Christmas Cards 2013 – Almost Done! :)

Thanks to modern medicine, I’m back crafting again!!! Woooohooo! I’ve been so busy trying to get caught up on making my Christmas cards and envelopes — and getting them in the mail by Friday this past week — I did not have time to even think about blogging as I did them. However, I did take pictures before I mailed them. So, here are the ones I put in the mail this week…. (I did some earlier that you can see in previous posts). I still have a few more to do, and I will try to post them later.

It always amazes me how many different products I use when I make a card. I never really noticed until I started listing the supplies for each card. While it may look daunting to someone new to this craft, it’s really not any worse than say….a recipe for a cake.

Card 1: Gold Trees Trio

I added glossy accents to the bird in front of the middle tree to help make it stand out.

Supplies:

Card Base – Papertrey Ink Shimmer Cardstock
Other Cardstock/paper – Glossy Cardstock
Color Mediums – Adirondack Alcohol Blending Solution, Adirondack Pearl Mixative, Adirondack Alcohol Inks (Stream, Purple Twilight, & Raspberry)
Dry Mediums – Ranger Holographic Embossing Powder, Ranger Super Fine Detail Gold Embossing Powder
Die – Impression Obsession Bird Bath [birds] (www.iostamps.com)
Ink – Versamark
Background Stamp – Rubbernecker Snowflake Panel (www.rubbernecker.com/snowflake-panel.html)
Stamps – JustRite “O Christmas Tree” (www.justritepapercraft.com/products/o-christmas-tree-clear-stamps-cr-02235)

Card 2: Dove Card

Supplies:

Card Base – Gina K. Pure Luxury Navy Cardstock (www.shop.ginakdesigns.com/)
Other Cardstock/paper – Neenah Solar White, DCWV Glitzy Glitter Cardstock Stack 12″x12″
Dry medium – Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
Punch – Martha Stewart Aspen, punch around the page [mini snowflakes] (www.amazon.com/Martha-Stewart-Crafts-Punch-Around/dp/B002XOQ9WO/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1387687849&sr=8-8&keywords=Martha+Stewart+Snowflake+border)
Die – Memory Box Swirling Snowflakes Die, Sizzix Framelits Ovals; Marianne Design Creatables LR0149 [bird] (www.ucutathome.com/store/product/Marianne-Design-Creatable-Dies-Creatables-Die-Fantasy-Bird/id/10002)
Ink – Versamark
Stamp – My Favorite Things Cheerful Christmas Greetings stamp set (www.mftstamps.com/index.php?route=product/product&filter_name=Cheerful+Christmas&product_id=2233)
Other – bling from my stash (for the eye)

Card 3: Gingham Card

Supplies:

Card Base – Solid Cherry Red Card Stock 100#, 8 1/2 x 11 from www.paperandmore.com
Other Cardstock/paper – Bazzill Basics Paper Nordic Pines 6″x6″ paper pad
Dry Mediums – Ranger Super Fine Detail Black Embossing Powder, Tim Holtz Distress Fired Brick Embossing Powder
Die – Papertrey Ink Edgers #1 & #2 (www.papertreyink.com)
Punch – Martha Stewart Aspen, punch around the page [mini snowflakes] (www.amazon.com/Martha-Stewart-Crafts-Punch-Around/dp/B002XOQ9WO/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1387687849&sr=8-8&keywords=Martha+Stewart+Snowflake+border)
Ink – Versamark
Stamp – My Favorite Things Cheerful Christmas Greetings stamp set (www.mftstamps.com/index.php?route=product/product&filter_name=Cheerful+Christmas&product_id=2233)
Other – Mistletoe Single Cord from Lawn Fawn (www.lawnfawn.com), Dress It Up! Christmas Button assortment from JoAnn’s (I removed the shank and glued on with Glossy Accents)

Card 4: Pink and Silver Peace Card

I apologize for the quality of the picture of this card — it does not do it justice. I took a couple of pictures before mailing it, but none of them turned out well — I should have checked before I mailed it!

Supplies:

Card Base – Papertrey Ink Silver Shimmer Cardstock
Other Cardstock/paper – Grafix Vellum
Color Mediums – Viva Décor Mother of Pearl Rose Modellier Creme
Dry Mediums – Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
Stencil – Crafter’s Workshop Snowflake stencil
Ink – Versamark
Stamp – Papertrey Ink Think Big Favorites #9 (www.papertreyink.com/stamps/think-big-favorites-9-mini-stamp-set/)
Other – Double-faced Pink Satin Ribbon from Papermart.com (www.papermart.com/fabric-satin-ribbon/id=33122#33122)

Card 5: Silver LaBlanche

Supplies:

Card Base – Neenah Solar White
Other Cardstock – DCWV Glitzy Glitter Cardstock Stack 12″x12″, Ponderosa Pine Linen cardstock from www.paperandmore.com
Dry Mediums – Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
Ink – Versamark
Embossing Folder – Sizzix Flowers #6 A2 Large
Stamp – LaBlanche Tree with Notes

Card 6: Gold LaBlanche

Supplies:

Card Base – Neenah Solar White
Other Cardstock/paper – Pearlescent Metallic Paper, Text Weight from Paperandmore.com (colored with green ink pad to make green background that was stamped with music background); Glossy Cardstock (colored with alcohol inks)
Color Mediums – Adirondack Alcohol Blending Solution, Adirondack Pearl Mixative, Adirondack Alcohol Ink (Red Pepper)
Dry Mediums – Ranger Super Fine Detail Gold Embossing Powder
Ink – Versamark
Background Stamp – Impression Obsession MUSIC Cover-A-Card Background – CC029 (www.iostamps.com)
Stamp – LaBlanche Tree with Notes
Other – 3/8″ Hunter Velvet Ribbon from www.papermart.com, embellishments from stash

Card 7: Present Card

I love the simplicity of this card.

Supplies:

Card Base – Ponderosa Pine Linen #80 cardstock from www.paperandmore.com
Other Cardstock/paper – Papertrey Ink Shimmer (Gold, Scarlett (berries), Leaf (leafs) )
Embossing Folder – Couture Creations Giving Embossing Folder
Die/Stamp – Lil’ Inker Designs Stitched Rectangle Mats (www.lilinkerdesigns.com), WPlus9 Merry & Bright Dies and stamps (www.wplus9.com)

Card 8: Candle Card

Supplies:

Card Base – WPlus9 Cranberry Cardstock
Other Cardstock/paper – Papertrey Ink Shimmer (Gold (candle flame), Scarlett (berries), Leaf (leafs) ), The Paper Studio Old World Winter (4.5″ x 6.5″ paper pad), Acetate, Neenah Solar White (inside)
Dies – Lil’ Inker Designs Stitched CIrcle Mats (www.lilinkerdesigns.com), Creative Time Dies Fun Stitched Edges (shop.my-creative-time.com/main.sc)
Die/Stamp – WPlus9 Merry & Bright Dies and stamps (www.wplus9.com/)
Ink – Versamark
Embossing Folder – Anna Griffin

Card 9: Joy Card

Supplies:

Card Base – Papertrey Ink Scarlet Shimmer
Other Cardstock/paper – Bo Bunny Silver & Gold 6″x6″ (for ornament border)
Punch – EK Success for ornament border
Die – Savvy Dies Joy typed #10144 (www.savvystamps.com)
Other – ribbon from www.papermart.com, Distress Stickles, Wink of Stella

Card 10: Liquid Pearl Wreath

Supplies:

Card Base – Solid Cherry Red Card Stock 100#, 8 1/2 x 11 from www.paperandmore.com
Other Cardstock/paper – Lawn fawn Peace, Love, Joy 6″x6″ paper pad
Dies – My Favorite Things Die-namics Blueprints 1 & 6
Ink – Memento Bamboo Leaves; Ranger Archival Vermillion
Stamp – Papertrey Ink Holiday Cheer Stamp set
Other – Sakura Stardust Gelly Roll Pens (lime star, red); Liquid Pearls (Ocean Blue, Key Lime, Rouge, Bisque); Sequins from Lawn Fawn

Card 11: Christmas Mouse

I made this card for my almost-2-years-old great-nephew. He’s at the stage where he has to touch and feel everything – so I put the two embellishments on his card for his entertainment! 🙂 One is fuzzy and velvet-y feeling and the other is hard and bumpy.

Supplies:

Card Base – Papertrey Ink cardstock
Other Cardstock/paper – American Crafts Deck The Hall Stripes; Neenah Solar White
Dies – Spellbinders Large Labels
Color medium – Copics C3, C5, C7 (body); R24, R27, R29 (hat & bow); R81, R83, R85 (cheeks & ears); B23, B26 (bell), 0
Stamp – Whimsy Stamps Elf Bell Mouse
Other – Dress It Up! Buttons with shanks removed (present & stocking)

Card 12: Man Wreath

The card has a little something extra – a fabulous woodsy/chocolately/coffee scent! I sprinkled Elements Earth Textures Cacao over the wet embossing paste. It gives a great texture and scent to this simple, manly Christmas card! 🙂

Supplies:

Card Base – Gina K. Chocolate Cardstock
Other Cardstock/paper – Papertrey Ink Shimmer (Scarlet & Leaf)
Dry medium – Elements Earth Textures Cacao
Dies – Tim Holtz Sizzix Holiday Wreath Die
Other – Crafter’s Workshop Mini Woodgrain 6″x6″; Dreamweaver Translucent Embossing Paste; Liquid Pearls (Buttercup, Royal Blue, Rouge)

Card 13: Pine Border Acetate Card

I used a die to create the pine border as part of the back of the card. Using my ATG, I ran adhesive along the back of the pine branches and adhered a cut acetate panel. Then, I covered the adhesive with an iridescent glitter – which successfully covered the adhesive and just looks like ice/snow on the branches. The acetate panel was embossed with an embossing folder for texture.

Supplies:

Card Base – a combination of Ponderosa Pine Linen cardstock and acetate
Other Cardstock/paper – Neenah Solar White
Dry medium – Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
Die – Spellbinders Labels Eleven; Memory Box Pine Needle Border
Ink – Versamark
Stamp – Papertrey Ink Stylish Sentiments: Holiday
Other – Veneer Prisma Embossing Powder

Card 14: Poinsettia Music Card

This card utilizes the paper “inlay” technique. The poinsettia is actually inlaid in the music paper.

Supplies:

Card Base – Solid Cherry Red Card Stock 100#, 8 1/2 x 11 from www.paperandmore.com
Other Cardstock/paper – Bazzill Basics Paper Nordic Pine paper pad; Neenah Solar White
Dry medium – Ranger Super Fine Detail Gold Embossing Powder
Die – Memory Box Poinsettia Stem Die, Poppy Stamps Pine Springs, My Favorite Things Blueprints 2 (tag)
Ink – Distress Ink Barn Door, Distress Ink Festive Berries, Distress Ink Pine Needles, Distress Ink Evergreen Bough
Stamp – Memory Box Poinsettia Stem Stamp (G1790),
Other – Liquid Pearls Gold, Gold ribbon

Card 15: Embossed Ornament Card

This card is absolutely stunning in person. Lots of shine!

Supplies:

Card Base – Papertrey Ink Shimmer Cardstock in White Shimmer and Sea Shimmer
Dry medium – Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
Die – My Favorite Things Blueprints 1 (strip); Creative Time Dies Fun Size Scallop Stitched Bow Die (http://shop.my-creative-time.com/Fun-Size-Scallop-Stitched-Bow-Die-MCT-D57.htm?categoryId=-1)
Ink – Versamark
Stamp – Papertrey Ink Holly Jolly (sentiment)
Embossing Folder – Spellbinders M-Bossibilities EL-014 Holiday Magic
Other – Wink of Stella

Card 16: Foil Tape Present Card

The foil really makes the embossed design pop on this card!

Supplies:

Card Base – Solid Cherry Red Card Stock 100#, 8 1/2 x 11 from www.paperandmore.com
Other Cardstock/paper – Papertrey Ink Stamper’s Select White cardstock; Shrink Film
Dry medium – Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver Embossing Powder
Impression Plate -Papertrey Ink Mehndi Medallion Impression Plate
Die – Papertrey Ink Bells and Boughs dies (to make embellishments from Shrink Film)
Ink – Staz-On Blazing Red, Staz-On Metallic Silver
Stamp – Papertrey Ink Bells and Boughs stamps
Other – Silver Foil Tape, Veneer Prisma Glitter, Glossy Accents

Card 17: Little Birdie Get Well

While this is not a Christmas card, it could easily be adapted to one! My BFF and her hubby and her mother all came down with the Flu over Thanksgiving and this was a Get Well card for them.

I really like the white-on-white embossed brick on the white cardstock.

Supplies:

Card Base – Solid Cherry Red Card Stock 100#, 8 1/2 x 11 from www.paperandmore.com
Other Cardstock/paper – Neenah Solar White
Dry medium – Opaque White embossing powder
Die – Memory Box Branch Die; Papertrey Ink Tweet Talk Die set
Ink – Versamark
Stamp – Papertrey ink Tweet Talk Stamp set; Impression Obsession C-A-C Brick

Hope you all are ready for the holidays, and I wish you all the happiest of holidays with family and friends. May you and yours be full of Joy and Peace this holiday season. Warmest Hugs and Wishes, Stephanie

Holiday Card Workshop 2013 – Homework for Day 5

Day 5 is all about holiday cards designed for a male versus a female recipient. Masculine cards tend to be less “fussy” – embellishments are minimal, color schemes are darker and more subdued. Feminine cards can be very ornate, soft and bright with no limits on embellishments! You can even throw on the kitchen sink! lol

I chose to use the same card design on each of the cards, as well as the same stamps. On the masculine card, I heat embossed the focal image with white embossing powder on the brown cardstock giving texture and dimension to the image. For the feminine card, i just stamped the image on white — this gave a lighter and more “feminine” look as the lines of the image are very delicate looking, as compared to the masculine version.

For the background, I used the same stamp on both – but for the masculine card, I heat embossed with white embossing powder which gave a more matte look to the snowflake background. For the feminine card, I used a Prisma glitter embossing powder giving more shine and glitter to the background.

Here are the cards –

The sentiment inside both cards reads “Wishing You All the Wonder and Magic of Christmas”.

HIS Supplies:

Card Base – Gina K. Chocolate Cardstock
Layers – Papertrey Ink cardstock, inside – Neenah Solar White
Stamps – Stampendous! Winter Chapel Stamp, Rubbernecker Stamp’s Snowflake Panel, (inside) Hero Arts Magic of Christmas (CL462)
Dies – MFT Dienamic Blueprints 2 (banners), Lil Inker’s stitched circles
Punch – 2 3/4″ circle punch
Ink – Ranger Archival Coffee Ink (inside/outsidesentiment), Versamark
Other – Stamp n’ Stuff Detail White embossing powder, American Crafts ribbon

HER Supplies:

Card Base – WPlus9 Cranberry Crush Cardstock
Layers – WPlus9 Cranberry Crush Cardstock, inside – Neenah Solar White
Stamps – Stampendous! Winter Chapel Stamp, Rubbernecker Stamp’s Snowflake Panel, (inside) Hero Arts Magic of Christmas (CL462)
Dies – MFT Dienamic Blueprints 2 (banners), Lil Inker’s stitched circles
Punch – 2 3/4″ circle punch
Ink – Adirondack Cranberry Pigment Inkside/outside sentiment), Versamark
Other – Judikins Sticky Stuff, Prisma Embossing Powder, Velvet Ribbon from Papermart.com

Hope all is well with you and yours! Hugs, Stephanie

Holiday Card Workshop 2013 – Homework for Day 4

Day 4 is all about stretching your holiday stamps! Techniques include layer stamping and embossing, curve stamping, stamping with the back of stamps, and forming stamps into shapes. I know I get more mileage out of my stamps by using different images & sayings from different stamp sets, together on one card.

I made the following card, using layered stamping, by creating a holiday word background with Paper Smooches Christmas Sampler set. To add depth to the background, i used the snowflakes from Hero Arts Snow Much Joy stamp set (CL629). I stamped the larger snowflake in Hero Arts Soft Yellow Shadow Ink and stamped the smaller snowflake in Hero Arts Soft Leaf Shadow Ink. Here’s the card –

It’s a bit difficult to see the soft yellow snowflakes – they are so subtle! It looks very nice though – up close & personal!

Supplies:

Card base – Papertrey Ink Berry Sorbet
Layers – American Crafts Cardstock Green (for circle wreath); Neenah Solar White, DCWV Glitzy Glitter Cardstock Stacks (bow, snowflakes)
Ink – Hero Arts Shadow Inks in Soft Leaf & Soft Yellow; Hero Arts Mid-tone Pale Tomato
Stamps – Hero Arts Snow Much Joy (CL629), Paper Smooches Christmas Sampler
Dies – Lil’ Inker Stitched Circles, Impression Obsession Snowflake Dies (DIE024-X)
Punches – Martha Stewart Snowflake punches
Other – Liquid Pearls Rouge, Washi Tape

The inside sentiment is from the same Hero Arts stamp set and reads “wishing you a bright and sparkling holiday season”.

Try to stay toasty! Hugs, Stephanie

Holiday Card Workshop 2013 – Homework for Day 3

The third day of this class, from onlinecardclasses.com, focuses on the following techniques: die piecing and plaid stamping, simple quilling, and use of white space. I fell in love with the plaid stamping — and just as quickly fell out of love with it! lol While my hands have recovered somewhat, they were not up to remaining still when trying to line up the lines in the plaid! So, i cheated and cut a piece of plaid paper to use in the following card – inspired by Laura Bassen’s card.

Supplies:

Card base – Papertrey Ink Pinefeather Cardstock
Layering – Kraft cardstock from Kraftoutlet.com, Paid cardstock from Paper Studio Old World Winter 4.5″ x 6.5″ paper pad, Papertrey Ink Scarlet Shimmer (for Joy diecut)
Dies – Papertrey ink Linen & Canvas Impression plate, Papertrey Ink One Liners (Joy)
Ink – Memento Cottage Ivy (inside sentiment)
Stamp – Hero Arts Sparkle with Happiness CL648 (inside sentiment – “Sparkle with happiness, Wishing You all the Joys of the Season”)

Warm wishes! Stephanie

Holiday Card Workshop 2013 – Homework for Day 2

The second day of class focused on layered die cut inlay, suspended die cuts, positive and negative die cuts, and unique die cut folds! My absolute favorite of the techniques is the die cut inlay technique. I think the more detailed the die cut, the more striking the inlay technique! It is a technique that can stand on it’s own – without a lot of fuss or embellishment. You just have to make sure you keep ALL the bits that are die cut! On the two cards I made below, after I die cut the image, I carefully lifted the entire piece of paper from the plate and put a piece of Eclipse masking sheet over the entire die cut- this kept all the tiny pieces in order and made it easier to find the pieces that went into the inlay. I die cut a green piece of paper and a kraft piece of paper and then switched the main image for the inlays.

The image was so elegant on it’s own, I put the sentiment on the inside of the card. It reads “Joy & Peace , Wishing You the Happiest of Holidays” and is from Hero Arts.

Supplies:

Card bases/panels – Ponderosa Pine Linen from paperandmore.com; Kraft cardstock from kraftoutlet.com
Inside – Neenah Solar White
Die – Memory Box Flowering Christmas Tree Die
Ink – Ranger Adirondack Bottle Pigment Ink (for stamping inside sentiment)
Stamp – Hero Arts Sparkle with Happiness Sentiment stamp set CL648

Happy Holiday Hugs! Stephanie

Holiday Card Workshop 2013 – Homework for Day 1

The first day of this class was all about the insides of cards! It involved the making of gift card pockets, making unique folds in cards, making pop up greetings and utilizing the positive and negative images on cards.

I loved the design of Kristina’s card and the card pocket – so I gave that a go! Here is my take –

Supplies:

Card base – Neenah Solar White cardstock
Layering/embellishments – Gina K. Navy cardstock; DCWV Glitzy Glitter Cardstock Stacks
Stamps – Close to My Heart’s I Believe stamp set C1427 (outside sentiment, inside Santa); Hero Arts Very Merry Christmas CL543 (inside sentiment)
Embossing Folder – Sizzix Beaded Ribbon
Embossing Powder – Ranger Super Fine Detail Silver
Dies – Impression Obsession Snowflake Dies (DIE024-X)
Other – White and Silver Twisted Cord from papermart.com; Dress It Up’s snowflake button (shank removed)

Hugs! Stephanie

Pain and a Plan

Hi all! I am so sorry I have not been able to post anything before now. About a week after my last post, i started having lumps appearing on my forearms, and while the lumps themselves didn’t hurt I had problems with the feeling and circulation in my hands — which made anything I did with my hands, painful! Ugh! Most of you know that i suffer from Multiple Sclerosis,Mixed Connective Tissue disease, and Osteoarthritis — not to mention quite a few other related conditions. Things have been pretty stable for the most part these past few years, which I am so grateful! At any rate, I made appointments with all my specialists to see what the heck was going on. I had things to do! I wanted to participate in Tim Holtz’s Chemistry 2 class and the Holiday Card Workshop 2013 over at Onlinecardclasses.com!

What I found out is a person can have carpal tunnel that ISN’T carpal tunnel! Weird, right? It’s called pseudo carpal tunnel syndrome (pseudo meaning fake or false). What it boils down to is the osteoarthritis was involving not only the joints, but the soft tissue as well. The prescribed treatment is working! Woohoo!!!! (Otherwise I wouldn’t be able to type this today!) Unfortunately, I did not get to participate in Tim Holtz’s Chemistry 2 class — although I did watch all the videos and perused all the lovely creations of the students! I will experiment at a later date since I have lifetime access to the class. I did, however, get to watch all the videos on the Holiday Card Workshop 2013, and although the class is offically over, I still made cards this weekend that I am now going to post! So get ready for several more postings coming your way!!!! 🙂

Hugs to all! Stephanie

SAF – 9 p.m. Sweet Sugar Coated Embellishments

This tenth challenge of Papertrey Ink’s Stamp-A-Faire (SAF) is to create a project with beautiful, messy, vibrant, messy, shiny, messy (did I say “messy”, yet?) glitter!!!

Here is my take on this challenge –

It looks like the ghosts spooked the letter “d” almost off the card! lol (That’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it!) 😛

Products Used:

PTI Mighty Oak Die Collection
PTI Polka Dot Parade #7 Stamp Set
PTI Polka Dot Parade #7 Die Set
PTI Classic Kraft Cardstock
PTI Dark Chocolate Cardstock
PTI Stamper’s Select White
Memento Luxe – Bahama Blue, Morocco, Dandelion
WPlus9 White Pigment Ink

That’s the last of the 10 challenges folks!!! It’s been a fun and exhausting Stamp-A-Faire!!! I can’t wait to do it again next year!!! Hugs!

SAF – 8 p.m. Limited Ingredients Challenge

This ninth challenge of Papertrey Ink’s Stamp-A-Faire (SAF) is to create a project with a set list of ingredients provided by the design team. Outside of the specified items, we are allowed to use any stamps we have.

Here is my take on this challenge –