Santa & Friends

This week's challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is all about "Santa & Friend(s)." Basically, create a Christmas card with Santa & one or more of his friends. I immediately thought of Bugaboo's "Scene It: Santa and Friends" digital image (discontinued), & thought it would be perfect for this challenge. With the proportions of this image, you really don't need anything else to make an impactful card!

I decided to make the image the size of my 5-1/4x4" panel, which leaves a 1/8" border on all sides of my A2-size card. I sized it in Photoshop, & printed it onto a panel of Strathmore Vellum Bristol paper. I used my Prismacolor colored pencils to color the image. The most difficult part of coloring was trying to determine in a couple of spots what went where. Because this is a rather complex image, I just went one element at a time while coloring.

After I finished the coloring, I matted my panel with burgundy cardstock that I'd adhered to a white card base. I decided to add a little something extra, so I went over Rudolph's nose with White Blizzard Nuvo Glitter drops. I also added that to the bell on the elf's hat & more bits here and there around the snow areas. And that finished this card! The longest portion was honestly the coloring. I love how this came out, though!

I'm also entering this card in Send a Smile 4 Kids' "Happy Holidays 4 Kids" challenge.

Cozy Christmas Card

The Fall | Winter Coffee Lover's Blog Hop inspired the theme of this card. I used one of the coffee cups from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' "Holiday Cheer" digital stamp set for the focal image. The design is based on Sketch #SC571 at Splitcoaststampers.com.

I sized the cup image in Photoshop, then printed it onto a panel of Canson Montval 140 lb. watercolor paper. I used my watercolors to paint it, and fussy-cut it out.

I used my We R Memory Keepers Frame punch board to create the frame for the image from white cardstock scraps. The watercolor paper I used for the cup has a bit of thickness to it, & I didn't want it to stick above the surrounding frame. I made a few frames, all the same size, so I could stack them for dimension. I did have to trim a bit from all but the topmost frame, just so their edges wouldn't stick out at all from behind. After I had cut all the frames, I stamped my greeting - from Hero Arts' "Cozy Penguin" set - onto the bottom of the front frame. Then I glued all my frames together.

I cut a backing layer from scrap cardstock the same size as the outer perimeter of the frames, & adhered 2 pieces of patterned paper from my scrap stash to that, positioned so they would show through the window in the stacked frames. (I wanted a countertop & wallpaper look.) I glued my frames on top, & glued down my coffee cup, so it appears to "sit" on the counter. I adhered a panel of patterned paper from graphic45's "Christmas Carol" 6x6" pad to a white A2 card base for my background, & then glued my framed image onto the card.

I'm also entering this card in Double Trouble's Challenge #125A: "Deja-BREW."

Season's Greetings

This week's challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is to use the colors blue, red, & white on your card. Other than black, those are the only colors you can use. I created this card, inspired by that challenge & Kristina Werner's lesson on Day 2 of Online Card Classes' "Holiday Card Workshop 2022."

I stamped the plaid design with My Favorite Things' "Plaid Background Builder" set (discontinued) & Candied Apple Distress Oxide ink onto a panel of Bazzill Icy Mint (pale blue) cardstock. Then I adhered that to my white A2 size card base.

For the snowflake, I used Hero Arts' "Color Layering Snowflake." I stamped the first layer with Hero Arts Cornflower ink, & the second with Lawn Fawn Forget-Me-Not ink. For the third layer, I used Ranger White Super Fine Detail embossing powder. I kind of wish (in hindsight) that I'd used a dark blue embossing powder instead of white, but I still think it looks OK. I just feel the dark blue would have popped more. Next time! :)

I stamped the greeting, from Hero Arts' "Finch Greetings," onto white cardstock with Forget-Me-Not ink, & fussy cut it out.

I laid the snowflake & greeting onto my background, & just felt the card needed a bit more. So I got some white holographic sewing thread & made a messy nest to put behind the snowflake. I used my ATG adhesive on the back of the snowflake to tack down the thread. Then I glued that to my card with liquid glue, just so it would hold very well over the Oxide ink. I glued my greeting down, centered below the snowflake, & that finished this card.

Peaceful

The current challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is a sketch. I followed the sketch pretty much literally, except to extend the strips across the entire panel.

I got the inspiration for the background from Koren Wiskman's lesson on Day 7 of Online Card Classes' "Holiday Card Workshop 2022." I masked off the border with yellow Frog tape, & ink blended the center with Saltwater Taffy, Worn Lipstick, & Abandoned Coral Distress inks. I used the "Gracious Leaves" embossing folder from Memory Box to emboss the panel.

I heat embossed the greeting, from Simon Says Stamp's "Holiday Greetings Mix 1" stamp set, with gold onto a scrap of patterned paper I had in my stash. I cut that into a strip & added a narrow strip of matte gold foil cardstock along the bottom. I adhered that to my embossed panel. Finally, I added my panel to a Simon Says Stamp Fog cardstock mat that I'd adhered to a white A2-size card base.

I'm also entering this card in Through the Craft Room Door's "Anything Goes" challenge.

Snowy Season's Greetings

This is my second card for Christmas Card Throwdown's October Tic-Tac-Toe Challenge. For this one I chose the diagonal row of Favorite Color (purple), Patterned Paper, & Die Cut.

I used the remainder of the same "failed" alcohol ink background from my first card for this challenge to die cut the snowflakes. As Jennifer McGuire says, if you do a background you don't like, just die cut from it! 😊 I cut a panel of pink patterned paper from an old 6x6" pad from BoBunny, & matted it with navy cardstock, to complement the dark blue snowflakes. I glued my snowflakes to that.

I die cut a label with one of the "Grommet Tags" set by Spellbinders (discontinued) from yellow cardstock, & heat embossed my greeting with navy embossing powder. The greeting comes from Hero Arts' "Holiday Cardinal" stamp set. I adhered 3 purple strips - scraps from an ink smooshed technique piece I'd done previously - to my pink panel. I then adhered my greeting label over those. As a finishing touch, I colored 2 clear gems with a navy Sharpie marker, and glued them over the holes in the ends of the label.

I'm also entering this card in Hero Arts' "Stay Crafty with a Blog Named Hero" October challenge: "Merry Everything."

Hummingbird Happy Birthday

My counselor's birthday is coming up this weekend, & I made this card for her. The design is based on Sketch Challenge #580 at Try Stampin' on Tuesday. For the main elements, I rotated the sketch 180 degrees. I added the sequins at the bottom right, in place of the banner in the sketch.

I embossed my background panel with the "Vines" embossing folder from Park Lane, then adhered it to my A2-size card base. I stamped the "Hummingbird" image from Divinity Designs onto a scrap of 140 lb. watercolor paper, using Ink on 3's Fade-Out ink. I painted that with my watercolors. I used a black glaze pen to go over the eye, & added in the catchlights with a white gel pen.

I printed the flower from Fred She Said's "Hummingbird & Columbine" digital set onto another piece of watercolor paper. I watercolored that as well. I stamped the "happy birthday," from Altenew's "Balloon Bunch" set, with Villainous Potion Distress Oxide ink. I felt that went well with the purple I'd used in the bird.

I adhered my flower panel to my card. I die cut the hummingbird with the coordinating die, & also die cut it 3 more times from white cardstock. I layered all the die cuts, & then glued it onto my card. I added 3 5mm Crystal sequins from Darice onto the bottom right, & that finished this card. I really love how this came together, & I'm sure my counselor will love it, too.

Joy to the World

The current challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is a Tic-Tac-Toe Stash challenge. I chose the diagonal line with the Nativity, Patterned paper, & Embossing (heat embossing, in my case) squares.

I had an alcohol ink background that I'd done for a different card, that had not turned out at all as I'd intended. It's been sitting on my desk for a few weeks now, and I finally decided to use it for this card. The blue alcohol inks had gotten rather dark in places, & I was concerned my image wouldn't show up well. So I spritzed the panel with isopropyl alcohol & daubed it with a paper towel to remove some of the ink. To my delight, it worked really well! I then heat embossed one of the images from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps' "O Holy Night" stamp set with Wow Perissa embossing powder. I had to be very careful with the heat embossing, since my background is Yupo paper, which is rather sensitive to heat. Thankfully, I was able to melt the embossing powder without warping the paper too much. After the embossing had cooled, I die cut it with a circle die. I cut another circle from white cardstock, & adhered my Yupo circle to that, just to provide more stability & flatten it.

I used the "Big Rays" stencil from A Colorful Life Designs to stencil my background. I inked with Fossilized Amber Distress ink onto a light yellow cardstock. When I removed the stencil, I felt the contrast between the inked & uninked areas was a bit too stark, though. So I blended over the whole panel with just the ink that was left on my blending foam. That knocked the contrast back by darkening between the rays slightly. Then I die cut the panel with the stitched rectangle from Mama Elephant's "Femme Frames" set (discontinued).

After I glued my focal circle in place, I stamped my greeting (from the same set) in Lawn Fawn's Blue Jay ink. I cut a panel of patterned paper from Graphic45's "Christmas Carol" 6x6" pad with the largest of the "Large Stitched Rectangle" dies from Lawn Fawn. I used that to mat my main panel, & then adhered it to a white card base.

I'm also entering this card in Double Trouble's "Let's Get A-Round to It" challenge.

Ho Ho Ho!

This week's theme challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is "Christmas Critters." I have had the "Candy Claus" stamp from Stampendous (discontinued) for at least a couple of years, and have never inked it up! I finally decided to pull it out for this challenge.

I cut a panel of Strathmore Vellum Bristol paper to 5-1/2x4-1/4". This image is rather large (about 5x3-1/4"), so I knew I would need the maximum amount of real estate for an A2 card. I stamped the image with Memento Tuxedo Black ink. I was glad I used my MISTI stamp positioning tool, since I had to stamp it a few times to get a good impression. I then colored it with my Prismacolor colored pencils. After I finished coloring, I used a black fine-tip pen to add a few more dots to the snow area, as the dots in the stamp kind of stopped short at either end. By extending the area of dots, I just feel it gives a smoother look.

The greeting turned out to be the trickiest part of the whole card. I planned to use a die from the "Delightful Day Conversation Bubbles" set by Taylored Expressions (discontinued), with the "Ho Ho Ho!" greeting from the October 2020 My Monthly Hero kit (discontinued). Unfortunately, the only speech bubble die that came close to being the right size was both a bit too long & in the wrong orientation for my design. I had to think about it for a few minutes, but finally tested to see if I could do partial die cutting to shorten the speech bubble. I just cut a scrap of cardstock, & ran it through my die cutting machine, making sure the die hung out of the plates where I didn't want to cut it. Then I slid the die over, and finished the cut. And it worked like a charm! Plus, I could flip the die cut over to get the bubble in the right direction. When I die cut for real (using Simon Says Stamp's Fog cardstock), I placed another scrap of cardstock between the Fog piece & my cutting plate, so the impressions in the plate wouldn't mar the Fog cardstock. After I die cut the final piece, I stamped my greeting with Versafine Onyx Black ink onto the back of the speech bubble. Finally, I adhered my card panel to a white A2 card base, & glued down my greeting bubble. I really love how this card came out! I will send it to Send a Smile 4 Kids, hopefully to bring a smile to a hospitalized child's face.

I'm also entering this card in Send a Smile 4 Kids' "Holiday/Celebration Cards 4 Kids" challenge.

Happy Birthday #2

The son of a friend of my mom's recently turned 2 years old. My mom asked me if I had any birthday cards that were appropriate for a young child. I didn't, so I created this one.

I stamped the bear & party hat, from Lawn Fawn's "Really High Five" set, onto scraps of Strathmore Vellum Bristol paper. I used my Prismacolor colored pencils to color them in. Because the balloon I would die cut wouldn't have an outline, I decided to fussy-cut the images so they would match better. Thankfully, they weren't too hard to cut out! After I cut them out, I "painted" the edges of each with a black brush-tip marker, to camouflage the white core of the paper & give a cleaner appearance.

I die cut the star balloon from Lawn Fawn's "Party Balloons" set & stamped the "2" from Lawn Fawn's "Quinn's 123s" onto that. I heat embossed the (outline) number, then colored it in with a Versamarker pen & applied more embossing powder. I used my heat gun to melt the powder for a custom balloon. I added shading to the balloon with a blue colored pencil, just so it didn't look so flat.

For the background, I added clouds with the My Favorite Things "Rolling Clouds" stencil & Tumbled Glass Distress ink. They are light, but they are there. I matted that with a rainbow striped paper from the "Party Boy" 6x6" patterned paper pad from Photoplay. I glued my balloon in place & tied a bow from crochet twine around the balloon neck. I "sealed" the knot of the bow with a little liquid glue. I glued the bear on the background, & glued the one end of the twine to his paw, so he can "hold" the balloon string. I also glued the party hat on top of his head.

I heat embossed my greeting - also from "Really High Five" - onto a scrap of blue cardstock. I cut it into 2 labels, & added them to my card at angles for a more playful feel.

I'm entering my card in the following challenges:

The Paper Funday Challenge #45: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Stay Crafty with a Blog Named Hero September Challenge: "Die-lightful"

Double Trouble Challenge #121: "Punch It Out" (had a can of soda during my crafty session)

Poinsettia Pop-Up Card

I created this card for Christmas Card Throwdown's September Technique Challenge: "Pop Up Card." I followed a tutorial on Splitcoaststampers.com for the pop-up mechanism.

I began by creating my card base & flower pot, as per the instructions in the tutorial. I did that first, so I could have a sense of how large each flower could be & how many I would need. I used a plaid patterned paper from the Recollections "Christmas Plaids" 6x6" pad for my base, since it made me think of a holiday tablecloth. I found a dark green cardstock in my scrap stash for the pot itself.

I die cut a total of 8 poinsettias (Poppystamps "Blooming Poinsettia") from Bazzill "Cherry Splash" cardstock, & used Bazzill "Caramel Apple" cardstock for the green background leaves on the poinsettias. I found a super bright yellow-green cardstock in my scraps, that I used for the flower centers. For the filler greenery in my arrangement, I used 3 dies from the "Mini Holiday Greens" set by Tim Holtz for Sizzix. I cut the holly leaves from "Caramel Apple" & the sprigs from a slightly darker green scrap.

I glued the layers of my flowers together, & after the glue set up, added the flower centers. I used glue dots to adhere the flowers themselves to the acetate support pieces I'd added to the pot. For the greenery filler pieces, I just kind of stuck each one into the arrangement & added a bit of glue to each to stick them to the flowers. It was enough glue to hold everything in place, while still keeping the whole arrangement full & "fluffy."

Detail photo of greeting strip

I heat embossed the greeting, from Hero Arts' October 2020 My Monthly Hero Kit stamp set (discontinued), with Ranger Gold Super Fine Detail embossing powder. I used an "Essential Stitched Sentiment Strips" die to cut it out. The die was a bit too long, so I had to do partial die cutting to shorten it. I added that to the card base with foam adhesive squares, leaving a space with no adhesive for the belly band to fit under the right end.

I'm also entering this card in the following challenges:

Double Trouble Challenge #121: "Punch It Out"

The Paper Funday Challenges #45: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: "Emboss It" (heat embossed greeting)

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: "Anything Goes"

Stay Crafty with A Blog Named Hero September Challenge: "Die-lightful"

Dragonfly Good Vibes

I have had the Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps "Dragonfly Dreams" stamp set for several months, & had yet to get it inky. I finally had some time to play recently, & decided to break out this set & try some ink color combinations. I actually created 3 dragonflies, die cut with the coordinating dies. This is one that I used on my card. The design is from Operation Write Home's Sketch #B-15.

I first die cut the dragonfly from white cardstock. This is a builder stamp set, so I just figured it would be easier to get everything lined up right if I die cut first. I started with the base layer for the wings. I chose a few colors of Distress Oxide inks, & used sponge daubers to apply the ink to the wings. I began with Salvaged Patina in the center, then moved out to Seedless Preserves, Villainous Potion, Uncharted Mariner, and finally Wilted Violet at the tips. I had hoped the colors would blend more smoothly, but I think they came out OK in the end.

For the overlay of the wings, I heat embossed with Ranger Clear Holographic embossing powder. I figured it would be a great way to add some sparkle & shine to the wings. I stamped the first layer of the body with Lawn Fawn's Hippo ink, then went over it with StazOn Jet Black ink. The two middle legs overlap the wings, & I needed the StazOn ink for it to show up on the heat embossed area.

I die cut a circle from tan cardstock, & ink blended it with Brushed Corduroy Distress ink, then inked the edges with Walnut Stain Distress ink. I stamped the Concord & 9th "Weathered Wood Background" on that with Ground Espresso Distress Oxide ink.

I cut a piece of patterned paper from The Paper Studio's "Peaceful Meadows" mat stack pad to size, & adhered it to a 4-1/4" square card base. I glued my circle to the top of my card base, making sure it didn't make it taller than 5-1/2", so it would still fit in an A2 size envelope. I glued my dragonfly to that. Finally, I adhered my greeting strip, which was a gift from another card maker.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Double Trouble Challenge #121: "Punch It Out" (die cut dragonfly & circle)

Use Your Stuff Challenge #467: "Woodgrain"

Hero Arts September Challenge: "Die-lightful"

Paperfunday Challenge #45: "Anything Goes" (playing the optional Thinking of You twist)

Squirrelly Happy Halloween

Challenge #200 at Dies R Us challenge blog is "Anything Goes with any brand of die DRU sells." I have been in full-on Halloween card creating mode, to send several to Send a Smile 4 Kids. I came across Sketch #SC866 at Splitcoaststampers.com, & thought, if you turn it sideways, it looks like a stepped wall. What else to do but put a bunch of Jack-o'-Lanterns - that 2 squirrels have dutifully carved - on the "steps"? I used stamps & dies from Lawn Fawn's "Pick of the Patch" set for this card.

I stamped the pumpkins, squirrels, knife, & scoop onto Strathmore Smooth bristol paper with Versafine Onyx Black ink. I used my Tombow markers to color everything, & add a bit of detail to the pumpkins. Then I stamped the faces on the Jack-o'-Lanterns. Finally I die cut everything with the coordinating dies.

For the wall, I cut the stepped levels into a piece of grey cardstock. I used the "Small Brick Wall" stencil from My Favorite Things to stencil the bricks. I used 2 colors of Distress ink - Rusty Hinge & Fired Brick - to add a bit of "life" to the bricks. I used the other half of the grey cardstock to create the ledges at the tops of the steps. I adhered it to the back of the wall panel so it stuck about 1/8" above the bricks, & then trimmed off the vertical bits so it was just a ledge on each step.

I used My Favorite Things' "Mini Cloud Edges" stencil & Salvaged Patina Distress ink to do the sky on a panel of white cardstock. I stamped the greeting onto a scrap of green cardstock with Lawn Fawn's Jalapeno ink. Then I die cut the top of the grass with a "Grassy Fields" die (discontinued), also from My Favorite Things.

I adhered the wall to my stenciled background, & added the grass, applying ATG adhesive only to the bottom part of the strip. That way I could tuck my pumpkin & one of the squirrels behind the grass. I glued all the images onto my card. I added some shine to the squirrels' noses with a black glaze pen, & that finished this card.

I'm also entering this card in the following challenges:

Send a Smile 4 Kids: "Cute Fall/Halloween Cards 4 Kids"

Through the Craft Room Door: "Anything Goes"

Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday Challenge: "Stamp It"

When It Rains

First view of pop-up

The current Lawn Fawnatics challenge is to "Change the Scene." I admittedly went a bit "dramatic" with my card, with a complete change of scene!

Jennifer McGuire's tutorial on "Pop-Up Panel Cards" inspired my design direction. I began by creating the front (pop-up) panel. I stamped the bear from Lawn Fawn's "Here for You Bear" (gift with purchase from Lawn Fawn) onto a square of Strathmore vellum bristol paper. I masked him, & stamped the puddle & splash from the same set. I masked off the sky area with yellow Frog tape, & ink blended the ground with Pumice Stone Distress ink. I was going for kind of a concrete walk look. I masked off the ground with the same tape, & inked the sky with Stormy Sky Distress ink. With the bear mask still in place, I also stamped raindrops, from "Rain or Shine Before 'n Afters," in the sky, with Stormy Sky Distress Oxide ink. I unmasked the bear, & used my Prismacolor pencils to color him in. I also added a bit of blue pencil to the puddle & splash, so they look like they "reflect" the sky.

I die cut a scrap of vellum bristol with one of Lawn Fawn's "Puffy Cloud Borders" dies, inked it with Stormy Sky + Pumice Stone Distress inks, & adhered it to the top of my panel. I stamped my greeting, from "Here for You Bear," on that. I then matted the panel with a 1/16" blue cardstock mat, just to help it stand out a bit better from the background. Finally, I used a black glaze pen to go over the bear's eyes & nose.

Second view of pop-up

I cut a slightly smaller square of vellum bristol for the back panel. I stamped the rainbow image from "Rain or Shine Before 'n Afters" on that, & colored it with my colored pencils. I masked it off, & ink blended Tumbled Glass Distress ink for the background sky. I stamped one of the smiley faces in the set on the sun, & finished the greeting with another stamp from "Here for You Bear." I finished by matting that with yellow cardstock.

For my card front, I used 2 patterned papers from Lawn Fawn. (They were a gift with a purchase, so I don't know the names of the collections they are from.) I cut them to 4x5-1/4", & then trimmed each piece in 2 at an angle for a bit of dynamism. I adhered them to a scrap of cardstock, just so I could work with them as one panel.

I put together the pop-up mechanism as per Jennifer's instructions. I did have to make one small alteration, because the larger square wasn't too much bigger than the smaller. Rather than scoring at 2" & 2-1/2", I had to have my score lines only 1/4" apart. It worked in the end, though! Of course, I had to put everything together to figure out that was a problem, and then pull it apart to redo it. Thank heavens for double-sided tape & UnDu adhesive remover!

Once I had the mechanism working, I matted my patterned paper panel with a piece of Bazzill Gumball cardstock that I'd adhered to a white A2-size card base. I stamped "pull" using the "Interactive Labels" stamp set from My Favorite Things on the tab, rounded the corners with my scissors, & that finished this card! I will send it to Send a Smile 4 Kids, where it will hopefully bring joy to a hospitalized child's spirit. 😊

I'm also entering this card in The Paper Funday Challenge's "Anything Goes" challenge #44 (not playing the twist). 

Merry Christmas to You

This week's technique challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is "CAS/One Layer." I don't consider myself a CAS card maker generally. But I took the challenge, & made this card.

My card admittedly took a few twists & turns during the creation. Taking a page from Jennifer McGuire's playbook, I actually made 4 cards with this design, just changing the greeting for each. This card using Gina K products inspired my initial design. I liked the circle for the greeting in the middle with the heat embossed imagery behind it. I figured with some creative masking, I could make a similar one-layer card. At first, I was going to use that same image from "Holiday Tapestry," but when I laid it on my panel, I just felt it was too big to work for my design. So, to keep more white space, I opted for a snowflake background using Mama Elephant's "Holly's Snowflakes" stamp set instead.

I first heat embossed the circle for around the greeting, from Gina K's "Holiday Wreath Builder." I meant to stamp it in the exact center of my panel, but apparently measuring was not my strength this time, & I got it slightly higher on the panel. Oh, well - no worries! I heat embossed the greeting with the same Ranger Silver Super Fine Detail powder that I'd used on the circle frame.

I die cut a 1-7/8" circle from masking paper, using a Waffle Flower "Additional Circles" die. I used that to mask the greeting area, & cut strips of yellow Frog tape to 1/2" wide to mask the outer border of my panel. I placed the panel in my MISTI, & arranged several of the snowflake stamps on the panel. I picked them all up on the MISTI door, & stamped them in Versamark ink. I used Ranger Silver Pearl embossing powder to heat emboss them. I had expected it to be a bit more subtle, with just a hint of color, but I think it still works OK.

After the heat embossing had cooled, I removed the masks, & used my scoreboard to score a line around the perimeter of where the snowflakes ended. I scored first on the front, so I could see where to mark the lines, & then flipped my panel over to score on those lines from the back, so they would be embossed on the front. I finished by adhering my card front to a white A2-size card base. I don't consider this a mass-producible card, given how fiddly it was to position everything, plus having to mask off the border on each panel. But to create 4 took me about 2 hours give or take, so not too bad.

I'm also entering this card in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp's Wednesday Challenge: "Anything Goes"

Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge: "Make Your Own Background"

The Paper Funday Challenges #44: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Season's Greetings

This week's challenge at Christmas Card Throwdown is to use pink, purple, & gold in your card. Kind of an unusual color combination for a Christmas card, but I was up for the challenge! I had these stamped pink poinsettias, from WPlus9's "Poinsettia Builder" set, on my desk since last year, & thought they would be perfect for this challenge. So I die cut them to put them to use.

I had to think for a bit what to do with these poinsettias. I have Art Impressions' "WC Ornate Container Set" stamp set, & found the perfect pot in that for my flowers to live in. I stamped it onto a scrap piece of photo paper that I'd done ink smooshing with Distress Oxides on. I liked the color variation in my technique piece, & had furthered the gold look by spraying the finished piece with Heidi Swapp Gold Color Shine mist. Because of the glossy photo paper, I made sure to stamp the pot with Ranger Jet Black Archival ink. That ink, if heat set, is permanent on glossy surfaces. Because there are no coordinating dies with that stamp set, I fussy cut the pot.

I cut a piece of purple cardstock to 2x4-1/4". I heat embossed snowflakes from Simon Says Stamp's "Holiday Greetings Mix 1" & Mama Elephant's "Holly's Snowflakes" on that with Ranger Gold Super Fine Detail embossing powder. I adhered a panel of white striped paper from The Paper Studio's "Blanc Boutique" 12x12" patterned paper pad, to act as "wallpaper" for my little scene. I added my heat-embossed "tablecloth" to the bottom of my card base. I glued my pot on, then glued the poinsettias over the top edge of the pot.

For the greeting, I used the Season's Greetings from "Holiday Greetings Mix 1." I thought it had the look of a wooden sign, so I decided it would look great "hanging" on the "wall" on my card. I heat embossed it in gold on a light purple cardstock, & cut it out with my scissors, leaving a 1/16" border on all sides. I cut 3 more strips of cardstock to layer behind it, to give my sign some dimension. Because of where I placed the poinsettias on the card, I didn't have enough room to add a string for a hanger for my sign, so I just glued it directly to the card. I imagine it has a sawtooth hanger or a keyhole groove cut in the back, and hangs on an unseen nail. :) I really like how this card came out!

Welcome to the Jungle

I created this card inspired by the photo in the InspirationStation Challenge #35. The whole jungle look of their picture for this challenge made me think of Doodle Pantry's "Safari Animals" digital set (discontinued). I decided to use all the animals in the set, along with its "Welcome to the Jungle" greeting. I'll be sending this card to Send a Smile 4 Kids.

I used Sketch #SC734 from Splitcoaststampers for my design. I created a 5-1/2x2-1/2" blank canvas in Photoshop, as per the sketch, and positioned the animal images on that, overlapping them slightly with each other. I created another 5-1/2x1-3/4" canvas, & positioned the greeting, leaving room for the chevrons in the sketch. I printed the animals onto a scrap of Strathmore Vellum Bristol paper, since I wanted to color them with my Prismacolor pencils. I printed the greeting onto a strip of tan patterned paper from my scrap stash.

After I colored the animals, I fussy cut them out. (I wanted to add a stenciled cloud background, which I felt would be much easier with the animals separate from the background.) I used a black glaze pen to go over the animals' eyes, & added in catchlights with a white gel pen.  For the sky, I used Speckled Egg Distress ink & My Favorite Things' "Mini Cloud Edges" stencil on white cardstock. I die cut 2 grass strips from a patterned paper scrap, with the My Favorite Things "Grassy Fields" dies (discontinued). I adhered the taller strip in place, glued down the animals, & then added the shorter strip in front of them.

I cut the 2 chevrons from patterned papers I found in my scrap stash, & glued them in place on the greeting strip. I adhered my background to a white A2-size card base, added my greeting strip, & that finished this card.

I'm also entering this card in Paper Funday's August 2022 "Anything Goes" Challenge #44.

Happy Birthday with Rainbow Scoops

The current challenge at Double Trouble is to make your own, "YouNique," background. I have a great need of birthday cards in the coming weeks, so I decided to make a rainbow ice cream birthday card. Who wouldn't want to celebrate their birthday with a 7-decker ice cream cone? :)

I first die cut the ice cream scoops & cone with the coordinating dies to Hero Arts' "Color Layering Ice Cream" (discontinued). I set up my MISTI stamp positioning tool so I could stamp the scoops in assembly-line style. I had a template using the negative space from one of the cardstock scraps that I'd cut the pieces from. I positioned the base stamp for the cone & scoop in place, & stamped that layer for each one, changing colors as I went. Then I positioned the detail layer for each, & stamped those in slightly darker colors. I made sure, after a tip from Jennifer McGuire, to let the base layer on each piece dry a bit before stamping the top layer, just to keep the detail layer from mushing into the base layer.

For my background, I cut a piece of pink cardstock to 3-1/4x8-1/4". I used the word stamps from Winnie & Walter's "The Party" set (discontinued) and Lawn Fawn Ballet Slippers ink to stamp my background pattern. After I had finished stamping, I glued my cone & scoops to the panel.

I stamped my greeting, from Sweet 'n Sassy Stamp's "Happy Birthdays" set (discontinued), in Versafine Clair Morning Mist ink onto a scrap of Bazzill Icy Mint cardstock. Finally, I glued that down & adhered my panel to a white slimline card.

I'm also entering this card in the following challenges:

Creative Knockouts Challenge #458: "Something to Say"

My Favorite Things Slimline Challenge: "Rainbow"

613 Avenue Create's June Challenge: "Anything Goes" (not playing the twist)

Die Cut Divas' June Challenge: "Summer Days" (what is more summery than ice cream?)

A Banner Hello

I have had the gold die cut strips, made with Spellbinders' "Octagon Strips and Accents" dies (discontinued), for several months. I had made them to use on a project, but that ended up not working out. They were too good to chuck, though, so I held onto them. The other day, I finally decided this was The Time to use them.

I used the outer die in the set to cut 2 backing pieces of peach pearlized cardstock, & glued the gold die cuts to those. I used the same die with the corresponding insert to cut another strip from purple cardstock. I wanted something to break up the gold banners, and give me a third element. I cut a third peach piece to back the purple strip for continuity, & glued them together.

For the background, I applied Golden's Light Molding Paste through Hero Arts' "Deco Pattern" stencil. I left kind of a ragged edge towards the bottom right corner, so I could add a die cut greeting. I die cut the greeting from Hero Arts' "Hello Stamp & Cut" set once from gold & once from the purple I'd used for the third strip. I glued the purple down to my background panel, then layered the gold on top, offset so the purple provided a shadow.

After I decided how long I wanted my banners, I cut each strip to length. I wanted to stitch them, but with the thickness of the layered banners, I couldn't stitch straight through to the card front. So I poked holes along the top of each banner, & stitched with white thread. Then I used liquid tacky glue to glue just the tops of the banners along my panel, lining up the stitching lines & letting the rest of each lift up. Finally, I matted my panel with a light teal cardstock that I'd adhered to a white A2-size card base.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Double Trouble Paper Crafting Challenge #114: "YouNique Technique"

Dies R Us Challenge #195: "Dad's Day/Masculine"

Paper Funday Challenges Challenge #42: "Anything Goes with Optional Twist: Masculine" (playing the twist)

Creative Knockouts Challenge #458: "Something to Say"

Celebrate Your Special Day

I created this card for my aunt whose birthday is next week. She is a singer, & so I thought the music theme would work well. I got the design from Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge #478.

I found the music paper in my scrap stash, & cut it to 3-3/4x5-1/2". I also found a strip from a blue cardstock panel I'd stamped & heat embossed many many moons ago, that I figured would work well for the border strips in the sketch. So I cut that in two & glued one strip behind each side of my patterned paper, so about 1/8" peeks out. Then I adhered that to a cream cardstock panel that I glued to the front of my A2-size card base.

I used a greeting from My Favorite Things' "Birthday Greetings" stamp set (discontinued). I cut a strip of yellow cardstock from my scrap stash & adhered it to my card. I decided to deviate from the sketch a bit by placing the greeting on the strip. I stamped that with Prize Ribbon Distress Oxide ink. I thought that blue played well with the border strips & complemented the orange patterned paper. I die cut a balloon from gold glitter cardstock, using a Lawn Fawn "Party Balloons" die, & glued it in place. I love how this card came out, & I'm sure my aunt will too!

Happy Father's Day

If you think it may seem a tad early for Father's Day, you might be right. But, such cards for Send a Smile 4 Kids need to be in to their volunteers by May 15, so they can sort & ship them to children's hospitals in time for the children to give or send them to their fathers. I created this one to donate to them, using Sketch #SC867 at Splitcoaststampers.com as my design inspiration.

I stamped the image, from Hero Arts' "Li'l Hoot" set (discontinued), onto 140 lb. watercolor paper & painted it with my watercolors. I was undecided if I wanted to leave the background the plain white of the watercolor paper, paint it like a night sky (going around the image), or fussy cut the image and glue it to another paper. I finally opted to fussy cut & glue, but then had to decide if I wanted a solid or patterned paper. Choices! I ended up die cutting a circle from navy cardstock & splattered it with white paint for the look of stars - and got some streaks that I thought could be comets or shooting stars.

I have had the banner for some months now. I even forget what I created it for, that it apparently turned out not to work on. But I recently found it in my leftovers box, so decided to pull it out and finally try to find something to use it on. At any rate, I tested the greeting, from the Essentials by Ellen "12 Days Companion Greetings" set (discontinued), against it, & it fit like a glove! So I stamped that in Versafine Onyx Black ink, using my MISTI stamp positioning tool to help me get the greeting curved - and stamped - accurately.

I adhered a cream cardstock panel to my white A2 card base, & added a strip of patterned paper that I had found in my scrap stash. I cut the excess off the strip at the top & bottom. I lightly taped my focal circle to my grid mat, to help me center the greeting banner at the bottom. I used liquid glue to tack the banner to the bottom center of the circle. When the glue had dried enough that the banner wouldn't fall off, I picked up the circle & now-attached banner & glued them to my card.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Creative Knockouts #449: "Winged Things or Furry Friends"

Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge: "Wild and Wonderful" (owls are wild birds, right?)

The Paper Funday Challenges April Challenge #40: "Anything Goes" (not playing the optional twist)