Peace On Earth Christmas Challenge #116

Hello friends.  Playing along with the Peace On Earth Christmas Challenge to keep up with my stash, and I had the perfect stamp to use with the mood board...

The mittens totally caught my eye and I had to dig out an older (red rubber) Serendipity Mittens stamp to play along.  I also have been wanting to try this technique I've seen from Leslie (and others) using vellum with 2 sided sticky paper, cs, and embossing folders. It works beautifully and really makes your embossed vellum stand out and with the added bonus of NO cracking and NO glue or adhesive showing through!  Take a look...

I stamped and heat embossed with clear my mitten image and colored it with my B91, B93, & B95 Copic markers and then cut the image out using PFS Scalloped Circle Dies (the smallest of the 3 in the set). Next I made my background with a sheet of heavy vellum, a piece of white cs and a piece of 2 sided sticky paper (Sizzix) put together and then run through my die cutting machine with SSS's Icy Snowflakes ef.

I stacked 3 of the scalloped circle die cuts to frame my mittens, and then added a silver snowflake (WF's Small Snowflake Die) and a sentiment strip from SSS.

When I went hunting for my mitten stamp, I found another snowman stamp and couldn't resist making another card with the vellum technique.

I know I've already played twice with Loll's CAS Christmas Challenge, but hopefully she won't mind one more from me, so this one's going to her challenge!  My image is from IO (Alesa Baker Designs - E8311) and was once again stamped and clear embossed, and then colored with my Copics.  My background was done with the same vellum technique and SSS's Snowflake Visions ef.  My sentiment is from SB's Make it Merry Sentiments and although it's hard to see in the photo, the top black layer has the words Make It Merry very thinly die cut into it, and then there's a piece of gold mirror cs behind the black layer that shows through.  

If you've never tried the vellum and embossing folder technique, you really need to...the way the embossed design stands out is just incredible!  I still want to try it using colored cs too, as that also turns out beautifully from what I've seen others do!

There's still one more day to play along with the Peace on Earth Christmas Challenge and 2 more days to play along with the CAS Christmas Challenge. 

     

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas July 2026 - SNOWMAN #2

Hello friends.  Playing along (AGAIN!) with Loll and friends over at the CAS Christmas Challenge,
because the challenge is featuring SNOWMEN and I just happen to have more than one snowman stamp!  In transparency, I have many, many, MANY snowmen stamps, so I hauled out another favorite and am playing again!!

I love Anita Jeram images (Colorado Craft Co.) and couldn't resist when this snow dude came out.  Take a look at this dapper dude...

I just love his hat and that goofy expression...he's loveable and I just want to hug him!  I colored him with Copics and paper pieced his scarf and the trim around his hat with PTI's Pure Poppy polka dotted dsp.  I added him to an embossed panel (Darice - Snowflakes) and framed him using PB's Classy Frames.

I added a pre-printed sentiment strip from SSS and used WOS on all the snowflakes, and then finished with a mat layer of black and a white card base.  CAS and enough to melt your heart (IMHO!)!

And because I was on a snowman kick, I pulled out my very first snowman stamp from 1999 (on a wooden block) and made a few very simple tags to put away for Christmas.

Isn't he a cutie too?!  Stamped in black and simple coloring with my Copics and a Gelly Roll Clear Star pen on the little stars (shows up much better IRL!).  The sentiment is from SSS and finished with a piece of gold and white bakers twine.  So easy to do these in assembly line fashion and just perfect for the grands who probably won't even notice them, but I will!

Lots of CUTE inspiration from Loll and the DT, so check it all out HERE and then play along to get a head start on those Christmas cards.  We may be sweltering in the heat right now, but Christmas and SNOW will be here before we know it!  This challenge is open till Friday, July 31st.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas July 2026 - Snowman

Hello friends.  Playing along with the gals over at CAS Christmas so I can keep up with my Christmas cards!  This month they are looking for a SNOWMAN.  Easy peasy as I do happen to have a few...hundred! Haha!!

I pulled out a little TH set called CHILLY & FREEZY and came up with this CAS card...

I started by using SB's Hemstitch Rectangle Dies to make a border frame around my snowman and also cut another plain rectangle from the center and ink blended a little bit of purple in the bottom right corner before embossing the rectangle with SSS's Snowflake Visions ef.  I sprayed it quite liberally with Sheer Shimmer Spritz Sparkle before inlaying it back into the center of my card front.

Next I die cut my snowman from white cs and only colored his eyes, the charcoal buttons, his nose & twig arms with my Copics. I thought about coloring his hat and scarf, but decided to keep him (or is it a her??) really clean looking.  I used foam tape on the back of him (or her) for some dimension.  I may have to play more than once this month as I really do have an abundance of snowmen stamps and dies...hope you don't mind?!  And these snowmen should help cool us down with this hot, HOT Summer we're having!! Ha!!

This challenge is open till the end of the month and if you need some more inspiration to play along, you can check out all the wonderful snowmen Linda and the rest of the DT have made right HERE.   

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas June 2026 - BIRD

Hello friends.  I'm so excited to once again be playing along with Loll's CAS Christmas Challenge that she's brought back to life, and even though life has been crazy busy lately, I couldn't let the opportunity to play along with this first challenge slip by!  And it's a fun one for me...BIRDS!!

 I have quite a collection of bird stamps, but one of my all time favorites has to be from PB's Winter Wonderland set...it's an oldie but definitely a goodie!!  There's 3 birdies in this set (and a few other critters!), and I couldn't resist using all 3 birds!  Here's what I came up with...

  Aren't they just the cutest chubby little birdies all decked out in their Christmas hats?!!  I stamped them in Versafine Black Onyx ink and then heat set with clear embossing powder before coloring them with my Copics.  After fussy cutting them out I added them to a stamped branch from The Greetery's Winter Sketches stamp set (using Soft Suede ink - SU!), using foam tape behind the middle birdie for a bit of dimension!

 I did add TH Rock Candy Glitter to the brims and pompoms of the birdies hats and then finished with an older W Plus 9 sentiment (Hand Lettered Holiday stamp & die set) that I die cut from a piece of Real Red cs (SU!).  I did add a bit of pink chalk to the birdies cheeks as it's pretty COLD here in Michigan at Christmas time!

Lots of BEAUTIFUL inspiration from the DT and their Special GD Bobby to get you started, so play along and get started on those Christmas cards!  And a BIG thank you to Loll for bringing this challenge back...I couldn't be happier to be playing along!!  This is a month long challenge that's open till June 30th and you can check it all out right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas September 2022 Reminder - Sparkle and/or Shine

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that there's still time to play along with us at the CAS Christmas Challenge, where this month our hostess Hideko is looking for CAS Christmas cards with SPARKLE and/or SHINE.

                                               

                                                                  

The past year or so I have fallen in LOVE with the foiling techniques, and the fabulous SHINE it gives to a card!  It is so different than the shine you get from embossing with gold or silver, and unless you really see it in person, photographs don't really do it justice!  With that being said, I still made a card with foiling, and you're just going to have to trust me that the SHINE factor on this card is incredible!!  Take a look...

 I used a Spellbinders hot foil plate called Holidays Floral Background and Aura Foil on black cardstock, and the colors this foil gives when the light hits it is SO pretty!  In very little light it looks silver, but when you turn it just right, or the sunlight hits it, it goes into this multi-colored image that's like looking at colored lights on a Christmas tree at nighttime. I matted my foiled image with white and then adhered to a black card base (4 3/4 x 4 3/4).  Really a very easy card to create and I love the dramatic look of it!

Make sure you check out all the beautiful inspiration from my talented teammates, and then play along and get going on those Christmas cards!  Just remember to keep it CAS and also to add some SPARKLE and/or SHINE to your card.  We look forward to seeing YOU in our gallery!!  You can play along right HERE.  This challenge is open till the 24th.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas Sept. 2022 - SPARKLE and/or SHINE

Hello friends.  It's time for another CAS Christmas Challenge, and this month Hideko is our hostess, and she would like to see SPARKLE and/or SHINE on your CAS Christmas cards!

 

For REAL SPARKLE, I like to pull out my glass bead gel (Faber Castell) and a stencil, and I just happened to have a new (to me!) stencil from Trinity Stamps called Tree of Lights that I thought would work beautifully with the glass bead gel.  Take look...

Can you see the SPARKLE??!!  This is a 4 step stencil and it was definitely made for a regular size slimline card, but I like the mini-slimline size sooooo much better, so part of the tree is cut off at the bottom, but it still worked beautifully with the smaller size!  I used PFS's set of 4 green ink cubes to do my blending over the 4 stencils, and then went back to stencil #3 to add my glass bead gel.  Once it was dry, I used Gina K's Master Layouts #7 die set to cut my stenciled layer and the black layer behind it, before attaching it to my card base.

  To finish my card I simply added a pre-printed sentiment strip (Gina K) with foam tape on the back for some dimension.  A pretty simple card...the hardest part of this one was waiting for the glass bead gel to dry (over night)!!

Have you started your Christmas cards yet??  Let us help by joining our challenge...you can find all kinds of FABULOUS inspiration from our talented DT and Special GD, and then play along right HERE.  This challenge is open till the 24th. 

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas August 2022 - Reminder - PINE

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that there's still time to play along with us at the CAS Christmas Challenge where our hostess Trina would like to see PINE on our CAS Christmas cards.

I have used a few of my favorite stamps and dies from The Greetery to come up with this inspiration for you...

 I started with a white card base and added the largest Crimped Circle Die cut also in white.  I attached my watering can from the Sprinkled with Kindness stamp and die set (also The Greetery) in shades of brown, and then started adding the pine branches from the BotaniCuts: Pine Bough dies from The Greetery.  The pine branches were all cut from white cardstock and then inked up with DOX inks.

The pinecone also is part of the BotaniCuts: Pine Bough die set and was cut from kraft cardstock and sponged with Soft Suede ink (SU!).  I finished with a sentiment in Cranberry ink (C&9th) from a PTI set called Christmas Blessings and a few Sparkling Champagne Metallic Pearls from PFS.

You have until the 24th to play along with this challenge, and if you need more inspiration, check out all the beautiful cards from my talented teammates right HERE.     

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas August 2022 - PINE

Hello friends.  It's time for a new challenge at CAS Christmas, and our hostess Trina would like to see PINE (tree, branch, sprig??) on our CAS Christmas cards this month.

                                                 

I used an older Penny Black cling stamp (red rubber) and came up with this...

I used my SU! markers and colored directly onto the Berry Speckled stamp, small areas at a time, huffed on the stamp to moisten up the ink on the stamp, and then pressed onto my cardstock.  Once I had the whole image colored, I spritzed lightly with water onto the stamp to release the rest of the ink still on the stamp, and then pressed into my cardstock again, which left me with more of a water colored look.

Next I trimmed my layer down a bit and then used Spellbinders Essential Dual Lines foiling plates to add the gold foiled framing around my image.

A little hard to tell in my photo, but I also gold foiled my sentiment which is from Yana's Christmas Sentiments (Spellbinders), and then die cut the sentiment shape 3 extra times to stack my sentiment on so it would stand out a bit on the card.

We have all kinds of beautiful inspiration for you from our talented DT and Special GD that you can check out right HERE, and then play along with us and get those Christmas cards started!  Remember to keep your cards CAS!!  This challenge is open till the 24th, and we can't wait to see YOU in the gallery!! 

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas July 2022 Reminder Post - SANTA

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that there's still time to play along with us at the CAS Christmas Challenge where our hostess Barb would like to see a SANTA on your card.

 

I have a very simple card to share with you using another older wooden stamp from Paper Inspirations called Telling Santa.  Take a look...

Doesn't that image just make you feel all warm inside?!!  I stamped the image in Basic Gray ink (SU!) and then layered it to a Basic Gray panel and a Matte Silver cs layer (Gina K).  

I embossed the front of my card base with a FSJ Evergreen ef, and then added a sparkling white ribbon (SU!) before attaching my stamped image, which is raised up on foam strips.  I finished by simply adding 3 red gemstones to add just a tiny pop of color to my card.  I left off a sentiment on the front of my card as I felt the image was busy enough as is, and I don't think anyone will mistake it for anything other than a Christmas card!  :0)

There's still a week left to play along with us, so check out all the fabulous inspiration from our DT and Special GD, and then play along with us right HERE.  This challenge is open till the 24th. 

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas July 2022 - SANTA

Hello friends.  It's time for a new challenge over at CAS Christmas, and our hostess Barb would like to see SANTA on our CAS Christmas cards. 

I had fun inking and coloring up an old wooden stamp from Rubber Stampede called Santa Collage, and came up with this card...

I stamped my image in black, and then used a B34 Copic to color Santa's eyes (a little hard to see in my photo, but they really are BLUE), a gold pen to outline Santa's glasses, and then lightly added a bit of pink chalk with a q-tip to Santa's cheeks, nose, & mouth.  I also used a WOS pen to make the snowflakes in his beard sparkle.

 I made a frame by die cutting a rectangle from the center of my 4" x 5 1/4" panel, and then embossed it using a SU! ef called Winter Snow.  I used foam strips on the back of the embossed panel for a bit of dimension, and then added a pre-printed sentiment strip from Gina K.

Let us help you get a head start on those Christmas cards by pulling out your SANTA stamps and joining the DT and our special GD over at the CAS Christmas Challenge...this challenge is open till the 24th.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas June 2022 - WREATH Reminder Post

Hello friends.  Just a friendly reminder that there's still time to play along with us at the CAS Christmas Challenge, where our  hostess Linda is looking for a WREATH on our CAS Christmas cards.

My WREATH comes from an older SU! set called Feeling of Christmas, and because I loved the greens and purple I used on my first card, I stuck with the same color palette here:

I used Soft Succulent for the first inked layer of the wreath, and then Evening Evergreen for the leaf layer.  I used a couple of Copics (BV08 & BV17) to color in the berries.

My bow (The Greetery - Fit To Be Tied) was die cut three times (for dimension) from Elegant Eggplant cs, and then I put a few coats of WOS on the bow for some shimmer & shine.  The sentiment is from the Feeling of Christmas stamp set also.  I matted this layer with a piece of Elegant Eggplant cs and then adhered both to a top folding white card base.

We hope you'll dig out those WREATH stamps (or dies or stencils) and play along with us right HERE.  This challenge is open till the 24th.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!

CAS Christmas June 2022 - WREATH

Hello friends.  Welcome back to CAS Christmas ..we're SO excited to be back with you and helping you get those Christmas cards done in time!  Linda is our hostess this month, and her challenge is to use a WREATH on your card.  

 

 In the past year I have fallen in LOVE with all the wonderful layering stencils that are out there, and today I'm using Pinkfresh Studio's Thrill of Hope wreath stencils for my card.  Take a look:

I am loving the simplicity of this wreath and used just 2 green inks (SU!'s Evening Evergreen & Soft Succulent) and Elegant Eggplant ink for the berries.

My sentiment was foiled using Spellbinders JOY Glimmer Plate and Aura foil...I'm loving the different colors this Aura foil gives depending on the light!  I matted this layer with a panel of Elegant Eggplant cs and adhered both to a top folding white card base.  Very simple but I'm thrilled with the way this card came out!!

Make sure you check out all the wonderful inspiration the rest of the DT has to share with you, and also welcome our newest DT member Lisa Elton (My Paper Tales).  You can play along with us until the 24th right HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ... I love it when you do!