EXPLORING IN COLOR ALTERNATE PROJECTS
I’m sharing the love with some Paper Pumpkin inspiration. It’s time for out APPT – “A Paper Pumpkin Thing” blog hop and it is full of inspiration. This month we’re sharing alternate ideas featuring the May 2023 “Exploring In Color” Paper Pumpkin kit.
I love this month’s Exploring In Color Paper Pumpkin kit so much it may just be one of my favorites ever. I have love pairing the printed nature landscape card bases (from the kit and the card add on) with some of my stamp sets to create different scenes. For today’s projects I paired with the Stampin’ Up! Beside Me and Wildlife Wonder stamp sets for these masculine themed / Father’s Day cards.
PAPER PUMPKIN LINKS
PAPER PUMPKIN LINKS
Coordinates with Jan-Mar 2026 kits. Available now while they last.
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INSTRUCTIONS & TEMPLATE
SIDE STEP CARD VIDEO
PAPER PUMPKIN KIT VIDEO
CARD PHOTOS
Want to save these ideas for later? Pin them to your favorite Pinterest board.
Have you tried these designs? I love to see your creations! Be sure to share them on #shareyourcrafts post every Saturday on my Facebook Page.
My first project share for the hop is this Side Step Fun Fold Card.
I used the Exploring In Color Cards & Envelope Add On for the card base. I think these card bases are the best deal and they are gorgeous. $10 for 18 card bases and envelopes! I bought a few sets. And the printed card bases work great for this fold, I have a template for it on the instructions and a video above. 
I stamped the bear and owl from the Wildlife Wonder stamp set and then used a Water Painter to soften the look. 
The next 2 cards I paired the kit and add on cards with the Stampin’ Up! Beside Me stamp set. I was thinking about masculine card ideas with Father’s Day approaching.
For the slimline card I used one of the card bases from the kit front and back to fit the length of the card.
I adore this scene of the a dad/grampa fishing in the lake with the kids. It all came together so nicely.
So the stamped image blends into the card I colored around the edge of the image with the Stampin’ Blends markers to match the print.
For my last card share for this post I took the beach scene from the Beside Me stamp set and turned it into more of a nature scene. It looks like the man is pointing out the mountains or wildlife off in the distance. 
To make the scene come to life, I cut the image very tight on the edges and overlapped it onto the mat.
I colored the image with Stampin’ Blends Markers. The colors are all listed in the instructions above.
I created all of these alternate cards with the supplies of 1 kit and will be sharing instructions for the rest over the next couple of days. 
These are the cards created per the instructions.
I have a May Paper Pumpkin share challenge on my Facebook page. I love to see your projects and you could win a free kit.
MORE MAY PAPER PUMPKIN CARDS
