Autumn Trees Masculine Birthday Card – Textured Tree with Stampin’ Blends

Today’s project is all about giving a retiring favourite a proper send-off. The Stampin’ Up! Autumn Trees Bundle has just landed on the Last Chance / retiring list, so I pulled it out for the first time (I know!) and created a rich, textured masculine birthday card featuring that big statement tree image.

If you love nature scenes, detailed colouring and cards that work beautifully for the men in your life, this one is for you. And if Autumn Trees is on your wish list, now is the time to grab it while it is still available.

Why the Stampin Up Autumn Trees Bundle is perfect for masculine cards

The Autumn Trees stamp set and dies include:

A huge, full tree image that completely fills a card front
Coordinating dies to cut the tree, branches, rockery and deer
Extra foliage pieces you can layer for even more depth

Paired with a simple sentiment and soft ink-blended sky, you can create a card that feels detailed and “arty” without needing a complicated layout or lots of embellishments. It is a great go-to for Father’s Day, male birthdays, retirement cards and more.

Colouring the tree with Stampin’ Blends

The star of this card is the coloured tree canopy. I skipped traditional autumn tones and went for a fresh, lush green look using Stampin’ Blends:

Mossy Meadow Dark
Old Olive Dark
Old Olive Light

Before I started, I did a quick swatch test. It is surprising how close some “light” and “dark” markers can be in value, so checking your blends on scrap card makes a big difference. I wanted a true dark–medium–light trio, so I chose Mossy Meadow Dark as my deepest shade and the two Old Olives for mid and light.

Technique recap:

Stamp the tree in black (or try Smoky Slate stamped off for a softer outline once you are confident).
With Mossy Meadow Dark, “pounce” colour into the areas where the artist has drawn shading lines. Imagine looking at a real tree – there are gaps, darker clumps and lighter patches.
Switch to Old Olive Dark and pounce over and around the darker areas, leaving plenty of white space.
With Old Olive Light, loosely scribble to join everything together, still allowing some little gaps to suggest light shining through the leaves.
Go back in with a few dots of Mossy Meadow Dark in places where you want more depth – dotting rather than heavy colouring keeps the texture.

You do not need perfect “smooth” blending here. Patchy, layered colour actually makes the tree look more realistic.

Tree trunks, branches and extra texture

For the trunks and branches I used:

Pecan Pie Stampin’ Blends
Ivory Stampin’ Blends

I added Pecan Pie along one side of the trunk and in little streaks to suggest bark, then softened and extended the branches with Ivory. As the branches get finer, you can simply suggest them with tiny lines – no one will be checking them with a magnifying glass!

To finish the foliage, I brought in a Stampin’ Up! coloured pencil (a green similar to Garden Green) and added a light “scumbling” scribble over the lighter areas. Think of a doctor’s messy signature – loose, scribbly circles. This gives a gorgeous, subtle extra layer of texture. You can also add a touch of yellow pencil (like Crushed Curry) just on the tips of some clusters for a hint of sunlight.

Simple layered layout with ink-blended sky

Because the tree is such a large focal image, I kept the layout simple:

Card base: Balmy Blue
Layer: A panel of Floral Delight Designer Series Paper (also on the Last Chance list)
Panel behind the tree: A die-cut arched shape (Everyday Arches) ink-blended with Balmy Blue for a soft sky glow

Balmy Blue can be a little intense for blending, so I started off the edge of the card and worked in, building a soft halo around the arch rather than a heavy solid colour.

Finishing touches: sentiment and embellishments

For the greeting I used the “Happy Birthday” from the Not 29 Anymore stamp set (also retiring), white heat embossed on a narrow Old Olive strip. A thinner sentiment lets the artwork shine through – perfect for masculine cards where you want strong lines but not a huge block of text hiding your image.

To finish, I added a few of the upcoming Glossy Moody Dots in Old Olive. They are nicely flat, so they post well, and a triangle of three is just enough without overpowering the card.

Ready to add the Stampin Up Autumn Trees to your stash?

The Stampin Up Autumn Trees Bundle, Floral Delight DSP and Not 29 Anymore stamp set are all on the Last Chance list, with selected items up to 50% off. In some cases it is even cheaper to buy the stamps and dies separately rather than as a bundle, so do check both options in my online shop.

If you are in Australia and do not already have a demonstrator, I would love for you to shop with me. When you spend $125 or more, you can also choose the current Product of the Month for just $9, which is a lovely bonus on top of your retiring goodies.

Pop Autumn Trees into your basket while you still can, and you will be all set for masculine birthday cards, nature scenes and more – long after it has disappeared from the catalogue.

Cheers for Now

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