Christmas Card '07?

I finally felt motivated to start playing around with Christmas card designs. I am totally loving the square card lately. If I'm gonna have to increase postage for the thickness and even the weight, I might as well make it square while I'm at it, right? (I hope that doesn't make it triple postage!) I used a design from a fall card I made last month. It also looks a lot like the Mojo Monday sketch challenge on Poetic Artistry this week, except my image panel is circle instead of square. I wonder if I can still enter ...

I made my own background paper using the same stamp as the main image. First I stamped a time or two in Versamark, then a couple times in Vanilla ink for the Pomegranate base and White ink for the River Rock base (the Vanilla really didn't show up on the River Rock). I think I'll order a pack of the Holiday Harmony designer paper to speed things up a bit.

But here's the thing ... the image is supposed to be mistletoe, yes? And mistletoe berries are white, right? Which makes this card wrong, huh? Is there *anything* else the image could be, so that I can keep my red berries?

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!)
Stamps: Peaceful Wishes, Party Punch (hostess), French Script background
Inks: Always Artichoke, Purely Pomegranate, VersaMark, White craft, Vanilla craft
Paper: Always Artichoke, Purely Pomegranate, River Rock, Chocolate Chip, Whisper White
Accessories: Rose Red, Always Artichoke, and Chocolate Chip markers; clear embossing powder; slot punch; pomegranate satin ribbon; 1 3/8" circle, 1/4" circle, and 1/2" circle punches; dimensionals; antique brass brads.

Elegant Silhouette

I had so much fun putting together this card for SCS's Sketch Challenge #151.

For the main image, since there isn't a Purely Pomegranate marker, I inked the whole image from the Purely Pomegranate pad, then used the brush tip of a Basic Black marker to color over the leaves and stems. After stamping, I used a stamp positioner to overstamp the image in VersaMark ink, so that I could clear emboss the whole thing. (Do not try this without a stamp positioner, LOL!) I like the shiny elegance it gives to the card.

For the background, I ran the black card stock through my Cuttlebug using the textile folder. Something about it was still too "plain" for the shiny main image, so I tried adding VersaMark ink to the raised portions (I used a brayer), so that I could clear emboss. It worked!

I also added one of the stick pins from the Pretties kit. Who knows if this is the "right" way to use this kit ... all I know is it was a shame to see that whole kit just sitting untouched since July, when it showed up in the new catalog and I *had* to have it! I'm saying "no" to hoarding :)

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!:
Stamps: Garden Silhouettes
Inks: Purely Pomegranate, VersaMark
Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Basic Black, Whisper White
Accessories: Basic Black marker, clear embossing powder, paper piercer, corner rounder (for scallops), white gel pen, pomegranate satin ribbon, word window punch, black brads, Pretties kit, Cuttlebug textile embossing folder

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanks to all of you who stop by my blog and for all the encouraging comments you leave. And to those of you with blogs, thank you for sharing your creativity and knowledge. You all are such an inspiration to me. Happy Thanksgiving! However you celebrate, I wish you a joy-filled day.

Supplies (Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Time Well Spent, Thanks by Heidi Swapp
Paper: Chocolate Chip, watercolor paper
Inks: Jet Black Staz-On, More Mustard, Really Rust, Ruby Red, VersaMark
Accessories: 5/8" Old Olive grosgrain ribbon, Clear Embossing Powder, Old Olive brad, dimensionals, glitter pen (by Sakura)

Pink and Green Snowflakes

SCS's color challenge this week is Pretty In Pink, Wild Wasabi, and Whisper White, with added encouragement to make a holiday card. I wouldn't have thought to use these for a Christmas card, but I love how they turn out together. A great challenge!

I also used Beate's Weekend Sketch Challenge #28.



Supplies (all Stampin' Up!)
Stamps: Snow Burst, Designer Label, Snow Flurries
Ink: Wild Wasabi, Pretty In Pink, White craft
Paper: Wild Wasabi, Pretty In Pink, Whisper White
Accessories: Designer label punch, 1" circle punch, 1/2" circle punch, slot punch, ticket corner punch, Pretty in Pink brads, Wild Wasabi double-stitched ribbon, Cuttlebug Snowflakes embossing folder

Is Less More?

One of my absolute favorite designers right now is Kristina Werner. She rocks! Her style is so lean and clean. Very minimalist. I compulsively check her blog to see what new stuff she's been working on, and everytime, without fail, I see a new project and my jaw drops. She takes "less is more" to a completely different level. Check out her work on her blog: kwernerdesignblog.

I'm usually into more layers, more embellishments, more "stuff," so I challenged myself to make something in the "less is more" style. I tried to stick with basic stamping and a few (hopefully) well-placed "extras," like the piercing, ribbon, glitter, and pop-dots.

Supplies (Stampin' Up! unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Time Well Spent
Inks: Jet-Black Staz-On, Certainly Celery, Apricot Appeal, Bashful Blue
Paper: Pretty In Pink, Whisper White, Watercolor paper
Accessories: aqua painter, dimensionals, apricot grosgrain ribbon, celery grosgrain ribbon, blue gingham ribbon, paper piercer; markers (Apricot Appeal, Certainly Celery, Bashful Blue, and Pretty in Pink), glitter gel pen (by Sakura)

Oh, and here's something exciting. I'll have a card in the April 2008 issue of CARDS!

November Teacher Appreciation

This is what the teachers and staff at my son's elementary school will be receiving tomorrow from the PTO. I used Qbee's Peek-A-Boo box, which I discovered a few weeks ago in one of the Technique Lover's Challenges on SCS. Awesome little boxes, but sixty-four is a LOT to make!

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!):
Stamps: Shapes & Shadows, All-Year Cheer (I, II, or III, not sure?)
Inks: Really Rust, More Mustard, Old Olive, Pumpkin Patch spectrum, Chocolate Chip
Paper: Very Vanilla, More Mustard, Old Olive, Really Rust
Accessories: acetate, 1 1/4" punch (for the inside), craft knife (on the inside), lots of M&Ms ;)

See my Halloween box here. And a whole bunch more here. Get the pattern and instructions here.

Last month's PTO teacher gift was a Halloween sour cream box.

Featured Stamper: Papermoon04

Today's Featured Stamper on SCS is Papermoon04. I've admired all the creations in her gallery for a while now, so it was fun to spend the extra time looking through her gallery and picking something to CASE. I chose this card of hers because it uses so many of my favorites: flower stamps from Petal Prints, the "Textile" cuttlebug embossing folder, and a great (and timely) sentiment that is part of the Happy Harmony stamp set.

The changes I made are:
1. color scheme
2. used the Designer Label punch behind the sentiment
3. used two word window punched strips in place of the three brads on the main image panel.

The elements I kept:
1. layout
2. embossed background
3. stamps

Supplies:
Stamps: Petal Prints, Happy Harmony
Inks: Purely Pomegranate, Chocolate Chip, River Rock
Paper: Purely Pomegranate, Chocolate Chip, River Rock, Very Vanilla
Accessories: word window punch, vintage brads, designer label punch, 1" circle punch, pomegranate satin ribbon, Cuttlebug "textile" embossing folder