Christmas Card 2016 #1

I know we just ended the Christmas holidays but if you are a cardmaker, you really need to start now so you have cards to mail in December 2016.  This is especially true if you usually make one of a kind cards (although I am kinda toying with making some multiples this year - toying is the word).

Yes I am still mailing cards - I call these my winter and new year cards.

If you follow some of the Christmas card blogs, you have an advantage in getting some of your cards ahead of time.  This week the challenge on Jingle Belles is Something Old/Something New.  This challenge worked in well with my Oldie Moldie Monday challenge to myself.

My card this week uses new paper that I bought this year.  The image was already stamped and colored so that was a bonus.  The snowflakes were in my supplies (well aged).

Another goal I have for the year is to finish the inside of each card as I make it.  The inside is done and I even grabbed an envelope and decorated it also.

Remember to show some love for your oldie moldie supplies - they still make wonderful cards.

Holiday Leftovers

The weekly sketch on Jingles Belles is "holiday leftovers".   This challenge means use what is lying on your table or your scrap bin.  It kinda fits in with my Oldie Moldie Monday challenge in a way but in that challenge I can use new supplies which have aged for awhile.

This sweet little snowman was already colored laying in a pile on one of my tables - there are also some cute purple penguins - hmmmmmm - maybe Monday - stay tuned.  All the paper is either from my scrap bin or recycled card stock for the card base.  The card is a 3 1/2 inch square.  I think I know who it will go to also.  I could save it for a winter card card also and send it out in January or February.

We have a winter watch for tonight into tomorrow.  It is predicted for 10 inches of snow here.  I do hope my snow blowing fairy has his machine gassed up and ready to go.

Oldie Moldie Monday

It is Monday, time to show some love for your old supplies.  This image has been floating around my design table for awhile so I decided to make it into a card when I saw the current challenge on Jingle Bells which is a sketch.

The recycled white cardstock has been embossed for a base layer.  I must confess I did use my new Lawn Fawn die cuts for the curved area and a new sentiment stamp.

The stripe is not even Christmas paper but it did have the colors in it that coordinated with the scarf on my snowman.  At least this little image won't be haunting me on the design table.  I am being smart as I work on my holiday cards to complete the insides also while all the paper is available.

Remember to show some love for that older paper.  It can make fun cards.

Winter Card

I am part of a private group on Facebook of card makers.  One day I was cleaning out some paper and decided to do a kit challenge.  I made six kits.  I included the paper and a couple stamped images.  the only rules were that you had to use at least two of the papers and the stamped image.  Here is the kit I sent.  I had a non winter stamp I was going to use but I thought make it more of a challenge with the snowman.

This is always a fun exchange to do because everyone does something different with the supplies you send.  Here is my card.

I cut the base with my Silhouette.  The blue plaid paper you can see is extra paper I added.  I used four papers from the kits:  brown, pink, polka dots and blue behind the snowman.  The snowman and sentiment are both from Paper Smooches.  I did add some snowflake rub ons and a small die cut snowflake.

I am entering this card in the weekly challenge on Jingle Belles.  The challenge is The Hanukkah Song, Verse Two.  If you did not make a Hanukkah card you could make a winter based card which is what I chose to do.

Thanks for stopping by today.  Going to visit a friend today.

Oldie Moldie Monday

It was great to see that the challenge on Jingle Bells along with Shop Your Stash is to make a Christmas card from your supplies that are at least a year old.  It makes Oldie Moldie Monday so much more fun to do when I can do a challenge also.

The paper I chose to use is not a Christmas or Winter paper.  It is patterned paper from Bazzill.  I have had it for years and then a few more on top of it.  I love the challenge of using non holiday paper.  The stamp image and sentiment have been in my supplies for a few years.  I love the Paper Smooches snowmen.

I now have two more holiday cards done.  Yeah.  Thanks for the challenge and yes our old supplies do make beautiful projects.  It just takes our creativity to bring it out.  Show some love for those old supplies.

Season's Greeting Santa

I am trying to make a few Christmas Cards.  I don't have many done and I know I will need them in December.  If I was really smart, as I finished a card, I should sign it, place it in an addressed envelope - it would be all ready to go.  Unfortunately, I am not that smart.  I also do not like to do duplicates/multiples of cards.  This would make it so much easier if I would do that - but the fun for me in card making, is the creative process.

I am combining two challenges for this card.  The first challenge is a weekly Christmas card challenge (so you are not rushed at the end).  Jingle Bells has a tic tac toe challenge.  I chose to do the diagonal:  Santa, Die Cuts, Gold.  The Santa is a piece of chipboard.  The Die Cut is the Green edging alongside the plaid paper.  The gold is in the embossed sentiment and gold enamel beads.

The second challenge is a monthly challenge from House of Cards.  The challenge for September is to use stitching.  It can be fake or it can be real.  I chose to dig out my sewing machine and do some contrast stitching on several layers of my card.  The main creamish colored layer is stitched all around the edge of the mat.  I stitched the plaid strip also.

The creamish mat of my card is cardstock with a dictionary page adhered to it with gel medium.  A layer of gesso was added on top.  I then dabbed on a creamish color of acrylic paint to just give it more depth of color (of course not much show so why did I go to all this work).  The chipboard was distressed with Brushed Corduroy distress ink to give it an aged look.  The sentiment was gold embossed.  The bow is made from strips of forn muslin that was tea died.  I think this adds a more rustic/antique look to a card especially since the papers and the Santa have an old fashioned flare to them.  As I mentioned above, I stitched some of the layers.  The sentiment is pop dotted for some height.  A couple gold enamel beads were added for a little contrast.  The card is about 6.5 inches by 4.5 inches.

The paper and chipboard are My Mind's Eye and the sentiment is from a very old Hero Arts set (I think).  

Thanks for stopping by.  Hope you enjoyed my Christmas card.  One done - too many more to go.