Welcome back to the craft room and today’s Clean and Simple Floral Card Tutorial. Sometimes in cardmaking, it’s nice to let one element really shine. That’s exactly what we’re doing today with the Simon Says Stamp Etched Layered Daisy Stem.
By pairing a brightly colored flower with an all-white background, the flower becomes the star of the show. I’ll be using Distress Oxide Sprays along with Distress Inks to add color and dimension, then bringing everything together into a design that works for any occasion.
Creating Clean and Simple Floral Card Backgrounds
For this clean and simple floral card, I’m using a scrap piece of Strathmore Bristol Vellum surface cardstock for the backgrounds. It’s a lighter-weight cardstock that die cuts easily, but it also handles Distress Oxides really well without pilling.
Now, I’ll be the first to say I’m by no means an expert when it comes to Distress Oxide Sprays. But I wanted to pull them out and play a bit for today’s project.
If you want to see what these sprays can really do, I highly recommend checking out Tiffany Solorio on YouTube. Her backgrounds are absolutely beautiful, and she shares so many helpful tips for building layers and texture.
If you’d like to see my very first attempt using them, you can check out that post here: First Time Using Distress Oxide Sprays Part 1.
Flower Background
Starting with Wild Honey, I sprayed a small amount onto the non-stick mat from my Tim Holtz Glass mat and added just a bit of water to get things moving.
From there, I swiped my cardstock through the color, focusing on coating both ends first. After drying that layer with my Wagner heat gun, I went back into the leftover color on the mat and lightly tapped the panel into it to build up some texture.
Once that was dry, I sprayed a little water into the palm of my hand and used my fingers to sprinkle droplets onto the panel. I then lifted some of that water with a paper towel to create even more variation.
I am really happy with how this panel turned out. There are areas of solid color along with softer, textured spots that add interest without being overwhelming.
While this might seem like a lot of color to someone more experienced with sprays, for me, this balance works perfectly for what I had in mind.
Stem Background
To create the background for the stem and leaves, I used Mowed Lawn Distress Oxide Spray with a bit of water.
Using the same technique as before—swiping, tapping, and adding water droplets—I ended up with another beautifully textured panel that complements the flower nicely.
My goal with these backgrounds was to have slightly different amounts of texture on each layer so they wouldn’t compete with each other.
Looking at the finished panels, I think that came through. I’m especially happy with the yellow panel. As you can see below, it has some smoother areas that work well for the base layer, while the top layer can take advantage of the added texture.
Die Cutting the Daisy Stem
Once the panels were completely dry, it was time to bring in the star of the show—the Simon Says Stamp Etched Layered Daisy Stem die set.
Because water was involved in creating the backgrounds, the panels weren’t perfectly flat. To help keep the dies in place, I used a few small pieces of Best Ever Craft Tape from Spellbinders.
Since the Strathmore cardstock is a bit thicker than my usual 110 lb cardstock, I knew going in that die cutting might take a little experimenting.
After a few test cuts, I found that the following sandwich worked best with my older Sizzix machine: starting with the base plate and two shims, then placing my paper and dies onto the Scrapbook.com Magic Mat.
Typically, when I add a paper shim, I place it on top of my cutting plate. For this cardstock, though, it worked much better placed directly on top of the paper and dies. I folded a scrap piece of copy paper into quarters and added it before placing the top cutting plate.
This combination worked really well—everything cut cleanly in a single pass, including the thin stem.
Coloring the Die Cuts
To add even more depth while still keeping that clean and simple floral card look, I brought in some coordinating Distress Inks.
I started by applying Mustard Seed over the entire flower layer, which really helped brighten up the color.
Next, I added Rusty Hinge around the edges of the petals to bring in a bit more definition and dimension.
To finish off the flowers, I used Vintage Photo—my all-time favorite Distress color—in the center.
You’ll also notice I added a bit of that same color to the bottom layer. It’s not strictly necessary, but I like doing this just in case the layers don’t line up perfectly. It helps everything feel cohesive.
For the stem and leaves, I started with a layer of Crushed Olive to brighten the base color. Then I added Rustic Wilderness lightly along the base of the leaves and parts of the stem to create soft shadows.
Preparing the Card Base & Stamping the Sentiment
For the card base, I’m using Recollections 110 lb white cardstock, cut to 8.5″ x 5.5″ and scored at 4.25″.
For the focal panel, I chose a piece of White Linen Texture cardstock, also from Recollections, cut to 2″ x 5.5″.
The sentiment comes from the Waffle Flower Tulips stamp set. I stamped “Happy Mother’s Day” using Gina K Amalgam Ink in Obsidian Black.
Since I wanted the sentiment directly on the card base, I positioned both the base and the panel in my Mini MISTI. This helped me line everything up exactly where I wanted it.
Building the Card & Assembling the Flower
With the sentiment stamped, it’s time to start assembling the card.
I began with the linen texture panel. Although it’s labeled as 65 lb cardstock, it feels a bit thinner than expected, so I used 1/4″ Scor-Tape along with a small amount of Bearly Art Glue to help with positioning.
I also brought my Mini MISTI back in to help line the panel up straight on the card base.
Next, I adhered the stem and leaves using Bearly Art Glue.
Finally I glued the flower layers together before placing them onto the card. To ensure the two layers line up correctly, ensure there is a single petal towards the top and a single petal towards the bottom as shown in the image below.
Then I glued the flower layers together. To line them up correctly, look for a single petal at the top of the flower layer with the embossed lines in the flower center, and a single petal at the bottom of the second layer—this helps guide placement.
Finally, I added adhesive to the back layer of the flower and placed it onto the card.
Card Variations
Purple Floral Card
I had so much fun creating the first card that I decided to make a few more variations, starting with this one in shades of purple.
For the flower, I used Wilted Violet Distress Oxide Spray as the base. I then added Worn Lipstick and Seedless Preserves Distress inks to build depth and dimension. The center is finished with Vintage Photo. For the stem, I started with Peeled Paint Oxide spray and added Crushed Olive and Frayed Burlap Distress inks.
The sentiment is from the Cosmo stamp set by Technique Tuesday, and the panel was embossed using a folder from the Cuttlebug Oriental Weave set.
Pink Floral Card
For this version, I leaned into pink tones using Picked Raspberry Distress Oxide Spray as the base.
To add depth with the Distress inks, I layered in Worn Lipstick and then edged the petals with Aged Mahogany. The center combines Aged Mahogany with a touch of Black Soot. The stem begins with Mowed Lawn Oxide spray, followed by Peeled Paint and Rustic Wilderness inks.
For added interest, I heat embossed the panel using the Diagonal Stripes background stamp from The Ton Stamps and Ranger clear embossing powder. The sentiment is from the Altenew Classic Beauty stamp set.
Coral Flower Card
For the final card, I started with Abandoned Coral Distress Oxide Spray.
After adding a base of Mustard Seed Distress Ink, I went around the edges with Worn Lipstick. The center is a deeper mix of Vintage Photo and Ground Espresso. The stem uses Peeled Paint Oxide spray with Mowed Lawn and Frayed Burlap inks.
The background panel is a gold shimmer cardstock I picked up from Tuesday Morning a few years ago—it adds just a subtle touch of shine.
The sentiment for this card is from the Crafter’s Square The Little Things stamp set.
Final Thoughts
I really love how all of these cards turned out. The flowers pop beautifully against the all-white backgrounds, and the sentiments stay subtle enough that they don’t take away from that clean and simple look. If I’m being a little picky, I do wish the linen texture on the first card showed up just a bit more. It’s slightly different from the card base, but without that stronger texture, it feels like it’s missing just a little something.
Seeing all of the cards together is probably my favorite part. It’s amazing how simply changing the flower color can completely change the overall feel. I’d love to know—which flower is your favorite? I actually ran a little poll in our family group chat, and the purple one won by a landslide.
Thank you for joining me for today’s Clean and Simple Floral Card Tutorial post. If you’d like to give this design a try, be sure to check out the video above where I walk through the entire process step by step.
This is one of those layouts that’s easy to come back to again and again—just by switching up the colors or textures, you can create something completely new each time. I’d love to hear what you would do with this design. Would you keep it clean and simple, or add a few extra details?
Thank you so much for spending some creative time with me today. I always appreciate you being here. Be sure to check back soon for the next project, and until then, I hope you have a wonderful and creative week.
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