Main image of card front, Clean & Simple Christmas Card

Clean & Simple – Only 10 Minutes To Christmas Shine

Hello Friends!

Today I have a card for you that’s clean and simple, shimmers and shines, and only takes about 10 minutes to put together.

I started with the dimensional tree cut from Very Vanilla cardstock with the “In The Woods Dies”.   I then painted the tree gold with shimmer paint, only to realize that Stampin’ Up no longer sells the gold shimmer paint.  However, it dawned on me that the shimmer paint, with it’s brush strokes, actually looked a lot like the Brushed Metallic gold cardstock.  So, if you don’t have gold shimmer paint, the Brushed Metallic Cardstock is a very good alternative.  That’s actually what I used for the scalloped mat behind the sentiment and they match quite nicely!  I used Toile Tidings DSP which I love for its classic Christmas appeal in Real Red and Garden Green – just FYI – it’s ON SALE NOW! (SEE BELOW)

I was afraid the sentiment may get lost on the DSP (Designer Series Paper) design, so I used my Stamparatus to first stamp the sentiment in Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, and then wiped the black ink from the stamp without removing the stamp from the Stamparatus.  I then simply inked the stamp in Versamark, stamped over the first black image, sprinkled clear embossing powder over the Versamark and heat set it.  This gave me a nice, glossy, dark, slightly raised, and definitely more prominent sentiment on the patterned DSP.

In this same manner, you can have any color of embossed image.  Just stamp your image in whatever color of ink you wish and stamp over it in Versamark, then use clear embossing powder.  Of course, a stamp positioning tool, such as the Stamparatus, is a MUST for this type of stamping!  There are other stamp positioning tools on the market, but the Stamparatus beats it’s competitors hands down!

In the designing stages of the Stamparatus, Stampin’ Up gathered a handful of demonstrators as collaborators to act as a “think tank” in order to make it the best possible tool out there for it’s intended purpose.  I’m proud to tell you, my sister, Krista Thomas, of RegalStamping.com, was part of that design team.  They did a fantastic job in the design, if I do say so myself!  But, don’t take my word for it – give it a try!  I know you’ll love it!

LET’S GET INKY!

Materials:

Stamp Sets Used:

  • For Unto Us

Metal Dies:

  • In The Woods
  • Layering Circles

Paper:

  • Toile Tidings Designer Series Paper (red stripes – 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″) (green stripes 5 3/8″ x 3/4″) ( green scene 3″ x 3″ to crop circle from)
  • Brushed Metallic Cardstock (tree 3 1/2″ x 2 1/4″ piece) & (scalloped circle 3 1/4″ x 3 1/4″)
  • Very Vanilla Cardstock (card base) 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ – fold in half at 4 1/4″
  • For card inside: Very Vanilla- 4 3/4″ x 3 7/8″; Red Striped Toile Tidings DSP 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″; Green Striped Toile Tidings DSP 5 3/8″ x 1/2″

Ink:

  • Memento Tuxedo Black
  • Versamark

Accessories:

  • Clear Embossing Powder & Heat Tool
  • Wonder Of The Season Ribbon Combo Pack (Gold cord)
  • Wonderful Gems
  • STAMPARATUS

Putting It Together:

  1. Adhere the green striped Toile Tidings DSP to the bottom of the red striped Toile Tidings Mat, leaving about 1/4″ of the red showing at the bottom.
  2. Crop the tree from Brushed Metallic CS using the In The Woods Dies.
  3. Crop the scalloped circle using the largest of the scalloped circle dies in Layering Circles Dies, from Brushed Metallic CS.
  4. Crop the circle for the sentiment using the second largest “plain” circle die from Layering Circles Dies, from the green “scene” Toile Tidings DSP.
  5. Place the cropped circle in the Stamparatus (make sure “scene” is upright and straight).
  6. Lay the sentiment stamp in the center of the circle and close the “lid” to pick up the stamp.
  7. Ink stamp with Tuxedo Black ink and close “lid” to stamp.
  8. Open Stamparatus and use rag or shammy to wipe black ink from stamp.
  9. Re-ink the stamp with Versamark and close “lid” to stamp over the previous black ink.
  10. Remove circle from Stamparatus and sprinkle clear embossing powder over stamped image, tapping off extra embossing powder.
  11. Heat set using Heat Tool.
  12. Adhere stamped circle to scalloped brushed metallic mat.
  13. Adhere that to the right-top side of the red-striped mat.
  14. Wrap a piece of gold cord across the front of the mat toward the bottom edge of the green striped piece, and adhere ends of cord to back using tape.
  15. Tie a small bow using gold cord and adhere to front using a mini glue dot.
  16. Adhere the tree to left side of card front and lift the “boughs” to create dimension.
  17. Use a red “Wonderful Gem” to top the tree.
  18. View of the card from the side
  19. For the inside, adhere red-striped DSP to inside card base.
  20. Stamp sentiments from For Unto Us in Red Red to Very Vanilla panel.
  21. Adhere green-striped DSP to bottom edge of Very Vanilla panel.
  22. Adhere Very Vanilla sentiment panel to red-striped DSP.
  23. DONE!

Full view of the card front

Just a quick reminder that Stampin’ Up has a selection of DSP (Designer Series Paper) ON SALE NOW!  Through the month of October only, some DSP is marked down 15%!  I’ll put a link to all those that are on sale down below, along with the products that I used today.

I want to thank you again for spending a little bit of your day here with me!

I hope you’re settling happily into autumn weather, and anticipating the holiday season which will be upon us before we know it!

Until next time,

I hope you get INKY today!

Janet

 

These are the Designer Series Papers that are on sale right now!  Unfortunately, my link-list below doesn’t reflect the sale prices, however, if you click on the link for each one, it will take you to my online store and the sale price will be reflected there.  All of the sets below are currently on sale for $9.78, with the exception of the In Good Taste DSP which is on sale for $17.85 (it’s a larger pack).

Product List


Products used in today’s project:

Product List

Stamparatus

$49.00

“Glisten” versus “Sparkle”

Hello Friends,

I’m sure you’ve all heard the phrase, “Women don’t sweat, they glisten!”  Well, with these temperatures, I’m surely glistening when working outside!

After taking care of my horses this morning, I showered the “glisten” off and decided to create a little sparkle in my craftroom!

I’m completely in love with the Balmy Blue Glimmer Paper!  I love sparkle and bling and this Balmy Blue Glimmer Paper shimmers and shines so beautifully.

It pairs so well with  the Snowflake Wishes bundle that I chose to let the glimmer paper and DSP do all the work today!  Stampin’ Up always comes up with such beautiful designer series papers, and the quality is so much better than the big-box stores! (personal opinion, of course!)  The cool blues and purples with the lovely watercolor effect…Snowflake Splendor DSP is gorgeous!  So, why not feature it and let it speak for itself?!

LET’S GET INKY!

Materials Used:

Paper:

  • Whisper White: card base – 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″; mat 2 – 3″ x 2 1/2″; mat 3 – 4 1/8″ x 1 3/8″; front sentiment panel – 2 5/8″ x 1 1/2″; inside sentiment panel – 5 1/4″ x 4″
  • Snowflake Splendor DSP: mat 1 – 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″; featured panel – 2 3/8″ x 2 7/8″
  • Misty Moonlight: front embossed panel – 1 1/4″ x 4″; inside mat – 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″
  • Balmy Blue Glimmer Paper:  2″ x 6″ – Use So Many Snowflakes Dies to cut 1 large, 1 medium, and 2 small snowflakes

Stamp Sets Used:

  • Snowflake Wishes (front sentiment)
  • Wrapped In Christmas (inside sentiment)

Ink:

  • Misty Moonlight
  • Balmy Blue

Accessories:

  • So Many Snowflakes Dies
  • Winter Snow Embossing Folder
  • Adhesive-Backed Snowflakes
  • Misty Moonlight/Silver Baker’s Twine (Flowers For Every Season Ribbon Combo)

PUTTING IT TOGETHER:

  1.  Adhere mat 1 (DSP) to card base.
  2. Adhere DSP to mat 2 and wrap Baker’s Twine 3 times around panel, securing with tape on the back of panel. Tie small bow with the Baker’s Twine and apply with glue dot.
  3. Run Misty Moonlight 1 1/4″ x 4″ piece through Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine in the Winter Snow Embossing Folder.
  4. Adhere embossed piece to mat 3.
  5. Cut 1 large, 1 medium, and 2 small snowflakes from Balmy Blue Glimmer Paper using So Many Snowflakes Dies.
  6. Stamp sentiment on 2 5/8″ x 1 1/2″ Whisper White piece using Misty Moonlight ink.
  7. Adhere DSP panel to left upper corner of card front.
  8. Adhere embossed Misty Moonlight panel across bottom of DSP panel.
  9. Adhere sentiment tag to bottom right card front over Misty Moonlight panel.
  10. Adhere glimmer paper snowflakes on card front and then scatter the Adhesive-Backed Snowflakes randomly to fill in the gaps!
  11. For the inside of the card, stamp the sentiment from Wrapped In Christmas in Misty Moonlight (on Whisper White panel), and then stamp snowflakes (Snowflake Wishes) in Balmy Blue.
  12. Adhere that white panel to the Misty Moonlight mat and adhere all to card inside.

DONE!

So, which camp are you in?  Do you like the summertime “glisten”, or the wintertime holiday “sparkle”?  I guess I’m somewhere in-between!  I love summertime if I can lounge by a pool or on a beach somewhere – somewhere to rinse off the “glisten”.  And, I love wintertime if I can cozy up next to the fire with a good book!  Being cozy by the fire, and the Christmas season definitely puts a sparkle in my mood!

I hope you’re allowing yourself some time to get INKY and getting ahead of the holiday rush!  If you’ve purchased Stampin’ Up products from me, my biggest wish is that you USE THEM!!!  Take these hot days and spend some time making cards to give to those you love!  It’s good for the heart and mind!!!

Until next time… I hope you get INKY!

Janet

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Peace On Earth For The Holidays (Please?)

Hello Friends!

Today I’m taking a break from the hot temperatures and Fall cards with a mish-mash of Christmas inspired products.  Some are old, some are new, but all are current and orderable in the catalogs.  Over the past couple of posts, I’ve let you all in on the fact that I love being in the middle of a quiet forest.  With all that’s going on in this world, it’s a place to experience nothing but peace and quiet.  A place where one can just relax and breathe in the earthy, natural smells and bask in the gloriousness of God’s creation!

As I pondered the holiday season this year, I wondered if, by some chance, folks would put aside their differences and simply allow “Peace On Earth” (please?)…  Oh what a wonderful world that would be, right?

This card today was inspired by my love of forests and my prayer for God’s peace for every living soul on this earth!

 

LET’S GET INKY!

Materials Used:

Paper: 

  • Stampin’ Up (SU) Whisper White Cardstock for card base – 8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″; score and fold in half at 4 1/4″.
  • I chose to use a second Whisper White panel the same size as the card base front (5 1/2″ x 4 1/4″) on which to build my scene, to give the card more substance after embossing with the Evergreen Forest 3D embossing folder.  Also a scrap for the sentiment tag on card front.
  • Shaded Spruce – approximately half a sheet (8 1/2″ x 5 1/2″) to crop fur boughs from.
  • Cinnamon Cider – scrap for pinecones.
  • Early Espresso – scrap for pinecones.
  • Gold Foil Paper – scrap for stars and 1/4″ x 5 1/2″ strip.
  • For the card inside, you will need a Shaded Spruce panel 5 3/8″ x 4 1/8″, and a Whisper White panel 5 1/4″ x 4″.

Stamp Sets Used:

  • Wrapped In Christmas (front sentiment)
  • For Unto Us (inside sentiment)

Ink:

  • Early Espresso

Accessories:

  • Beautiful Boughs Dies
  • Stitched Stars Dies
  • Evergreen Forest 3D Embossing Folder
  • Gold cord – Wonder Of The Season Ribbon Combo
  • Real Red 3/8″ Sheer Ribbon
  • Mini Glue-dots

Putting It Together:

  1. Emboss the Whisper White 5 1/2″ x 4 1/4″ panel using the Evergreen Forest 3D embossing folder.  (If you choose to omit this panel, then emboss the front of the card base and build upon that.)
  2. Using the Beautiful Boughs Dies and Shaded Spruce CS, crop out 3 of the larger branches, and 2 of the smaller branches.
  3. Use Snips (scissors) to cut the branches apart into separate boughs.
  4. Arrange these across the top of your card panel and adhere down.
  5. Adhere the 1/4″ x 5 1/2″ strip of Gold Foil Paper across the top, over the top of the bough ends to hide them.
  6. Crop out the pinecones using the small pinecone dies in Beautiful Boughs.  The bottom layer is Cinnamon Cider, top layer is Early Espresso. (Cut 2 of each)
  7. Apply a 6 1/4″ piece of Real Red Sheer Ribbon over the top of the Gold Foil Paper, attaching the ends to the back of the panel with glue dots or tape.  (Layering over the gold foil gives a pretty sheen under the sheer ribbon)
  8. Adhere the pinecones in a “cluster” just right of center.
  9. Tie a small bow with a piece of the Real Red Sheer Ribbon and place over the top of the pinecones.
  10. Stamp the “Peace on earth” sentiment from “Wrapped In Christmas” in Early Espresso ink on a scrap of Whisper White CS.
  11. Crop the sentiment out using the tag die in the Beautiful Boughs Dies.
  12. Ink the edges of the tag with Early Espresso ink and a sponge.
  13. Apply tag to front panel.
  14. Crop three small stars and one medium sized star from Gold Foil Paper using Stitched Stars Dies.
  15. Cut 4 short pieces (approx. 2″) of the Gold Cord and using a glue dot or liquid glue, attach to the back of each star.
  16. Use Mini Glue Dots to adhere ends of cords up amongst the fir boughs.
  17. Cut 3 more pieces of the Gold Cord, approx 3 – 4″, and tie three small bows.  Trim ends as needed.
  18. Use Mini Glue Dots to adhere the bows to the tops of the strings suspending the stars. (I tucked one of the strings up under the pinecones, thus the need for only 3 bows!)
  19. Use a fine-tip glue bottle or Mini Glue Dots to adhere the stars to the card front.
  20. Adhere the 5 1/2″ x 4 1/4″ now fully embellished panel to the cardbase front.
  21. For the card inside, stamp the sentiment from “For Unto Us” in Early Espresso on the Whisper White panel.
  22. Adhere to the Shaded Spruce mat and adhere that to the cardbase inside.

Done!!

This card is a little bit labor-intensive with all of the die-cutting and glue-dotting of the strings, bows and stars, but I’m pleased with the end-result!  Let me know what you think!

And, if you’re a praying person, let’s all join in praying for peace on earth!!!

Until next time, I hope you get INKY!

Janet

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