Pretty papers, florals, and teatime!

I spent a few hours organizing my paper crafting supplies over the weekend, partly because I just received my *second* order of the new Fine Art Floral papers from Stampin' Up. I think these are some of the prettiest papers I've ever come across in the paper crafting world, and I'm so glad my friend Kathy is a Stampin' Up demonstrator and hooked me with up the entire suite, the first time I've liked a group of products so much that I got everything in it. (You can check them out here if you happen to be a Stampin' Up fan.) When I got through organizing, I even had time to whip out a few cards, including a sympathy card for a friend whose father-in-law passed away and a teapot birthday card (using an old Stampin' Up teapot stamp) that I gussied up with the new Fine Art Floral papers.

I greatly admire fine art but have zero artistic ability, so I was intrigued that an artist painted this design that so prominently features the artist's brush strokes that were then reproduced on papers. Perfect!

The other fun thing about this set was that it comes with gold leaf, which you can apply to some of the stamped floral designs. It is beautiful but rather messy to use, so I've been applying it while at a counter in the bathroom, where it's easier to clean it up than in my carpeted office-slash-craft room. (So only a precious few friends will be getting cards with gold leaf on them!)

And on a similar note, I wanted to let you know about the pack of Echo Park Paper Co.'s "Practically Perfect" papers that I found at Tuesday Morning the other day (just $6.99) since it also may be of interest to crafty tea lovers.

The pretty florals caught my eye, but then I saw the sticker page with teapots and teacups and knew I had to have this!

I can imagine that the vintage-looking florals will come in handy for lots of cards …

And of course I was delighted to see that some of the smaller graphics in the packet included this one, which will be saved for a card for a tea lover, no doubt. Have any of you been paper crafting lately? If you come across any pretty florals and/or tea images, I'd love to hear about them!