Thanks for hopping by for the Stampers Dozen Blog Hop where our theme this month is gratitude. With Thanksgiving coming up, now is a great time to focus on being thankful. I know I make a LOT of thank you cards all year long, but I really do try to focus on gratitude every November.

When determining what to share, I thought you might like to see something in season as well as a new technique. Let’s begin with this card:

Both the focal point and the background are from the Splendid Autumn designer series paper pack. Actually, the leaves are too and are die cut and embossed with the Changing Leaves dies. I tried a new (to me) technique on the leaves. Using a blending brush, I spread a tiny bit of the gold Metallic Enamel Effects onto a silicone mat. Then, I applied the brush to the embossed leaves to give them a gold tint. Unfortunately, I had a hard time getting it to show up on the above photo. Let’s try this:

My blending brush is a little stained with pink but I had rinsed it well prior to using it. If you try this technique, be sure to clean your blending brush right away as the enamel effects will dry and harden. But you can see here how fun this technique is.

If you’re wondering where the sentiment came from, it’s the delightful Choose Happy stamp set with so many words with so many uses throughout the year (a must have, IMO). The tag is from the Greetings of the Season die set. It all came together for a perfect card for Thanksgiving.

Here’s another card, more a generic thank you rather than Thanksgiving, but certainly could be used for it as well:

Same supplies for the most part, but a more generic sentiment from the So Sincere stamp set. Here I was able to catch the gold effect on the leaves.

I hope you’ll give this technique a try! I’m grateful that you’ve stopped by today. Be sure to visit all of the blogs on the hop to see a variety of grateful inspiration for your paper crafting projects.

For info about my upcoming in-person and virtual classes, check out my class descriptions here and my calendar here. I hope to see you at a class sometime soon, but you can always find ideas here on my blog as well as on Facebook and Instagram. Subscribe to my weekly newsletter at the bottom of this page so you don’t miss a thing!

Thanksgiving Card Measurements:

• Cherry Cobbler card base – 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ folded at 4 1/4″, 3 3/8″ x 3 3/8″
• Very Vanilla – 4″ x 5 1/4″, scrap
• Splendid Autumn DSP – 4″ x 5 1/4″ (design 1), 3 1/4″ x 3 1/4″ (design 2), 5″ x 5″ (design 3)

Thank You Card Measurements:

• Wild Wheat card base – 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ folded at 4 1/4″
• Very Vanilla – 4″ x 5 1/4″, scrap
• Splendid Autumn DSP – 4″ x 5 1/4″ (design 1), 5″ x 5″ (design 2)

Card Supplies: