Season of Cheer

Hello once again!  More Christmas cards to share with you, this time using the sketch from last Sunday's challenge at The Paper Players.  I missed the deadline to submit to the challenge (so bummed when real life gets in the way of my crafting time!), but you can still use the link below to visit and enjoy all the lovely inspiration.

I made two versions using two different stamp sets.  Both started out with Kraft bases and Under the Table designer series paper but diverge from there.  For the first card, the cute snowman from Best of Snow was stamped on Whisper White with Archival Basic Black, then colored using a Blender Pen and several reinkers.  It was cut out with a 1 3/4" Circle punch, which fits beautifully inside the Soft Sky circle cut with a Starburst framelit.  A Circle Collections framelit cut out the final circle in Real Red.  Rather than a heart, I used a Snowflake Element topped with a Gold Basic Metal button tied with Gold Cording.

When this designer paper came out last year, I never used this particular pattern.  While I love the snowflakes, the brown was not my favorite for a Christmas card.  However, I was determined to find a way to use it and thought adding the colors Real Red, Soft Sky, Garden Green and gold would help brighten it up.  This is the first time I tried scrambling the gold thread behind an image - after the card was finished, I thought it could have used a bit more.  The sentiment is from Endless Wishes, with the word "cheer" heat embossed with Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder.

For the second card, I decided to use a nature focus with the Happy Scenes stamp set and more muted colors of Mossy Meadow and Soft Sky.  The embellishments are the same but in silver.  The sentiment is from the same stamp set, and this time layered on top of the circle.  The final touch was to add Dazzling Details for some additional sparkle.

That's it for today!  As always, your visit and comments mean so much!  Thanks for looking and have a great weekend!

Hugs,

Stef

Peace & Joy

Hi there!  I haven't been very productive in terms of finishing up projects or having time to post, until today when I was able to take a vacation day.  So thanks for visiting and taking a look.  I have a two Christmas cards to share that were made using this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch.

Sweet Sunday Sketch Challange

The circle in the sketch was perfect for the large snowflake in the Holly Jolly Greetings stamp set.  To start, the snowflake was stamped in Versamark then heat embossed with silver embossing powder.  I settled on using some retired Christmas designer paper with colors including Pool Party, Bermuda Bay, Island Indigo and Silver.  So pretty!

Both cards have the same Pool Party base, stamped with the snowflake from the Wonderland stamp set, and the lovely striped designer paper mounted on a slightly larger piece of Bermuda Bay card stock.  This one has the snowflake embossed on Bermuda Bay and uses the same color ink for the sentiment.  I also added snow flakes from last year's Frosted Sequins embellishments and added additional sparkle by topping them with rhinestones.

The next card has the snowflake embossed on Island Indigo, with the sentiment also in the same color.  Because the font is larger and the space limited, the sentiment was layered differently over the silver background.  Both snowflakes have Frosted Finishes Embellishments (also from last year) but on this card the embellies were sequins rather than snowflakes.

Fun to start building up my Christmas card stash, which isn't very large yet!  Seems impossible that Thanksgiving is just 4 weeks away and Christmas 8 - time to speed up production!

Thanks for visiting today.  Be sure to use the link above to enjoy some wonderful inspiration!

Hugs,

Stef

Cards for the guys

Hello again!  I have a couple of birthday cards to share that I made this weekend for a couple of my co-workers.  The majority of my team members are men, so I often am scrambling to get cards ready for them, mostly because I'd rather make cards with flowers and bling {grin} or, like this time of year, making holiday cards.

The first card was made with fall colors, using the sweet Woodland embossing folder.  The embossed piece was made with Crumb Cake card stock a couple weeks ago.  I like the contrast with the trees brushed with Whisper White Craft ink. To finish it off today, leaves from Among the Branches were stamped in Cajun Craze and Crushed Curry between the trees.

I have in my "stash" some retired More Mustard card stock, saved just for this time of year, of which a piece was used for the card base. The Woodgrain background stamp was inked up with the same color and stamped on the base.  I like how subtle it looks behind the main panel.

The sentiment is from the long retired Afterthoughts stamp set.  It was stamped on Very Vanilla and punched out with the 1 3/4" circle punch, then adhered to a circle of Cajun Craze that had been cut with a Starburst framelit.  The finishing touch was a bit of Tangelo Twist Thick Twine I picked up for free during Sale-A-Bration this year.

Now for something completely different!  The colors (Bermuda Bay, Basic Gray and Cherry Cobbler) were derived from the retired Birthday Basics designer series paper used to create this birthday card.  I love the numbers going in different directions and in different colors, especially meaningful since the recipient is starting a new decade with this birthday. The great fonts in the Big News stamp set really set a fun tone.  The flag was stamped, snipped out, taped to a toothpick and adhered to the back of the sentiment panel.

Thanks for looking today - as always your visit and comments are so appreciated.  I hope you have a great week and I'll be back in a couple of days with another Christmas card to share.

Hugs,

Stef

Frosty Scene

Hello again!  I hope you're having a wonderful weekend!  Today I am sharing a card made for the current challenge at Mojo Monday.

Mojo Monday

I love tags on cards and decided to create a small winter scene for a Christmas card, using both new and retired stamp sets.

The tag was first cut from Whisper White card stock, then one end was punched with Ornate Tag Topper punch.  The sky was created by sponging Soft Sky and Pool Party, then stamped with the snow flake dots from Happy Scenes.  The tree scene was created by coloring the stamp with Pear Pizzazz and Crumb Cake markers and stamping on bottom of the tag.

Using Memento Tuxedo Black ink, both the sentiment and Santa and the reindeer were stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black. The snowflake, button and cording were added next and the tag adhered to the base before the final step of adding Dazzling Details.  So easy but the sparkle really amps up the festive look of the card.

Be sure to use the link above to visit the Mojo Monday blog for some fabulous inspiration!  Thanks for visiting today!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Happy Scenes, Holiday Home
Paper:  Whisper White, Pool Party, Winter Frost designer series paper
Ink:  Soft Sky, Pool Party, Pear Pizzazz, Crumb Cake, Memento Tuxedo Black
Other:  Snowflake Element, Silver Cord, Silver Basic Metal Button, Ornate Tag Topper punch, Dazzling Details, Softly Falling TIEF

Happily Ever After

Hello and welcome back!  I hope you're having a good weekend thus far.  I worked on a wedding card this afternoon, one of two cards for my team at work to give to a co-worker who had a destination wedding this last week.  I was inspired by the fabulous sketch challenge this week at Pals Paper Arts.

Pals Paper Arts

Trying for a clean yet sophisticated look, I chose to use black, white and Pacific Point.  My friend and Upline lent me a couple of stamp sets to use as I realized I only had one small stamp suitable for a wedding (thanks Susan!)

I mixed the stamp sets for this card, using the floral flourish from For the New Two in the upper left corner and the sentiment from Big News in the lower part.  Both were stamped in Versamark and heat embossed with Pewter Stampin' Emboss powder.  After that was done, the Silver Foil and Black Glimmer paper were added horizontally, the corners of the Pacific Point panel punched with the Curvy Corner Trio Punch and the whole thing adhered to a larger panel of Silver Foil card stock.

Thanks for looking today!  As always, your visit and comments are so appreciated!  Do take the time to use the link above and enjoy all the wonderful inspiration!  I'll be back tomorrow to share the 2nd wedding card.

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Big News, For the New Two
Paper:  Basic Black, Pacific Point, Black Glimmer paper, Silver Foil
Ink:  Versamark
Other:  Scallop Border and Curvy Corner Trio punches, Pewter Stampin' Emboss powder, Frosted and Metallic sequins, Pearl Basic Jewels

Rustic Christmas Bling

Hi there and welcome back!  Fab Friday has a wonderful sketch for their current challenge and it worked great to add to my stash of Christmas cards.

I have oodles of Under the Tree designer series paper left over from last year's holiday catalogue, so one of my goals this year is to use up as much as possible.  This sketch is a perfect start.

This is really a very simple card, beginning with layers of Garden Green and Corrugated card stock, then topped with the dsp.  A Christmas Greeting thinlit cut out part of the sentiment in Gold Foil.  A Snowflake Element attached to the end of the flag with the other half of the sentiment was topped with a bit of Gold Baker's Twine and a bow of Gold Cording Trim. Very quick and easy!

Thanks for taking a look!  As always, your visit and comments are sooo appreciated!  Be sure to sure to use the link above to visit Fab Friday and enjoy all the wonderful inspiration.  I hope you have a great week ahead!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Holly Jolly Christmas
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Garden Green, Corrugated, Gold Foil, Under the Tree designer series paper
Ink:  Cherry Cobbler
Other:  Christmas Greetings Thinlit, Snowflake Element, Gold Cording Trim, Gold Baker's Twine

Woodland Wreath

Hello again!  Tonight I'm posting a card made for this week's challenge at Just Add Ink, where they have a lovely sketch to play with.

Just Add Ink

I thought this would be perfect for making a Thanksgiving card with the Wondrous Wreath as the main focal point.

I started with a panel of Very Vanilla embossed with the new Woodland TIEF (LOVE this folder!).  I used a brayer to apply Delightful Dijon ink on the raised panel before running it through the Big Shot.  It was then adhered to a base of Cajun Craze.

The wreath was initially stamped in So Saffron, then stamped with the layering stamp with the leaves inked in Tangelo Twist.  Finally I used a Cajun Craze marker to had color a few of the leaves to add more dimension.  It was really fun and rather therapeutic!  Once that was complete and the wreath cut, it was layered atop a pennant of retired textured Pumpkin Pie card stock.

This card will be mailed to family out of town, so I kept it pretty basic.  But it could certainly be stepped up with some sequins or jewels.

Thanks so much for your visit!  I'd love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment.  I've included a link above and encourage you to use it to enjoy all the wonderful inspiration at JAI.

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Wondrous Wreath, Best of Autumn
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Cajun Craze, Textured Pumpkin Pie
Ink:  Delightful Dijon, Cajun Craze, Pumpkin Pie, Tangelo Twist, So Saffron
Other Woodland TIEF, Brayer, Wonderful Wreath framelit

Toxic Haunts

I have another Halloween card to share, this time using this week's challenge at Freshly Made Sketches.

Freshly Made Sketches

Starting with some pieces of Wicked Fun dsp, they were cut to size and adhered to a piece of Basic Black card stock.  My plan went fine with the witch image from Toxic Treats, and I thought I would also use the cute cauldron and sentiment from the same set, but it was just a bit too large for the upper right corner.  What to do, what to do?

I found another retired Halloween set, House of Haunts and decided to heat emboss the sentiment to a banner of vellum, which was then anchored to the card with the fun pumpkin from the same set.  Before doing so, a piece of the really cool Spider Web doily was added to the upper right rectangle.

Thanks for looking!  As always, your visit and comments are so appreciated.  I've included a link above to FMS and encourage you to be sure to check out all the wonderful inspiration there.

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Toxic Treats, House of Haunts
Paper:  Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Rich Razzleberry, Vellum, Wicked Fun dsp
Ink:  Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Cajun Craze, Pumpkin Pie, Crushed Curry, Versamark, Memento Tuxedo Black
Other:  Spider Web doily, Labels Collection framelit, Black Stampin' Emboss Powder, Tangelo Twist Thick Twine, Paper Snips, Sponge Daubers, Blender Pen

Happy Birthday Greetings

Hi there and welcome back!  Karen Giron has another fabulous sketch this week at the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge.

The Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge

Before we get to much further into fall and the holiday cards take the forefront, I wanted to make another card with a flower and the sweet Pretty Petals designer paper.  I also used a piece of retired dsp from when Calypso Coral was an In Color.

I love stamping the sentiment straight on the paper, and only a Stampamajig helps me keep it straight.  Once done and both pieces of dsp adhered to the panel, it was topped with a piece of embossed Calypso Coral card stock with a wee piece of Very Vanilla peeking out that was punched with the Eyelet Border punch.  Very Vanilla Thick Twine was then wrapped and tied around it all.

The flower and leaves are from the Flower Patch stamp set and were cut out with the matching framelits.  Love all the different flowers in this set, although I tend to use this one and the "mum" (?) the most.

Thanks for dropping by and taking a look!  As always your visit and comments mean so much!  For some fabulous inspiration, be sure to use the link above to visit the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge!

Hugs,

Stef



Product details:
Stamps:  Cottage Greetings, Flower Patch
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Old Olive, Calypso Coral, Daffodil Delight, Pretty Petals and 2011-2013 In Color Paper Stack designer series papers
Ink:  Calypso Coral, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Archival Basic Black
Other:  Eyelet Border and 2" Circle Punches, Very Vanilla Thick Twine, Flower Fair Framelits, Honeycomb TIEF, Iced Rhinestone Embellishment, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Stampamajig

BYOS (Bring Your Own Sunshine)

Hello again!  Tonight I have a fun card to share.  I used this week's challenge at Mojo Monday and am also entering it in a color challenge at Global Design Project (#GDP005).

Mojo Monday

Global Design Project

I love the sentiments from the stamp set Ray of Sunshine.  They are really inspiring to me and this one in particular reminds me of the choices we have every day about our attitudes towards everything in life.

The cute cloud and rain drops are from the Sprinkles of Life stamp set, and I thought they worked just perfectly with the sentiment and my take on the sketch.  While the Ray of Sunshine stamp set has stamps for a sun, it takes a wee bit of practice to align properly, even with a Stampamajig, and I have not yet had time to perfect my skill at it, so I pulled out a retired stencil to make the sun image.

Such an easy-peasy, clean and layered card, finished off very simply with multi strands of thick Baker's Twine.

Thanks so much for visiting, and of course I would love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment!  I've included links above to both challenges and encourage you to use them to check out all the delightful inspiration.


Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Ray of Sunshine, Sprinkles of Life, Work of Art
Paper:  Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz, Daffodil Delight, Soft Sky
Ink:  Daffodil Delight, Soft Sky, Archival Basic Black
Other:  Sun stencil from Hooray It's Your Day project kit, Soft Sky and Whisper White Thick Twine, Tree Builder punch, Stampamajig, Sponge Dauber

Bloomin' Birthday

Welcome back!  A quick post tonight with the card I made for the lovely color challenge at Pals Paper Arts using this week's sketch challenge at Splitcoaststampers.

Pals Paper Arts

SCS Sketch Challenge

That color combination really spoke "flowers" to me, so I went with one of my favorite sets currently available at  Stampin' Up!, Flower Patch.  I shrank the card design to make it a smaller panel on the card base.

The flower was stamped three times, the matching framelit used to cut out the bottom layer, with the top two layers cut out with my Paper Snips.  Because the stamps are photopolymer, it made placing the sentiment super easy.  The final touches were the Sahara Sand lace and the sequins and rhinestones.  It actually came together pretty quickly - gotta love that!

That's it for this weekend!  I hope you have a great week ahead!  As always, your visit and comments are so appreciated. Be sure to use the links above to enjoy some fabulous inspiration!

Hugs,

Stef

Product details:

Stamps:  Flower Patch

Paper:  Whisper White, Always Artichoke, Blackberry Bliss

Ink:  Blackberry Bliss, Always Artichoke

Other:  Sahara Sand Lace Trim, Metallics Sequins, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Flower Fair Framelits

Silent Night

Hello again!  Friday Mashup has a challenge this week that I thought would work well for making a Christmas scene - use a silhouette and mash it up coloring your background.  The new Wonderland stamp set is perfect for this.  I'm also playing along with the current SU-Only Challenge (SUO Challenges), where we are to use punches.  My punch use was small but very strategic to the look I was trying to create.

I wanted to make a card with a night sky and lots of sparkle.  I began by mixing some Dazzling Diamonds glitter in with Whisper White embossing powder, then used it when heat embossing the trees from Wonderland.  It's difficult to see in the photo but IRL the trees do have a twinkle to them.  The sky was then sponged with four different blue inks to create the night look.

The bottom of the Whisper White panel was left white and embossed with the new Softly Falling embossing folder.  Silver Glimmer paper was used both for the horizontal piece and the stars punched with the Confetti Stars punch.  After heat embossing the sentiment with Pewter embossing powder on Night of Navy card stock, it was cut out with an Ovals Collection framelit.

As always, your visit and comments are so appreciated.  For some amazing and wonderful inspiration, use the links above to visit each challenge blog.  Take care and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Wonderland
Paper:  Whisper White, Night of Navy, Dazzling Diamond Glitter paper
Ink:  Versamark, Soft Sky, Marina Mist, Pacific Point, Night of Navy
Other:  Softly Falling TIEF, Whisper White and Pewter Stampin' Emboss powder, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Confetti Stars punch, Ovals Collection framelit

Thanksgiving 2 ways

Hi there!  I hope you're having a great weekend so far!  It's Tall & Skinny week at Mojo Monday and Julee gave us a great sketch to use.

Mojo Monday

Since it's the first of October I thought I would get started on making holiday cards.  Today I made a couple Thanksgiving cards using the Sheltering Tree stamp set.  It was fun to build up the leaves with different colors.  First the large leaf stamp was inked in Crushed Curry, then I used the little leaf stamp to fill in with Pumpkin Pie and Cajun Craze.  Finally I stamped the large leaf stamp in Crushed Curry over the top at a slightly different angle.

Of course, as I was stamping away the side of the clear block got dipped into the ink pad and left a little Cajun Craze mark down by the tree trunk.  Grrrr.  So, I decided it would be come a falling leaf and added a second one so it would be clear what it is.

Both cards are relatively CAS and flat, perfect for mailing.  I made the one with the Pumpkin Pie ribbon first and thought it was a bit spare, so I stepped up the bling factor a wee bit with the other one, using Gold Baker's Twine and sequins.  The sentiments are ones I've had for years, but the pretty fonts always look nice.

Thanks for the visit today!  As always, I'd love to hear from you if you have a moment to leave a comment.  Don't miss all the wonderful inspiration at Mojo Monday - a link above will take you directly there.

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Sheltering Tree, Best of Autumn, Holidays & Wishes
Paper:  Very Vanilla, Early Espresso
Ink:  Early Espresso, Pumpkin Pie, Crushed Curry, Cajun Craze
Other:  Cotton Pumpkin Pie ribbon, Regal Candy Dots, Gold Baker's Twine, Metallics Sequins, Stampamajig

Wedding Wishes

Hello and welcome back!  Well, here we are in October and the weather has been beautiful, and the leaves swiftly turning color...and falling on the lawn!  The Paper Players have a super sketch for their challenge this week, and I used it to make a wedding card for one of my friends at work who is flying off to Fiji to get married next week.  Pretty romantic, eh?

The Paper Players  

I just picked up the lovely stamp set, Remarkable You, as a Weekly Deal and thought it would be perfect for this card.  I chose the Calla Lily image and used retired Blendability markers to  color it.

After coloring the flowers with Cherry Cobbler, I had to decide the other card components.  It took forever, because I really wanted it to be a bit fancy and sophisticated.  I finally ended up with the white and gold, with a hint of the red with the ribbon.

Thanks for your visit today!  I hope you are able to take time and visit The Paper Players with the link above and enjoy all the lovely inspiration!

Hugs,

Stef


Product details:
Stamps:  Remarkable You, Sweet Essentials
Paper:  Whisper White, Gold Foil, Gold Vellum
Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black
Other:  Cherry Cobbler Sheer Linen Ribbon, Vintage Wallpaper TIEF, Basic Pearls.  Blendability markers:  Cherry Cobbler, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive