Hello crafty friends, Heejung Hunsberger here, and I’m so excited to share a delightful autumn-themed card featuring the upcoming Cuckoo Cottage Collection and the beautiful Harvest Time die set, releasing this August! This project combines embossing, die-cutting, and a touch of watercolor for a truly unique and heartfelt card. If you’d like to get to know me better, visit my blog or follow me on Instagram. Additionally, I have a YouTube channel where I regularly post video tutorials. Let’s get started! Step 1: Create Your Embossed Background Start with a piece of white cardstock and the Spellbinders Oak Forest 3D Embossing Folder. Run the cardstock through your die-cutting machine with the embossing folder to create a beautiful raised texture of oak leaves and acorns. Using a Spellbinders Large Blending Brush, apply yellow and sandy-colored inks to the embossed background. Focus on blending the colors, creating a darker shade around the edges for a natural, rustic feel. This highlights the dimensional design of the embossing. Step 2: Die-Cut Your Cuckoo Cottage Elements Gather your Cuckoo Cottage Die and the additional add-on die, Harvest Time. Die-cut all the various pieces for the cuckoo cottage from coordinating cardstock colors. For the tree branches, die-cut them from Fawn colored cardstock. To add depth and realism, use alcohol markers or colored pencils to shade and define the branches, giving them a more dimensional look. Step 3: Create Colorful Autumn Leaves Take a piece of watercolor paper and apply various autumn-inspired watercolor shades (reds, oranges, yellows, greens) in an abstract wash. Once completely dry, use the leaf dies from the Harvest Time set to die-cut a variety of colorful autumn leaves from your watercolor paper. This technique yields unique and vibrant leaves for your project. Step 4: Assemble the Cuckoo Cottage Begin by assembling the main structure of the cuckoo cottage using the die-cut pieces from Step 2. Layer the different elements to build the house, clock face, and decorative accents. Step 5: Hot Foil Your Sentiment Using the Cuckoo Cottage Sentiments BetterPress Plate & Die, hot foil your chosen sentiment onto black cardstock using Matte Gold Hot Foil. The sentiment “clockin’ in with thanks” is perfect for this autumn-themed card. Once hot foiled, use the coordinating die to cut out the sentiment. Step 6: Assemble the Pendulum and Attach the Cottage To create a movable pendulum for the cuckoo clock, adhere a small circular foam sticker to the back of the pendulum piece, ensuring the top loop of the pendulum can swing freely within the foam. Apply additional foam stickers to the back of the assembled cuckoo cottage to give it dimension. Carefully adhere the cuckoo cottage, with the pendulum attached, to your embossed background, making sure the pendulum is positioned to swing. Step 7: Embellish with Harvest Time Elements Now for the fun part: embellishing! Adhere the die-cut pumpkins, squirrel, fox, mushrooms, and your colorful watercolor leaves around the base of the cuckoo cottage, as shown in the final card image. Arrange them to create a charming autumn scene. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and are inspired to create your beautiful autumn cards with the new Cuckoo Cottage Collection! Happy crafting! Heejung