Encre, papier, ciseaux

Winter Wonderland Quartet

I still had four card bases leftover from creating with Lawn Fawn's Simple Stripes: Diagonal die, so I kept using my Winter Wonderland cut-aparts and putting cards together. 

So on my previous cards, I used some of the cut-aparts images and didn't need the frame so rather than cutting through it, I used my paper cutter to take the center out and keep the frames. This allowed me to make shakers really quickly. The border was the perfect size to hide adhesive foam strips underneath and I had some Snowflake Sequins mix from a previous Stampin' Up! holidays catalogue that I filled my shakers with. 

I used Tim Holtz's deckle trimmer to mat the images that weren't turned into shakers. I was loving those two images too much to hide them, so I decorated around them instead. The snowman had a little text bubble with an English sentiment, so I got creative and hid it underneath a stitched oval die-cut, on which I created my own French sentiment.

I also stamped a French sentiment, embossed in white, at the top of the cut-apart with the animal pyramid. I remembered as I was looking for my French stamps that I have this cute fluffy chenille fiber, perfect to add a bit of texture to the card. I tied it with a bit of sparkly crochet thread. I used an oldie but goodie snowflake punch with holographic bling (which is outrageously expensive but so beautiful...) in the center on two of the cards.

I still need to make envelopes for those cards, are most are very bulky with the shakers and I don't think they will fit comfortably in A2 envelopes, and I have to write a little note for the kids who will receive the cards inside. Last year, I crafted for the seniors. This year, for the kids. It's extremely satisfying to use my time and supplies to make somebody's holidays a little brighter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Douceurs glacées, Coffre d'étiquettes, Cousu avec joie, Tempête de souhaits (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Highland Heather (Stampin' Up!);
Blue Cashmere Pearlescent, Cobalt Blue Glitter, Blue Obsidian Mirror (Tonic)
Ink: VersaMark; Polished Pink, Blueberry Bushel (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers, Icons Stickers, Winter Hugs Shape Sprinkles: Winter Wonderland (Doodlebug Design)
Dies: Simple Stripes Diagonal Backdrop, Stitched Oval Stackables (Lawn Fawn);
Joyeuses Fêtes (Lime Citron); Joyeux Noël (Les ateliers de Karine)
Accessories: Foam Adhesive Strips, Stampin' Dimensionals, Snowflake Sequins,
White Stampin' Emboss Powder, Window Sheets, Blueberry Bushel 1/8" Ribbon,
Highland Heather Mini Striped Ribbon (Stampin' Up!);
White Sparkly Crochet Thread, Turquoise Chenille Fiber (?);
Deckle Trimmer (Tim Holtz for Tonic); Snowflake Punch (EK Success);
Holographic Gems (Recollections)

 

Winter Wonderland Trio

Inspiration: Global Design Project #301 

So I mentioned in my Expedition Everest page post that I wanted to keep using Doodlebug's Winter Wonderland collection to make cards. Specifically, I was eager to test out the newly-released Simple Stripes: Diagonal background die from Lawn Fawn. I was really intrigued by it and very curious to see it done with patterned papers (so far, I've only seen colorful cardstock background in the samples posted). 

Here is the thing: be prepared to work on a card set as you will end up with a ton of pieces. If you simply alternate two patterns, you will get a minimum of two cards. Here, I did the same pattern twice on each card, and that gave me a total of five backgrounds. It is quite pleasant to assemble the pieces, it feels like putting a puzzle together and you get a very even result that would be quite challenging to get by assembling paper scraps on your own (especially with the diagonal pattern).

Once I was done with the backgrounds, I fiddled around for a little while before I found an idea that I liked to get going on a card, but once I did, I worked on all three cards in a row and it all went smoothly. I reused some leftovers pieces from my scrapbook page (the remaining bunting pieces) and the negative space from the sentiment on one card and the leftover letters on the other. As I previously mentioned, my local scrapbook store is organizing a drive for cards for a children's hospital and this was the inspiration behind those cards. I tried to keep them youthful and fun for that reason.

I turned one of the cards to the side so that I could use the ski lodge image and turn it into a shaker. It's a little unusual to have the fold on the side like that, but it still works. Some of the patterns from the stripes are sideways, but since it's just a backdrop, it is really not a big deal. I would remind you to think about the direction of your patterns when you are die-cutting your paper, though, if that sort of details matter to you.

The big yeti card was a really quick design since I used a 3" x 4" cut-apart piece. There was an English sentiment at the top, which I hid with a strip of cardstock and I die cut a new French sentiment out of the beautiful Blue Cashmere pearlescent cardstock from Tonic. Since I had gotten my Snowflake sequins out for the shaker, I used some of the sequins to embellish the two other cards, including by gluing the clear holographic cupped sequins over the tree "foliage."

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Blueberry Bushel, Smoky Slate (Stampin' Up!);
Blue Cashmere Pearlescent, Cobalt Blue Glitter (Tonic) 
Patterned Papers, Icons Stickers, Winter Hugs Shape Sprinkles: Winter Wonderland (Doodlebug Design)
Dies: Stitched Scalloped Rectangle Frames, Bunting Borders, Simple Stripes Diagonal Backdrop (Lawn Fawn);
Sentiment Labels (Simon Says Stamp); Joyeuses Fêtes (Lime Citron);
Joyeux Noël (Les ateliers de Karine)
Accessories: Swimming Pool Mini Paper Doilies (Doodlebug Design);
Ticket Corner Punch, Foam Adhesive Strips, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Snowflake Sequins, Window Sheets (Stampin' Up!)

 

Here Comes Santa Claws

Inspiration: CAS Colours & Sketch #408

This card is totally out of season, but the seaweed Christmas tree worked well with the sketch and this cute stamp has unfortunately been sitting on my stash uninked since it was released. (Yikes.) I looked through my seasonal papers and found leftover papers from the Winter Wonder collection from Bella Blvd. that were getting all crinckled at the bottom of the box, so I pulled them out and got working on this card. I made a conscious effort to keep the design streamlined and I do like where I landed. My favorite part is the pink banner, as it was cut out of a leftover scrap on my desk, where I had tested the new Kitsch Flamingo Distress ink and die-cut a circle for another project, but I had enough leftover cardstock inked with pink to cut this banner out. Because it was the edge of the inking, it creates a very nice ombre effect, and the water spritzing I had done also mimicks bubbles, so I love the look.

The larger panel was die-cut with the Confetti Card dies and the smaller rectangle was handcut and I added stitching using the Just Stitching Double Rectangles dies. I added Midas Touch Aqua Shimmer to the star and Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer to the bubbles.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Christmas Fishes (Lawn Fawn)
Cardstock: Pink Pirouette (Stampin' Up!); Solar White (Neenah)
Patterned Papers: Winter Wonder (Bella Blvd.)
Ink: Kitsch Flamingo Distress Oxide (Ranger); Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Dies: Christmas Fishes, Just Stitching Double Rectangles,
Simple Wavy Banners (Lawn Fawn); Confetti Card Dies (Concord & 9th)
Accessories: Markers (Copic); Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Blender Tool (Ranger); Midas Touch and Glitter Gloss Aqua Shimmer Brushes (Nuvo);
A2 Rose Quartz Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com)

 

Gilded Ornaments

I revisited my favorite papers today, the Brightly Gleaming Specialty Designer Series Paper, and mixed them with the Wonder of the Season Specialty DSP. This last pack is entirely white, so I enjoy coloring the background to make the foil details stand out. Stampin' Up! will be offering blending brushes in the upcoming January-June minicatalogue, so those are nice to add soft ink blending without any harsh lines. This is what I used on my foiled paper to add a bit of Old Olive inking, and then I added splatter by adding ink to a clear block, spritzing water and flicking the ink off the edge with a paintbrush. The iridescent pearls are the perfect complement to the colours of the Brightly Gleaming papers. By the way, those papers are currently offered at 50% off if you are interested in getting a pack for yourself, but they are retiring by the end of the week, so they are retiring soon.

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Fêtes étincelantes (Christmas Gleaming)
Cardstock: Night of Navy, Old Olive, Pretty Peacock, Fluid 100 Watercolor Paper
Specialty Designer Series Paper: Wonder of the Season, Brightly Gleaming
Ink: Old Olive, Night of Navy
Accessories: Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder, Blending Brush, Iridescent Pearls,
White Medium Envelopes, White Baker's Twine, Ornament Punches,
Old Olive/Pretty Peacock Ribbon, Aqua Painter Brush, Stampin' DImensionals

 

Traditional Stockings

I am still working on catching up with my downline cards. I was able to get the cute hostess set from the August-December minicatalogue on my last order, called A Merry Hello, and I was eager to use it before Christmas has come and gone. I paired the set with the beautiful Toile Tidings Designer Series Paper that made a comeback this year, to my delight. The stamp set has not been translated, so I went to another Holiday set to get a French sentiment (from the Poinsettia Petals set), that reads, "May your holidays be filled with magic and wonder." I used little branches from the Poinsettia dies and the Mini-Curvy Keepsakes Box dies. To make the stockings more interesting, I used an Aqua Painter brush to color some of the details using Soft Seafoam ink, I added ribbon from the All the Trimmings Ribbon Combo Pack to line the cardstock, and a few glitter enamel dots.

I am really liking the look of the Real Red, Garden Green and Soft Seafoam together. Classic red and green combo, but the soft green and vanilla adds a nice softness and vintage feel to the final result.

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: A Merry Hello, Pétales de poinsettia (Poinsettia Petals)
Cardstock: Garden Green, Very Vanilla, Soft Seafoam
Designer Series Paper: Toile Tidings
Ink: Real Red, Garden Green, Soft Seafoam
Accessories: Poinsettia Dies, Mini-Curvy Keepsakes Box Dies, Gold Glitter Enamel Dots,
Toile Tidings Glitter Enamel Dots, Very Vanilla Medium Envelope,
All the Trimmings Ribbon Combo Pack, Stampin' Dimensionals, Aqua Painter Brush

 

Walking in Winterland

I purchased beautiful Mintay papers earlier this fall and I realized I had not gotten around to using them just yet. I pulled them out and I let the beautiful patterns be the starting point of my card. I decided to layer the branch and mailbox over one of the frames, and add a poinsettia image as well. I picked a sentiment that says "Vive le vent," the French version of the jingle bells song, that was just the right size for the frame and I stamped it in Pretty Peacock ink. I layered a piece of Soft Sky cardstock behind, dry embossed with the Swirls & Curls embossing folder, and I dry brushed White Frost glimmer paint over it. While the paint was out, I added some to the edges of the knit patterned paper as well.

I tied a piece of natural ribbon and hung two jingle bells to the knot - a rose red one and a mini silver one, using my beloved metallic thread from Altenew. I added a couple pieces of chipboard and I framed my sentiments with Ivory Seashell crystal dots. I also added Fresh Snowfall glitter accents to the snowflake and the branches, and a few Wonderful Gems to the center of the poinsettia and to frame the sentiment.

I made a matching envelope out of cardstock, with another frame die-cut for the address block and more Crystal Drops and Glitter Accents.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Parfum de Noël (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Pretty Peacock, Soft Sky (Stampin' Up!); Pumpkin Spice (Recollections)
Patterned Papers: Winterland (Mintay)
Ink: Pretty Peacock (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Envelope Punch Board, Wonderful Gems, Mini Jingle Bells, Ribbon,
Stampin' Dimensionals, White Frost Glimmer Paint, Swirls & Curls Embossing Folder (Stampin' Up!);
Ivory Seashell Crystal Drops, Fresh Snowfall Glitter Accents (Nuvo); 
Rose Gold Jingle Bells (Fun Stampers Journey)

 

Elf Christmas Tags

In general, I don't buy a lot of shaped dies that require assembly, but the little His and Hers elves from the recent Elizabeth Craft Designs dies did catch my eye and appeared fairly easy to put together. I was curious to see what they looked like assembled so I put the girl together with scraps from my scrap drawers. I went pretty classic since I didn't know what I would be using her on. (On a side note, they are easy to die-cut and put together, but the pieces are really small! Look at those little hands and cuffs...)

Right now, the next thing on my to-do list is wrapping my gifts, so I'm thinking about gift tags to match. I pulled out the new Woodgrain cardstock I got from the latest Lawn Fawn release to make a die with her. I shouldn't say new because Lawn Fawn came out with woodgrain cardstock a while back, but they were previously offering an assorted pack. This time, they separated their colours into individual packs offered in white, kraft and dark brown. That makes me very happy. Assorted packs are a great gateway into products, but afterwards, I like to be able to restock on favorite colours. I decided to go classic and use the white woodgrain for my tag. I pulled out additional red and olive cardstock and die-cut a pretty cool "Merry Christmas" French die I found at my local store while picking up the new Lawn Fawn release. Sentiment dies are hard to find in French and the fonts offered are not always that varied, so I found this one to be really cool and different (and reasonably priced). Since the elf had been put together previously, that tag came together in a matter of minutes and I do like the result. I didn't string ribbon on it just yet, I'll wait until I'm ready to add the tag to the actual package to see how I go about it and which ribbon I use.

The next day, I put together a similar tag using the little boy this time. I used the Gift Wrapped stamp set and got the idea to use the bow image as well. I had a leftover Old Olive ribbon piece on my desk from another project where it was not quite working, which I used along with the gold-embossed bow image. The sentiment reads, "A very merry Christmas" and was embossed in white powder. 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Enveloppé d'amour (Gift Wrapped - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: White Woodgrain (Lawn Fawn); Close to Cocoa, Early Espresso, Whisper White,
Real Red, Gold Foil Sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Designer Series Paper: ? (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Holiday Elf - Hers (Elizabeth Craft Designs); Nested Tags (Scrapbook.com);
Joyeux Noël (Les ateliers de Karine)
Accessories: Gold Glitter Enamel Dots, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Trimming the Town Ribbon Combo Pack (Stampin' Up!); White Gel Pen (Gelly Roll)

 

Three Trees

I decided the next paper collection I wanted to play with was Mistletoe Kisses from Simple Stories (already a few years old). I discovered I had a die-cut pack to go with it, so I pulled the images out to see what was in it, and the three trees caught my eye. I based the design around a November 2017 Card Maps sketch and quickly put together this sweet card. When cutting the middle band, I made sure to size it so that we would see the word Noel and to place the threes so that the word could still be seen.

The pearl dangle was already on my desk, from trying out my jewelry tools, so I hung it from the silver cord bow. I added three Crystal Stars above the threes and stamped my sentiment in red ink on a white banner die-cut. The sequin is actually something upcycled from clothes I bought years ago, and the sequin comes from the little pack that was given to repair the garment (not even sure what the piece of clothing was). It also contained beads, which you will see use on my "Not A Creature Was Stirring" card. I will often find inspiration from random elements left on my desk, so I don't always clean everything away, as it sometimes make for unexpected inspiration.

A matching envelope was decorated with a sticker from the paper collection kit.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sous le gui (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Pool Party (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers, Stickers and Bits & Pieces: Mistletoe Kisses (Simple Stories)
Ink: Cherry Cobbler (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals, Lace Trim Border Punch, Silver Cord (Stampin' Up!);
A2 Seafoam Envelope (envelopes.com); Everyday Sentiment Banners Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Beads (Bead Landing); Crystal Stars (Buttons Galore & More)

 

Frosty Jingle Bell

I am way behind on my monthly downline cards so I'll be trying to catch up in the upcoming weeks. I wanted to use the Sounds of the Season dies and I paired them with the Feels Like Frost Designer Series Paper, which I was happy to see make a comeback in the seasonal mini-catalogue this year. The design is very simple - I let the foil paper and Specialty paper do most of the work. I did add a few blue gems and the Seaside Spray metallic ribbon (my favorite!) to embellish the card.

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Pétales de poinsettia (Poinsettia Petals)
Cardstock: Seaside Spray, Mint Macaron, Highland Heather, Silver Foil Paper
Specialty Designer Series Paper: Feels Like Frost
Ink: Night of Navy
Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals, White Medium Envelope, Blue Adhesive-Backed Gems,
Seaside Spray Metallic Ribbon, Stitched Rectangles Dies, Banners Pick a Punch

 

All I Want for Christmas 2020

This new stamp from Stampendous couldn't be more à propos. It summarizes what most people are wishing for this year for the upcoming holidays. I was wager to see how it looked colored, so I stamped the image in VersaMark ink on watercolor paper, embossed it in gold powder and I used my Faber-Castell watercolor pencils to color it up. I didn't have a specific color scheme when I started, I just went where inspiration took me and after I was done, I thought it might look nice with the gorgeous Christmas Plaid paper from Memorybox. The stamp will pretty much fill an entire card front, so I went larger with my card to be able to add paper behind: 4-3/4" x 6". Which meant in turn that I had to use a 12" x 12" piece of cardstock and my envelope punch board to make a matching envelope. I used the Put a Bow on It dies to add a bow on one side of the image, which I matted in gold foiled paper. I added a Sugar Art Pebble in the center of the bow and a few pearls around the card to embellish. The design is farily simple. The image is so busy, there was not much that could be done to embellish further.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: All for Christmas (Stampendous)
Cardstock: Pistachio Pudding, Fluid 100 Watercolor Paper (Stampin' Up!);
Fall Solids (Recollections); Gold Rush (Lawn Fawn)
Patterned Papers: Christmas Plaid (Memory Box)
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Gold Foil Pearls, Moss Green Pearls (Studio Katia);
Put a Bow on It Dies, Dotted Rectangles Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Sugar Art Pebbles (Prima Marketing); Albrecht-Dürer Watercolor Pencils (Faber-Castell);
Aqua Painter Brush, Envelope Punch Board, Gold Foil Sheets (Stampin' Up!)

 

Framed Santa

I have a bunch of new items to try out so I'm really hoping for more free time in the weeks to come, but tonight I tested out my new Jeweled Snowflakes 3D embossing folder on Shimmery White cardstock and it is SO gorgeous. I have collected a lot of snowflake everything over my many years of crafting, but this one is truly special. The 3D technology allows for so much delicate details. It looks like lace.

Then I was really eager to try out the Santa's Letter dies. They make a little pocket with the arms hugging over it. I was totally smitten with it when I saw this season's Sizzix release. I wanted to make the Santa a little more interesting so I swapped out the cardstock for specialty paper (Red Berries from Tonic). It should be noted that you are supposed to fold the piece in two to create the pocket, so if you are not using something that is the same on both sides, be warned that you are going to run into an issue. (That was the case here, since the little berries are only raised on one side.) I initially planned to cut the pocket off and glue it back in place, but as I started working on putting together the Santa, inspiration led me in another direction. By the way, all you have to go on to assemble the dies is the front picture so I had to figure out what where the eyes versus the cheeks versus the noses and which way to glue the face and stuff. I guess the first one is always the hardest. After, you just know and you get faster at assembling.

I was layering my pieces before gluing them and the arms moved. I realized it looked really cute with one arm coming up from the bottom and having the mitten cover Santa's mouth. For some reason, I was not liking the way to actual die-cut mitten looked, though. It bugged me enough that I decided to pull out an oval punch and make a difference piece myself.

I used a Stitched Scalloped Rectangle Frames die to frame my scene and I decided to use pink cardstock for my card base. Because I've recently acquired some gorgeous new Studio Katia pearls, I pulled out some Stormcloud and Rose Pink ones and added falling snow to the background. I added a few pale pink sequins in there as well for good measure.

I wound up with a couple of extra arms pieces, because I didn't do both arms on the Santa and also because I realized there were two dies for the arms and you had to die-cut the second one with the other die to get it in the other direction, so I had to rectify and cut an additional piece. I didn't really know how to embellish the inside of the card and envelope so I used those extra arms and that little mitten piece that wasn't working for the main Santa.

This turned out cute. I'm looking forward to assembling the second character, which is a cute little bear, and do an actual pocket the next time to test it out properly. Keep checking out the blog for more to come!

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Pretty in Pink, Soft Suede, Shimmery White, Petal Pink, Black Foil Paper (Stampin' Up!);
Fog (Lawn Fawn); Red Berries Specialty Paper (Tonic)
Dies: Santa's Letter (Sizzix); Stitched Scalloped Rectangle Frames (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Jeweled Snowflakes 3D Embossing Folder (Sizzix);
A2 Metallic Rose Quartz Envelope (envelopes.com); Pale Pink Sequins (Simon Says Stamp);
Stormcloud and Rose Pink Pearls (Studio Katia); Glitter Pen (Gelly Roll);
Foam Adhesive Strips (Stampin' Up!)

 

Bell and Snowflakes

Inspiration: Card Maps November 2017

This is my latest installment of the 'Tis the Season and Wintergreen serie. I asssembled a few paper scraps as per the sketch and I stamped the top using a bough image from the Merry Mistletoe set. I then die-cut two snowflakes from the Myths & Magic glimmer paper - the large one using Snow Crystals and the small one using my Marisa Snowflake die. I layered a punched circle and a bell image over the large snowflake. I was looking for a sentiment option and I remembered I recently acquired acrylic embellishments with French sentiments, one pack in mint and one pack in pink. I decided to go with the pink to match the colours on the bell. Sentiment reads, "Specially for You". I finished embellishing with sequins and pearls.

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sous le gui (Merry Mistletoe - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Certainly Celery, Myths & Magic Glimmer Paper (Stampin' Up!)
Designer Series Paper: Wintergreen (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Always Artichoke (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables (Lawn Fawn);
Décos Mots doux Rose thé (Florilèges Design); Marisa Snowflake Die (Simon Says Stamp);
Seafoam Pearls (Studio Katia); Opal Whisper Sequin Mix (LIttle Things from Lucy's Cards);
A2 Aquamarine Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com)

 

Christmas in Every Heart

Inspiration: CAS(E) This Sketch #395

Once the inspiration train left the station, there was no stopping it and I ended up making three cards with the Wintergreen DSP pack in a day! The last idea came when I realized that the paper dolls I tinted with Distress Glaze a week ago would actually fit with the patterned paper pack. I had two that had only Speckled Egg glaze, so I pulled those out and picked the girl with the black coat, as it was standing out better against the soft colours I was using on the rest of the card. I reused the beautiful pearlized embossed specialty paper I had found in my paper scraps and I pulled out the Swirly Scribbles dies for the main element as it reminded me of the sketch. For the sentiment, I embossed "Christmas in every heart" in Pool Party embossing powder on Pearlescent Vellum, punched it with a 2" circle punch and added the vellum inside the die-cut. I then decorated the wreath with pearls, sequins and a bow. 

The bow is a happy coincidence. I saw a tutorial video in my feed the day before and the lady was showing how to make paper bows. She was doing hers bigger, to decorate a gift bag, but she mentioned that we can make them in any size we want as long as we start with a paper square of any size. That got me curious and I decided to make a small one out of curiosity. Because the Wintergreen DSP pack has been sitting on my desk for a week now, I had the paper scraps right there and picked one up to test the technique. When I came back to creating with the paper pack, I tried fitting the bow on my cards and it wasn't quite working out - until I got to this card and the bow was the perfect touch.

For the envelope, I picked an Aquamarine Metallic envelope and embellished it with my second paper doll, adding other paper scraps to create a design for her. I like how this one turned out. It's a fairly simple design, but the mix of elegant embellishments and sheen makes the result very classy.

I keep looking at the very small Wintergreen scrap pile and wondering if there's yet one more card design in there. Probably one last card. And maybe a few tags... And then, I'm definitely letting this paper pack rest in peace.

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Sourire de fin d'année (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Always Artichoke, Sage Shadow, Certainly Celery (Stampin' Up!);
Pearlescent Vellum (Lawn Fawn); White Embossed Specialty Paper (Unknown)
Designer Series Paper: Wintergreen (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Pool Party Stampin' Emboss Powder, Swirly Scribbles Dies, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Circle Punch, VersaMarker (Stampin' Up!); A2 Aquamarine Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com);
Border Dies (Photoplay); Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Paper Dolls (Tim Holtz for idea-ology); Speckle Egg Distress Embossing Glaze (Ranger);
Opal Whisper Sequin Mix (Little Things from Lucy's Cards); Seafoam Pearls (Studio Katia)

 

Christmas Candy Cane and Ticket

Inspiration: Try Stampin' on Tuesday #480

Alright, one more... Here's another card born of me using the 'Tis the Season ephemera pack and Wintergreen DSP pack down to the last bit. I don't think you could guess that those cards are made with leftover. I'm also still amazed at how well the Wintergreen collection as aged. Those green and sage hues are still lookin' good! On this card, I incorporated an additional paper scrap I found while I was working on something else. (I'm decorating the place for Halloween and I was going through my neutral scraps to make bat die-cuts to glue on the wall. That's when I found this pearly white embossed paper, that I put aside to work into a Christmas card design.) 

I loved the Try Stampin' on Tuesday sketch as the right panel is perfect to use small scraps! I had a lot of those, so I pulled out all of the small strips I had, glued them down on a scrap of white cardstock and then die-cut the strip with the Outside In Stitched Rectangle dies. I use the same die on a strip of the white embossed specialty paper, and I combined the two together on a piece of slightly larger Certainly Celery cardstock, making sure to include my Sahe Shadow in between first. I'm always looking for border dies and punches, as I tend to use those a lot to add interest between portions of a design, so I was happy to get the Border Dies recently released from Photoplay. The wonky scallops is my favorite, so I used it first.

The rest of the card is really a mix of layered die-cut images, a touch of Stickles, a couple of colored pearls and a bit of ribbon. I also layered die-cuts on the envelope and added one more inside the card for good measure. I think I can squeeze one more card design out of the remaining papers and die-cuts, so I'm going to give it a try, and then I'll be happy to move on to other projects. 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Accrochés avec soin (Hung With Care - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Sage Shadow, Certainly Celery, Always Artichoke (Stampin' Up!); White Embossed Paper (Unknown)
Designer Series Paper: Wintergreen (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaMark
Dies: Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables (Lawn Fawn); Border Dies (Photoplay)
Accessories: 'Tis the Season Ephemera Pack (Cocoa Vanilla); Seafoam Pearls (Studio Katia);
A2 Aquamarine Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com); Stickles (Ranger); 
White Stampin' Emboss Powder, White Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
White Star Snap (Chatterbox)

 

Winter Wonderland Waterfall

I make sure to make cards for my nieces every year for Christmas. Megan had spotted one she really loved in the pile of cards I made for the seniors' centre and when I got everything ready to send out to the center, she asked again if I had used the card she really loved. It turns out I hadn't. It was a little child-liked so I decided to put it aside and keep for my own use, so after she talked about it for a second time, I knew it would be hers. I still had to make a second card for my younger niece, though. I knew I was going to use papers from Doodlebug Design as those are always popular with the girls, and I also wanted to make an interactive card as these always delight the girls. I started looking through through my collection of interactive card dies, and when I spotted the Flippin' awesome set, I realized there was one of the patterned paper with a grid of little squares that would most probably work for this specific interactive design. I was right, the squares were the exact same size as the square die, so that made for a very quick layout (as opposed as when you stamp and prepare four different little scenes). I also lucked out and found a taller cut-apart image on another sheet that was the perfect size for the longer panel that comes out at the bottom. I had the adorable little enamel hearts from the Winter Wonderland collection, so I added a couple to the first panel image and one to the pull tab.

I have this small gripe about the way the mechanism is designed - if you mount it on the card and center it on the Flippin' Awesome Add-On rectangle, the pull tab hangs off the edge of the card ever so slightly. Not a big deal... except when you try to slide it into the envelope! So I made my own oversized envelope and instead of gluing it together, I used one of my new snaps instead. Something fun and different and I think she will get a kick out of it. I decorated the front with the stitched rectangle I had used for the last panel but hadn't used, I stamped her name and added a few glittered cardstock stickers, and matching washi tape. By the way, the textured cardstock is actually the Doodlebug cardstock pack that goes with the Winter Wonderland collection. I love that companies are offering matching cardstock. I have an extensive collection and yet I still struggle sometimes to find a match that I am happy with, particularly in pinks (I find the Stampin' Up! line deficient in the pink range). 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Brushwork Alphabet (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock, Patterned Papers, Cardstock Stickers, Washi Tape, Min Heart Sprinkles: Winter Wonderland (Doodlebug Design)
Cardstock: Highland Heather, Soft Seafoam (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Misty Moonlight (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables, Flippin' Awesome, Flippin' Awesome Add-On (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Sparkly Gel Pen (Gelly Roll); Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Plastic Snaps (Unknown)

 

Christmas Poinsettias

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #548

I'm still going with the Wintergreen paper pack and the 'Tis the Season Ephemera pack, and I drew inspiration from the latest Mojo Monday sketch for the design of this one. I recently ordered some rose gold jingle bells online and they were a little bigger than I expected. Should have read the description more carefully, but that's on me. I do like the finish, though - some are a metallic finish and other (like the one I used) have a matte finish. I added a jump ring to the top of the bell before tying it on the bow so that it would hang better on the card. I embellished with sequins and pearls and added the remaining flower on the matching envelope. I'm now down to scraps, but I still have enough paper and die-cuts for one more card before I'm done with it.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Y'a d'la joie (Cheerful Christmas - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Certainly Celery (Stampin' Up!)
Designer Series Paper: Wintergreen (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Always Artichoke (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Clear Stampin' Emboss Powder, Stampin' DImensionals, 
Garden Green/White Baker's Twine (Stampin' Up!); A2 Aquamarine Metallic Envelope (envelopes.com);
Rose Gold Jingles (Fun Stampers Journey); Rose Pink and Seafoam Pearls (Studio Katia);
Opal Whisper Sequins (Little Things from Lucy's Cards); Outside In Stitched Rectangles Dies (Lawn Fawn);
'Tis the Season Ephemera Pack (Cocoa Vanilla)

 

Christmas Pudding Layered Tag

The starting point of my latest card was a piece of Irresistibly Yours papers from Stampin' Up! (from a past SAB offering) that are all white with clear-embossed patterns. I pulled those out with another project in mind, but when I saw the diagonal stripes I thought it'd work great with red ink for Christmas projects. Those papers have gotten a new wind with the purchase of the Distress Oxide inks, which have renewed my love of inking. I didn't know what I'd use the papers on initially, but I knew that picking a cherry red color would be a safe bet, so I pulled out Barn Door and inked the whole piece without cutting it to size. That gave me enough for a card background and once the card was done, I decided to make a tag. I used the same paper collection as on the card, namely the new Christmas Magic line from Doodlebug Design, but I avoided the pinks and yellows and stuck to red and green when picking papers. I started with the striped tag, pulled out the Santa's Sweets stamp set and picked the fruitcake as my main image. I colored it with Polychromos pencils, popped it on dimensionals and I decided to make the bottom part of the tag a pocket, using thin 1/8" adhesive strip to keel the paper in place. I then used my trusty Dotted Scalloped Rectangle dies from Elizabeth Designs to make an insert. I went looking at my sentiment list to find a "to: from:" stamp. Most of them are on the same stamp ad placed much too close together (I should probably snip the photopolymer ones apart, too) but I did find one in one of my set that was already two separate words. This allowed me to space them better, and the cutesy font works well with the Doodlebug look.

I then decided that before threading my silver tinsel, I could die-cut a tag in the next size up and layer the two together for added interest. I simply used the leftover die-cut border piece at the bottom of the second tag and added a piece of white sequin trim at the seam. I love how that one turned out.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Santa's Sweets (Doodlebug Design); Coffret d'étiquettes (Tin of Tags - Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Christmas Magic (Doodlebug Design); Irresistibly Yours Specialty DSP (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Call Me Clover Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!); Barn Door Distress Oxide (Ranger)
Accessories: Blender Brushes (Picket Fence Studios); White Sequin Trim (Michaels); Lacy Borders Dies (Lawn Fawn);
Dotted Scalloped Rectangles Dies (Elizabeth Craft Designs); Polychromos Pencils (Faber-Castell);
Nested Tags Dies (scrapbook.com); Silver Tinsel Trim, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!);
Santa's Sweets Dies (Doodlebug Design)

 

Holiday Frame with Poinsettias

Inspiration: ColourQ #116 + Retro Rubber Challenge #121 (Die-cut/punch + Embossing Folder + Floral)

This card ia a little different from my usual cutesy style, but I like how it turned out. The starting point was a Facebook Live from Tim Holtz in which he talked about cardstock. In it, she shared a trick on how to sand the surface of kraftstock by leaving it in the embossing folder so that the raised surface is easier to hit. I thought it was a clever trick and I was curious to try it myself, so I pulled out the Core'dinations cardstock I still have from when Stampin' Up! used to carry it in its official colours and the Holiday Frame embossing folder, which I hadn't used in a long time. I had a couple of colour options, but I decided to give Cherry Cobbler a try. Then I looked at my ColourQ combo sheet for reference and tried to find a Holiday combo with Cherry Cobbler. Because I was working with older supplies, I figured I'd have a look at the Retro Rubber challenge and I was pleased to spot embossing folder on the tic tac toe grid. I was already planning to add a die-cut oval in the center of the embossed frame with a sentiment, so the last item then became Floral, which inspired me to pull out some old paper flowers from Prima that I've had for years, because some of them are poinsettias. The vanilla color popped very nicely against the cherry cardstock. I wanted to make leaves for the flowers, so I pulled out an older punch that has a few shapes together, including two sizes of holly leaves. I also added gold faceted gems in the flower centers.

For the center, I stamped my sentiment in VersaMark and embossed it with Emerald Envy glitter embossing powder. I die-cut it with a stitched oval from the Stitched Frames die set and matted it with a scalloped oval from the Layering Ovals die set. I went to Michaels this week and they had some great Holidays washi, but I was particularly happy to find some narrow ones, which I often find easier to include in my projects. I got the red foil set and the gold foil set, which I used here to add at an angle in opposing corners. Finally, I added red and vintage pearls here and there to fill in the space.

Because of the dimension of the flowers, I decided to make an oversize envelope for the card in matching cardstock, and embellished it with gold washi tape and another paper accent from the same set. I've been buying a few paper pads from Michaels as each sheet comes to 25 cents (CAD) so that I have a variety of colours on hand to make matching envelopes for oversized cards. It says paper pad, but it's really a cardstock that falls somewhere in between the thickness of Bazill and regular casrdstock meant for cardmaking, so it's perfect for envelopes as it can be bent without cracking. Aside from the reds, I was not really liking the monochromatic pads as I felt the colours were a bit harsh, but I've found assorted pads, which I feel have a better colour selection. I've picked up the Jewels tones, the Playground set and I added Pumpkin Spice this week. Now that patterned paper is over a dollar for a sheet, this cardstock is a less expensive option at a quarter of the price and even below the cost of a regular A2 envelope. The green I used here comes from the Jewel Tones paper pad.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Parfum de Noël (Christmas Messages - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Cherry Cobbler Core'dinations, Lucky LImeade, Emerald Envy
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Holly and Bow Punch, Gold Faceted Gems, Holiday Frame Embossing Folder, Envelope Punch Board,
Sanding Tool, Layering Ovals Dies, Stitched Shapes Dies, Emerald Envy Glitter Embossing Powder (Stampin' Up!);
White Flowers (Prima Design); Glossy Berry and Vintage Shimmer Pearls (Studio Katia); Gold Washi Tape (Recollections);
Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn)

 

Oddball Nutcracker

Inspiration: Mojo Monday #550 + The Paper Players #520

Now that I am done with the cards I was gifting away, I am back to replenishing my own pile of Christmas cards to send to friends and family this year. One of the images I had stamped hoping to color soon is the adorable Oddball Nutcracker from Stamping Bella. I love the whole Oddball family, but this image is particularly adorable. I was really digging the blue coat from the packaging example, so I had that in the back of my mind when I looked through my 6" x 6" patterned paper pads trying to pick something. I landed on Echo Park's Deck the Halls (from 2016). I didn't really realize that the dates are added to the paper strips or paper pads until a crafter pointed that detail out in a video. I've been having fun paying attention to that detail now as it sometimes feel like I just bought a paper pad the year prior and then I realize it's been in my stash for way longer than that. It's giving me a better sense of chronology.

I based my design on the Mojo Monday sketch. I missed the deadline to submit, but Julee's sketches are my favorites and I keep a list of all of her sketches on my computer, and play catchup with older sketches when I have time as they are a great inspiration and guaranteed to turn up a great layout. I liked the idea of playing with the stars and as you can see, I added glittery stars on my mint circle as well, using the Hocus Pocus stencil from Tim Holtz and Golden Crystal glitter paste from Nuvo. I only have a bit of paste left in the jar and despite using Press 'N Seal on it, the paste is getting really crumbly and does not have the same smooth consistency it once had. I wasn't sure it would stay in place, but after moving it around the stencil for a little bit, I finally managed to get a respectable result. I need to restock on gold, though, as I might be able to get one more use of what is left in the jar and then I'll have to call it quits.

The red banner was a leftover piece from a previous project and it was the perfect layering piece on this layout, so I decided to use it to add my sentiment. I have a pile of Stampin' Up! holiday stamp sets that I've put together in my library and that I keep going through every time I make a card to find a sentiment that's the right size and format. The one I picked here reads, "May this Holiday season be full of joy." I embossed it in gold powder to fit with the other gold accents.

Speaking of which, most of my image was colored using Copic markers, but I did want a true gold on my hat and buttons, so I pulled out my Gansai Tambi Starry Colors watercolors. By the way, I was initially hesitant to get this one because I was thinking, How many shades of watercolor gold do I really need? The answer is, all of them. Okay, maybe not a true need, I'll admit, but I will say, I've really enjoyed being able to pick a shade of gold that really complements the project I am working on and to my surprise, I really have been using all of them.I thought I would always revert to Light Gold and Champagne Gold, which is what I usually gravitate towards, but I have actually used Blue Gold, Red Gold and Yellow Gold (used on this project) as well. The sixth shade is White gold, which I consider more of an opalescent shade that I use in a different capacity, more to add sheen to colors and images than as an actual gold shade. So all in all, this turned out to be a valuable purchase and it's going to last me a long time as the pans still look brand-new, even though I've got the projects to prove that they have been used!

To finish off the card, I went through my buttons and picked two to decorate the stars with, as they were a little too blah without nothing on them. I then pulled out a Nautical Blue linen envelope, which I decorated with matching paper and washi tape.

Let's hope I get good creative mojo this weekend and crank a few cards out. I felt a little wiped out creatively after finishing the batch of 50 and had to take a break as I couldn't come up with anything good anymore. I'm happy with how this one turns out so this gives me hope to get something going this weekend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Oddball Nutcracker (Stamping Bella); Ce que j'aime à Noël (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Mint Macaron, Gold Glimmer Paper, Red Foil Sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Deck the Halls (Echo Park)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); VersaMark; Mint Macaron (Stampin' Up!)
Dies: Wonky Stitched Rectangles Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Circle Double Stitched (Art Impressions)
Accessories: Hocus Pocus Stencil (Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous);
Golden Crystal Glitter Paste (Nuvo); Starry Colors Gansai Tambi Watercolors (Kuretake);
A2 Nautical Blue Linen Envelope (envelopes.com); Markers (Copic); Aqua Painter Brush,
Large and Small Star Punches, Stampin' Dimensionals, Designer Buttons, Washi Tape,
Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!); Red Button (Foof-a-La); Washi Tape (Recollections)

 

Carpool Karaoke

Inspiration: Lawn Fawnatics #89 (Happy Holiday Critters)

Now that I am back to making Christmas cards for my own use, I was happy to get back to my Lawn Fawn stamps, as I still have some sets from their latest release that have yet to see ink. In my holiday papers, I have leftover scraps from the beautiful Fa La La collection from Crate Paper (dating back to 2017) that I was itching to use. I paired them with the Car Critters and Car Critters Christmas Add-On sets. I couldn't find a current sketch challenge that was really working, so I went back to my Mojo Monday sketch archive to find something that worked and went all the way back to sketch #2! In the end, it ended up pretty layered as I decided to add the gold Snowflake border and a dangle I had on my desk that was in the right colours.

For the main scene, I started with a piece of white cardstock blended with Spun Sugar and Work Lipstick Distress Oxide ink. I speckled my background with Liquid Stardust. I die-cut the piece with a Stitched Shapes dies circle. I prepared a snow layer with the same stitched circle die and the Slimline Stitched Hilside Borders. Then I cut the Road Border and used the stitched circle on it again. I layered all three pieces to create my background. I colored and die-cut all of my images, then I added snow to the trees using a VersaMarker and the Textured White embossing powder from Lawn Fawn. I added one tree haing over the sde of my background and the other one at the bottom, over the sentiment frame. The car image was added with dimensional adhesive and I stamped little music notes around the car because everyone need music on a long road trip. I have gold enamel dots from Stampin' Up! that come in four different sizes in the package, so I was able to add the car lights in both sizes for additional shimmer.

I learned my lesson the hard way when I tried to slide a bulky card into a regular A2-size envelope recently and because of the big jingle bell on it, it just wasn't fitting. With the bulky dangle, I went straight to an oversize envelope using the Envelope Punch Board and the one paper scrap I had that was large enough to make an envelope out of.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Car Critters, Car Critters Christmas Add-On (Lawn Fawn);
Accrochés avec soin (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Tranquil Tide, Whisper White, Basic Grey, Gold Foil Sheets,
Myths & Magic Glimmer Paper (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Fa La La (Crate Paper)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Just Jade Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!);
Spun Sugar, Worn Lipstick Distress Oxide Ink (Ranger)
Accessories: Envelope Punch Board, White Cotton Twine, Stitched Shapes Dies,
Stitched So Sweetly Dies, Ornate Frames Dies, Layering Circles Dies,
Gold Glitter Enamel Dots, Curvy Corner Trio Punch (Stampin' Up!);
Road Border Dies, Slimeline Stitched Hillside Borders Dies, Snowflake Border Dies,
Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables Dies, Car Critters Dies,
Car Critters Christmas Add-On Dies, Textured White Embossing Powder (Lawn Fawn);
Dotted Scallop Rectangles Dies (Elizabeth Craft Designs); Markers (Copic);
Beads and Clasps (Bead Landing); Aquas Hero Hues Enamel Dots (Hero Arts)

 

Cuddling Under the Mistletoe

Inspiration: Global Design Project #269 + Freshly Made Sketch #464

I love everything cutesy, so the owl set from the August-December Mini-catalogue really appealed to me. I got the idea to add the Birch background stamp in Smoky Slate ink on a grey card base since the owls are on a branch, and to combine them with the classic colour combo from this week's Global Design Project challenge. I used my Buffalo Check background stamp on the Just Jade cardstock and die-cut it with the Stitched Shapes dies. It felt a little bare, so I added a scalloped square die-cut out of Garden Green cardstock underneath and it added just the right touch. I was hesitating between two ribbons, so I added the white polka dot tulle on the first card and the Mint Macaron basket weave ribbon on the second card. 

I stamped the owls in Tuxedo Black ink on white cardstock, colored them with the Stampin' Blends markers and die-cut the image using the matching dies. I then die-cut Real Red cardstock using the tags die from the same set, stamped the owls again in red ink so that I would have the background image, and I popped the colored images over it using Stampin' Dimensionals.

I stamped a sentiment from the set on a strip of white cardstock in green ink, cut the edge at an angle and I added a heart charm from the Playful Pets trinkets. Don't forget the little hearts can go on any project, even though they come from a pet-themed collection. I tied a piece of white twine on the trinket for added texture.

This is much simpler than my usual creations, but I love the result. There's an elegant simplicity to it. The Birch and Buffalo Check are is also two of my favorite backgrounds we've had in recent years. They are classic and very versatile.

 

 

 

 

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies
Stamps: Chouettes pensées, Birch, Buffalo Check 
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Real Red, Just Jade, Garden Green
Inks: Real Red, Garden Green, Smoky Slate
Accessories: Stitched Shapes Dies, Peek-A-Hoot Dies, Playful Pets Trinkets,
White Baker's Twine, White Polka Dot Tulle Ribbon, White Medium Envelope,
Basket Weave and Metallic Ribbon Combo Pack, Stampin' Dimensionals,
Layering Square Dies, Stampin' Blends Markers

 

Fa. La. La.

Inspiration: Fusion challenge

The starting point of this card were the Oddball reindeers, which had been set aside to stamp and colour. I looked through patterned papers to see which colour scheme I would be using. I had in mind I wanted some more traditional papers to go with the reindeers and I landed on Mad 4 Plaid from Photoplay (2017 release). It so happened that one of the patterned paper has banners on it, which was reminiscent of the Fusion challenge. Initially, I had planned to make three penants and add either Ho Ho Ho or Fa La La on it, but I decided to use the patterned paper instead and add my sentiment elsewhere on the card.

I colored the reindeers with my Polychromos pencils and used the matching dies to cut them out. (Stamping Bella decided to discontinue their dies offering. This is too bad, as I found I was having more ease turning my Bella images into cards when they were die-cut. I did handcut my little nutcracker on the last card I made but it was not as precise as having the dies.) 

I went back to my idea of adding "Fa. La. La." as a sentiment. I really wanted to add the punctuation as well, as I felt it added a bit of irony to it that works well with the Oddballs' expression. I recently acquired the Tall Skinny Alphabet dies from Scrapbook.com. I was really excited about this die set as French words tend to be long and having a skinny alphabet makes it easier to fit something in on a card or page. The website was also offering a sale where the set was I believe 40% off, so considering you get the uppercase and lowercase alphabet, the price was quite competitive compared to other comparable die sets. I love how it turned out on the card. I used gold foil sheets and added gold faceted gems from Stampin' Up! for the dots.

I added a white border die-cut with the Lacy Borders dies from Lawn Fawn and used two pieces of cotton twine in Cherry Cobbler and Always Artichoke to tie a knot I added to the center of the banners, topped with another gold faceted gems as well.

I didn't know what size of card I would need to fit in the design I had in mind, so I worked backwards and prepared all of the pieces before figuring out the finished card size. It ended up being a 5½" square card. My Mad 4 Plaid paper came from a 6" x 6" paper pad, so to make a matching envelope, I looked at my 12" x 12" paper trying to find a plaid pattern that would work with my card. I found one in the Festive Farm Designer Series Paper pack.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Oddball Reindeer Set (Stamping Bella)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Whisper White, Gold Foil Sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Mad 4 Plaid (Photoplay); Festive Farm Designer Series Paper (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Dies: Tall Skinny Alphabet (Scrapbook.com); Wonky Stitched Rectangle Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Lacy Borders (Lawn Fawn); Oddball Reindeer Set (Stamping Bella)
Accessories: Polychromos Pencils (Fäber-Castell); Festive Farm Cotton Twine,
Mini Stampin' Dimensionals, Gold Faceted Gems, Envelope Punch Board (Stampin' Up!)

 

Christmas Tag

It's official: the 50 Christmas cards are finished and have been sent to my mom so they can be distributed at the seniors' centre at their Christmas party. Since I was sending a package home, I decided to include something for my parents as well, as it is unlikely we will spend the holidays together this year. I had done an adorable winter-themed mini-album this past Spring when we were in full lockdown, which I have yet to post as I need to edit the pictures first. I knew my parents would love it if it was filled with pictures of their kids and grandkids, so last weekend, I dug through my pictures to find ones that I could crop small enough to include in the album and finished it off. Then, I wrapped it with beautiful gold-foiled birch paper I found at Indigo a couple of years ago and then I decided it needed a tag to make sure my mom knew this was for her and dad and not for the seniors' centre. I looked at my paper collections and decided Christmas from Carta Bella would look nice with the Birch paper.  

 

 

 

Supplies
Patterned Papers: Christmas (Carta Bella)
Dies: Border Dies (Photoplay); Nested Tags (Scrapbook.com)
Accessories: Christmas Milk Caps (Tim Holtz for idea-ology);
Mini Jingle Bells, Gold Eyelet, Wonderful Gems, Silver Thread,
Cherry Cobbler Scalloped Tulle, Cherry Cobbler Curly Ribbon (Stampin' Up!);
Gold Pen (Pica); White Roughly Sewn Rub-Ons (49 & Market);
Natural Trim (Recollections); Gold-Foil Birch Wrapping Paper (Indigo)

 

Getting Ready for December 25th

Inspiration: Card Maps January 2018 Sketch + The Paper Players #518 (Patterned Paper + Die-Cuts + Dry Embossing)

One of the older paper collection I pulled out again is Classic Christmas from Simple Stories. This one is SO gorgeous, I'm surprised I haven't used it more in the past. I found I had the Bits and Pieces that got with it, and that they are gold-foiled, just like the papers are. I started going through the die-cuts and it wasn't long before an idea was forming. This card came together really quickly and most of the embellishing was done with leftover pieces from previous projects left on my desk. I also pulled out the Deckle Trimmer again, both for my gold borders and for the outside edge. I LOVE the look it gives to the card. That tiny uneven brown border totally tied the design together and made such a huge difference in the final look. (By the way, I mentioned in my last post I was concerned that part of the blade is catching and is tearing the cardstock instead of cutting it. I investigated online and went to check out a couple of review videos and it wasn't long before I found somebody else who had the same comment about hers, so at least it confirms that I didn't get a bad trimmer and that exchanging it wouldn't solve the problem. I wonder if Tonic will do something about it.)

Considering how simple the design of this card is - just artistically layering die-cuts, really - I'm really pleased with how it turned out. I think it's my favorite card I've done all week. I gotta say, Simple Stories rarely disappoint. I have been using a lot of their current and past collections in the past couple of months and it's all turning out really pretty. I love the variety they have as well. Since they added the Simple Vintage series, they do cover a nice range of looks and I find that I love my older collections as much as I love the latest ones. They are getting two very high thumbs up from me.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Thick Very Vanilla, Early Espresso, Gold Foil Sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Bits & Pieces: Classic Christmas (Simple Stories)
Accessories: Deckle Trimmer (Tim Holtz for Tonic); 
Very Vanilla Medium Envelopes, Stampin' Dimensionals, Mini Stapler (Stampin' UP!);
Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn); 
Star Trim Impresslits (Tim Holtz for Sizzix)

 

Santa and His Sleigh

Inspiration: January 2018 Card Maps Sketch + TGIF #292 (Christmas)

This is yet another card that was inspired by cute Simple Stories items. I picked the Santa chipboard sticker, layered him over a die-cut doily along with a sleigh sticker and I used another sticker for the sentiment block. Two different patterned papers were used to create banners in the back, and I stapled a piece of curly ribbon I had leftover on my desk, topped with a matching button. A second button was placed on Santa's bag, and I added Wonderful Gems on his coat and the top button. I added Stickles to the top of the sleigh for snow and highlights on Santa's fur and beard. I discovered I was out of neutral Stickles last time I tried to use it, so when I stopped by the scrapbook store, I made sure to pick up a new bottle. There were a few available options in neutral glitter and I ended up picking Frosted Lace. I'm really happy with how it looks. The glitter in it is white, so no orange, green or purple undertones, which I like, and it works especially well here on something that has muted colours and more of a vintage feel to it.

Another Santa sticker was added to a Very Vanilla envelope to finish off the set. 

 

 

Supplies
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Handsome Hunter (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers, Chipboard Stickers: Merry & Bright (Simple Stories)
Dies: Decorative Doily Duo Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Outside In Stitched Rectangle Stackables Dies (Lawn Fawn)
Accessories: Wonderful Gems, Stampin' Dimensionals, Cherry Cobbler Curly Ribbon,
Mini Stapler, Very Vanilla Medium Envelope (Stampin' Up!); Buttons (Foof-A-La);
Frosted Lace Stickles (Ranger)

 

Snowflake Rosette

Inspiration: January 2018 Card Maps Sketch + Just Add Ink #533 (Just Add S - Santa)

This is an unexpected card as the result is quite different from what I was picturing in my head - and it turned out way better! I was liking the sketch I started with as I figured I could use the beautiful Layered Snowflakes dies from PinkFresh I acquired this fall. I found some leftover papers from an old Cosmo Cricket collection called Be Good, which dates back to 2007. I loved Cosmo Cricket - they had those gorgeous vintage/retro designs that I wasn't intimidated to use. I think the beauty of their lines come through on this card. I let myself be inspired by the papers, prepared my layered snowflake, making sure to include glitter paper in there, and then I die-cut a burgundy doily, stamped my sentiment in burgundy on a die-cut banner, added a stitched ric rac border and while the card was pretty, it felt very blah. So I added a bit of lace on the other border, matted my doily with a stitched circle and while that was already better, it still felt empty. I decided I had enough space on the card to turn the circle into a rosette, so I punched the edge of a strip of brown patterned paper and added a rosette underneath, which instantly added dimension and visual weight to the main element. I wanted to add bling to the center of my snowflake, so I went digging through my Christmas-themed embellishments and I found a couple fo other things I decided I wanted to use as well: wooden snowflakes and a roll of Christmas tickets which were in the perfect shades to match my papers. I then sprinkled a few beads, drops and sequins and I was pleased with the resulting card.

Because rosettes are bulky, I always prefer to make an oversized envelope to accommodate the height, and luckily, I had a few papers that were big enough to make an envelope out of. I repeated the stitched ric rac, ticket and wood snowflake on the envelope as well (and inside the card). This was fun, I enjoyed revisiting this old paper collection. 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Six souhaits (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Merry Merlot, Champagne Glimmer Paper (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers: Be Good (Cosmo Cricket)
Ink: Merry Merlot (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Layered Snowflakes Dies (PinkFresh); Snowflake Wood Veneers (Studio Calico);
Colored Wood Snowflakes (Omer DeSerres); Circle Double Stitched Dies (Art Impressions;
Sequins, Stampin' Dimensionals, Envelope Punch Board, Stampin' Score Tool (Stampin' Up!);
Vintage Shimmer Pearls (Studio Katia); Getaway Dew Drops (The Robin's Nest);
Stitched Ric Rac, Wonky Stitched Rectangles and Decorative Doily Duo Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
Everyday Sentiment Banners Dies (Lawn Fawn); Merry Little Christmas Ticket Roll (Fancy Pants Designs)

 

Vintage Santa

Inspiration: Color Throwndown #621 

It was love at first sight when I caught a glimpse of the new Simple Vintage North Pole collection from Simple Stories. I love everything about it - the retro images, the colours, the fonts... I ended up buying a big chunk of the whole collection - and unfortunately left it all aside until today. I used one of the ephemera images from the Bits and Pieces pack. There are actually two bits Bits and Pieces pack, one called Santa and a regular one - this is from the latter. Because the image is already layered, I really did not need to add a whole lot for the card to feel complete. I did use a ticket sticker, pieces of washi from the collection and a white paper doily. I added a snowflake die cut out of silver glitter paper and I added one of the decorative brads in the center. At the top, I tied a bow made out of Pear Pizzazz seam binding and I tied a red button in the center with white twine. I used the little star from the collection's stamp set to add red stars on the striped paper. I included a border cut out of red foil paper using the Star Trim Embosslits. I added glitter accents and Crystal Drops. And then I decorated a white enveloppe with a border sticker from the paper pack.

Very simple process, but the resulting card just makes me smile.  

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps, Patterned Papers, Stickers, Decorative Brads, Bits & Pieces,
Washi Tape: Simple Vintage North Pole (Simple Stories)
Cardstock: Thick Whisper White, Silver Glimmer Paper, Red Foil Sheets (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Real Red (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Wonky Stitched Rectangle Die-namics (My Favorite Things);
White Baker's Twine, Pear Pizzazz Seam Binding, Stampin' Dimensionals, White Medium Envelope (Stampin' Up!);
Star Trim Impresslits (Tim Holtz for Sizzix); Silver Jubilee Glitter Accents,
Calming Aqua Crystal Drops, Pioneer Green Vintage Drops (Nuvo);
White Doily (Dollar Store); Button (Foof-a-La)

 

Scooter Santa

Inspiration: July 2019 Card Maps Sketch + Simon Says Stamp Wednesday (Anything Goes)

I went back to the Jingle All the Way collection from Simple Stories for this card. Inspired by the sketch, I thought I could pick a chipboard piece for the main image and frame my sentiment inside a Wonky Circle Frame die-cut. I initially thought I would do a ribbon bow but I decided to do a layered paper bow instead and I like how it came out. The gold-embossed sentiment felt a little lost in its circle frame, so I added a heart puffy sticker over it ot fill the space. I added washi tape and red curly ribbon for a little bit of texture between the two sections of the card. Simple but very sweet resulting card. Still very happy I went ahead and purchased this new collection.

 

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Y'a d'la joie (Cheerful Christmas - Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Mint Macaron (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Papers, Chipboard, Puffy Stickers and Cardstock Stickers: Jingle All the Way (Simple Stories)
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: Stampin' Dimensionals, Curly Ribbon, Vanilla Medium Envelope,
Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!); Washi Tape (Unknown);
Outside In Stitched Rectangles Dies, Put a Bow on It Dies (Lawn Fawn)

 

Wood Frame and Postcard

Inspiration: CAS(E) This Sketch #399

I didn't think I could pull one more card out of my Wintergreen DSP and 'Tis the Season Ephemera packs, but I was wrong! I don't know if this card can really qualify as a Clean and Simple creation, but I do like where I ended up using the sketch and I'm quite happy I could get even more mileage out of my supplies. At this point, I really have to convince myself to call it quits and put the tiny scraps I have left into the bin and be thrilled that I finished a paper pack. I did go ahead and punched all of my scraps with my hexagon punch to create a background, though - not sure if I'll use it, but it's there.

For this card, I really let the remaining pieces be the inspiration. I initially thought I would use the wood die-cut to frame something, but based on the sketch, I realized that I could fill it with the lovely embossed paper I've been pairing with the Wintergreen DSP (even though it does not come from that pack) and lay my sentiment strip over it. I embossed the snetiment in deep green powder to make it stand out (had I planned this better, I should have avoided the side with darker green stripes, though). The top of the frame felt bare, so I decided to add a snowflake and remembered about the Layered Snowflakes dies from PinkFresh I bought this year. This die collection was on the expensive side, but I am quite pleased with how gorgeous the snowflakes are. They are delicate and really unique and they all come with a layering piece, which offers additional options (layering piece is shown used on the matching envelope). You can also layer some of them together for additional options. And I was very pleased to discover that the packaging is already lined with a hidden magnetic sheet, so I didn't have to provide one and they are easy to see against the printed background (instead of having them on the black magnet sheet).

I realized the only piece of patterned paper I had left for the background was not large enough to cut it to 4" x 5-1/4", so I went a size down, using my Dotted Rectangles dies, and I used my deckle trimmer to create a mat for it to fill the space on the card front better (I didn't like having the wide green border). I decorated an Avocado envelope with a matching snowflake and gem to finish the look. One more finished card to add to my pile for the seniors centre. I think I'm now at 46, out of 50 cards total.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Souhaits en rafales (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Certainly Celery, Shimmery White (Stampin' Up!)
Designer Series Paper: Wintergreen (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: VersaMark
Accessories: 'Tis the Season Ephemera Pack (Cocoa Vanilla); A2 Avocado Envelope (envelopes.com);
Stampin' Dimensionals, 2019-2021 In Color Faceted Dots, Jumbo Rhinestone Basic Jewels (Stampin' Up!);
Deckle Trimmer (Tim Holtz for Tonic); Dotted Rectangles Dies (Lawn Fawn); 
Deep Green Embossing Powder (Top Boss)

 

Poinsettia Pocket

Inspiration: The Card Concept #144

The starting point of this card was Tim Holtz's latest Facebook Live where he showed how to make little inked squares that he assembled on a project. I really liked the overall looked and decided to recycle it on a card. Initially, I was planning to use the two glazed paper dolls I have left, but when I placed them on the card, I found they were hiding too much of the background so I switched gears. I had this poinsettia pocket that was done a couple of months ago when I sat and played with the August-December Minicatalogue products. Most of my other embellishments made it onto finished cards, but this pocket had remained on my desk, waiting to be finished into something. The colours were matching the idea-ology Christmas papers really nicely, so I decided to go with that. 

The pocket didn't have anything in it, so I made a tag insert. I used a tag die from Planner Essentials set 21, but I used my cutting plate only on the top portion so that I could make the tag longer. I used the embellishing die to add foil paper at the top, and I threaded some copper-sentiment vanilla ribbon and tied a green ribbon over it. Because the tag was roomy, I jumped at the chance to use a larger sentiment, which I rarely have room to accommodate on my cards. It reads, "May the magic of the season warm your heart." I embossed it in gold on Mossy Meadow cardstock and I used my brand-new deckle trimmer from Tim Holtz to cut both sides. First impression of the trimmer: I love the look of the deckle edge, but there is a certain spot on the blade that tears the paper instead of cutting it. I tested it with printing paper and with cardstock and I get the same issue with both, so I might have to go back to my store and see if we can test another one together as I know this will annoy me to no end. The trimmer I use for all of my crafting is the 12" guillotine trimmer from Tonic and the results are ultra precise, so I would expect the same from the deckle trimmer as well.

Despite my best efforts of using a ruler to center the sentiment on the cardstock before cutting it, the sentiment was still a hair off the right and it was too obvious to leave it like that, so I picked one of the patterned paper scraps on my desk and I stapled it to the left side, to add colour and help make the sentiment appear properly centered.

You can see in the Card Concept image that the plaid cushion has little buttons on it and I liked that detail, so I reproduced it on my card by adding three little green buttons on the background squares. To finish, I pulled out an Avocado envelope and repeated the punched and inked paper squares and metallic border on it to finish the set.

 

 

 

Supplies
Stamps: Noël au chaud (Stampin' Up!)
Cardstock: Smoky Slate, Mossy Meadow (Stampin' Up!)
Patterned Paper: Christmas (2018) (Tim Holtz for idea-ology); Brushed Metallic Cardstock,
Plush Poinsettia, Wonder of the Season Specialty Designer Series Paper (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Black Soot Distress Oxide (Ranger); Mossy Meadow Classic Ink, VersaMark (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Circle Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals, Poinsettia Dies, Beaded Pearls, 1-1/4" Square Punch,
1/2" Classic Weave Ribbon, All the Trimmings Ribbon Combo Pack, Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder (Stampin' Up!); 
A2 Avocado Envelope (envelopes.com); Star Trim Impresslits (Tim Holtz for Sizzix); Buttons (Foof-a-La);
Deckle Trimmer (Tim Holtz for Tonic); Planner Essentials Dies 21 (Elizabeth Craft Designs);
Blending Tool (Ranger)