Another Christmas card ...

Hello my lovely friends and visitors, I hope your weekend was great and your week has started well. I have a few projects on the go that I can’t share right now so I thought I could publish another Christmas card and here it is …

An A5 Christmas card

Not too deep so we'll be able to post this one

Lots of lovely details

That gorgeous branch stamp!

A final look

Created for me and especially for these Challenges 
 Christmas at Sweet Stampin’ Challenge Anything Goes

Crafty Hazelnut’s Christmas Challenge #309 Use a Sentiment

Deep Ocean Challenge #143 Santa is Coming to Town

Double D Challenge use red, green and white, optional gold

Fantasy Stampers Challenge #76 vintage Christmas

Great Impressions Rubber Stamps Customer Gallery

Simon Says Stamps Wednesday Challenge Anything Goes

Time Out Challenge #71 Christmas; optional twist Glitter/Shimmer

When I start to create for my House of Cards position there are options of colours and/or a theme. December is the end of the fifth term at House of Cards and there will be a blog hop with prizes. I love our blog hops because it means I get to play with new stash lol! I was able to purchase three gorgeous stamps from Great Impressions stamps and you will see how I used them for our challenge in a couple of days.

This year I started to use new stamps differently to how I have in the past. When I purchase or win new or new to me stamps I ‘play with them’. I try different ink colours, different colouring mediums, try watercolouring, I try different styles and different looks and it’s made it much more fun because it’s stopped me being obsessed with a stamp and with getting the look perfect. Just play works for me and I’ve been able to try mixed media/shabby style. I love shabby so today I used my play pieces of stamped and coloured card to create a shabby mixed media Christmas card which I actually like!

I stamped the berry twig with Versafine and then coloured the berries with a red Aqua pen. I created a light red watercolour wash with my Primary AquaTints and used that to colour the background. I used the pale red AquaTints to colour an A5 piece of card and then I inked the elegant branch with my Aqua pen and stamped it across the card, I used a Brilliance gold Dew Drop ink pad on the edges. I created a puddle of watercolour using the green I used on the elegant branch stamp and dipped the die cut circle into it to colour it. Once that was dry I stamped the sentiment and added splatters of red to the background card and the berry sprig panel, simples lol!

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and comment. I really do appreciate it and I hope you get some time to do what you love to do soon ttfn Karen x

Tools

Stamp:

Great Impressions stamps: 8161 Merry; 8162 Elegant Branch; 9802 Berry Sprig

Die Cutting Machine & Dies:

Cuttlebug die cutting machine

Marianne Creatables: LR0142 Double Poinsettia die set

Crafters Companion Downton Abbey:

Ornate Circle Frame die; Half doily die

Miscellaneous Tools:

MISTI; heat tool; paintbrushes; water pot; paint palette; spray bottle

Supplies

Card Paper:

Crafters Companion: Sheena Douglass white stamping card; 20cm square card

Snippets: kraft card for die cutting & matting; white card for die cutting & stamping; Papermania Christmas paper for die cutting

EP Ink/Paint/Pen Colours:

Spectrum Aqua pens: Primary (used to colour the berry sprig); Essentials (used to colour the sentiment and branch before stamping)

Spectrum Noir AquaTints: Perfectly Primary

Spectrum Noir Sparkle: Clear overlay pen

Versafine IP: Black

Brilliance Dew Drop IP: gold

Stickles Glitter Glue: Platinum

Embellishments:

Ribbon Girl: wooden heart

The Works: gems

Stickers & tickets from my stash

Ribbon from my stash

Adhesives/Mediums:

Collall all purpose glue; double sided tape; fun foam

A second gift bag ...

Hello my lovely friends and visitors, I hope your week is going well. Last night I suddenly realised it was the end of the month already so I had to take some photographs to get a couple of projects entered into challenges before they end, lol, always late to the party I am, anyway here is one of my projects …

I love the blue and Kraft!

A final look at all the yummy details

Created for me and especially for these Challenges

Allsorts Challenge #391 Anything Christmas

Crafty Hazelnut’s Christmas Challenge #309 Use a Sentiment

Crafty Ribbons Challenge #176 Christmas with Ribbon/s

Sparkles Monthly Challenge #86 Christmas is Coming

Spectrum Noir Facebook Challenge Anything Goes Optional Christmas or Winter

Stamps & Stencils Challenge Gift Bags or Boxes or Tags

The Ribbon Girl Challenge November Any Image Goes Any Creation

Unstampables Challenge #63 Resistance
WOW Embossing Powder Challenge November: Gift Bags or Boxes

I loved creating the first one and this one was even more fun to create. No stamps were used to decorate this bag: I seem to be doing that more these days. I attached a stencil to Kraft card and used Versamark ink pad and clear embossing powder which I heat set. The bauble panel and the chipboard bauble are really old stash so it was good to use those up. I coloured the dry embossed bauble using my Spectrum Aqua pens, the bauble was coloured with Sakura Sparkle pen as was the wooden snowflake. I added white to the chipboard one using my Picket Fence Distress spray. I coloured a piece of white card with my AquaTints and once dry I attached the Penny Black stencil and drew around the mistletoe details, I then used a damp paintbrush to drag the colour inwards. The berries were coloured with a Sakura sparkle pen. I then free hand cut the pointed bauble and added platinum Stickles to the hanger of that bauble. I coloured white card snippets with AquaTints and once dry I die cut the borders.

-

I played with my Bakers twine, ribbons, and Christmas embellishments and the final touch of the Picket Fence Distress spray. Another bag created and a few more are required so I have to create more soon.

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and comment. I really do appreciate it and I hope you get some time to do what you love to do soon ttfn Karen x

Tools

Stencil:

Sheena Douglass: sunrays 20cm square stencil

Die Cutting Machine & Dies:

Cuttlebug die cutting machine

Crafters Companion Die’sire Edge’ables:

Miscellaneous Tools:

Heat tool; paintbrushes; water pot; paint palette

Supplies

Card Paper:

Snippets: Sheena Douglass white stamping card; Kraft card

Kraft bag

EP Ink/Paint/Pen Colours:

Spectrum Aqua: Nature pen set

Spectrum Noir AquaTints: Landscape

Sakura sparkle pen: Teal; Gold

Tim Holtz Distress spray: Picket Fence

Clear embossing powder

Embellishments:

The Ribbon Girls: Bakers Twine; Wooden Hear; mini pinecones

Bling mesh; velvet ribbon; dry embossed Happy Christmas panel; chipboard bauble; wooden snowflake; jingle bells #

Adhesives/Mediums:

Versamark IP; Collall all purpose glue; double sided tape; fun foam

# all items from my stash that are 5+ years old

Second family Christmas card ...

Hello my lovely friends and visitors, I hope your weekend is going well. I hope all my American friends had a lovely Thanksgiving. I’ve been playing with three new stamps and create a Christmas card and here is the end result …

Another large card, 200cm square

This is going to be hand delivered, lol!

All the yummy details, I love how pea green instead of dark green is much fresher

Love this berry sprig stamp

A final look

Created for me and especially for these Challenges
Addicted-to-Stamps Challenge #136 Dies &/ Punches 

Allsorts Challenge #391 Anything Christmas

Crafty Ribbons Challenge #176 Christmas with Ribbon/s

 Double D Challenge use red green & white 

optional gold

Great Impressions Stamps Challenge November Anything Goes

Pixie’s Snippets Playground Challenge #257: the sentiment & matt were white & gold snippets; every die cut was created with white & patterned paper snippets

Simon Says Stamps Monday Challenge: Trio Tastic

I stamped the spring three times, added three poinsettias & used three substrates: card, patterned paper and gold paper

Spectrum Noir Facebook Challenge Anything Goes Optional Christmas or Winter
Stamping Sensations Challenge November Christmas Greetings

I have had a blitz of my snippets using them for die cutting, the sentiment panel and two pieces were used for the patterned paper background. I also made sure to use several very old embellishments too, I’m slowly getting through it, lol!

There is one thing in particular that our American buddies have shared with us for which I am very grateful and that is the Black Friday sales. Did you manage to grab yourself a bargain over there in the USA or over here. I’ve been a little spoilt because my mum and my Mr have purchased several bargains as my Christmas presents and they were able to get more for their money because of the Black Friday sales. Mr also told me to order some new arts and crafts supplies if they were on sale, lol, so this weekend I am, for many reasons, feeling very thankful. I am looking forward to Christmas more than I have for a while as Luke and Bethan have invited us to visit with them over the Christmas holidays. Our niece Sophia will not be old enough to understand much but I am extremely grateful and thankful which seems very appropriate given the time of year.

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and comment. I really do appreciate it and I hope you get some time to do what you love to do soon ttfn Karen x

Tools

Stamp:

Great Impressions stamps: 8161 Merry; 8162 Elegant Branch; 9802 Berry Sprig

Die Cutting Machine & Dies:

Cuttlebug die cutting machine

Crafters Companion Inspiration Magazine #11 (leaf dies)

Marianne Creatables: LR0142 Double Poinsettia die set

Crafters Companion Die’sire:

Edge’ables Large Format Fancy Rococo; Christmas Classiques Ivy

Miscellaneous Tools:

MISTI; heat tool; paintbrushes; water pot; paint palette; spray bottle

Supplies

Card Paper:

Crafters Companion: Sheena Douglass white stamping card; 20cm square card

K & Co Blossomwood paper

Gold paper from my stash

Snippets: white card for die cutting

EP Ink/Paint/Pen Colours:

Spectrum Aqua pens: Primary (used to colour the berry sprig); Essentials (used to colour the branch before stamping

Spectrum Noir AquaTints: Perfectly Primary; Beautifully Grunge

Spectrum Noir Sparkle: Clear overlay pen

Versafine IP: Black

Embellishments:

Stickles Glitter Glue: Platinum

The Works: wooden bird; half pearls; gems

Die cut large poinsettia from my stash

Lace from my stash

Adhesives/Mediums:

Collall all purpose glue; double sided tape; fun foam

First gift bag ...

Hello my lovely friends and visitors, I hope your week was a good one and your weekend is going well. I’ve been playing with that Penny Black bauble stamp again, lol, and here is the end result …

All ready to be filled

Achieved some nice depth on this one

A final look

Created for me and especially for these Challenges 

Allsorts Challenge #391 Anything Christmas

Crafty Ribbons Challenge #176 Christmas with Ribbon/s

Penny Black & More Challenge Christmas 

Penny Black Saturday Challenge Anything But A Card

Simon Says Stamps Monday Challenge: Trio Tastic

I used three stocking brads, three poinsettias & I stamped the bauble three times

Spectrum Noir Facebook Challenge Anything Goes Optional Christmas/Winter

Stamps & Stencils Challenge Gift Bags or Boxes or Tags

The Ribbon Girl Challenge November Any Image Goes Any Creation

Once again I used a lot of snippets to create this gift bag. I had a snippet of white stamping card left over from yesterday’s card and after I coloured the background with a weak Spectrum Noir AquaTints wash I used a Spectrum Aqua pen to colour the stamp and then stamp it in position, three times again. Delving through my box of snippets I found some red card and patterned paper. I glued the patterned paper onto the gift bag and attached the bauble stamped piece of card onto a snippet of red pearl card. The next step was to die cut the flowers, the leaves and the half doily.

Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and comment. I really do appreciate it and I hope you get some time to do what you love to do soon ttfn Karen x

Tools

Stamp:

Penny Black Brushed Bauble stamp

Die Cutting Machine & Dies:

Cuttlebug die cutting machine

Sizzix Tim Holtz Bigz die: Tattered Floral

Crafters Companion Die’sire: Flower die

Crafters Companion Downtown Abbey: Half Doily die

Marianne Creatables: Miniature Poinsettia dies; leaf die from the Rolled Roses set

Miscellaneous Tools:

MISTI; heat tool; paintbrushes; water pot; paint palette; Tim Holtz Distressing tool

Supplies

Card Paper:

Sheena Douglass white stamping card

Snippets: 12” square K & Co Blossomwood paper stack

Snippets: white card; red pearl card; Kraft card

EP Ink/Paint/Pen Colours:

Spectrum Noir AquaTints: Primary

Spectrum Aqua pens:

Spectrum Noir Sparkle pens: Clear overlay

Embellishments:

Satin ribbon from my stash

Hobbycraft: Mesh

Stickles: Platinum

Adhesive trim; silver bells; pearls; twine

Adhesives/Mediums:

Collall all purpose glue; double sided tape; fun foam

First family Christmas card ...

Hello my lovely friends and visitors, I hope your week is going well. Apologies for not being around my laptop suddenly died on me and it turns out I’ve been naughty and not backed up my files and photos. Thankfully the Mister is a real tech geek and was able to retrieve most of it but I did get told off lol!

It’s nearly the end of the month: Happy Thanksgiving to my lovely American friends. I hope your day is filled with all good things and all good memories with the ones you love. With it being the end of November I decided I needed to start creating our family Christmas cards and here is the first one …

A large card for a change!

It doesn't look that deep but it is - will be hand delivered

All the yummy details!

A final look

I would like to enter the following Challenges

Addicted-to-Stamps Challenge #136 Dies &/ Punches

  Double D Challenge use red, green & white, optional gold

Fashionable Stamping Challenge #117 Tis the Season: Winter/Autumn

Penny Black & More Challenge  Christmas

Simon Says Stamps Monday Challenge: Trio Tastic

I used three stocking brads, three poinsettias and I stamped the bauble three times 

Sparkles Monthly Challenge #86 Christmas is Coming

Spectrum Noir Facebook Challenge Anything Goes Optional Christmas or Winter 

The Ribbon Girl Challenge November Any Image Goes Any Creation

I got to use some really old stash with a new stencil and a new die. I adore this card! I used my Spectrum Aqua pens to ink up the Penny Black bauble stamp and stamped on two parchment snippets and I added clear detail embossing powder and heat set the baubles. The parchment doesn’t absorb the paint so I had time to add the clear detail EP and that’s something I’ll do more of. I inked up the stamp again with the Aqua pen and stamped onto a snippet white card. I then scribbled the pen onto acetate and painted the edges of the card too. Once the card was dry I added Spectrum Sparkle clear overlay pen over the bauble and to the edges of my card and I wish I’d captured the sparkle, it’s beautiful!

I attached the Penny Black stencil to the side of a 21cm square piece of white card and used the fine nib on my Aqua pen to lightly trace the mistletoe onto the card. Once I had finished the first time I reversed the stencil and added a second tracing. Once I removed the stencil I used a damp paintbrush to colour the mistletoe leaves, I did have to scribble the Aqua pen onto some acetate as the fine nib is very fine. I used my Spectrum Aqua gold to add golden berries.

I used a lot of white snippets and patterned paper snippets to create my own embellishments – poinsettias and sentiment. I die cut the sentiment three times with white card and I coloured one of them. I did the same with the poinsettias some white card which I coloured and some smaller snippets patterned paper. I used a 20cm square card, an A4 piece of white card was trimmed to 21cm for the mistletoe panel, snippets parchment paper, white card and patterned paper were used for the die cutting, stamping and added to the card. As I had already used card, parchment and patterned paper I decided to play with some mesh which I used over the stencilled panel – something else to try again in future. Three very old stocking brads, very old tiny brads, and one fabric brad were used too, recently relocated them lol!

I hope you like my card too and I’ve not bored you going into so much detail. I had a lot of fun figuring out what I wanted to use and how I wanted this card to look. I need to get my gear going to get these done as I have wedding invites to create too! Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and comment. I really do appreciate it and I hope you get some time to do what you love to do soon ttfn Karen x

Tools

Stamp:

Penny Black Brush Stroke Bauble Stamp

Stencil:

Penny Black Mistletoe stencil

Die Cutting Machine & Dies:

Cuttlebug die cutting machine

Crafters Companion Sara Davies Contemporary Christmas range: Merry Christmas die

Marianne Creatables: LR0142 Miniature Poinsettia Die Set

Miscellaneous Tools:

MISTI; heat tool; paintbrushes; water pot; paint palette

Supplies

Card Paper:

Sheena Douglass white stamping card

Country View Crafts: 12” square K & Co paper

300 gsm card

Snippets: white card; parchment; Papermania 30cm square paper

EP Ink/Paint/Pen Colours:

Spectrum Aqua pen set: Naturals (green); Primary (burgundy)

Spectrum Noir AquaTints: Essentials

Spectrum Sparkle Clear Overlay pen

WOW EP: Clear detail

Stickles Platinum

Embellishments:

Die cut sticker embellishments from my stash #

HOTP Christmas stocking brads #

Fabric brad from my stash #

White brads from my stash #

Fine satin ribbon from my stash

Mesh fabric from my stash

Acrylic gems from my stash #

Sequins from my stash

Adhesives/Mediums:

Versamark IP; Collall all purpose glue; double sided tape; fun foam

# Very old stash: most of this must be over eight years old

Butterflies and quick silver ...

Hello my lovely friends and visitors, I hope your weekend is going well.  I got some time to play last night and oh my goodness I have missed that lol!  So today I have a card I created especially for several challenges and here it is …

A little A6 card but I love, love, lurve the colours diffused through the parchment

Okay for posting

A final look

Created for me and especially for these Challenges

Allsorts Challenge #389 Feature a Creature

Butterfly Challenge #66 Quotes and Quick Silver

Craft Stamper Challenge November Take a Stamp: Anything Goes

 Double D Challenge Harvest Blessings/Give Thanks 

& a Mood Board: I was inspired by the gorgeous colours

Simon Says Stamps Monday Challenge Shine Bright Like a Diamond:

I hope this fits as I used Distress inks to colour the base layer

The Pencil Case Challenge #32 Anything Goes

The Ribbon Girl Challenge November Card Challenge

When I won the voucher over at Simon Says Stamp challenge I was determined to spend most of it on the Simon Says Stamp brand.  They have some gorgeous stamps and stencils, as well as everything else; that really appealed to me.  Once I had decided on two of their stamp sets and two of their stencils I had a look at the other brands and the one item really stood out to me was the Prima stamp set.  So that had to go in the shopping basket as this is a set I have lusted and wished for since it was realised and it is hard to find it over here.

So I sat down last night and played with a Simon Says Stencil, my watercolour pencils, Tim Holtz Distress re-inkers and this Prima stamp set.  Now I made an error on the card in that I forgot to photograph the background before putting the vellum layer on.  Not normally an issue as I normally remove the brads and photograph it then put the brads back in.  For some unknown reason I attached with the brads and then glued it in place where the embossing is heavier.  Grr, anyway I think you can see the necessary details and I am happy with this lol!

Please accept my apologies for not being around.  My mister and I have been very badly affected by loosing our dog Eddy.  We had absolutely no idea how much we used to interact with him.  I guess you don’t realise that until it’s too late.  

Anyways last night I took the decision that instead of me crying so much I’m going to try to fill the time a bit more positively.  In fact we’re both doing it, we’re keeping busy planning for Christmas, we’ve started our Christmas shopping and have had half of it delivered already, thank goodness for the internet and online shopping.  We only have a few more presents to purchase.  This year we won’t be hosting so that’s one thing less for us to stress about lol!   My brother, Bethan and Sophia have decided that they want us with them this year, my goodness I cried happy tears when they asked lol!  So for the next few weeks my time will be taken up with creating Christmas cards and wedding invitations as well as hopefully having time to pop around all your blogs – you crafty types inspire me and I am very grateful for that.  

We know it won’t take the pain away but it might distract me and that’s a good and positive thing, I miss him so much and typing that has set me off again.  I know the mister has been so worried about me so this is a good step.  Thank you so much for taking the time to visit and comment.  I really do appreciate it and I hope you get some time to do what you love to do soon  ttfn Karen x

Tools

Stamp:

Prima: Don’t Forget to Fly stamp set

Stencil:

Simon Says Stamp: Bouquet of Flowers stencil

Miscellaneous Tools:

MISTI; heat tool; anti static pouch; paint brushes; paint palette; water pot

Supplies

Card Paper:

300 gsm card

Crafters Companion: A4 Sheena White Stamping Card

Snippet Pergamano: Parchment paper

EP Ink/Paint/Pen Colours:

Derwent watercolour pencils

Tim Holtz Distress re-inkers: Tumbled Glass; Salty Ocean; Bundled Sage; Crushed Olive

White EP

Embellishments:

Sequins, ribbon, brads and silver buckle and bling gem from my stash

Adhesives/Mediums:

Versamark IP; double sided tape; Collall Tacky glue; Pinflair Glue Gel