Merry Little Christmas for the Paper Players

Hello friends!  It's time for a new challenge at the Paper Players and this week I have the honor of hosting!  This is our CAS week, and I've chosen what I hope is an easy theme for this time of year, for those making holiday cards.

Paper Players

Your favorite holiday image can be from any holiday, such as Christmas, Hanukkah, Diwali, Kwanzaa, to name just a few.  Things like Santa, a Menorah, candles, presents, ornaments, Christmas tree, etc. Remember to keep it clean and simple - limited layers and embellishments, plenty of "white" space, etc.

I've been working through my stash of Bundle Girl stamps for Christmas and today's card is similar to the one here created for my recent guest designer spot at Time Out Challenges.  I really like using them because it's easy for me to create at CAS card.  The stamp for today has two of my favorite images for Christmas - Christmas trees and ornaments.  Plus, the little girl and the birdie are sooo cute!

I remember when I was very young and being enthralled with our pretty Christmas tree that my mom painstakingly decorated.  After my parents passed, I was fortunate to receive a number of their antique ornaments. And naturally, using them every year brings back many joyful memories.

But that's not what brought you here - let's move on to the card!

 

The image was stamped, then I used a bit of ink blending for the sky before coloring with Copic markers. The panel was cut with a Postage Edge die, then the sentiment stamped and Glossy Accents applied to the ornaments for shine.  I also added it to the little girl's pom and the snow on the ground, then covered that with Distress Rock Candy Glitter.  It looks so pretty IRL!  

The pierced panel was created with a Pinkfresh Studio cover die and adhered to the card base.  I first tried adding the main image to the card base directly but it seemed like it needed a little somethin' somethin' more but still keeping things CAS.  

 

So what is your favorite holiday image - we'd love to find out!  Please join us this week, the challenge will remain open until 3pm EST on Friday, November 21st.  But, before you head off, be sure to head over to the challenge blog where my talented teammates have some wonderful cards to inspire you!

Thanks for visiting and take care!

Stef

• Stamping Bella Bundle Girl with a Christmas Tree and a Birdie (retired)
• Pinkfresh Studio Diamond Cover die
• Simon Says Stamp Postage Edge die
• Glossy Accents and Distress Rock Candy Glitter
• Sakura White Gelly Roll pen
• Copics - R39, 37, 35, 20, G29, 17, 05, B02, 000, 0000, YR24, Y15, 13, E49, 47, 44, 43, 41, 11, 21, 01

Holiday Cheer for Time Out Challenges

Hello friends!  I'm so thrilled to share that I am the guest designer for Time Out Challenges for the next fortnight!  My card here was chosen as the winner of TOC #296.

For this challenge, we are to create a card for our favorite holiday to celebrate.  I chose Christmas because I think I'm still a kid at heart, loving all sparkle, decorations and family gatherings.  

We look forward to seeing which holiday your favorite is to celebrate!

Time Out Challenges

Challenge #301 is sponsored by  Angie Blom Digital Designs.  The challenge winner as chosen by the Design Team will receive a $25.00 store credit. The winner will also receive an invitation to join them as Guest Designer for a future challenge.

ETA:  I saw that my friends at Just Us Girls are celebrating their 800th (!) challenge and wanted to join in during their special week.  And it's easy since the theme is Anything Goes.  Be sure to go check it out - the DT cards are amazing and there are even prizes to be won!

JUGS #800

I once again decided to use one of the sweet Bundle Girl images from Stamping Bella for my card.  This time she's sending correspondence to Santa.  I wonder, what could it be?

I started with a panel of white that had been cut with a Postage Edge die.  Next the image was stamped on the panel, then stamped again on a piece of Gina K Masking Magic.  From different piece of masking paper I cut a small hillside to mask off the horizon line while I ink blended the sky.  

With the ink blending done, the masks came off and I used Copic markers to color everything.  White polka dots were added to her scarf, then I went over them in the shaded areas with my mid-tone red marker.  The sentiment was then stamped on the card panel. 

The last step was to use Glossy Accents for adding dots to the sky and squiggles to the snow, then cover them with Distress Clear Rock Candy Glitter.  I know it doesn't usually snow on a clear day, but I did create a few clouds in the sky. Plus, I've been skiing many a time when we'd get a little light snow shower in the midst of an otherwise nice day on the slopes. So that's what I imagined for this scene, plus it was a fun excuse to add more glitter! 

As I was writing this post, I realized I forgot to add "snow" to the mailbox.  That will be remedied before sending.

Thanks for taking time to stop by!  I hope you'll take time to play along with the lovely crew at Time Out Challenge - share what you love to celebrate!

Take care!

Stef

• Stamping Bella Bundle Girl Sending a Letter to Santa
• Poppystamps Christmas Sparkle Stamp set
• Simon Says Stamp Postage Edge rectangle die
• Distress Clear Rock Candy Glitter
• Copics - R39, 37, 35, E47, 44, 43, 04, 21, 00, B02, 00, 000, T4, 2, 0

So Sweet for the Paper Players

Hello friends!  It's time for a new challenge at The Paper Players and this week the lovely Ann is hosting.  It's Theme week and Ann has chosen a great one that has loads of options for creating.  Let's take a look!

Paper Players

I'm also joining in with the lovelies at TOC, with their friendship/encouragement/support challenge.  My card, while a bit punny, is letting the recipient know they are appreciated.

TOC #296

Before getting to my card, I want to take a moment to congratulate Christy Stanford for being our newest member of the Paper Players Design Team!  Christy was a year-long guest designer a few years ago and has been joining us each week on a regular basis with her delightful and charming cards.  Welcome to the team, Christy!

For our latest PP challenge, and since we're heading into fall, I chose to use a little cutie eating her caramel apple.  I remember loving them when I was young. 

To start, I stamped the girl and the apples, then masked them off so I could create the scene using stencils for the sky and ground.  Once that was complete, the masks were removed and I colored her in fall colors using Copic markers.  

I decided to cut out and pop up the center of the panel using an arch die, then stamped the sentiment.  I added the outside to a white card base then popped up the center portion.  I finished off the apple with some Glossy Accents to make it shiny and when that was dry, also used a white gel pen to create highlights.

What are you inspired to create using this theme?  For more ideas, please head over to the challenge blog where my talented teammates have loads of great design to inspire you.  The challenge remains open until 3pm EDT, Friday September 12th. I hope you'll join us this week!

Thanks for stopping by!

Stef

• Stamping Bella Caramel Apple Bundle Girl stamp
• Altenew Sweet Jasmine sentiment stamp
• Simon Says Stamp Landscapes and MFT Mini Cloud Edges stencils
• Altenew Sea Breeze and SSS Fairway and Field inks
• SSS A2 Arches die
• Copics - YR18, 09, 07, 15, 21, 27, 23, R59, 37, 35, G29, 17, 03, E29, 27, 23, 21, 11, 00

Pumpkin Patch for Color Hues

Hello friends!  The first of the month has rolled around again (can you believe it???) and Color Hues has a new challenge.  The lovely Karen is hosting and has chosen a lovely color combo of orange and green.  Hmmm, rather fall-ish to me...🍃🎃.

Color Hues

As you can tell from the title of my post, I definitely went for a fall scene and used a sweet Bundle girl from Stamping Bella.

The scene was stamped, then before coloring with my Copics, the sky was stenciled using a light orange ink and a cloud stencil.  I completed the coloring, stamped the sentiment and die cut the panel with a rectangle die.  The panel was then added to a green matte that was barely larger than the colored panel.  

I added that to the card base, then as I was photographing it, I wondered to myself, where is all the green?  Frankly, there wasn't much because I opted to color the little girl's outfit in brown rather than green, and the leaves and the mat didn't provide much.  I think I lost my mind for a short time while creating this card lol!  Anybody else have those days?

A plaid cover die to the rescue!  It was cut with a Tim Holtz cover die, adhered to the card base, then the main image was added to finish the card.  Finally!

Thanks for taking time to stop by! I encourage you to pop over to the challenge blog where my very talented teammates have a variety of card design using these colors.  The challenge remains open until Sunday, 9/14 at 3pm EDT.  I hope to see your card in the gallery!

Stef

• Stamping Bella Bundle Girl at the Pumpkin Patch and Frightful & Delightful sentiment set stamps
• MFT Mini Cloud Edges die
• Hero Arts Nesting Rectangle die
• Tim Holtz Simple Plaid cover die
• Copics:  Pumpkin - YR18, 24, 09, 07, 16, Y38 E57, 35; Leaves YG67, 17, 03; Skin E11, 21, 00; Hat, Jacket and Boots E77, 74, 71; Scarf T2, 0; Ground E31, 41

Peace Joy Hope Love

Hello and welcome!  I have a card to share that I made for the current Inspired By Challenge, using their Christmas inspiration board.

IBC192

I'm working on my Christmas cards, as I'm sure many of you are as well, and I was inspired by the soft, muted colors of the board that I thought would work well with one of my Stamping Bella stamps.

The sweet image was stamped on a panel of white then, without masking, the background was stenciled using the Peace Joy Hope Love stencil with Polar Bear ink and using a light hand.  I also took the blending brush and lightly went over the background going around our cute little Bundle Girl and the bird, but I also wasn't too worried as I knew the Copic markers would cover up any unwanted ink. Copics are typically not muted colors but I found a salmon pink marker (RV42) I bought last summer and had never used that worked for a less saturated pink.  It also went well with the muted blue greens used on her scarf, boots and the snow as well as the inked background.

When the coloring was complete, I put the panel back in my Misti where I'd left the stamp and reinked it with black pigment ink to get a better outline.  I've seen many a YT crafter do this but I rarely remember to do it myself, so I'm glad I did here as it made a difference.

Next the panel was trimmed down to be layered on the slightly larger white scallop panel but I thought it needed a mat to make it stand out a bit more.  A white panel was cut slightly larger and colored around the edges with one of the blue green markers then all the layers were adhered together.  After adding to the card base with foam tape, Glossy Accents was used to bring a nice shine to the star and tree ornaments.  I was going to add a sentiment on the front but I didn't want to cover up the stenciled words, so I left it as is.  What do you think?  Should I add a sentiment before sending out?

Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate it!  I'll be back later today with another post, so drop back by if you have a chance.

Take care!

Stef

Stamps:  Bundle Girl With A Christmas Tree and a Birdie (Stamping Bella)

Paper:  Neenah Solar White,

Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Versafine Clair Nocturne, Polar Bear (Altenew)

Other:  Peace Joy Hope Love stencil (Simon Says Stamp), A2 Scallop rectangle die (Honey Bee), Glossy Accents (Ranger)

Copics:  Girl - E11, 21, 51, RV93, 42, R30, 20, E11, 21, 51; Bird - BG72, 70; Tree - BG96, 90, YG93, E44; Star and ornaments - YR23, 21, E09, R46

Easter Parade

Hello friends!  It's time for a new Color Challenge at Splitcoaststampers!  Barbara is hosting and has chosen Bermuda Bay, Flirty Flamingo and Pineapple Punch with a dessert option of spring or Easter.  I was in need of a few more Easter cards, so that's the direction I went.  I used the darling Bundle Girl with Chocolate Bunny stamp, coloring it up with Copic markers similar to challenge colors plus those similar Stampin' Up neutrals Mossy Meadow and Early Espresso. I also used this stamp for my Paper Players design team card last week, with a different layout and colors. Here's a link to that card.

After stamping the image in Copic friendly ink, the first step was to create the background sky, using the lightest blue green marker.  Next I colored up the image with my Copics.  I gave her bright yellow boots, because that grass might be wet (!) and thought it went well with her cute blue green outfit.

For the grass I used a light green to color in the entire base, then flicked darker greens over the top.  When the coloring was complete the panel was trimmed down to fit within the scallop panel stitching and a white gel pen added polka dots to her little bonnet.  Flirty Flamingo card stock was used for the base, which was stamped in white pigment ink with a floral background stamp.  After that dried, the main image was added using fun foam for some nice dimension, as was the sentiment.

Thanks so much for visiting, I truly appreciate it!  I hope you and your families remain safe and healthy, and if your time and mojo allows, it would be wonderful if you could join us for the Color Challenge this week!

Stef


Stamps:  Bundle Girl with Chocolate Bunny (Stamping Bella), Modern Rose background (Simon Says Stamp), Crazy Talk (Tim Holtz)
Paper:  Flirty Flamingo, Neenah Solar White
Ink:  Gina K Obsidian Amalgam, Versafine Clair Nocturne (sentiment), Hero Arts Unicorn White
Other:  Scallop A2 Rectangle die, Sakura White Gelly Roll pen
Copics:  Y08, 04, 000, RV43, 32, 20, 000, BG49, 13, 32, 11, 10, 000, G99, 94, 82, YG97

Happy Easter for The Paper Players!

Hello friends and welcome back!  I hope this finds you safe and healthy!  It's sketch week at The Paper Players and the lovely Claire has created an excellent and versatile one.

The Paper Players

I'm also joining the current Anything Goes challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More.

Addicted to Stamps #381

With Easter coming up, I thought this sketch would work perfectly for my cute little Bundle Girl and her BIG chocolate bunny!!

Isn't that adorable?  After stamping with Gina K Amalgam ink I used Copic markers to color up the scene.  The colors are similar to those on the packaging picture, except I switched them around a bit.  The picture is also a great guide for shading, taking some of the guess work out of it.

Next I used a large oval to cut out the image.  Because it is so large, I had to adjust my card size to 4.5" x 5.75" (fortunately I have an envelope punch board, so I can make a custom envelope).  I also die cut an A2 sized scallop rectangle to layer beneath and found some long retired textured card stock in Early Espresso for the strip elements.

I decided the pink layer looked a bit too plain so I found some sweet little leaf, berry and floral images with which to create my own background, using white pigment ink to keep it very subtle.  You can see it in the bottom right corner in the photo above.  Much of it is covered up with the other layers but it just adds that "somethin', somethin'" that I felt was missing.  Lastly, the oval was added to the main card with fun foam, then I stamped the sentiment in brown and layered it on the oval with thin foam squares.

Thank you for visiting, I always appreciate it so much!  Take care, stay healthy and I hope you'll be able to take your mind of the current state of affairs and join the Paper Players' challenge this week!

Stef


Stamps:  Bundle Girl With Chocolate Bunny (Stamping Bella), Woodland Whimsy (Simon Says Stamp), Crazy Talk (sentiment, Tim Holtz)
Paper:  Neenah Solar White, Cotton Candy (SSS), Textured Early Espresso (ret. SU)
Ink:  Gina K Obsidian Amalgam, Hero Arts Unicorn White, Versafine Clair Pinecone (sentiment)
Other:  Scallop A2 Rectangle die, Ovals Collection Framelit (ret. SU)
Copics:  RV91, 21, 10, 00, BG72, B01, 00, 000, E47, 74, 71, 11, 01, 000, Y23, 21, 02, YR23, YG25, 01, W3, 0