony Border Tri-fold

Hi everyone.  I have a tri-fold card today, the first time I have attempted one and may well be my last..lol.  I say this as I did have quite a few ups and downs with it, but I got there in the end.   I used a set of stamps and dies from Indigoblu which came free with a recent magazine - Mixed Media Box Kit 8 used for the first time here, and I dry embossed using a set of leaf dies bought in a sale at Craft Stash by Cardmaking Magic which unfortunately are not now available.  I watched a video by Jennifer Mcguire and I was taken with the look of the shaped front and you will find the video here.

You need two cards of the same size and mine are 5 3/4" square.  I decided where I was going to stamp the peonies on the front of the card and stamped using Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and then coloured the flowers using my alcohol pens.  I used my stamp positioner and decided to reink the stamp using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink which gave it a bit more punch.  I was going to use the corresponding die to partially cut around the outer edge of the flower stamping but I just could not get it to cut using my Sizzix Big Shot Plus machine, and it seemed impossible to get the sandwich right and I tried endless combinations but to no avail.  I think the fact that I had to set the top plate back so that it would only cut the first bit of the die made it more difficult.  I gave up and die cut around the flower with some small decoupage scissors, and to tidy the back of the front panel up as the pens do bleed through the card a bit, I die cut the whole die shape out, this time no problem in cutting it, and added it behind the flowers and it left a bit of a white border around the flowers..there were just a few areas where it wasn't even as I had cut it by hand, so I just tidied it up a bit with my decoupage scissors.  I finished the front by adding a sentiment from the set using the Nocturne Ink and heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  The second card is glued together back to front with the first, and on what has become the under layer to the flowers I decided to add some leaves using a die and dry embossing it on the panel.  It is not a square die, actually 5" x 7", and there was a bit of a gap on the inside edge so I decided to cut around the leaves at the edge, and then I added a strip of white card under the leaves to give a nicely finished edge.  I then added a piece of paper as an insert for the sentiment on the base of the card which when closed is hidden behind the leaf layer, and the card was done.  

I found it a bit fiddly to make so I don't think I will be doing this again in a hurry.  Jennifer makes it look like a breeze, but mine felt more of a tornado..stress levels were definitely up...lol.

Thank you for visiting my blog today and I'll see you again soon. 

I am entering the following challenges:

We Love Stamping Challenge - June '24 Fabulous Florals/Anything Goes.
Stamping Sensations Challenge - June '24 Mood Board/Anything Goes.
Triple B Challenge- Use one of more of Birds, Butterflies & Blooms.
Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Bright and Cheerful.
Beautiful Blossoms Challenge - No. 17 Anything Floral Goes/Mood Board.
NBUS Challenge - No. 63 Where we use our Never Before Used Schtuff.

I am also joining in with Darnell's I.D.E.A.S., a challenge she has set herself but invites anyone to join in with.  This is June Week 2: Dies/Die Cuts.