Hi Friends!
Rabbit! Rabbit! What an unexpected joy to make garden memories as December begins! On Tuesday afternoon, I took advantage an unseasonably mild day to walk around the garden. A few remaining leaves crunched underfoot as I unlatched the garden gate and stepped into to my Herb and Tea Garden. With garden snips in hand, I clipped small bunches of sage, oregano, and lemon balm.
Earlier that very morning, I found the most wonderful inspiration on Lydia’s blog, Understand Blue. Lydia always has something interesting to share! On Tuesday, Lydia shared a great video tutorial about “Duoprinting with Chlorophyll.”
The sun was shining and this was a perfect day
to connect my passion for herb gardening with my passion for cardmaking.
Pure serendipity… and so much fun!
Heavenly, herbal scents filled my Paper Garden studio downstairs, as I placed fresh sage leaves on cardstock, between the plates of my Big Shot embossing/die cutting machine. (See Lydia’s video tutorial for her step-by-step directions.) As I cranked the paper ‘sandwich’ through the machine, the sage leaves and stems printed on the cardstock. Mother Nature’s colors were more perfect than any ink color in my studio! The Chlorophyll transferred the beautiful, subtle colors of the sage perfectly. I was in awe as I gently peeled the flattened sage leaves from the cardstock!
I matted each herbal print on kraft cardstock. Then I reached for the perfect sentiments! The ‘Sage Advice’ stamp set from ‘Power Poppy by Marcella Hawley’ (one of my forever favorites) had just the right words to complement the Chlorophyll Prints. Using Crumb Cake ink (Stampin’ Up) and the MISTI stamping tool, I added the sentiments.
After successfully making single Chlorophyll Prints, I was ready to try Lydia’s ‘Duoprints’ technique. So, I sandwiched another bundle of fresh sage between two pieces of cardstock and cranked them through the Big Shot. Both of these sage prints were produced at the same time. ⇪ The details and colors were just lovely. Look closely… Mother Nature even provided beautiful shading for the images, as the essential oils were pressed onto the paper. The sage prints were adhered to cream-colored cardbases. I stamped the inside of the cards with herbal images from the same Power Poppy stamp set. Finally, I handlettered the name of the herb on the back of each card, near my signature. If only you could smell the amazing scent of sage on these cards!
Hmmm! What next? I decided to try printing with lemon balm. It worked beautifully, creating soft shadows, as the fresh, lemony scent filled my studio!
I continued to experiment with different herbs and other foliage from the garden. Although the images weren’t quite as sharp and crisp, I was able to make Chlorophyll Prints with oregano, the holly-like leaves of mahonia, and the heart-shaped leaves of wild ginger.
Oh my! I can’t wait to work with Chlorophyll Printing again. I must try rosemary, my very favorite herb! It will be such fun to bring my garden herbs and foliage into my Paper Garden studio throughout Spring, Summer, and Autumn next year. I’m also planning to try Chlorophyll Printing on watercolor paper next time. It will be lovely to create cards, gift tags, bookmarks (for cookbooks), and framed botanical pieces seasoned with love and kindness!
If you feel inspired to try Chlorophyll Printing, be sure to let us know how it works for you!
Creating gifts from the heart... and the heart of my garden is just my ‘cup of tea.’ ♥
Thanks so much for stopping by today!
Warm hugs!
♡ Dawn
Petals. Paper. Simple Thymes 
Stunning
Thank you so much! I’m so excited to create more cards with the bounty of my garden! Wishing you a creative day! ♡
So beautiful!
Many thanks, Jodi! Isn’t it amazing? I love the way Chlorophyll Printing brings two of my favorite passions together! Happy December, Jodi! ♡
I’m heading out to the veggie garden to see what I could use for this project! Thanks, Dawn, for your inspiration.
Rabbit! Rabbit! Jo, I’m so excited that you will try Chlorophyll Printing! I wanted to share this technique right away, so that other gardeners can try it before our gardens are completely asleep for the winter months. The foliage from your vegetable garden should work great!
Be sure to watch Lydia’s video for all the details, Jo. It’s important to fold a piece of copy paper around your cardstock and foliage to catch all of the moisture and protect your Big Shot or Cuttlebug! The possibilities are endless from our gardens! Be sure to let us know how it works. I’ll be waiting to hear more! Happy December days, dear Jo! ♡
Dawn,
These are gorgeous. I would have guessed they were water colors had you not explained how you achieved this beautiful technique. Wow, I will have to give it a go. I don’t have an press like yours but maybe there’s an alternate technique for pressing for the lay person. 🙂
xo,
Karen
Isn’t Chlorophyll Printing amazing, Karen? 🙂 I’m thinking that it might work if you placed the herbs or leaves on the cardstock, then cover it with a piece of scrap wood. Pound it over and over with a hammer. The wood will help to spread out the pressure without damaging the leaves. (I’ve used a hammer to pound flowers in the past.) Watch Lydia’s video to see how she layered the plant, paper, and then folded paper over the layers. You would be able to stop and check to see how the print looks, since the moisture of the leaves will hold the plant pieces to the paper. Lift the leaves gently to see if it has printed completely. It just might work!! Please let us know! We can add your tips to this post. Wishing you a new month filled with blessings, dear Karen! ♡
First, rabbit, rabbit! You are so wonderfully creative. I love nature’s greenery. Your good work is well shared and appreciated. Happy Hols.
Rabbit! Rabbit! Your sweet words feel just like a hug, dear Anne! It’s so true. Nature’s greenery always soothes our souls. Heartfelt thanks for the beautiful wishes, dear friend. 🙂 Watch your mailbox for a bit of nature’s greenery in the coming week! Sending healing hugs and warm thoughts from my heart to yours! ♡
You always amaze me with your creativity skills that result in these beautiful works of art. 🙂
Warm hugs, Judy! We are both so blessed to have other creative passions to enjoy while our gardens sleep for the winter! Putting a bit of kindness out into the world is so heartwarming. Wishing you happy December days, Judy! ♡
ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh! These are absolutely stunning! I’ve never heard of this Dawn, but boy am I excited to give it a try. My mind just kicked into overdrive. What a beautiful way to mix two loves. Your images look like intricate watercolors. I love the stamp sentiments and the Kraft paper is the perfect compliment. I’m going to check out the directions. I’ll report back. What a fun read to the start of my day. xo
Yay, Alys!! 🙂 I just knew you would love this printing technique!! 🙂 🙂 Nature’s colors are truly the very best. Definitely visit ‘Power Poppy’ stamps, Alys! You will love, love, love them! The artist, Marcella Hawley, creates the sweetest botanical stamps. They have the coziest, warmest feelings and sentiments. I’m waiting for her newest Christmas stamps to arrive in my mailbox today! I’m already listening for our mail carrier’s footsteps on our front porch… 🙂
Be sure to let us know how your Chlorophyll prints turn out! You have so much to choose from in your California garden. Wishing you a very creative day, Alys! ♡
Thank you, dear Dawn!
Dawn, this is so beautiful!
Many thanks, Cathy! It was so much fun to create cards using herbs from my garden. 🙂 Pure joy!! Thanks so much for stopping to visit today, Cathy! ♡
Happy belated Rabbit Rabbit and thank you for this lovely and, I’m sure, aromatic post! Wow! Your cards are beautiful, Dawn, and I’m imagining a fragrant scent as you worked on these.
Heartfelt thanks, Penny! There were heavenly, herbal scents drifting through my Paper Garden studio that day! The scent lasted on the cards for a few days. These cards have already been mailed off to loved ones. So, I hope it will feel like a visit to my garden when they open the mail! This Sage plant grew in my mom’s garden before it moved to my Herb Garden. So it is definitely rooted in love!♥ Sending warm hugs, Penny! Thanks for always being here! ♡
This is a brilliant idea! I’m definitely going to try it. Yours turned out so beautifully, with perfectly soft colours. 😊
Many thanks, MrsCraft! Can’t wait for you to try this technique! 🙂 Be sure to peek at Lydia’s video for all the details. Please let us know which plants you use and how it worked. Thank you for following! It’s great to meet new, crafty friends! ♡
I will have to have a look and see what we have that I can try this with! 😊
Oh wow! How beautiful and creative. Love this idea, so well done 🙂
Thank you so much, Loretta! It was a wonderful surprise to see how well the herbs printed under pressure. I’ve already mailed off all of the cards. Can’t wait to make more! The scent was heavenly! Thank you so much for visiting today, Loretta! 💗
Wow this is such a great idea to make cards for autumn or spring. and your work is just so neat. thank you for sharing this idea. absolutely loved it ❤
Many thanks, Ricky! It was such a fun way to combine my passion for gardening and cardmaking! I’m so grateful that I tried Chlorophyll Printing last week. Now our garden is covered with lots of snow! Can’t wait to try it again in the Springtime! Thank you so much for visiting today. Wishing you a creative week, Ricky! ♡
Wow, Dawn! Your herb cards are so beautiful. I’d love to do something like this with the leaves in my garden…now if only I could find the time! Thanks for sharing 🙂 ❤
Warm thanks, Chris! It was such a fun project and the scent in my studio was amazing!! I’m so glad I tried it last week though. The garden is buried under snow now. Yesterday we had 6.5 inches for our first snowfall of the season.:) It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Cherish your first Christmas as Mr. & Mrs. ♡
Wow snow already! I bet it looks so pretty. We haven’t gotten any here yet, but I’m hoping it’ll be a white Christmas this year (when I’m nice and snug at home and don’t have to travel to work haha).
It’s a marshmallow world here! I even built a snowman last night with my sweet, little neighbors. 🙂 May all your Christmas dreams come true, dear Chris! ♡
Beautiful, and perfect in their simplicity!
Many thanks, PaperPuff! I’m smitten with the Chlorophyll Printing technique… and can’t wait to do more when my garden wakes up in the Spring. 🙂 Thanks so much for visiting today. ♡
I wish I had known this when I still had an herb garden! I had all those herbs to use. Those cards are just lovely. I must pin them so I remember.
Hi, Marcia! It would be fun to gather all kinds of foliage when you walk along the lake. You could try Chlorophyll Printing to make cards to remember the seasons. I brought my Rosemary plant inside to overwinter in our sunny dining room. So, I can’t wait to try printing with Rosemary (my most favorite herb)! Now our garden is covered with 6.5 inches of snow. So, I’m looking forward to doing lots more printing during the growing season! Thanks so much for stopping to visit today, Marcia! Wishing you happy December days! ♡
Well, this looks like another rabbit hole to fall into. I would never have thought of this idea. So many creative minds in this world. I love this and hope to give it a try soon.
Hi, Marlene! It’s definitely a fun technique… and the scent is heavenly! I can’t wait to do more Chlorophyll Printing in the Spring. My garden has been buried in snow for the past week. (We have had 14.6 inches already!) Be sure to let us know how it works for you. 🙂 Happy creating, Marlene! ♡
14.6″!!! I’m going to quit complaining. 😦 We mostly just end up with ice and freezing rain though this year may be quite different. We’ve already had snow and more is expected. It’s lovely if you don’t have to travel in it.
So true, Marlene! It’s lovely to watch the snowflakes fall, from inside with a cup of tea. It is a truly lovely blessing of being retired! It has been ‘friendly’ snow so far ~ falling on the weekends. Now we are in an arctic, deep freeze, with more snow coming this weekend. I’m grateful for the blanket of snow protecting my garden this week. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas here! 🙂 Stay warm, Marlene! ♡
Wow! Dawn, you have achieved the impossible fourth dimension in your cards by including the fragrance of the herbs! TFS.
Hi, Anjali! Nature truly is the best designer! We must take our lessons from her. These Chlorophyll prints made me so very happy! The herbal fragrance lasted on my cards for several days. Perhaps you could research a way to preserve the herbal scents longer?? 🙂 I would be so grateful for your botanical expertise! I am looking forward to printing from more leaves in the Springtime. Now my garden is buried under several inches of snow. Heartfelt thanks for visiting today, Anjali! Wishing you happy December days! ♡