Destination Japan Inspiration | Cards & Layout with Enza Gudor
Posted by Spellbinders Team on March 17, 2020

Destination Japan Inspiration | Cards & Layout with Enza Gudor

Hello, crafty friends! Enza Gudor here with you today to share three projects featuring the gorgeous Destination Japan Collection by Lene Lok. Saying that I am in love with this collection is an understatement. It is so beautiful and unique, and can be used for a variety of projects.

Kimono Card

The first project is a cards created with one of my favorite die sets in this collection: Die D-Lites Kimono Etched Dies.

Spellbinders Destination Japan Collection Inspiration | with Enza Gudor #Spellbinders #NeverStopMaking #DieCutting

I started by die cutting the papers for my kimono. I went with delicate, spring colors that reminded me of the real Japanese garments. For the outline, I opted for a very light lavender color, while for the inlay panels I alternated patterned paper in contrasting shades. After cutting the outline, I glued it on to smooth white cardstock, and adhered the other panels along with the decorative sakura/cherry blossom flowers on top. I then fussy cut around the edges to get rid of the excess paper. This simple step made the image thicker and perfect to be backed with foam adhesive.

Spellbinders Destination Japan Collection Inspiration | with Enza Gudor #Spellbinders #NeverStopMaking #DieCutting

Once ready, I continued working on the card base, for which I picked the same lavender-colored patterned paper. I adhered a 4 x 5.25 inches striped paper on top, and layered a smaller panel of white textured cardstock in between the kimono and the base to make everything pop. To add texture, I die cut many cherry blossoms using the same white cardstock, and adhered them on to my smaller panel. I love how delicate it looks! To complete the card, I added a sentiment from the Bloom Street scrapbook collection that I used for all my projects today.

Sakura Layout

The second project is a 12x12 layout. This time I used the gorgeous Shapeabilities Sakura Blossoms Etched Dies.

Spellbinders Destination Japan Collection Inspiration | with Enza Gudor #Spellbinders #NeverStopMaking #DieCutting

The die set includes a rectangular border die, on top of which you can layer the beautiful Sakura flowers. I decided to just use the blossoms for this page. What I love about the set is that the flowers come in three different sizes, which is perfect to achieve dimension and texture on your projects.

Spellbinders Destination Japan Collection Inspiration | with Enza Gudor #Spellbinders #NeverStopMaking #DieCutting

As you can see, I die cut lots of pretty flowers to frame this sweet photo of my daughter and I. After matting the 12x12 patterned paper with a lighter-colored one, I layered an additional, wide strip in a different design vertically, making sure it partially covered the left side of the background. Once I adhered my photo and a few embellishments from the Bloom Street collection down, I started decorating with clusters of flowers.

Spellbinders Destination Japan Collection Inspiration | with Enza Gudor #Spellbinders #NeverStopMaking #DieCutting

Origami Crane Card

The third and final project for today is another card. I used three die sets here: Shapeabilities Waves Etched DiesShapeabilities Sakura Blossoms Etched Dies, and Die D-Lites Origami Crane Etched Dies.

Spellbinders Destination Japan Collection Inspiration | with Enza Gudor #Spellbinders #NeverStopMaking #DieCutting

This card came together in no time. The beautiful background die added the right amount of interest, so I felt I didn't need much more on top. I filled in the high waves with a different patterned paper so to make them stand out more, and left the rest as is, letting the pink paper peek through.

Spellbinders Destination Japan Collection Inspiration | with Enza Gudor #Spellbinders #NeverStopMaking #DieCutting

I love the Origami Crane die, so I cut one shape and backed it with vellum. Some of the sections were filled with the same paper I used for the outline. To finish the card, I added three beautiful Sakura blossoms and a sentiment from the Bloom Street collection. Everything was adhered down with foam adhesive.

Spellbinders Supplies:

Other Supplies

Bloom Street Scrapbook Collection by Pink Paislee, Scrapbook Adhesives Foam Adhesive Thank you so much for joining me today. I hope you enjoyed my projects and will give these fabulous die sets a try. Have a delightful day! Enza

Leave a comment

Please note, comments need to be approved before they are published.


  • Spellbinders Beginners Blog Post Series - Common Cardmaking Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)

    Beginner’s Guide to Cardmaking

    Common Cardmaking Mistakes and How to Fix Them: A Beginner's Guide

    Mistakes happen to every cardmaker, from beginners to experienced crafters. This comprehensive guide shares practical solutions for fixing common cardmaking mistakes, including stamping, die cutting, foiling, BetterPress, ink blending, stenciling, coloring, heat embossing, and more, so you can confidently rescue your handmade cards instead of starting over.

  • How to make a Polar Bear Christmas Card with Alcohol Markers, HUR93909, S7-291, S5-619

    CS-8-100

    How to make a Polar Bear Christmas Card with Alcohol Markers

    Hello, cardmaking friends! It’s Mona Tóth here, and I’m so happy to be back on the Spellbinders blog. Today, I’m sharing a Christmas step-by-step card tutorial featuring the Polar Friends Stamp and Die Set by Simon Hurley. This card was inspired by the Christmas advertisements I remember seeing on television when I was a child in the 1990s. They often featured polar bears surrounded by...

  • Interactive Scrapbook Layout Using the Turn the Page Collection by Esther Glas, SCSP-037, SCSE-054, SCSE-039, SCSR-016, E3D-186, STP-279, SDS-232, S2-473, S7-298, S7-295

    E3D-186

    Interactive Scrapbook Layout Using the Turn the Page Collection by Esther Glas

    Hello, crafty friend! I’m Adrienne Boese, better known online as Alice Scraps Wonderland. I love a good interactive scrapbook page! It can be something as simple as a pocket or something more intricate like a waterfall mechanism or flips. Today, we are going to focus on one of those simple techniques - a pocket!  It’s the perfect technique to dip your toes into the interactive...