Encre, papier, ciseaux

Mini Oddball and his Reindeer

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #359 + Retro Rubber #212 (Anything Goes - stamp purchased maybe two years ago?)

When my nieces visit and want to craft, I will usually stamp a few images for myself and color them so that I can sit and craft with them. (I will never attempt to do anything more involved than that because inevitably, they are always asking for either certain supplies or require help with what they are doing, so I need something that I can be interrupted while doing and require only minimal concentration.) Those are two of the images I colored during my last crafting session with my oldest niece. I fussy cut the image while I was done and I went back to my Home for the Holidays paper scraps to turn these images into a card.

I went back to my Mojo Monday sketch list and I created a background using three strips of patterned paper (the middle one matted with red foil. For the sentiment, I stamped "our warmest wishes" in Cucumber Crush ink and I threaded Parakeet Party metallic woven ribbon through, tied in a bow. The tab and the little green stars came from the sticker sheets, and I added an enamel star and gems to finish embellishing. 

I'm really liking the cards made with this collection, they are fun and bright. I can't believe I still have paper left after making all of those cards. I can probably comfortably produce a couple more cards before calling this collection done. I have another Stamping Bella image that is almost entirely colored that I will finish coloring and mount on a card as well, most likely with this paper collection as well, so that should help finishing it off.

 

 

 

  

 

Supplies
Stamps: Meilleurs voeux #2 (4 en Scrap); Mini Oddball and his Reindeer (Stamping Bella(
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Red and Green Foil (Prism Studio)
Patterned Papers, Fancy Frills Stickers: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Cucumber Crush (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); Cross Stitched Circle Stackables (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Polychromos Pencils (Fäber-Castell); Box of Crayons Enamel Dots (Shimelle for American Crafts);
Stampin' Dimensionals, Eyelets, Parakeet Party Metallic Woven Ribbon, Wonderful Gems,
Red Rhinestone Basic Jewels, White Medium Envelope (Stampin' Up!)

 

Snoman in Wreath

Inspiration: Mojo Monday sketch #309 

This is another stamped image I had received in a swap years ago. I used my Polychromos pencils to color it and based the colours on the Merry & Bright papers from Carta Bella. Because the snowman has his two mittens in front of him, I thought I could have him hold a banner with a sentiment. That is why I chose this specific Mojo Monday sketch to base my layout on and while I initially was thinking the snowman would represent the circle in the center of the sketch, the container of felt embellishments I had pulled out for my last card caught my eye and I realized I could use the felt wreath to frame it. It added a nice visual weight plus texture, so I incorporated it.

My patterned panels felt a little bare, even after dry embossing the turquoise one, so I added another layer of Pearlescent Vellum over the polka dot background, which added a nice shimmer. On the white polka dot paper, I stamped the sentiment "A New Year Begins" and embossed it with Gumball Green Stampin' Emboss powder. I used the Everyday Sentiment Banners dies to cut it to shape and I inked the edges. I added two little gems where the dots in the sentiments are.

Inspired by a recent Tim Holtz Live, I had recently died some seam binding using my Distress Mica sprays and I realized the pink one was a great match, so I slid it under the banner and tied it in a bow. I threaded white baker's twine in two buttons and added them to the panels. The design was mounted on a Garden Green card base and I picked a Fairway metallic envelope to match.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Snowman (Unknown Source); Meilleurs voeux #2 (4 En Scrap)
Cardstock: Garden Green (Stampin' Up!); Pearlescent Vellum (Lawn Fawn)
Patterned Papers: Merry & Bright (Carta Bella)
Ink: VersaMark; Soft Sky (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); Stacked Decle Rectangles (Tim Holtz for Sizzix);
Everyday Sentiment Banners (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Felt Embellishments, Stampin' Dimensionals, White Baker's Twine, Sponge Daubers,
Gumball Green Stampin' Emboss Powder, Northern Flurry Embossing Folder (Stampin' Up!);
Buttons (Foof-A-La); Seam Binding (Amazon); Distress Mica Sprays (Tim Holtz for Ranger);
A2 Fairway Metallic Envelope (Envelopes.com); Polychromos Pencils (Fäber-Castell);
Diamond Dots (Leftover from Kit)

 

The Clauses's Christmas Portrait

Inspiration: Just Us Girls #690 (CASE a Design Team Member - Carol MC' s Project)

When I saw the Just Us Girls samples, I thought I could copy Carol MC's card to use the chipboard images from the Hello Christmas collection I had put aside. I wanted to place Santa and Mrs. Claus in front of the Christmas tree, with a candy cane on each side. I wish the two canes were the same size and that the right one was facing the other way, but you gotta work with what you have.

For the frame, I used the Luxe Glitter cardstock from Simon Says Stamp and I noticed that it shed a little bit after being die-cut. I tried doing a little banner at the top of the frame using the puffy stickers but it looked too crowded, so I did the little Noel chipboard word instead, which balanced the scene more nicely. I repeated the Santa and Mrs. Claus on the envelope with the puffy stickers.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Thick Very Vanilla, Soft Succulent (Stampin' Up!);
Luxe Glitter Classic Cardstock (Simon Says Stamp)
Patterned Papers, Puffy Sticker, Chipboard Accents: Hello Christmas (Carta Bella)
Dies: Wonky Scalloped Frames (Avery Elle); Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black)
Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals, Very Vanilla Medium Envelopes (Stampin' Up!)

 

Family Ride

Inspiration: Mojo Monday Sketch #254

I kept going with the A Very Merry Christmas collection by Steven Duncan for Carta Bella (2017). I used the pine tree paper for the background, the striped paper for the banner and the Christmas text paper for the rectangle block, which I matted with Spellbinders' green mirror cardstock. To mimic the square from the sketch, I fussy cut one of the square images from the patterned paper. All edges were inked before anything was glued down.

I tied Poppy Parade and gold ribbon at the top and little confectionary candies at the bottom. For the sentiment, I bubble cut the words "Happy New Year" from a 4 en Scrap stamp set. I found some Santa's Workshop Enamel Shapes in my stash with colours that fit this collection perfectly. The white shapes have unfortunately started to yellow, but since those papers have vanilla as the base neutral rather than white, I'm able to make it work. I added little snowflakes around the card, the small red dots in the center of the wheels, a red bow on the tree and a larger green circle at the bottom of the banner shape. I found a gold faceted gem to put as the car's headlight on the sticker image. My sentiment set had those retro-looking stars in it, so I stamped them in Mint Macaron on my background, and in Poppy Parade on the journaling block of the envelope, which was made out of patterned paper to match.

As I had previously mentioned, I initially found it hard to work with this collection, but it looks like I am finding my groove with it. Which is cool, because I love Steven Duncan's illustration style.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Meilleurs voeux #3 (4 En Scrap)
Cardstock: Mint Macaron, Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!); Green Mirri (Spellbinders)
Patterned Papers, Cardstock Stickers: A Very Merry Christmas (Steven Duncan for Carta Bella)
Ink: Evening Evergreen, Mint Macaron (Stampin' Up!); Vintage Photo and Antique Linen Distress (Ranger)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); Foundation 4 (Queen & Co)
Accessories: Confections (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology); Santa's Workshop Enamel Shapes,
Stampin' Dimensionals, Envelope Punch Board, Poppy Parade/Gold 1/8" Ribbon,
Gold Faceted Gems (Stampin' Up!)

 

Retro Reindeer

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #333

I have been sitting on this 2017 paper collection (Carta Bella's A Very Merry Christmas, by Steven Duncan) for quite a while and because the patterns are so big and bold, it took me a while to find the inspiration on how to use them. What helped is that I also found the sticker sheet, and the little reindeer and wreath images became the starting point of my design.

I used an old Mojo Monday sketch as inspiration and I inked the edges of the various papers as I cut and die-cut them to size. I tied a piece of Peacock shimmery ribbon around the striped paper and I hung a vintage bell from Idea-ology hanging from the bow.

For my sentiment, I die-cut "Merry Christmas" from Spellbinders mirror green cardstock, backed with Stampin' Up!'s foam sheets to give my die-cut words dimension. To embellish, I glued two red Confection candy pieces at the top. I made a matching envelope out of the Christmas tree patterned paper. 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Handsome Hunter, Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!); Mirror Green Cardstock (Spellbinders)
Patterned Papers, Cardstock Stickers: A Very Merry Christmas (Steven Duncan for Carta Bella)
Inks: Antique Linen and Vintage Photo Distress (Ranger)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); Small Dotted Circles (Lawn Fawn); 
Foundation 4 (Queen & Co); Noël #2, Joyeux anniversaire (4 En Scrap)
Accessories: Mini Daubers (Studio Light); Foam Sheets, Stampin' Dimensionals, Envelope Punch Board,
Peacock Shimmery Ribbon (Stampin' Up!); Jute Twine (Recollections);  
Confections, Tiny Bells (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology)

 

Hello Santa

Inspiration: Video Tutorial from Polly's Paper Studio

If you check out Polly's Paper Studio channel on YouTube, she is currently doing a 12 Days of Christmas series and sharing a lot of project inspiration. On Day 3, she did a simple and more elaborate version of a card and it inspired me to pull out my Christmas Lodge collection to make a version of it myself. There are a lot of similarities but I did adapt the design here and there to suit my style and what I had on hand. 

Because the resulting card is quite bulky, I made my own matching envelope out of patterned paper and I think it looks so good with that candy-striped flower at the bottom. I really need to make a dent in my patterned paper stash as it is starting to take over my whole craft room!

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Textured White (American Crafts); Color Vibe (Simple Stories)
Patterned Papers, Foam Stickers, Sticker Book, Enamel Dots,
Cardstock Stickers: Simple Vintage Christmas Lodge (Simple Stories)
Dies: Doily (Recollections)
Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals, White Baker's Twine, Designer Button, Circle Punches,
Envelope Punch Board (Stampin' Up!); Black Polka Dot Organza Ribbon (May Arts)

 

Hey, Santa!

Inspiration: Mojo Monday Sketch #248

I just recently realized that I would need more English Christmas cards than usual this year, which instantly opened up new doors that actually make designing easier since a bunch of collections include sentiments in their sticker books, sticker sheets and ephemera packs. A Very Merry Christmas from Carta Bella is no exception, so I was able for this card to pick a sentiment straight from the cardstock sticker sheet. My main image came from it as well, namely the Santa in his red convertible. (His car is reminding me of the one Barbie drives in her movie, with the windshield being way lower than her head.)

I went back to my Mojo Monday sketches for inspiration and I really like the look of the oval layered over the rectangle to back up the main image. Again, all of my elements were inked with Distress inks to keep the edges even (as the patterned paper have inked edges). I used a Tim Holtz' vintage jingle bell next to the ribbon bow, gold ombre glitter dots from PinkFresh and enamel shapes by Stampin' Up! I matted the background with green mirri card from Spellbinders and I made a matching envelope out of patterned paper. I found the same little Santa image on the page with numbers from 1 to 25, so I fussy cut the image to decorate the envelope with.

Those Steven Duncan images are just so darn adorable...

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Poppy Parade, Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!); Green Mirri (Spellbinders)
Patterned Papers, Cardstock Stickers: A Very Merry Christmas (Steven Duncan for Carta Bella)
Ink: Antique Linen and Vintage Photo Distress (Ranger)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); Stitched Oval Stackables (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Santa's Workshop Enamel Shapes, Stampin' Dimensionals, Envelope Punch Board,
Peacock Shimmery Ribbon, Scalloped Trim Border Punch (Stampin' Up!); Tiny Bells (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology);
Sparkle & Shine Ombre Glitter Dots (PinkFresh Studio); Mini Distressing Tools (Studio Light)

 

Christmas in a Globe

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #264 + 52 Christmas Card Countdown (Fussy Cutting)

I kept going with the Hello Christmas collection from Carta Bella and this is the second card I created. I wanted to use the house in a glass dome image from the chipboard accent. I found an older Mojo Monday sketch to base my design on and did a lot of layering. I was able to use some of the fussy cut flowers I had cut earlier. I like how the one that was cut from the corner of the paper really filled in the space and made the card feel more complete.

I added the chipboard bow to the dome but the piece was cut with chipboard between the bow tails and it was hiding my scene and little snowflake sequins too much, so I used my scissors to snip the chipboard off (as best as I could). On a side note, a few years ago, Echo Park/Carta Bella has changed its way to die-cutting their chipboard pieces. Rather than cut the full outline, they started leaving tabs in certain spots. I'm pretty sure this is because some of the pieces were falling in the packaging, leaving holes in the chipboard frame, but at least back then, the pieces were easy to take out and had a nice and smooth outline. I am NOT liking the little nibs that are left behind and how hard it is to take the images out without bending the chipboard pieces. I wonder if the company is getting bad feedback and might eventually revert to cutting the pieces all the way through. 

The sentiment was created by stamping a French stamp on the soft sage patterned paper and fussy cutting the two words I needed to write "Happy Holidays." I popped the words up on dimensional foam strips. Once again, the flowers were decorated with ombré glitter drops. Despite the dark colours of this collection, I am liking the end result for this one.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Des mots pour te dire #1 (Carabelle Studio)
Cardstock: Thick Very Vanilla, Shaded Spruce (Stampin' Up!); Gold Satin Specialty (Tonic)
Patterned Papers, Chipboard Accents, Puffy Stickers: Hello Christmas (Carta Bella)
Ink: Mossy Meadow (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Cross Stitched Circle Stackables (Lawn Fawn); Scalloped Contours (Stampin' Up!);
Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black)
Accessories: Sparkle & Shine Ombré Glitter Drops (PinkFresh Studio);
Very Vanilla Medium Envelope, Stampin' Dimensionals, Black Glimmer Washi Tape,
Foam Adhesive Strips, Banner Pick-a-Punch (Stampin' Up!); Snowflake Sequins (Studio Katia)

 

Keep Warm

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #107 + 52 Christmas Card Throwdown (Fussy Cutting)

I was looking through my Christmas collections and remembered there were images that could easily be fussy cut on the Penguin Playmates Designer Series Papers. I picked the bird carrying a tuque and the scarf-wearing fox, and I created a snowy scene inside a cross stitched circle for them. I used torn white glimmer paper at the bottom to create snow to ground the fox, and I used a die from 4 en scrap to create the sentiment, which reads "Joy." I remembered to pull out Stampin' Up!'s Foam Adhesive Sheets to give the sentiment dimension. I was impressed again that the foam kept its shape despite the die-cut being so delicate.

For the background, I superposed the Peppermint Stripes Backdrop, die-cut in Soft Sea Foam, over a Just Jade card base. I used a piece of DSP for the right panel, matted with purple glitter paper, and one of the pieces of white-embossed cardstock I had lying on my desk for the left panel, matted with blue glitter paper. I did the centre band with Misty Moonlight DSP, layered some Boho Blue ribbon over it for texture. For the six little gems shown on the sketch, I auditioned some of the beautiful Ombre Glitter Drops from PinkFresh Studio and decided Starry Sky went with the papers very nicely. I also sprinkled Carwright's snowflakes sequins and Studio Katia snowflake glitter.

I made a matching envelope with DSP, adding a cross stitched circle in the center and another fussy cut fox image, plus a snowflake sequin to match. This card will also be going to the children's hospital.

 

 

 

  

 

Supplies

Christmas Coffee to Go

Inspiration: 52 Christmas Card Countdown (Fussy Cutting)

I wanted to use my Coffee Cup Card dies from Honey Bee with my remaining papers from the Christmas on Market Street papers from My Mind's Eye. (Another collection I have on my radar to try and finish off.)

I made my card base out of sturdy white cardstock, then I cut the front of the card again out of the dark green floral paper. For the lid, I used one of the journaling cards that had gold polka dots on white. For the wrap part, I picked the soft green stripes. And then I pulled out one of my oldest tool, purchased from the very first Stampin' Up! catalogue I ever received: the crimper. That thing had not seen the light of day in years, but it gave the perfect texture to the belly band.

For the circle, I noticed I had a Noel sticker on the sticker sheet, but it felt a little bare on its own. So I created an additional pink band in the centre first, and then I fussy cut a bunch of flowers, pine cone and foliage pieces, that I assembled underneath the word. Since I had not used the little berries I had fussy cut, I added them to the word Noël, to give it its proper French punctuation. I dotted the center of the flower with Sparkle and Shine ombré glitter drops from PinkFresh Studio and sprinkled a couple more around the card. I added fussy cut images inside the card as well.

To finish off, I created a matching envelope out of patterned paper as well. This card is really easy to assemble thanks to the dies, and the result is so very cute.

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers, Stickers, Journaling Cards: Christmas on Market Street (My Mind's Eye)
Dies: Coffee Cup Card (Honey Bee)
Accessories: Crimper (Fiskars); Envelope Punch Board, Mini Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Sparkle & Shine Ombré Glitter Drops (PinkFresh Studio)

 

Christmas Mix

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #119

I was inspired to pull out my shaker kits from Queen & Co to see if some I have could be used to make Holiday cards. I thought the mixer and apron shaker shapes could pair well with the Baking Spirits Bright collection from Simple Stories, so that became the starting point of this card.

Doing an aqua mixer seemed like the obvious way to go, and I added a strip of green polka dot at the dot where the stitching is, and used holographic cardstock for the mixing part. I made the bowl out of the pink gingham paper. This shaker is really small so it does not need much to be filled. I used the ombre pearls toppings from Queen & Co to fill the bowl.

As I was putting the collection items to the side, I spotted a Grandma's Cooking cut-apart in the Journaling Bits. It had just the right vibe to become my back piece and even though the sketch has a circle on it, I decided not to mat behind the mixer (as I had initially planned to do) and just leave it blank. I used a die from the Foundation 6 set to make the horizontal strip. Those dies are tricky, because I love the shapes but I did not realize when ordering it that they are all frames instead of full shapes. I believe I could get more use out of it if they were full shapes, but I decided to make it work here by using the center part with a separate die set called Surprise, where the letters are taken out of the paper, and I matted the back with Candy Red cardstock from Tonic.

To decorate, I added a "recipes" tab from the Sticker book at the top. I created a ribbon bow with a green button tied with twine in the center to add a bit of texture to the card. I placed one of the decorative brads from the collection on the mixer and a couple of chipboard pieces to complete the scene.

Since I had to die-cut the band twice to get the two contrasting colours, I was able to use the opposite colours on the envelope to save the leftovers. I added a sentiment, a cookie and a mixer image from the Sticker Book as well. This turned out very sweet. This collection was one that I skipped when it came out, but purchased the following year when it started being added to sale sections. I always thought it was cute, but since I don't bake, I wasn't sure I'd use it. Turns out I have more backing-themed dies and stamps in my stash than I thought, and the colours of this collection are lovely, so I am really enjoying using it so far. I have so many past collections to catch up on that I'm almost hoping this year is a doozie and that the collections that come out are not to my liking... (So far, that is not entirely the case, as I love the two Simple Vintage Christmas collections I've seen posted by Simple Stories. *sigh*) 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Pear Pizzazz, Pool Party (Stampin' Up!); Candy Red (Tonic);
Holographic Paper (Crafters Home)
Patterned Papers, Decorative Brads, Sticker Book, Chipboard Stickers,
Journal Bits: Baking Spirits Bright (Simple Stories)
Kit: Mom Shaped Shaker Kit (Queen & Co)
Dies: Shaped Contours (Stampin' Up!); Foundation 6 (Queen & Co);
Surprise (4 En Scrap); Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black)
Accessories: Powder Pink Shimmer Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Button (Foof-a-La); Twine (Lawn Fawn); A2 Rose Quartz Metallic Envelope (Envelopes.com)

 

Christmas Apron

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #121 

This is the second shaker piece I created with the Mom Shaped Shaker Kit from Queen & Co. I also thought the apron would work well with the Baking Spirits Bright collection.

Since I had used the Foundation 6 dies on my previous card, I remembered it included a piece with rounded corners, which looked exactly like the piece on the Mojo Monday #121 sketch, so I decided I would add the apron to that layer and then create a circle sentiment to represent that shape from the sketch. I used the Meilleurs voeux #4 die, which has "best wishes" repeated around a circle, and I used the snowflake dies to add a shape in the centre. I needed something to put in the back, so I cut a circle out of the Snowdrop Meadow specialty paper from Tonic. 

Initially, my apron was all turquoise, with a pocket in matching patterned paper, but because I filled my shaker quite a bit, we couldn't seem the pink gingham backdrop as much and the apron was a little too monochromatic. I decided to bring the pink back at the top and in the pocket. That got me the idea as I was about to glue the new pocket on to use the utensils stickers and place them in the pocket. That instantly made the card that much cuter. I added a heart sticker to the pink pocket and small enamel dots to hide the seam of the pink at the top of the apron.

I picked a baking goods pattern for the strip at the top and I lined it with Burnished Gold cardstock. I glued a cookie decorative brad at left and a small pink brad in the center of the snowflake. I also added a little star and a heart cookie from the sticker book as well.

I picked a pink metallic envelope and placed one of the journaling bits in the center. Then, I used the remaining parts of the die-cut snowflake on the envelope and added a little dot in the center.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Pear Pizzazz (Stampin' Up!); Candy Red Textured, Snowdrop Meadow Specialty,
Burnished Rose Mirror (Tonic)
Patterned Papers, Decorative Brads, Cardstock Stickers, Sticker Book, Journaling Bits,
Enamel Dots: Baking Spirits Bright (Simple Stories)
Kit: Mom Shaped Shaker Kit (Queen & Co)
Dies: Meilleurs voeux #4, Flocons de neige #3 (4 en scrap);
Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black)
Accessories: Sequins (Simon Says Stamp, Cartwright's); Ombre Pearls Toppings (Queen & Co);
A2 Rose Quartz Metallic Envelope (Envelopes.com)

 

Christmas Bouquet

Circling between my different Christmas collections, I pulled out Carta Bella's Hello Christmas (2020) for this card. I was looking at the chipboard pieces and when I saw the flower arrangement, I thought it could look cute peeking out from inside a mini envelope. So I pulled my Mini Envelope Punch Board and made an envelope for a 2" x 3" card. I fussy cut additional flowers from the patterned paper to fill in behind and wrapped a piece of gold satin ribbon around the card. I found mini tags on one of the patterned papers, so I fussy cut the one that said to: and from: with the little red truck and I hung it from the front of the envelope.

I realized when I placed the envelope on the card front that it was filling most of the space, so I was not able to add a whole lot of other details.  I picked a plain green patterned paper for the background and I added gold details on it using the Summer Rays stencil and Champagne Stardust Butter. To add a vertical strip, I cut the candy cane border to size and matted it with the polka dot red paper.

I had fussy cut some of the wreaths, so I placed one behind the envelope and topped it with a holly puffy sticker. I added a little star puffy sticker to the mini tag and Sparkle & Shine ombré glitter drops in the center of the main flowers.

I used another handcut flower on the envelope and a floral chipboard image, and I added an ombré glitter dot to it as well.

While I liked the handdrawn look of the images in this collection, I have found it a little hard to work with, and I've realized that I tend to struggle with the holiday collections that use darker shades of red and greens. While I like the classic look, I often find the resulting projects a little too severe for a time of year that is meant to be festive. This is something I will have to keep reminding myself of when pondering new collections.

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Thick Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers, Puffy Stickers, Chipboard Accents: Hello Christmas (Echo Park)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black)
Accessories: Champagne Stardust Butter (The Crafter's Workshop);
Summer Rays Stencil (Echo Park); Gold Satin Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals, 1/16" Handheld Punch,
Mint Macaron Lace Trim, Very Vanilla Medium Envelope (Stampin' Up!); Gold Crochet Thread (Unknown);
Sparkle & Shine Ombré Glitter Drops (PinkFresh Studio); Mini Envelope Punch Board (We R Makers)

 

Candy Cane Santa

Inspiration: 52 Christmas Card Throwdown (Candy Canes) + Mojo Monday Sketch #101

I had put together this adorable Santa after ordering the latest Doodle Die Cuts and I had put him aside until I was ready to add him to a project. I circle back to the Home for the Holidays collection, which I'm trying to finish using once and for all, and I realized Santa would fit well with this collection. I used an old Mojo Monday sketch to inspire my design.

For the main block in the center of the card, I used part of an album insert card, which I cut the middle of to size. Then, later, when I was trying to find a way to gracefully add my sentiment to the card, I realized that I could cut the top of that journaling card at an angle, keeping just a bit of the green, and it made a really nice piece to add the bubble-cut sentiment on. The sentiment reads, "Dear Santa." 

For the Santa itself, I used white velvet paper for the pompom, beard, hat trim and outfit trim, and I used red velvet paper for the suit and hat. I also used gold foil paper for his belt buckle, and a different shade of pink cardstock for his nose. I have to say, I really love the Doodle Die Cuts sets I've used so far. The company really thought about how to make the assembly easy so even though the die-cuts include small, intricate details, they are not fiddly. For example, here, the eyes and mouth are holes, showing the black underneath, rather than having to glue two very small round eyes straight on the Santa's face. They also provide a larger base cut, which we can glue the other elements on. I really don't like when we have to apply a very thin line of glue to a very narrow edge of a piece that we then have to figure out the angle off when we're adding it underneath another piece. Having the base section showing where the other pieces go is a huge plus, and usually what makes the difference is me wanting to use the dies over and over again.

This is another card I plan to send to the Children's Hospital, so I added my printed message inside the card and decorated the envelope with matching paper and stickers.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sourire de fin d'année (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Parsley (Concord & 9th); Basic Black, Basic White, Petal Pink, Pink Pirouette,
Red and White Velvet Sheets (Stampin' Up!); Venetian Gold Mirror (Tonic) 
Patterned Papers, Stickers, Album Inserts: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Dies: Cross Stitched Circle Stackables (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Enamel Dots (Unknown Source); Mini Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Square Card Base and Envelope (DoCrafts)

 

Trio of Stockings

Inspiration: Mojo Monday sketch #47

I had three stockings left on my sticker sheet, so I decided to pair them on a card. I picked an older Mojo Monday sketch with an oval and I used the rectangle block above to add my sentiment. I liked that it gave me room to use a larger sentiment, so I tried to pick one that I don't get to use often. Since the sentiment had little stars around it, I added star enamel shapes to highlight this detail, and I added additional star stickers around the sentiment block as well.

The album insert pack had a journaling block with stockings on it, so I used it on a white envelope to match the card. (And I'm now noticing I placed my stocking stickers on the exact same order, which just happened by luck.)

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Ce que j'aime à Noël (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Silver Opulent Paper Pack (Sizzix)
Patterned Papers, Cardstock Stickers, Album Inserts: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Ink: Poppy Parade (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Layering Ovals (Stampin' Up!)
Accesories: Stampin' Dimensionals, White Medium Envelope, Brights and Subtles Enamel Shapes (Stampin' Up!);
Essential Black & White Enamel Dots (Altenew); Corner Chomper (We R Memory Keepers)

 

Framed Moose

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #174

When I realized that the frames stickers were cut separately from the image inside, the wheels started spinning and I went back to the Polar Peek-a-Boo Pals set from Avery Elle I had recently pulled out to use on my Christmas cards. I don't think I had used the moose yet, so I picked him, along with one of the striped scarves. I colored him with my Copic markers, die-cut the images and looked on which paper he would look the best. I picked the grey with white polka dot and cut it to size to fill the inside of the frame. I placed the frame on an acetate so that I could move it around to "audition" paper for the card. I quickly decided that I liked the red houndstooth with the paper with frames over it. I matted the frame paper with silver paper and then I wrapped a piece of Pretty Peacock shimmery ribbon over it. To mimick the two circles from the sketch, I used two snowflake stickers, which I topped with red embellishments.

I was trying to see if I could fit a sentiment in the top right corner before assembling the card, but I was not loving the look, and then I realized that I could easily have the moose hold a banner in its hooves, so I stamped the "Happy Holidays" rectangle from the Christmas Gleaming stamp set, cut it to size and slid it underneath the image. That left the top of the card feeling empty, so I punched a little banner out of green patterned paper, glued it at the top and added a sparkly enamel dot over it. I added glaze over the Christmas lights on my main image and a little red rhinestone at the top of the frame.

I made a matching envelope out of patterned paper, mostly to help use up the rest of what I have faster. I glued one of the album inserts over it to use as my address block, and added a reindeer sticker to match the card. The other reindeer sticker went inside the card.

Those peek-a-boo stamps from Avery Elle never disappoint!

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Polar Peek-a-Boo Pals (Avery Elle); Fêtes étincelantes (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Smoky Slate, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!);
Silver Opulent Cardstock Pack (Sizzix)
Patterned Papers, Stickers, Album Inserts: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Dies: Polar Peek-a-Boo Pals (Avery Elle); Dotted Rectangle Stackables (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Envelope Punch Board, Pretty Peacock Shimmery Ribbon, Banner Punch, 
Mini Stampin' Dimensionals, Wonderful Gems, Red Rhinestone Basic Jewels (Stampin' Up!);
Box of Crayons Enamel Dots (Shimelle for American Crafts); Markers (Copic) 

 

Featuring Santa

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #364 

I am really down to only a few scraps from the Home for the Holidays collection, but I am trying to stretch them out so that I can finish using the stickers as well. Here, I used the white frame and placed a fussy cut Santa inside of it, trimming his hat with a mini white pompom. I die-cut a "ho ho ho" border out of green metallic cardstock using the Surprise die set from 4 en scrap. I did it a second time out of red to have a matching border for the envelope, and that allowed me to inlay the letters in contrasting colours. On the card, I only did the H's and I love the red, green and white look that skipping the O's produced.

The sketch I was drawing inspiration from has two little blocks. I used the Petites étiquettes #7 dies (mini tags), but they looked better when they were placed on the left side of the frame rather than the right like on the sketch, probably because Santa's hat stretches on this side of the frame. I stamped and embossed "Merry Christmas" in green powder on a silver tag, and I embossed "special delivery" in white powder on the red tag. I added eyelets to both, and red and white twine to the top tag. I added red gems to the sides of the frames, and to the tree sticker I put on the matching envelope.

This card will be going to the Children's hospital, so I added my message inside as well.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Plaisir d'offrir #3 (4 en Scrap)
Cardstock: Parsley (Concord & 9th); Red and Green Foil (Prism Studio)
Patterned Papers, Stickers: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Ink: VersaMark
Dies: Surprise, Petites étiquettes #7 (4 en Scrap); Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black)
Accessories: Wonderful Gems, Stampin' Dimensionals, White Medium Envelope, Eyelets, Gumball Green
and White Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!); Baker's Twine (Recollections)

 

Christmas Snowman and Flair

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #120

This is another card created with my leftovers from the Home for the Holidays collection. I used up the last of the matching cardstock stickers on the card and on the envelope, and the last flair to embellish the card as well. I picked my layers based on the size of the paper scraps I had left, and it did not turn half bad considering. I used the ticket strip sticker to embellish the envelope and I had one ticket leftover, which I slid underneath the flair. The sentiment, which reads "Happy New Year," comes from a 4 En Scrap stamp set.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Meilleurs voeux #2 (4 En Scrap)
Cardstock: Parsley (Concord & 9th); Silver Opulent Pack (Sizzix);
Red Foil (Prism Studio)
Patterned Papers, Cardstock Stickers, Fancy Frills, Doodads: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Ink: Cucumber Crush (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); Cross Stitched Circle Stackables (Lawn Fawn);
Scalloped Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Borders (Photoplay)
Accessories: Red Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Stampin' Dimensionals, Parakeet Party Metallic Woven Ribbon,
White Medium Envelope, Banner Punch (Stampin' Up!); Box of Crayons
Enamel Shapes (Shimelle for American Crafts)

 

Switcheroo

Inspiration: Just Add Ink #658 (Scraps - Strips - Sequins)

This is the other set of images I colored while I was crafting with my niece. I fussy cut the images and went looking for a sketch to add them to a card. Since the image are pretty large and because I had a leftover square envelope made to match the Home for the Holidays collection, I decided to make a square card (5¼" x 5¼"). My paper scraps are dwindling down, so the banners from the sketch were a great way to use the leftover strips - and it fit with the Just Add Ink challenge beautifully.

I added an extra banner (compared to the sketch) so that I could add my sentiment on it. I embossed it with the Gumball Green Stampin' Emboss powder. The sentiment reads "Happiness and more." It's from an European company called 4 En Scrap. I saw one of their French sentiments on a project shared on Instagram and the font and saying piqued my interest, so I went looking for their Website and was super impressed with their offering. European French tends to differ from Quebec French and the expressions don't always fit well for our side of the pond, but in this case, it was not a problem and most of the sentiments appeared very usable so I ordered from them and you will most likely see a lot of their stamps made their way onto my projects for the foreseeable future. This one came from the Meilleurs voeux #2 stamp set.

To back the main images, I used the Essential Stylish Ovals dies from Spellbinders. I was very happy to add that die set to my stash, because the shape resemble an oval, but will be easier to incorporate on a project because the ends are rounded and not as long. I soon discovered after buying ovals that they are hard to add to cards, because if you need a certain height to fit your images completely, then the oval can become very long and almost take the full width of the card, which complicates designing. This shape has the essence of the oval without the problematic width. There is also 16 dies in the set, which made matting very easily as the size between dies is about 1/8". I expect this set to be very useful.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Mini Oddball Switcheroo (Stamping Bella); Meilleurs voeux #2 (4 En Scrap)
Cardstock: 80 lbs. Solar White (Neenah); Parsley (Concord & 9th)
Patterned Papers, Album Inserts, Stickers: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); VersaMark
Dies: Essential Stylish Ovals (Spellbinders)
Accessories: Sequins (Cartwright's); Polychromos Pencils (Fäber-Castell);
Box of Crayons Enamel Shapes (Shimelle for American Crafts);
Gumball Green Stampin' Emboss Powder, Stampin' Dimensionals, Banner Triple Punch,
Envelope Punch Board (Stampin' Up!)

 

Winter Cardinal

Inspiration: Freshly Made Sketch #591

I've been using up my scraps from the Home for the Holidays collection by Doodlebug Design and when I spotted the Freshly Made Sketch from this week, I knew it would be a fantastic way to use up small pieces of patterned paper. I recently grabbed some red and green foil cardstock from Prism Studio at my local store, to add to my Christmas cards, so I cut strips of foil paper to place between the patterned paper, to zhuzh it up a little.

For the main image, I used a frame from the North Pole Frames stickers, and the sentiment comes from the Home for the Holidays This & That cardstock stickers. I die-cut snowflakes out of the red foil paper and cut them around the card, and I placed green gems in the center of each one. I also added scalloped trim at the bottom of the card, from the Fancy Frills stickers.

I already had a matching envelope ready. It had been done for another card, but not used so I was able to pair it with this card.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Red and Green Foil Cardstock (Prism Studio)
Patterned Papers, Fancy Frills Stickers, This & That Cardstock Stickers: Home for the Holidays (Doodlebug Design)
Dies: Flocons de neige #3 (4 en Scrap)
Accessories: August Crystals (Studio Katia); Stampin' Dimensionals, Envelope Punch Board (Stampin' Up!);
North Pole Frames Stickers (Doodlebug Design); Mini Black and White Pompoms (Queen & Co)

 

Christmas Drinks

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #178

I went back to the Christmas Mice I had previously colored and not used on my other card, and I used the Mad 4 Plaid Christmas collection from Photoplay again, since the images had been colored to match it. Basing my design on an old Mojo Monday sketch, I created this design.

I recently took inventory of everything I had in my craft room and went through items to do a destash. That included my embossing folders. Some I was sure I wanted to give away, but for the ones I was unsure of, I cut white cardstock and run it through my embossing folders to decide. I ended up with a pile of embossed paper, which I put aside so that I could use it on my projects when I craft. Here, I figured the mice would stand out better against cardstock than patterned paper, so I looked through the pile and picked the one with stars in the background.

For the sentiment, because my cardstock was already embossed, it would have been hard to stamp something, so I stamped my sentiment on a white cardstock scrap and bubble cut it, popping it on Mini Stampin' Dimensionals.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Christmas Mice (Waffle Flower); Pas de triche! (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Shaded Spruce, Old Olive. Basic White (Stampin' Up!); Metallic Kraft-stock (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology)
Patterned Papers: Mad 4 Plaid Christmas (Photoplay)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Old Olive (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Wonky Stitched Rectangles Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Enamel Dots (Unknown Source); Markers (Copic); Mini Stampin' Dimensionals,
White Medium Envelope, Star Embossing Folder (Stampin' Up!); Circle and Scalloped Circle
Nestabilities Dies (Spellbinders); All My Love Shape Sprinkles (Doodlebug Design)

 

Plaid Nutcracker

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #44 

My next paper pad I decided to tackle is Mad 4 Plaid Christmas from Photoplay. I was fully intending on pairing it with the Christmas Mice stamp set from Waffle Flower. I had colored and die-cut my images and started to create my layers for the card, but once I reached the main block and started trying to fit my images on it, I realized they were too small and bringing focus enough. Rather than fight it and make a card I was not happy with, I decided to pull in another stamp set to incorporate something with a size that worked better. I picked Avery Elle's Nutcrackers set. I was also fighting to incorporate a circle like on the sketch, thinking maybe I could make it a snowflake and again, I remembered than in the end, it was better to tweak things to work for what I was trying to achieve and not let the sketch dictate the results.

I stamped my "Best Wishes" sentiment in red on a white banner, which I slipped underneath the nutcracker. I created my photo corners out of gold metallic kraft-stock and I used a few enamel dots I got free with an online order to finish the card off. I used a border from one of the cut-apart papers to decorate a matching envelope. This is another card that will be going to the children's hospital for their Christmas card drive.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Nutcrackers (Avery Elle); Moments lumineux (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Cherry Cobbler (Stampin' Up!); Solar White (Neenah);
Metallic Kraft-stock (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology)
Patterned Paper: Mad 4 Plaid Christmas (Photoplay)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Cherry Cobbler (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Nutcrackers (Avery Elle); Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black);
Dotted Rectangle Stackables (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Markers (Copic); Enamel Dots (Unknown Source);
Stampin' Dimensionals, White Medium Envelope (Stampin' Up!); 
Gold Metallic Gelly Roll Pen (Sakura)

 

Ready to Open Gifts

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #124 

I wanted to use the other images from Christmas Mice I had stamped and colored, so I used the Mad 4 Plaid Christmas papers again to create this new card. I used the top square of the sketch to include my sentiment, which reads, "May this Holiday season be filled with joy." I embossed it with the Cherry Cobbler embossing folder for a bit of shine. I added a little holly image I had stamped and colored from the stamp set.

The gifts behind the mouse is an image I fussy cut from the cut-apart sheet. On a cross-stitched circle, I mounted the gifts with one layer of dimensional adhesive and the mouse with two layers. Underneath, I layered a strip of patterned paper and a strip of gold-foiled washi tape.

For my previous card, I had tried to make my own photo corners with square punches, and the first pair I had done was way too big for my other layout. Here, by trimming it down a bit, I was able to add it to the left rectangle and fill the space out. I added a red button threaded with green twine as well. 

I covered the flap of my white envelope with patterned paper to match.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Christmas Mice (Waffle Flower); Ce que j'aime à Noël (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Cherry Cobbler, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); 
Metallic Kraft-stock (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology)
Patterned Paper: Mad 4 Plaid Christmas (Photoplay)
Ink: VersaMark; Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Dies: Cross Stitched Circle Stackables (Lawn Fawn);
Christmas Mice (Waffle Flower); Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black);
Layering Squares (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Square Punches, Stampin' Dimensionals, Cherry Cobbler Stampin' Emboss Powder.
Green Twine, Washi Tape, White Medium Envelope (Stampin' Up!); Button (Foof-a-La);
Enamel Dots (Unknown Source); Markers (Copic); Frosted Lace Stickles

 

Putting the Stockings Up

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #104

This is my last card using the Christmas Mice images from Waffle Flower I had stamped and colored. Again, I used the Mad 4 Plaid Christmas collection from Photoplay to go with it, and based myself on an old Mojo Monday sketch to design something different. The bubble-cut sentiment had been previously stamped for another project where it did not work well, but here, the size was working out nicely.

The 6" x 6" paper pad does not have a lot of paper left in it, but I think I'm ready to move on to other collections for now. Maybe I can circle back to it this fall and use up the rest then. It does feel really satisfying when I manage to use a paper pad entirely.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Christmas Mice (Avery Elle); Fêtes branchées (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Metallic Kraft-stock (Tim Holtz for Idea-ology)
Patterned Papers: Mad 4 Plaid Christmas (Photoplay)
Ink: Old Olive (Stampin' Up!); Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Dies: Christmas Mice (Waffle Flower); Layering Circles (Tonic);
Circle Double Stitched (Art Impressions); Wonky Stitched Rectangle STAX (My Favorite Things);
Scalloped Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders)
Accessories: Enamel Dots, Candy Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals, White Medium Envelope (Stampin' Up!);
Markers (Copic)

 

Toboggan Day

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #53

I had leftover colored images from the Snow Fun set and enough leftover paper from the Hello Winter 6" x 6" pack to make two last matching cards. I included some additional scraps from the Silver Opulent Cardstock Pack from Sizzix (a really great value to invest in versatile metallic staples for your cardstock collection). I used a lot of the same elements as I had on my previous cards: the Wonderful Snowflakes die-cuts, the white glimmer ribbon, Stickles... I'm really happy with how well the remaining patterns worked together, Sometimes, beggars can't be choosers when putting together one last project with a paper pack, but here, the dominant colours and pattern scales worked really well together.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Ce que j'aime à Noël (Stampin' Up!); Snow Fun (Avery Elle)
Cardstock: Silver Opulent Cardstock Pack (Sizzix); Solar White (Neenah); 
Dapper Denim, Basic White (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Hello Winter (Echo Park)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); VersaMark
Dies: Snow Fun (Avery Elle); Layering Squares (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Snowflake Punch (EK Success); Wonderful Snowflakes, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Stampin' Blends Markers, Jumbo Rhinestone Basic Jewels, White Glimmer Ribbon (Stampin' Up!);
Star Dust Stickles (Ranger); A2 Seafoam Envelopes (Envelopes.com);
Fine White Embossing Powder (Wow!) 

Sweet Snowman

Inspiration: Tuesday Morning Sketches #710

Back when I received the Santa and snowman die-cut sets from Doodlebug, I looked through my scraps and put one of each together. The result is just so cute! I am happy that Doodlebug had decided to add the Doodle die cuts to their line because they are easy to put together and the result totally has the typical Doodlebug cuteness factor.

I knew those would be great for the Christmas cards I am preparing for the children's hospital. They had been put aside for a while now, but when I saw the Tuesday Morning Sketch, I remembered that in my pile of dry-embossed cardstock (that I had done when I was destashing and trying to decide which embossing folders to get rid of) had an embossed oval that would work with the sketch. I picked washi tapes that matched my snowman and then I started assembling the scene. The little gifts were supposed to go with Santa, but they helped fill the bottom of the card a bit. I stamped and gold-embossed Joy on Candy Red cardstock from Tonic, punched it with my ticket punch and added a gold border with a Posca pen. I added Fairy Crystals to the ornaments on the tree, enamel dots to the snowman's buttons and mini enamel dots to the gifts' bows. I also added two gold dots at the top of the card where the washi meets. I repeated the same washi on my teal envelope to make it match the card.

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Joyeux moments (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Lime Light Opalescent, Venetian Gold Mirror and Candy Red Classic (Tonic)
Patterned Papers: Various scraps
Dies: Snow Cute (Doodlebug Design)
Accessories: Advent Wreath Embossing Folder, Stampin' Dimensionals, Washi Tapes (Stampin' Up!);
Fashion Gold Embellishments (Spellbinders); Enamel Dots (Violet Studio);
Christmas Fairy Crystals (Memory Box); Aquas Hero Hues Enamel Dots (Hero Arts);
A2 Teal Envelope (Envelopes.com); Metallic Gold Rich Super Fine Embossing Powder (Wow!)

 

Odd Birthday

Inspiration: Tic Tac Toe #209 (decorate envelope + texture + blue)

I was really excited to finally have to new Stencil Butter colours on hand. Of all the textures pastes I've purchased so far, they have been my favorite ones, but I think the bright colours from the original palette had prevented me from using them as much as I was hoping I would. I feel like the softer, more muted colours that just got released will be easier to incorporate into my projects. I realized that the CAS colour challenge fit two of the new released colours, Watermelon and Seafoam. For the third, I pulled out Denim.

I started by cutting a piece of mixed media art paper from Vicki Boutin and I smooshed ink on an acetate to create my base on the white cardstock. I layered Flirty Flamingo, then Pool Party and dried the paper with my heat tool. I then used Stencil #6 from Autour de Mwa (Aall & Create) to add details with the Stencil Butters.

While the pastes were drying, I picked Mini Oddball Has a Present as my main image. I stamped it in Tuxedo Black ink and colored it with Polychromos pencils in matching shades. I fussy cut the image out and popped it on dimensional adhesive.

For the sentiment, I used a new score: Des mots pour te dire #1 from Carabelle Studio. I hadn't realized this was a single stamp, but the words are really easy to cut apart, so I stamped the words in Night of Navy ink on Pool Party cardstock and fussy cut the "Happy Birthday" words. I also popped those on mini Stampin' Dimensionals.

I made a card base out of Pool Party cardstock and added a Night of Navy mat for better definition. I added Spring Abstract Say It in Crystals embellishments to finish the card off.

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Mini Oddball Has a Present (Stamping Bella); Des mots pour te dire #1 (Carabelle Studio)
Cardstock: Night of Navy, Pool Party (Stampin' Up!); Mixed Media Cardstock (Vicki Boutin for American Crafts)
Ink: Flirty Flamingo, Night of Navy, Pool Party (Stampin' Up!), Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Accessories: Mini Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!); A2 Nautical Blue Linen Envelope (Envelopes.com);
Polychromos Pencils (Fäber-Castell); Stencil #6 from Autour de Mwa (Aall & Create);
Denim, Seafoam and Watermelon Stencil Butter (The Crafter's Workshop);
Spring Abstract Say It in Crystals (Prima Marketing); Project Life Nesting Dies (American Crafts)

 

Celebrating with Christmas Pudding

Inspiration: Try Stampin' on Tuesday #606

I pulled out some paper scraps from the Falala collection from Crate Paper that I was trying to use up and paired them with the Mini Oddball Christmas Pudding image, which I colored with Polychromos pencils. I based my card design on the Try Stampin' on Tuesday sketch. I added black glimmer paper to create a scalloped edge, and I stamped my sentiment using the Des mots pour le dire #2 stamp set from Carabelle Studio. I had a piece of patterned paper big enough to make a matching envelope with as well.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Mini Odbball Christmas Pudding (Stamping Bella); Des mots pour te dire #2 (Carabelle Studio)
Cardstock: Poppy Parade, Black Glimmer Paper (Stampin' Up!); White Cougar Opaque 80 lbs. (The Paper Cut)
Patterned Papers: Falala (Crate Paper)
Ink: Poppy Parade (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); Slim Ornate Banner (PinkFresh); 
Stitched Mini Scallop Square STAX (My Favorite Things
Accessories: Polychromos Pencils (Fäber-Castell); Candy Cane Lane Say it With Crystals (Prima Marketing);
Envelope Punch Board, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!)

 

Birthday Girl

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #43

I found some Cocoa Vanilla paper scraps and decided to make a card to finish using them up. I revisited the Mini Oddball has a Present stamp and colored her with Stampin' Blends markers this time (and found as I was coloring her that the cardstock she has been stamped on is feathering, so I kept the blending to the bare minimum). That cardstock is Cougar White cardstock from The Paper Cut. It was my first time testing it for coloring, so I guess it will have to be relegated to pencil coloring.

The sentiment was created with the Des mots pour te dire #1 stamp set from Carabelle Studio. I stamped the words in Dapper Denim ink and poured clear embossing powder on it, on the woodgrain patterned paper. Then I cut the words apart and put them on dimensional strips to raise them. 

To decorate, I added two buttons at the top, a few sequins stars around the image and a few opal rounds as well. I repeated the same polka dot paper for my address block on the metallic envelope to finish the set.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Mini Oddball Has a Present (Stamping Bella); Des mots pour te dire #1 (Carabelle Studio)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); 80 lbs. Cougar White (The Paper Cut)
Patterned Papers: Unknown Collection (Cocoa Vanilla)
Ink: Dapper Denim (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Lacy Borders (Lawn Fawn); Zig-Zag Stackers (Penny Black); 
Layering Ovals (Stampin' Up!); Foundation 4 (Queen & Co);
Stitched Mini Scalloped Squares STAX (My Favorite Things)
Accessories: Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder, Foam Adhesive Strips, Stampin' Dimensionals, Opal Rounds,
Stampin' Blends Markers, Twinkle Adhesive-Backed Sequins, Pear Pizzazz Glimmer Ribbon (Stampin' Up!); 
Buttons (Foof-A-La, Buttons Galore & More); A2 Blonde Metallic Envelope (Envelopes.com)

 

Lovely Milkshake

Inspiration: Little Red Wagon #700 (Layers)

The Share A Milkshake stamp set immediately caught my eye in the minicatalogue with its retro charm and cute layering details. I was looking through paper pads for patterned papers to pair with it and I found the brightly colored Love Notes 6" x 6" paper pad from Doodlebug, which seemed to fit the bill. I picked the music pattern for the background, as I tend to associate milkshakes with jukeboxes. I stamped my milkshake pieces separately on white cardstock and I fussy cut the straw, cherry and foam, which I assembled on the rectangle piece with the base stamping on it. The design is quite simple, it's mostly layered patterned papers and foil cardstock. I wrapped a piece of Polished Pink organza ribbon around the bottom of the main piece and tied a yellow button over the bow with white twine. I wondered about adding a sentiment, but I was liking the card as is, so I decided to leave it bare - for now.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Share a Milkshake (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Poppy Parade, Basic White (Stampin' Up!); Silver Opulent Cardstock Pack (Sizzix)
Patterned Papers: Love Notes (Doodlebug Design)
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Pool Party, Polished Pink, So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, Poppy Parade, Bermuda Bay (Stampin' Up!)
Acessories: White Baker's Twine, Polished Pink Taffeta Ribbon, White Medium Envelope,
Black Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Stampin' Dimensionals, Basic Grey Stampin' Write Marker (Stampin' Up!);
Zig-Zag Stackers Dies (Penny Black); Button (Foof-a-La)