Winter Wishes

I wasn't sure I'd be able to get a card done for this month's Papertrey Ink blog hop, but I managed to do it despite dinner planning, shopping, and house cleaning in preparation for Thanksgiving company this week.  Woot woot!

The theme was snow, so I pulled out my Damask Snowflakes dies and a few other wintry-themed things.  I glued a piece of blue snowy paper to a white card base for my background.  I die cut a snowflake from silver glitter paper and centered it over a double-ended banner that was embossed with phrases from Rustic Snowflakes and Snowfall.  I embossed a snowflake medallion from 2008 Holiday Tags Collection and punched it out with a 1-3/4" circle punch, centering it on the large snowflake.  As a final touch, I added a small rhinestone in the middle.

I love how it turned out!  Unfortunately, the sun was down when I got the card done, so you get an indoor picture.  I'll get a better one tomorrow.  Hopefully you can still see all the pretty shimmer.  Go here to see other projects in the blog hop.  I adore snowflake images, so this was a fun theme for me.  :)

Stamps:  2008 Holiday Tags Collection, Snowfall, Rustic Snowflakes (Papertrey Ink)
Ink:  VersaMark
Paper:  White (Papertrey Ink); silver glitter (Stampin' Up); Jack Frost 6x6 pad (American Crafts)
Misc:  Damask Snowflakes die; Double-Ended Banner die (Papertrey Ink); 1-3/4" circle punch (EK Success); silver embossing powder, rhinestone

Merry Poinsettias

I made a card using a recent Clean & Simple Stamping sketch.  I really liked the sketch layout with its possibilities for smaller images, and knew exactly what stamps I wanted to pull out.

I made a fun framed bingo card using Jolly Bingo Bits a few years ago.  (posted here, and yes, I now own the stamps myself)  :)  At first, I thought I would do something similar using different images for each circle, but then my eye was drawn to the poinsettia and I thought it would look good repeated on all the circles instead.

I used my Spellbinders dies to cut white circles and red scalloped circles.  On each white circle, I stamped a poinsettia in Pure Poppy ink, adding glittery dot centers with a glue pen and Wink of Stella shimmer to each petal.

I embossed the white panel with Stampin' Up's Petals-a-Plenty folder and adhered it to a Pure Poppy card base.  I arranged my scalloped circles according to the sketch.  Then I cut the word "merry" using a die by Papertrey Ink and glittered the heck out of it.  I love the sparkle!  I stamped the word "christmas" on a small strip of cardstock and glittered the edges so it would stand out better from the background and visually connect it with the larger word.  The sentiment ended up a little higher than the sketch, but it fit better around the circles this way.  I didn't want the "y" hanging off the card, nor did I want to block the poinsettia circles.

Hopefully, you can see the shimmer better in the close up above.  I love my Wink of Stella pen.  I ended up using foam tape to raise the sentiment, although with all that glitter, I'm sure it stands out from the background anyway!

Stamps:  Jolly Bingo Bits (Stampin' Up); Wonderful Words: Joy (Papertrey Ink)
Ink:  Pure Poppy (Papertrey Ink); Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Paper:  White, Pure Poppy (Papertrey Ink)
Misc:  Yellow Barite glitter (Martha Stewart); glue pen; Standard Circles Small die, Classic Scalloped Circles Small die (Spellbinders); Petals-a-Plenty embossing folder (Stampin' Up); Wink of Stella clear pen; foam tape

Holly & Stars

I'm squeaking in at the last minute to post one last card for the Waltzingmouse Pajama Party challenges.  This time it's a sketch.  Pretty straightforward, but my card required a lot of tweaking before I was happy with it.

I'll add more info in just a bit.  I've got to get this linked before time runs out!   :)

Okay, I'm back.  I made it with six minutes to spare.  lol  You'll have to pardon the indoor lighting.  The sun is well and truly down here on the east coast.  I'll get a better picture tomorrow.  (edited to add new pics above)

I used an oldie but goodie stamp set by Waltzingmouse.  I purchased Oven Fresh Gingerbread Joy along with its companion set when they were first released several years ago.  I love the adorable gingerbread men, but this time I reached for the holly and berry images for my card.  I stamped them randomly around the oval in Handsome Hunter and Real Red ink.  Then I added two sizes of gold stars from the same stamp set.

The images looked a little flat, so I took my Wink of Stella pen and added a sheer layer of glitter to each star.  I used Glossy Accents on the berries to add shine and dimension.

I cut two ovals from white and green cardstock using Spellbinders dies.  On the white oval, I added a gold border with a paint pen.  Love the look!  I also went over it with my Wink of Stella pen to match the stars.  In the center, I stamped a sentiment from Ornate Ornaments and a small flourish underneath from Vintage Labels 4.  I added one tiny glittery star above.

I stamped and cut out two more sprays of holly and adhered them to each side of the oval, again adding Glossy Accents to the berries.  The whole centerpiece was popped up with foam tape on the card.  Whew!  It didn't turn out half bad!  Thank goodness.   :)

Stamps:  Oven Fresh Gingerbread Joy, Ornate Ornaments, Vintage Labels 4 (Waltzingmouse)
Ink:  Tuxedo Black (Memento); Handsome Hunter, Real Red (Stampin' Up); Gold (Encore! Ultimate Metallic)
Paper:  White (Papertrey Ink); Handsome Hunter (Stampin' Up)
Misc:  Standard Ovals Small and Large dies (Spellbinders); Glossy Accents (Ranger); clear Wink of Stella pen; foam tape  

Sweetest Christmas Wishes

I'm popping in to post a card for another of the Waltzingmouse Pajama Party challenges, this time to use an older Christmas set.  The DT used Candy Jar Christmas, which I do have (and also haven't used yet), so I pulled it out to make this card.

I stamped the candy canes with black ink, colored in sections with a red marker, and then used a glue pen to add sparkly red glitter.  I hand cut the candy canes, completely forgetting that I had the dies!  {smack forehead}  I remembered when I considered using the jar image and pulled out the matching dies.  Ooops!  I did use a die for the bow.  :)

After stamping, I colored the bow with Copic markers to add shading and then coated it in glitter.  Love the sparkle!  I stamped a Vintage Labels 4 image on another diecut in Hawaiian Shores ink, and then the sentiment in Pure Poppy ink.  I love how the bow fits nicely around the sentiment.

I embossed the Hawaiian Shores panel with a Decorative Dots folder from Stampin' Up.  It almost looks like falling snow.  I glued it to a white card base and then added the layered candy cane piece.  It makes a very sweet Christmas card!  (pun intended)  :)

Stamps:  Candy Jar Christmas, Candy Jar Christmas Fillers, Vintage Labels 4 (Waltzingmouse)
Ink:  Pure Poppy, Hawaiian Shores (Papertrey Ink); Tuxedo Black (Memento)
Paper:  White, Hawaiian Shores (Papertrey Ink)
Copic:  0, C1, C3
Misc:  Cherry Cobbler marker, Decorative Dots embossing folder (Stampin' Up); Labels 4 die (Spellbinders); Jar Fillers die (Waltzingmouse); Sugar Cube glitter, Garnet glitter (Martha Stewart); glue pen

Scandinavian Tag

I could not resist the Waltzingmouse Pajama Party challenge for this month to make a Scandinavian-style tag using red and white.  I have had the Folk Art Medallion stamp set for quite some time without using it, and I just knew it would look cool embossed in white on a red tag.  I had to try it out!  Here's the result.

Quite simple, although it took several steps.  Each part of the medallion was stamped and embossed separately.  First the large leafy circle medallion, and then the smaller bits inside.  I stamped my sentiment on a diecut flag and popped it up.  Yes, that is an eyelet!  lol  I've had these flower eyelets for years and completely forgot about them until I started searching through my embellishments today.  They were still in the box!  It echoes the floral shapes in the medallion so it adds a nice touch. Besides, using what I have is the goal!  :)

You can see other projects for the challenge here on the Waltzingmouse blog.

Stamps:  Folk Art Medallion, Ornate Ornaments (Waltzingmouse)
Ink:  Pure Poppy (Papertrey Ink); VersaMark
Paper:  White, Pure Poppy (Papertrey Ink)
Misc:  white embossing powder (Filigree); flower eyelet (Making Memories); Tag Sale #1 die (Papertrey Ink); Fishtail Flags Layers STAX die (My Favorite Things); baker's twine; foam tape