April 2026 Lakeside Retreat Paper Pumpkin Alternative #1 - Easy Masculine Card - Stampin' Up!

Welcome to a brand-new month of Paper Pumpkin alternatives! Today I’m sharing my first alternative card idea using the April 2026 Paper Pumpkin Kit – Lakeside Retreat.

This card has such a peaceful and relaxing feel with the beautiful dock and lake scene. I wanted to create a card that would work perfectly for Father’s Day, birthdays, or simply letting someone know how much they mean to you.

I love how the soft watercolor scenery paired with the plaid pattern creates a cozy outdoor feel without needing lots of complicated layers.

About This Card

For this design, I focused on:

●      Highlighting the gorgeous lakeside artwork from the kit

●      Creating an easy masculine card design

●      Layering simple die cuts and sentiments for dimension

●      Keeping the layout clean so the scenic image remains the focal point

This card is a great example of how the Paper Pumpkin kits make it easy to create beautiful handmade cards quickly!

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Supplies

Paper Pumpkin Subscription

[166815]

Wonderful Scenes Dies (English)

[168665]

Stylish Shapes Dies

[159183]

Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock

[159229]

Pecan Pie 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[161717]

Peaceful Pine 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[167691]

Soft Sea Foam 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock

[146988]

Vellum 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Specialty Paper

[167099]

Adhesive Sheets

[152334]

Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad

[147116]

Small Blending Brushes

[160518]

Baker's Twine Essentials Pack

[155475]

Add All to Cart

 

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• Stampin' Seal+ [149699] —— https://bit.ly/3Ibz8YK

• Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] —— https://bit.ly/3IaGF9S

• Tear & Tape Adhesive [138995] —— https://bit.ly/3ajQSo5

• Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] —— https://bit.ly/3IbzezA

• Mini Glue Dots [103683] $7.25 —— https://bit.ly/3anAcw3

• Stampin' Pierce Mat [126199] —— https://bit.ly/3IjEq4d

• Simply Shammy [147042] —— https://bit.ly/3bQH7hE

• Paper Snips [103579] —— https://bit.ly/3ulT6tV

• Take Your Pick [144107] —— https://bit.ly/3IeYxR9

• Bone Folder [102300] —— https://bit.ly/3uhErzZ

• Clear Block D [118485] —— https://bit.ly/3uuabSs

• Paper Trimmer [152392] —— https://bit.ly/3abvykH

• Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] —— https://bit.ly/3ujz8zU

Measurements

Thick Basic White Cardbase – 4-1/4" x 11” scored at 5-1/2"

Pecan Pie – 1" x 4-1/4"

Vellum – 2-1/2" Circle

Basic White – scrap

Soft Sea Foam – 9/16" strip

Peaceful Pine – scraps

Crumb Cake Twine – 10"

Pecan Pie Sign with White Label*

Green Plaid Cardbase* – 1-1/2" x 4-1/4"

Lakeside Scene Cardbase* – 4” x 4-1/4"

Card Assembly Instructions

1. Create the Scenic Background
Adhere the 1-1/2" Green Plaid strip along the bottom of the cardbase (edge to edge). Tear the Pecan Pie strip along one long edge and add slightly over the Green Plaid piece. Add the Lakeside Scene piece to the top of the cardbase (edge to edge).

2. Stamp the Greeting
On the White Label stamp in Peaceful Pine ink Dad at the top. Then add the Decorative Line below. Ink only “You Are” from the You Are Inspirational stamp in Peaceful Pine using the edge of the ink pad and stamp right below the Decorative Line. You should have white space at the bottom.

Distress the edges with Crumb Cake ink using a Blending Brush or wiping across the ink pad. Repeat on the Pecan Pie Sign Die Cut (cut off the two tabs).

Layer the Greeting in the center of the Pecan Pie Sign. Cut through the white space at the bottom so you can elongate the height of the sign.

Add the top of the Greeting to the top of the Vellum Circle

Add the bottom of the Greeting to the bottom of the Vellum Circle. You will have a gap.

3. Stamp the Grass/Cattail
On the scrap of Basic White Cardstock stamp the Cattail image in Crumb Cake ink. Fussy cut out.

 

Tuck the Cattails to the left of the greeting at the top.

4. Add a Faux Bow
Place a glue dot or Tear & Tape adhesive below the Cattails and in the Greetings Gap. Create a faux bow from the top left to the bottom right with 10” Crumb Cake Baker’s Twine.

5. Create the Wonderful Banner.
Add Adhesive Sheet to the back of Peaceful Pine Cardstock and die cut “Wonderful” twice. Layer them together to create a thicker sentiment.

Add to the center of the Soft Sea Foam strip and flag the ends. Use Crumb Cake ink with a Blending Brush to distress the edges. You can also wipe the banner across the ink pad to get a darker look.

Add this over the Crumb Cake Bow and the Greeting Gap with dimensionals.

6. Add the Vellum Circle to the Card
Add the Vellum Sentiment Cluster to the left side of the card with dimensionals. I placed it so the Wonderful Sentiment sits over the seam between the top and bottom patterns.

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Why I Love This Card

I love how peaceful and masculine this card feels without being overly complicated.

The lakeside scene creates such a relaxing atmosphere, and the layered sentiments make it feel heartfelt and personal. This would be perfect for Father’s Day, birthdays, or encouragement cards for the outdoorsman in your life.

It’s also a great reminder that scenic cards don’t need lots of extra embellishments—the artwork from the kit really shines on its own.

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Video Tutorial

Be sure to check out my YouTube tutorial where I walk you through:

●      How I layered this masculine design

●      Ways to stretch your Paper Pumpkin kit supplies

●      Tips for creating balanced scenic cards

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If this project inspires you to create something, I would love for you to tag me on social media using @creativechelsey | #creativechelsey or email me at chelsey@creativechelsey.com.

Make sure to come back tomorrow for even more Alternative Ideas you can make with the April 2026 Paper Pumpkin Kit.

Have a creative day,
Chelsey