Birds and Balloons

Surprise, I do not have a Christmas card today.  I gathered up my recently purchased and printed All Dressed Up digis, intending to color the two Christmas images, and then did this one instead.  It's called Follow Your Dream and is about as far from Christmas as you can get.

I do have a reason for it.  Every year I make anniversary cards for my friend's four sons and daughters-in-law.  Now I've learned she also sends them to nieces, nephews, grandkids, and just about everyone else and she'd love to have a lot more than four.  Considering the variety of personalities and ages she sends them to, and the fact that I do this year after year, I need to think outside the box if I'm to come up with anything new.

So... I bought this digi for me just because I think it's cute, but I suddenly saw its possibilities as an anniversary card for the young at heart and wanted to make it up before I changed my mind.

It's colored with Copics and "happiness" from an old SU set was added.  Also, feeling lazy, perhaps, I opted not to shade the background, but stamped a super ancient sun from my large collection of southwest stamps that I haven't used in ages.

The stitched and scalloped mats are a combination of two unrelated die sets that work perfectly together and enable dozens of combinations:  Lawn Fawn Outside In Stitched Scalloped Rectangle Stackables and Taylored Expressions Stitched Rectangle Stacklets.  These two sets fit so perfectly together that they can even be nested at the time of cutting.  For this combo I did a variety of cutting, fitting, and layering -- all easy stuff.

The finished card is 5 3/4" x 4 1/2", essentially A6.  By making it just 1/4" shorter it allows centering of the A2 dies without the leftover space in the length.

Inside is a Power Poppy sentiment from the Sweet Simple Things digital stamp set.  My friend can write her own "happy anniversary".  I know she can make it work.  As I mentioned, thinking outside the box.

There is a full list of supplies below my signature.  Back to the Christmas cards now, but I will say this was fun for a change.  Speaking of Christmas cards, I received my first of the season earlier this week.  Happy holidays!

Stamps:  All Dressed UP digi "Follow Your Dream", SU Warm Words "happiness", Power Poppy digital Sweet Simple Things quote for inside, old wood block sun motif  Paper:  Neenah Classic Crest Solar White, SU Pool Party, Taken with Teal, and Marigold Morning  Ink:  Printer, Memento Tuxedo Black, SU Pool Party stamped off once for lighter color  Accessories:  Doodlebug Sprinkles glitter enamel dot  Dies:  Lawn Fawn Outside In Stitched Scalloped Rectangle Stackables, Taylored Expressions Stitched Rectangle Stacklets, Poppystamps Stitched Bloom Trio

Winter Birds

Hello, friends!  Here's the yearly question:  How are you doing with Christmas cards?  I took stock and found I'm still a few short, which means it's time for some simple cards before I get back to coloring.  Today I'm sharing two of four I made one afternoon using an old favorite Inkadinkado set called Winter Birds.  Does anyone have this set?  I do think the stamps are beautiful.

The first card was minutes quick, with pretty paper, gold trim, and a die cut snowflake.  The center of the snowflake would be a good place for a rhinestone, but keeping it lump-free and mail-friendly.  The sentiment is an oldie from Stampin' Up.

With Card #2 I figured the swooshing snowflake and slanted sentiment somewhat follow the suggested trajectory of the birds' flight.  I chanced some sequins on this one.  Hope they're still intact after the card goes through the mail.

Both cards use Spellbinders Scored and Pierced Rectangles.  Poppystamps Snowflake Ribbon on #2.  Simple!  Have a happy day!

Power Poppy Cyber Monday and Holiday Digital Blitz

Just in case you didn't make it to the three-day Black Friday sale at Power Poppy, there are two reasons to check out Cyber Monday:

20% off everything in the store, using discount code CYBER20.  Sale ends Nov. 27 at midnight central standard time.

-- AND --

A Holiday Digital Blitz!  Ten new digis previously only available as clear stamps.  You can find the entire Holiday Digital Blitz Collection here.  Here's a list of each individual new holiday digi:

Country Home Christmas
(Original clear stamp is Simple Joys)

Handlettered Jolly Good
(Original clear stamp is Joyful Arrangements)

Handlettered Joy to the World
(Original clear stamp is Joyful Arrangements)

Handlettered Noel
(Original clear stamp is Joyful Arrangements)

Filigree Tree
(Original clear stamp is Botanical Tree)

Glass Ornament Bough
(Original clear stamp is Bough Wow Wow)

Mittens and Merriment
(Original clear stamp is Bough Wow Wow)

Paperwhites and Juniper
(Original clear stamp is Glistening Paperwhites)

Snowy Church
(Original clear stamp is O Holy Night)

Tabletop Tree
(Original clear stamp is Under Glass: Christmas Traditions)

I love it when Marcella goes nuts with one of her digital blitzs.  These digis will continue to be available after Cyber Monday, but today they're all 20% off, so it's a good time to shop.

I couldn't resist a brand new card with Handlettered Jolly Good.

Artful image and sentiment in one, I knew this would make a quick and easy card.  Just a length of ribbon and an enamel dot for trim.  I colored with Copics and sponged the edges with the die in place.


Marcella has a few things to say and more samples to share, so please visit her at the Power Poppy Blog.  Wishing you all a happy holiday season!

Power Poppy Black Friday Sale

Just a heads up to all Black Friday shoppers:

Holy moly, it goes all the way through Sunday at midnight Central Standard time!  Sale includes all in-stock merchandise:  Clear stamps, digital stamps, and dies.  Now is the the time to stock up on Power Poppy at 30% off using discount code STOCKUP30.

Enjoy, and happy day to all!

Double D Challenge: Snuggle Up Buttercup

It's Double D Challenge time and we're asking you to Snuggle Up, Buttercup, and get cozy with your crafting.  Be inspired by the mood board to pull out whatever supplies you have to make the creation of your choice.  I'm thinking in terms of Christmas cards, so here's what I did:

In our mood board below you can see it was the red and green plaid and the comfy knitted items that inspired me.

Creative winners are selected by team vote, and a prize will go to a random winner:

So, about that sweater... my friend, Connie, sent me some pages from a desktop coloring calendar to try before I buy, and this sweater was one of them.  She warned me the paper was very thin and not so easy for Copic coloring, but I solved that problem by scanning and printing actual size onto X-Press It Blending Card.  Hooray, it worked!

I mixed up the background with a snowflake-embossed red panel and some gingham over the plaid, tucked in a tag, and trimmed with a stitched scalloped edge.  The snowflakes on the sweater printed black, of course, but I went over them with the ultra-fine tip of a red Stampin' Up! marker.  I use those markers a lot for detail like this.  Gold snowflakes for sparkle.  The sentiment is a Stampin' Up! oldie.  Full recipe is below my signature.

There are some super fun team samples on the Double D blog.  I see Darlene and I had almost exactly the same idea, and some of the girls used a cable knit embossing folder that I'm now coveting.  There are kitties and a puppy and mugs of warm brew... so much inspiration.  Enjoy, and I'll see you again soon!

Stamps:  Calendar page sweater, SU All Year Cheer I  Paper:  X-Press It Blending Card, SU Very Vanilla heavy weight, kraft, SU Poppy Parade, gold glitter card stock, Graphic 45 Raining Cats & Dogs designer paper  Ink:  Printer, SU Chocolate Chip, SU red marker, Copics for coloring  Accessories:  Cuttlebug Snowflakes embossing folder,  Fiskars Scallop Paper Edgers (scissors), Poppystamps Stitched Main Street Tags, Spellbinders Create-a-Flake Five

Twofer Wreath Challenge

Hello on a Monday, friends!  Yippee skippee, I got some cards made in time for the November Twofer Challenge.  Two different designs for two different occasions using the same stamps, stencils, and/or dies.  The prompt this month is "Wreath".  We're supposed to photograph the two cards together for the link up, so I've done that first.

Thinking I could make some quick cards with no coloring, SU's Wondrous Wreath was the first stamp set to pop into my head.  I made the Christmas card first, stamping and turning and stamping multiple times, but still had some blank spots due to a flawed stamp that SU did not want to replace (grrrr), so filled in with die cut Poinsettias and a bow.  Lots of stamping, die cutting, gluing, applying Stickles.  A clean and simple and not so quick card.  Ultimately, I like how it turned out.

The second card was much quicker.  I used only one stamp from the multi-stamp set, whereas I used three on the first card.  Gee, I hope that's okay for the challenge.  It's the same stamp, two different ways, right?   In this case, the flawed part of the stamp is under the gingham designer paper, and I stamped it three times in a row, somewhat like a garland.  Added little flowers punched from glitter paper.  Rhinestone centers.  The flower on the sentiment has die cut leaves.

Honestly, if it wasn't for the Twofer Challenge I may not have ever used this wreath again, but now I love it to pieces because of that sweet garland.  You just never know.

Supplies listed below.  Have a happy day!

Stamps:  SU Wondrous Wreath, Your Next Stamp Whatnot Sentiments Eleven (thinking of you)  Paper:  SU Whisper White and Cameo Coral, Coral glitter paper, Bazzill tan, Prima Julie Nutting designer paper  Ink:  SU Wild Wasabi and Garden Green, Memento Tuxedo Black  Accessories:  Black Stickles and gold Stickles (Christmas), rhinestones, flower punch (thinking of you card)  Dies:  Memory Box Seraphine Laurel (Poinsettias), Impression Obsession Large Bow,  Sue Wilson Pierced Flags, Taylored Expressions Ric Rac Borders, Impression Obsession Leaf Cluster

Garden and Nature

On Goldens and Garden today:

Thank you!

Introducing Snowdrops and Tea Roses

There's a delightful new digital stamp set release at Power Poppy today.  It's called Snowdrops and Tea Roses and, ohhhh, how pretty it is!  I printed the no-line version not too large so I could color the whole dainty, delicate, lovely thing.

Marcella's notes:

"The first in a series of bouquets nestled inside vintage French café au lait bowls. Festive enough for Christmas cards; cozy enough for a winter’s afternoon coloring session. This scene features a trio of hybrid tea roses arranged with crisp white snowdrops and variegated holly. Be open and adventurous with your coloring, ie: berries can be white/pink/light green if you are using red roses. Holly doesn't always have to be red. Remember, we are making the picture, nature is just one of our inspirations. 

Digital download includes a no line version, and two merry sentiments.

A few tea rose varieties to use as inspirations to make this bouquet especially festive: 'Bewitched' (pale pink), 'Neil Diamond' (red-and-white streaked), 'Cinnamon Dolce' (dark red with pink streaks), 'Gemini' (creamy center with coral pink edges), 'World War II Memorial Rose' (light pink with tinges of red)."

I used Prismacolor pencils for today's card, and not my usual way of blending with odorless mineral spirits.  Rather, I blended one pencil into another, coloring over and over.  I do love the control and detail with pencils.  Fun for a change!  The background was done with Copic markers.

I cropped one of the sentiments and tucked it up close, then framed and finished.  One more done for Christmas!

Please visit the Power Poppy blog for more from Marcella and a link list to all the Instant Gardeners' gorgeous creations with Snowdrops and Tea Roses.  Thanks much for your visit.  Hugs and happy day!

Stamps:  Power Poppy Snowdrops and Tea Roses digital set  Paper:  Neenah Classic Crest Solar White, Mintay Christmas Stories designer paper  Ink:  Printer  Coloring:  Prismacolor Pencils, Copics in background only  Accessories:  Impression Obsession All-In-One-Frames-Oval, Poppystamps Prim and Proper Bow