The Next Batch of Christmas Cards

Greetings friends!  I'm happy to say I've made another batch of Christmas cards.  I mentioned previously that I'm done with Halloween for this year, but I did use a Halloween die set for these cards.  It's the Memory Box Rickety House.  New this year.  It's featured in all the cards so I'll share them together.  It's a time saver so I can get back to making more cards (😉).

I won't go into a lot of detail because we'd be here forever.  The dies are mostly retired probably.  I pulled out a lot of dies and papers for all these cards.

First up we have landscape dies, a polka dot sky and a trio of houses with a fence line down front.  The little heart in the sky was already there in the paper from something I'd made in the past, and I decided it looked just right in the scene.  The front sentiment, "Christmas Greetings" (old Hero Arts), has a companion stamp inside, "From our house to yours".

Card #2 has a Snowfall embossed card base of sanded Core'dinations-type cardstock which SU retired.  Of course I had to make a yellow house. The house and the fence sit in the snow.  There's something about that fence line in the landscape that really appeals to me.  The Cottage Cutz sentiment is layered white on blue so it will stand out.

The next card in the line up is the one that started it all.  I had planned to work with the Sizzix Woodlands trees, but it grew.  The house and the fence, the stars and the moon turned it into a whimsical and fun scene.  I know it doesn't show up well in the photo, but the sparkle on this card is pretty spectacular.  All done with glitter paper.  The red is shimmery metallic.

One thing I'll mention about this card is the crescent moon.  I made it with punches.  Punch a notch in the edge of cardstock.  Then position a larger punch over that notch to punch the crescent moon shape.  Any size.  I used 3/4" and 1" punches.  Circle dies would work too.

Finally, the last card is the simplest of all.  It's a 3 1/2" x 6" mini-slimline with nothing other than the house and fence, the sentiment, and some old-timey Memory Box designer paper.

There was another card which I'm not so sure how I feel about so I didn't photograph it.  It may be up for a redo.  We'll see.

Well, that's all folks!  As you can see, the sun was shining through my stamp room window.  It's such a nice sight to see between our much needed rain showers.  The weather has been off and on which is pretty much just right for this time of year.  I hope all is well with you.

Sending good cheer from our house to yours!

Ghosts in the Forest

Hello again!  It seems I've had this card made forever.  While I had the stencil out (for a previously posted card) I went ahead and made another background.  I covered white cardstock with orange ink first, then laid the stencil over it and sponged black ink.  It's a lot of orange and black whereas I generally like bright colors for Halloween cards.  Who knows?  I'm never exactly certain what's going to come out of my stamp room.

These are new-this-year Memory Box dies, except for the fence which is an older Impression Obsession die.  I don't know what I was thinking with the stencil.  Let's imagine it's a spooky forest with a harvest moon casting an eerie orange glow on the twisty trees.  You think?

I'm playing along in two challenges today:

Two Old Bats Halloween Challenge.  There's a super cool inspiration board, but it's always anything goes Halloween.
Stencil Fun:  October, Halloween colors.  This is a brand new challenge which I had in mind when I made the card, but I'm slow to get it posted.  I'm sure I'll enjoy playing in this challenge often.

 

That's all the Halloween for this year.  Onward to Thanksgiving and Christmas.  It's such a busy card making time of year.  Enjoy your week and your crafting!

Inks:  SU Only Orange, Memento Tuxedo Black  Paper:  Black, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White  Dies:  Memory Box Ghosts in the Forest, Boo Posh Script, Cross Stitched Frame Borders, Impression Obsession Beach Fence  Other:  Visible Image Fibres stencil, Doodlebug Halloween Sprinkles, foam mounting tape

Best Friends

Hi!  I'm going to start the week with a cute little card I made for my Rich's birthday.  Ever since we've had Wally and LuLu (13 yrs) he gets dog cards most of the time.  The cards reflect the cheerful nature of the dogs as well as the happiness they've given us all these years.  We haven't gone smile-free since the day Wally came home with us, and the smiles doubled two years later with LuLu.

Continuing with my mission to use more of my patterned paper I made a simple patch of squares for the canine cavorting.  The dog in the foreground is doing his happy dance just like Wally.  In back is LuLu who has always been more interested in butterflies than tennis balls.  She loves to chase balls, but catching them is not her thing.

The dogs and sentiment are Penny Black (two different sets, listed below).  I colored with Tombow markers and homemade blender.  Just fun.

I'm keeping it relatively quick today.  You know how it goes -- swamped one week, time on your hands the next week.    Maybe this week will be better for free time.  Have a great day!

Stamps:  Penny Black Man's Best Friend and Carefree Wishes  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot pressed watercolor, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 80 lb, scraps red, green, designer paper  Ink:  Palette Noir  Coloring:   Tombow markers and homemade blender  Other:  Darice Paw Prints embossing folder, enamel dots, MFT Die-namics Wonky stitched squares (for larger square mats, foam mounting tape

Double D Challenge: Orange and Black

 

Hi friends!  Presenting another Double D Challenge.  Today Darlene is challenging us to use the colors orange and black.  Don't think for a minute it has to be Halloween... just look at the mood board:

However, I love making Halloween cards and, inspired by the silhouette and sunset scene on the board, I had all kinds of fun making a spooky Halloween scene with new and older Memory Box dies.  I just happened to have the orange and yellow watercolor-smooshed background in my bag o' backgrounds.

I cut a fir tree oval in black and layered over yellow to make it stand out against the Creepy Cabin silhouette.  The top layer of black was swiped with a white pigment ink pad to make it stand out against the black card base.  It looks spookier that way, too.

The ghosts are sequins.  The base of the sentiment was cut from the edge of the same watercolor background as that in the scene.

We'll have creative winners plus a random winner of this prize:

I hope you can join us at Double D in our Orange and Black challenge.  It's such fun to see all your ideas just as the team loves sharing their ideas with you.  Take care!

Memory Box Dies:  Creepy Cabin, Boo Posh Script, Tall Fir Collage, Cross Stitched Frame Borders
Other:  Ghost sequins, white ink, smooshed watercolor background

Sparkle and Shine

Hi friends!  Christmas cards today, easy and quick.  These are part of a batch of nine I made recently.  No progress since then, but I have hopes of making more soon.  I'm trying to finish up a few fall things first.

I actually like the first two cards quite a lot.  They're prettier than their pictures.  You know how that goes.  Lots of white and sparkle.  The Tutti designs Arched Fir die has been in my collection a few years but it never gets old to me.  This year I ran it along a curved border.  One card with lots of white and a silver metallic edge over a panel of dry embossed snowflakes.  The red glitter sentiment is a new-to-me Cottage Cutz die from their sale list.

The next card has a silver sparkly branch over a purple sparkly base.  This purple DCWV glitter paper has a soft grain with a delicate appearance.  It also has a vinyl-like backing that makes it impossible to die cut so I have to think of other ways to use it.  The sentiment was cut from a different purple glitter paper that cuts just fine.  I lost the "i" dot from the sentiment so used a tiny snowflake instead.  I like it!  Clear gems embellish the first two cards.

Next up is more of the DCWV purple glitter paper showing through some die cut snowflakes.  I positioned the Cottage Cutz Snowflakes Set right back into the negative panel from which they were cut.  I hope that makes sense.  I double-layered the snowflakes for dimension.  Silver sequins and a silver-embossed sentiment on this one.

Pictured below is another version of the same design with shimmery vanilla cardstock on a copper metallic base.  Small copper glitter die cut snowflakes were added for embellishment.  The sentiment is embossed with vanilla embossing powder.

Most of my supplies are older, but the Cottage Cutz Snowflake Set and the die cut sentiments are new to me this year and I'm using them for the first time on these cards, so they will be playing along in Darnell's NBUS (never before used schtuff) Challenge #43.

Thanks for stopping by!  I will see you again a couple more times this week.  Take care and have a happy day!

Cat Nap

Hi everyone!  I made a card for my long-time friend's birthday.  She likes to quilt and take naps, so I thought of this old-timey wood block stamp that's been in my collection longer than I can even remember.  It's dated 1999 and that's probably about the time I got it.  It's a Gary Patterson design for Stamps Happen (out of business).  Love love love Gary Patterson's art, but if you can find the stamps these days it will cost an arm and a leg.

I know I'm dating myself, but I have to say it -- they just don't make 'em like this anymore.  "They" do make other awesome stamps, however, so thank goodness for that.  I would not want the art of stamping to fade away.

This is a 4 3/4" square card, one layer.  Clean, but not exactly simple.  The coloring took quite a while.  I used Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol odorless mineral spirits.  This coloring medium does not show through the cardstock (Neenah 110 lb).

Time for me to sign off now and get busy on many other things.  Wishing you a happy day!

Stamps:  Stamps Happen Cat Nap (1999 Gary Patterson), Your Next Stamp Whatnot Sentiments Eleven  Paper:  Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White 110 lb  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black  Coloring:  Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol odorless mineral spirits

Autumn Slumber

Hello friends!  I'd like to share a fall birthday card today.  Unusual sentiment for a birthday card, perhaps, but inside I stamped "It's your day.  Relax."   I'm thinking that pulls it together.  The thing is, I've had this sentiment since 1999 and don't find many uses for it, yet it has survived countless stamp room purges.  I like it.  I hand cut the sentiment banner and sponged the edges.

  

The slumbering critter (squirrel?) is from a 2020 Penny Black stamp set called Hugs & Cuddles.  I colored with Tombow markers and homemade blender.  Tim Holtz wreath and Impression Obsession leaves provide a resting place.  The brick and board combo background has been in my card parts drawer for a while.

This was a fun card and I hope you enjoy it.  Sorry to rush off, but I'm still not doing well with sitting too long at the computer.  I'm on the road to recovery.  Each day my back feels a little better.

I'll finish by linking up to some challenges I'd like to play along with:

Tic Tac Toe Challenge #182.  I'm using the middle row across:  Orange, free, fall leaves.  Hoping my leaves and the rust colored bricks qualify as orange.
Four Seasons Challenge - October.  Anything goes fall.
Penny Black Saturday Challenge.  I did not use the optional "Spooky".

  

Big thanks to all the folks who put on these challenges and to the teams who inspire us.  It makes crafting even more fun!  Have a happy day!

Stamps:  Penny Black Hugs & Cuddles, Anita's sentiment (very old)  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, Neena white, Core'dinations, Bazzill Chocolate  Ink:  Palette Noir, SU Chocolate Chip, various for wreath, banner, and wood grain panel  Coloring:  Tombow markers and homemade blender  Other:  Sizzix (Tim Holtz) Brick Wall embossing folder, linen thread, Sizzix (Tim Holtz) Funky Wreaths, Impression Obsession Small Leaf Set, foam mounting tape

Two Birds on a Branch

Hello and welcome back!

It's time for another Christmas card.  I didn't think this one would survive the wastebasket, but I rescued it.  Suffice to say the bird oval was cut away from the original card and placed on this much simpler, cleaner card.  It's Stampendous Heavenly Birds stamp.

Lately I've had a distressing number of cards ending up in the round file.

After gold embossing the birds (last year) I colored (this year) with Tombow markers and homemade blender.  I added a dry embossed layer to the card base, then topped with the birds, a Lawn Fawn sentiment with banner, and gold and white branches for accent.  Everything is listed in the recipe below.

I'm playing along in two challenges today:

Peace on Earth Christmas Challenge #25 --  It's always anything goes, but they have a lovely inspiration board.
NBUS Challenge #43 -- Never before used schtuff.  It took a year to finish the card, but it's still a first time use.

 

Thanks ever so much for stopping by today.  I'm behind in visiting due to three days of taking care of business, then two days down with my back.  I'm pretty sure I hurt it in the garden when I lifted something that seemed easy enough at the time.  Sure fooled me.  Anyhoo, it's very difficult to sit at the computer for any length of time.  I'll heal soon and be back to business as usual.  Take care!

Stamps:  Stampendous Heavenly Birds, Lawn Fawn Winter Wavy Sayings  Paper:  Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140 lb hot press watercolor, gold mirror, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White  Ink:  Versamark, SU Rose Red  Coloring:  Tombow markers and homemade blender  Other:  Ranger Princess Gold embossing powder, Cuttlebug Heritage Collection embossing folder, SU Subtle 3D embossing folder (card base), Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn) Wavy Banners, Sue Wilson Delicate Fronds, Memory Box Hayden Twigs

Double D Challenge - Octoberfest

Hello!  It's time for another Double D challenge.  Welcome to Octoberfest!  We're celebrating the lovely month of October with some of the many things we love about it.  Let yourself be inspired by the mood board below:

I saw the pumpkins and flowers in the lower right corner of the mood board and decided to give some love to my Penny Black Hello Pumpkin set that didn't come out often enough last year.  I combined it with an Impression Obsession sentiment thinking to send it to a friend at Thanksgiving.

I colored with Tombow markers and blender pen, then hand cut all pieces.  The cardstock is sanded and the designer paper is a super oldie.  This simple layout is a go-to favorite.  I could do every other card this way I think.  So easy when you don't have to think about it too much.

As always, the team votes on creative favorites (not an easy task), and there's a prize for a random winner.

Come on over to Double D and see the team's samples, then show us yours!  Have a great day!

Stamps:  Penny Black Hello Pumpkin, Impression Obsession Giving Thanks  Paper:  Arches 140 lb hot press watercolor, SU Core'dinations type cardstock, scrap designer paper  Ink:  Palette Noir  Coloring:  Tombow markers and homemade blender pen  Other:  Rhinestones, Hero Arts Wood Frame die set

Halloween Cat Trio

Hi!  I have a fun card today.  I got the idea for the cats from a card on Pinterest, but my card design is different.  When I clicked the Pinterest pic it didn't go anywhere so I can't give credit, but maybe you can see the pin here.  Not sure if that will work for you.  I just love them!

It's plain to see the cats are simply flag die cuts -- I used Sue Wilson Pierced Flags, a group of 3 different sizes.  Googly eyes, brads for noses, dental floss for whiskers.  The white circle separates them from the background and gives the suggestion of a moon.  The background is orange ink brushed through a Visible Image Fibres stencil.  First orange, then a little black swiped down from the top.  It looks like there's a fire in the background, yikes.

I'm playing in two challenges today, as listed and pictured below.  Two Old Bats is celebrating its anniversary this month so there are prizes.  Just sayin'.

Two Old Bats Halloween Challenge
Colorful Options -- Orange or rainbow

 

I hope you're enjoying a nice autumn where you are.  We were 100 degrees on our south deck yesterday and today we're wearing jackets.  That's fall for you.  We're safe and dry and we have our home, and not everyone can say that right now.  I'm reminding myself how fortunate I am.  Thank you for coming to visit.

Stamps:  Hero Arts Halloween Message  Paper:  Black, Neenah Classic Crest Super Smooth Solar White  Ink:  SU Only Orange, Pumpkin Patch Spectrum pad, Memento Tuxedo Black  Other:  Googly eyes, brads, dental floss, Visible Image Fibres stencil, Sue Wilson Pierced Flags, Memory Box Stitched Circle Layers, miscellaneous rectangle die for sentiment, foam mounting tape