The Price is Right

It has all been about Christmas for the past few months which is a great thing, but I am in the mood to stamp and create projects that are not red and green or cherry and artichoke.  Where I live there are still trees dropping their fall leaves and right next to those trees are trees with budding blossoms, go figure.  To really put a spin on that, it's raining and super windy.  So, is it fall, winter, or spring?  With that in mind I am in the mood to bust out bright and cheery colors of spring.

I love the color palette and layout of this card.  It is soft and bright at the same time.  I do not normally mix designer series papers, but in this case I did.  A small piece of Greenhouse Gala is layered over a textured piece of Newsprint.  Not only have I used two different packs of dsp, but I also used three different Big Shot products.  Now that I look at the card I used three stamps sets.  How much did this card cost to make?  We should make this a guessing game.  Who can be the first to give the correct US price is the winner of a brand new car(d)!!!  Leave a guess in the comments.

A Perfect Pairing

I just got a new stamp set and it's a good one.  I really like greeting stamp sets and this set, You're A Gem, is new in the Occasions Mini Catalog.  In thinking about what I wanted to do with this greeting image which says "Queen for a Day" I new exactly what I wanted to pair it with.  What better stamp to set the saying off but the single stamp called Elizabeth.  Do you get where my brain went?

I made a crinkly flower using a series of different size punches to punch out scallops from the new First Edition encyclopedia designer series papers.  These papers are lightweight and super cool.  You get 24 pieces of 12" x 12" double-sided papers.  For the ribbon detail I cut the striped grosgrain down the middle to give it a distressed finish.  One of my latest favorites is linen thread.  I seem to be adding it to everything I make.  At the very end of finishing my card I couldn't help myself, but I just had to spritz the card with shimmer paint.

 

All supplies are from Stampin' Up!

• Elizabeth & You're A Gem stamps
• Very Vanilla, Basic Black, and Brushed Gold cardstocks
• First Edition dsp
• Crumb Cake and Black Staz On inks
• Linen Thread
• 1 1/4" Black Striped grosgrain ribbon
• 2 3/8" and 1 3/4" Scallop Circle punches
• 1 3/8" Circle punch
• Scallop Oval punch
• 1 3/4 x 7/8" Large Oval punch
• Antique Brads
• Champagne Shimmer Paint (mixed with rubbing alcohol)

One Last Ornament

 This is another ornament I made using the Top Note die to cut out a piece of balsa wood.  Check my earlier post for directions.  To decorate this ornament I used a piece of the Join in the Cheer die and covered it with glass glitter.  I used the Peaceful Season stamp set and Always Artichoke seam binding to make it super special.

In CASE You Didn't Notice

It's a card CASE straight from the Stampin' UP! Holiday Mini catalog.  With time being so precious during the holiday season a great time saver is to case or copy cards you like.  This one is a copy of colors, layout, and stamp set.

Jolly Old Man

This Jolly Old Man card was made by my good friend Julie B.  I think this bright and cheery masterpiece is a great Christmas card.  You have to study this card as there are several subtle details.  Glitter fills Santa's fur hat band, a special touch on the edge of the greeting plus a bit of red bling, and rosey cheeks all combine to take this card to max.  May I say thanks and happy birthday to Julie B. and cheers to all of you.  Enjoy this last week before the big day.

A Total Beauty

While this tag is small, it's packed full of beauty.  Beauty tips that I'm goin' to share.  My first tip is to use at least two inks on a greeting to create depth, focus, and interest.  To make the inking up quick and easy I first use a pad (lighter color) to ink up the entire image.  Then I use a brush marker in a darker color to swipe a bit of ink here and there. 

My second beauty tip is festive and a great addition to dress up a holiday tag or card.  Just use a scrap of designer series paper to make a ruffly paper ribbon.  I crimp the paper over and over in any direction which makes the paper soft and easy to ruffle.  To secure my paper ribbon ruffle I use a piece of sticky strip.  My third beauty tip is a quick spritz of shimmer paint and a few spots of dazzling diamonds glitter.  The tip with the glitter is, less is more.

Card Indulgence

Have you ever made a card and just took your time having fun and enjoying the process?  That was me last night.  I really really liked the Stampin' Celebration Inspiration Challenge this week so I thought I would make a card.  It has been a while since I have made a card just for the thrill of making a card.  While this is a Christmas card, this is not a design to mass produce--too much fussy cutting.  To steer my ideas which were all over the place I decided to use this week's Mojo Monday layout.

I stamped my focal point on Shimmer White cardstock for two reasons.  One because I love the shimmer and two because that cardstock holds up well with watercoloring.  After I finished painting the pointsettias I painstakingly cut out the image.

I am drawn to using at least two colors on stamps.  It creates dimension and interest

There is a bit of glass glitter in the centers of the pointsettias

At the end I felt the card was not balanced so I added the piece of Gold Cardstock punched with the Decorative Label punch.  I tucked it under the focal panel and was then happy with the balance.   

Stampin' Up! supplies:

Bells and Boughs Stamp Set

Deck the Halls Designer Series Paper

Brushed Gold, Shimmer White, and Blushing Bride Cardstocks

Black Staz On Ink,

Blushing Bride, Pretty in Pink, Pear Pizzaz, Crumb Cake, and Old Olive Classic Inks

Aquapainter

Champagne Glass Glitter

Basic Pearls

Always Artichoke Seam Binding

Decorative Label Punch

Mistletoe Home Decor

I really, really enjoy coming up with projects which highlight the Decor Element line of Stampin' Up! products.  Just take a look at this Christmas beauty.  

I found an old frame in my garage which was almost the perfect size for the Mistletoe Decor Element.  Because the size of the frame was larger than what I wanted it forced me to figure a way to make it work.  Sure I could have gone out and bought a new frame and glass, but I was feelin' cheap.  Anyway, I decided to add the ribbon and star detail.  It makes things more interesting to me when dimension is included--and this has it.

The five-point star is definitely a highlight for me.  It is colorful and very "punchy" in person.  In fact, these photos do not do this piece justice.  The only thing inside the frame/under the glass is Silver Waffle Paper.  I had to do two rows of it, but because I kept the crinkle and added a bit more scrunch you can't even tell where the seam is--I am good ;0) 

What do you think of the added bits of bling?  There are two Candy Cane Big Buttons wrapped with Silver Tinsel that make me smile.

Enjoy making all of your holiday decor.

Tag or Ornament?

This Christmas project can either be a tag or an ornament.  I used a piece of balsa wood to make this project nice a sturdy.  I cut two Top Note pieces with my Big Shot; one from Deck the Halls dsp and one from balsa wood.  I used the balsa wood so I had a sturdy base to run silver tinsel around.  First, I edged the balsa wood Top Note with sticky strip and then I carefully ran the tinsel around the entire piece.  Once that was done I covered all the not so pretty parts, what I call the "mechanics," with the Deck the Halls Top Note.  I had a few scraps of Deck the Halls fabric on my stamp table so I used my Big Shot to cut a few scallop circles to make a flower.  I got them wet to easily fray up the edges and to give the flower more depth.  A small Antique Brad gives a center to the flower.  I also got the Vanilla Seam Binding wet to crinkle and distress the ribbon.

Wreath Tutorial PDF for Sale

I have a beautiful step by step tutorial for the paper cone wreath for sale.  Purchase the pdf for $5 by clicking on the paypal link below,

or get it for FREE.

That's right place an online order with me for $50 between now and December 25th and get the tutorial for FREE.

Star of Wonder, Star of Deck the Halls Fabric

 

This beautiful dimensional star ornament is super, super cool in person.  I used the Deck the Halls fabric, but to give it stability I backed all the pieces with cardstock.  First I cut cardstock and fabric pieces the same size and then used the Sizzix adhesive sheets to bond the two together.  Then I cut the star pieces using the 5 Point Star Bigz die in my Big Shot.  Because I wanted the star to be two-sided I cut ten pieces, five for the front and five for the back.  The entire star is edged with clear tinsel.  That step was a royal pain in my back side!  I used two stars at the top of the ornament to cover my mechanics of how I added the holder loop.  That added touch is the thing that made me really like the entire project.  I repeated the glitter that I used on the top star around the edge of the tag.  A big button in the center really brings out the dimension of whole thing.  I wish you could see these (I made three) in person, they are really cool.

It's All in the Packaging

My favorite bit about this cute Christmas box is the tissue, and it's not even tissue.  I used the scallop square die to cut a piece of Candy Cane fabric to wrap my gift.  My tag is stamped with "A Cute Christmas" stamp set and the box is cut from the Party Favor Bigz XL die on my Big Shot.  From the Tasteful Trim Big XL die I cut a strip of striped Candy Cane dsp and ran it around the box. The hardest thing to do on this package was to get the pink ribbon through the button holes.  By the way I have gone through more than two packs of the big buttons.