Humourous Christmas Card

Well, I made this to sneak in under the wire for three challenges, but darn I've missed one of them - the Color Throwdown that was asking for black, grey, cream, and kraft - not what I'd usually pick for a Christmas card being the traditionalist that I am, but I like the way this turned out so am cross I missed the challenge!  But at least I'm in time for the Christmas Kickstart Challenge asking for comical or amusing cards.  I love this sneaky pup stealing the snowman's hat and scarf!  And it's a Penny Black image so it's going to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge (anything goes).

The image is watercoloured with Inktense pencils and bordered with kraft cs.  It's mounted on a cream card base.  I went over the snowflakes and the snow under the images with a glue pen and added some glitter.

Christmas Kickstart Challenge

Penny Black Saturday Challenge - anything goes

Supplies:
Stamps - Penny Black snowman and dog, Rubber Soul sentiment
Ink - Versafine Onyx Black
Paper - watercolour paper, kraft and cream cs
Size - 6.25x3.25" mini slimline
Accessories - Inktense watercolour pencils, glitter

Q is for Quilt

A rainy day is a good time to make a really fiddly time-consuming card!  Fitting in all the little pieces of decorative paper for a quilt design definitely qualifies for fiddly!  But it's perfect for the Christmas Cards All Year Round challenge "Something that Starts with Q or R".  So here's my "Q is for Quilt" card:

I used my Gina Marie quilt die, cutting it three times out of various dp. I then stuck the border down on a sheet of double sided tape, trimmed around the edge, and filled in the pattern with the pieces from two of the other dps. I'll have to make two more to use up all the dp pieces!

Popped it up on fun foam and added a sentiment.

I feel like I'm finally inspired to work on Christmas cards!  So you'll be seeing lots of them in the weeks to come!

Supplies:
Stamps - Rubber Soul sentiment
Ink - Memento Rhubarb Stalk
Paper - cream cs, various dp
Size - 5x5.25"
Accessories - Gina Marie quilt die, fun foam, sheet of double sided tape

Gratitude and Two Horses

I can't believe how quickly September has passed by!  So I'm posting today for two challenges that are going to close soon.

First up, The Day of the Month card challenge is celebrating World Gratitude Day. 

I used blues, greens, and yellows Distress inks for my tissue paper background, following this tutorial on SCS done by my good friend, Loll Thompson.  I ran a piece of white cs through a flowery embossing folder.   I then die cut a stitched oval window out of the panel.  The tissue paper background was set behind the window and a die cut "thanks" mounted on it.


Next up is a card for the ABC Christmas Challenge "T for Two".  I used one of my favourite stamps of two horses wearing Santa hats.

I stamped the horses in black and the sentiment in red, added fun flock to the Santa hats and glitter to the top of the fence, bordered the panel with red, and popped it up on fun foam.

I'm also adding it to September Rudolph Days (anything goes Christmas).

 

Thanks for stopping by!  I might be back tomorrow as I try to get a few more September challenges done!

Supplies for card 1:
Ink - various blue, green, and yellow Distress inks
Paper - tissue paper, white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - embossing folder, "thanks" die, Lil Inker stitched oval die

Supplies for card 2:
Stamps - Impression Obsession horses, unknown sentiment
Ink - white and red cs
Paper - Versafine Clair Nocturne, SU Real Red
Size - A2
Accessories - red marker, fun flock, glitter, fun foam

Hemstitch Border

I've seen people using a hemstitch border with a background colour showing through and really like the look of it so finally broke down and bought the hemstitch dies.  Here's my first card using it:

The design of the card was inspired from some cards I've seen on Pinterest with a bunch of squares of alcohol ink background and heat embossed images.  I used a variety of blue AIs as it's my sister's favourite colour and her birthday is coming up.  I dribbled the AIs on glossy cs, spritzed with blending solution and let the colours run and then dry.

I die cut six squares out of the panel and put each one in my Misti (using a Sizzix Sticky Grid sheet to hold them in place as the little squares were too small to hold down with magnets).  I stamped and heat embossed various bits of wildflower images, half of them in white and half in gold.  

Then I arranged them on white cs with a gold heat embossed sentiment below, and die cut with the hemstitch rectangle.  I didn't have any gold cs that perfectly matched the gold heat embossing, so cut a rectangle of white cs and heat embossed its edges in the same gold embossing powder.  Layered it behind the main panel and then added the whole thing to a white card base.

Seize the Birthday is calling for "Faux or Real Stitching" so I'm linking up there, hoping that faux hemstitching counts for the challenge.

Supplies:
Stamps - SavvyStamps sentiment, various wildflower stamps by Magenta, Rubbernecker, Penny Black, and Lavinia
Ink - ColorBox white and gold pigment ink, various blue alcohol inks
Paper - white and glossy cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Spellbinders small square die, Spellbinders hemstitch rectangle die, white and gold embossing powders

Stamped Ribbon

I'm entering this card in the Jingle Belles Tic Tac Toe challenge and hoping that when they ask for ribbon, stamped ribbon rather than actual ribbon will count!

I stamped on Gina K heavy weight cardstock because alcohol markers won't go through it.

I went over the pine branches with a couple of different green alcohol markers, used a red one on the candy canes, and a bright green one for the ribbon. I did the ribbon's borders with a green glitter pen, and also the ornaments are coloured with a gold glitter pen.

I stamped the sentiment in gold and created a frame from gold shimmer cs.

I chose the right hand vertical column from the Jingle Belles Tic Tac Toe challenge - stamping, ribbon (the green bow of the image), gold.

Supplies:
Stamps - Stampendous candy canes, Rubber Soul jo
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black, Delicata Golden Glitz
Paper - gold shimmer and Gina K white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - alcohol markers (Copics, Letraset), Atyou Spica gold and green glitter pens, MFT pierced rectangle frame die

Autumn Coloured Sympathy

CAS Mix Up has a watercolour challenge "Autumn Colours".  I made a sympathy card using autumn colours as I don't need any actual autumn cards.

I'm trying to use my older SU sets to be sure I want to keep them (I really am trying to weed out stuff I don't use!).  I've decided this set will be a keeper.

I used Distress inks, stamping the outlines first. When I stamped the filler stamps, I inked them then spritzed lightly with water to get a paler colour and a more watercolour look.

I split my panel in three and mounted on fun foam on a kraft card base to continue with the autumn colours theme.

CAS Mix Up Watercolour Challenge

 

Supplies:
Stamps - SU Simply Soft, Great Impressions sentiment
Ink - various brown Distress inks, Archival Potting Soil
Paper - kraft and white cs
Size - A2
Accessories - fun foam

Plaid Reminder

It's mid month so time to remind you that you only have until September 24th to enter CAS Christmas's "Plaid" challenge.

I made two cards using some plaid dp scraps from a small pad of Christmas dp.  The pad also had a blue snowflake dp that looked good with the plaid.

The first one has a snowflake embossed background, die cut squares of the dp with two corners rounded (using a corner rounder punch), a Tim Holtz die cut sentiment mounted on a scrap of purple cs, and a scattering of die cut snowflakes.

The second one has three banners cut from the dp, with the sentiment stamped and heat embossed in white on the middle banner, and a stamped and die cut mug and its accompanying steam.

Please come and join us at CAS Christmas with your clean and simple card featuring some plaid.  There's more inspiration from the rest of the Design Team.

Since I used up lots of snippets (scraps of dp and of purple and white cs), I'm also linking up with the Pixie's Snippets Playground challenge.

Supplies:
Stamps - SU mug and steam, PB sentiment
Ink - ColorBox white and blue
Paper - white cs, scraps of dp, scrap of purple cs
Size - 4.75" square and A2
Accessories - snowflake embossing folder, Spellbinders small square die, corner rounder punch, TH snow circle sentiment die, various small snowflake dies, SU mug and steam dies, white embossing powder,

Turquoise Background

The Flower Challenge is asking for turquoise this month.

I created a turquoise background with a bit of orange in it as those are one of my good friend's favourite colours and I'm a bit late getting a birthday card in the mail for her.

The background was made on a gelli plate with acrylic paints and a coffee rings stencil (the coffee rings are there but they are quite faint).

When dry, I added some script stencilling with embossing paste. And added a die cut white flower and a stamped sentiment on a banner.

The Flower Challenge

Supplies:
Stamps - SU sentiment
Ink - Memento Potters Clay
Paper - white and mixed media cs
Size - 4.75" square
Accessories - various blue and orange acrylic paints, coffee rings stencil, script stencil, embossing paste, Memory Box Honeyblossoms Sprig die

A Snowglobe for Jingle Belles

The Jingle Belles challenge inspired this card:

I was inspired by the snowglobes, the dark pastel colours, and the coloured background from their inspiration image:

But I had to go with blue rather than their purple as I'm really not a purple person (but love blue and white for Christmas cards).

I used my new Taylored Expressions stamp / die combo.  I stamped it in black and die cut it, and also die cut two others without stamping to stack up behind it. I glued acetate between the top two layers.

On the small centre piece that got cut out of the die, I stamped and heat embossed the cabin. Then sponged bright blue for the sky and very light blue for the snowy ground. I added glitter to the trees and roof, and sprinkled a bit of extra glitter over the acetate.

I glued everything to a background of snowy dp and then mounted on a white cardbase.

I've been thinking of lots of my stamps that would work really well for the interior image of the snowglobe so might make a few more.

 

Supplies:
Stamps - SU Cozy Christmas cabin, Taylored Expressions snowglobe, unknown sentiment
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne, various Distress blues
Paper - white cs, unknown dp
Size - 4.75" square
Accessories - Taylored Expressions snowglobe die, clear embossing powder, glitter, scrap of acetate

Christmas Cracker Plaid

Can you believe it's already September?!!  Where has the summer gone?  

I'm here to inspire you to get going on those Christmas cards.  The CAS Christmas challenge is hosted by Colleen this month and she is asking for "Plaid".

I had saved a few pieces of plaid foil that were the wrappers around Christmas crackers and I used that for my background.  Forgive the dreadful photo - I had a terrible time photographing it as the foil either went totally black or bounced off way too much light.

 

It's definitely a CAS card!  Stamped and heat embossed tree and sentiment (using the new Distress Oxide Rustic Wilderness - a great Christmas green), popped up on fun foam on the plaid, and embellished with three little stick-on stars.  It took far longer to photograph it than to make it!  I might use up the rest of the foil plaid and make a few more as it was so quick, and in real life, looks better than in the photo.

 

So please come and join us at CAS Christmas.  You have until September 24th to link up.  There's lots of inspiration from the Design Team and this month's wonderful Guest Designer, Melanie.

 

 

Supplies:
Stamps - SU tree, Rosie's Roadshow sentiment
Ink - Distress Oxide Rustic Wilderness
Paper - cream cs, plaid foil from a Christmas cracker
Size - 6.25x4.25"
Accessories - clear embossing powder, fun foam, stick-on gold stars

Black and Silver Christmas

Two Christmas cards totally out of my Christmas colour comfort zone!

I stamped the snowglobe and the accompanying medieval town in black, bordered with silver mirri cs, and went over the snowflakes and some of the dots with a Stardust gel pen, and added silver ball embellishments to the centres of the snowflakes.

And the second card, inspired by my friend Loll:

On a piece of black cs, I used silver glitter paste through a branch of berries and leaves. I bordered with silver glitter cs and added a die cut sentiment from the same glitter cs.

The first card is going to The Paper Players Tic Tac Toe challenge - I chose the right vertical column - "square card, masculine, neutrals".

 

And to Jingle Belles - I was inspired by their image to use a snowglobe stamp:

The second card is going to 52 Christmas Card Throwdown:

 

 

Supplies for card 1:
Stamps - IndigoBlu
Ink - Versafine Clair Nocturne
Paper - white cs, silver mirri cs
Size - 4.75" square
Accessories - Stardust gel pen, silver ball embellishments, fun foam

Supplies for card 2:
Paper - white and black cs, silver glitter cs
Size - A2
Accessories - unknown stencil, TH joy die, silver glitter paste

Floral Birthday

A birthday card for a dear friend:

 

 

I coloured the image with my new Cosmic Shimmer Botanical Stains - love the colours of them!  I added a bit of splatter and a few sequins, and, for a change from my usual cream or white, I used a dark coloured card base.

 

It's for The Paper Players Tic Tac Toe challenge.   I chose the left hand column - feminine, birthday, florals.

Supplies:
Stamps - Altenew Charmed flowers, unknown sentiment
Ink - Archival Jet Black
Paper - watercolour and dark green cs
Size - A2
Accessories - Cosmic Shimmer Botanical Stains, sequins, Lil Inker stitched rectangle die, fun foam