You can't go wrong with snowflakes

 

Majda's choice for her technique challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown is

I'm sharing a card I made at another of Angela Simpson's online workshops. I was very unprepared for this one so grabbed some old favourites to use - a blue colour scheme and snowflakes!

The background was made with Elf explosion powder from Pretty Gets Gritty. It gives a gold shimmer.

The snowflake stamps are from Simon Says Stamp - I saw someone use them on a challenge card and lovely hubby ordered them from the states for my birthday. I used distress ink/oxide in weathered wood, chipped sapphire and faded jeans, and gold pigment ink. The sentiment is from Clarity. The solid blue layers are inked in faded jeans. Everything is edged in chipped sapphire.

This is the front:

The bow was added to hide a line where I scored in the wrong place! But I do like it so we'll call that a happy accident.

Opening the front to the left shows:

 

And then, opening the final section to the right, you see:

 

The middle section has a blank area to write a message.

This was a fun project and a fun workshop!

To join in with our fancy folds challenge, please visit us at the 52CCT blog. You have until Friday 6th November to enter - two weeks this time as there are 5 Saturdays in October.

Have fun creating!

Grungy Christmas jumper

 

On the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown, Majda has chosen Winter Sweaters as our theme for the week.

I had an idea for this ages ago, but hadn't made it. Then my daughter's bubble at school closed, and I've been homeschooling all week! So I swapped for a simpler design.

I used my gel plate and an embossing folder with a knitted design, as well as a jumper stamp.

I stamped the jumper then ran the card through with the embossing folder.

I then loaded the gel plate with acrylic paint, in shades of green and blue.

I brayered the paint to mix it, and pressed the embossed card into the plate, to pick up paint. I restamped the jumper - I'd used the stamp platform and had the stamp still in position.

Only at this point did I notice the embossing folder had an up and a down - so this one has the pattern the wrong way up!

I reloaded the gel plate and pressed an A4 embossed card into it, then also pulled a print with the paint remaining on the gel plate.

I stamped the jumper onto these.

I fussy cut all the jumpers - I think they look really cute!!

I used a white gel pen on the labels, and added ribbing on the cuffs and collar of one.

For the background, I also used the gel plate. I brayered dark red and dark gold onto the plate, cleaning the brayer onto another piece of card - on the right below. The print I pulled had lots of left over paint in it, which I love.

Using the gel plate as a palette, I used the gold paint to repeat stamp sentiments across the backgrounds.

I had a bit of a play with what was left on the gel plate, adding more red for a print, then adding teal stamping from the plate, and more red to pull what that left. This gave me two more backgrounds.

For the sentiment, I printed "Warmest Wishes". This was meant to be in greens and blues to match the jumpers, but my printer is out of yellow ink!

I mounted the sentiment on offcuts of the "knitted" card, and added to the card.

I have only put one of the cards together, for time, but have the rest to make at my leisure.

I think the card could do with some finessing, if I took more time, maybe something to the top right, maybe a drop shadow. But I do like the grungy jumper!

To join in with this challenge, pop over to the 52CCT blog. You have until Friday 23rd October to enter.

A krafty blue deer

Majda has chosen blue, white and kraft for her colour pick on 52 Christmas Card Throwdown.

I usually struggle to use kraft card, and end up die cutting it. This time I went for a different approach and used the kraft as my base.

Starting with two pieces (in case one went wrong), I stamped across each in gesso, using a wooden tree stamp I bought second hand.

 

I added a moon with gesso on a sponge, masking the trees. I used two different sizes of moon mask to see how they looked.

 

For the blue, I dabbed distress oxides out onto my craft mat - broken china, faded jeans and chipped sapphire. I spritzed then swooshed the top of the card through.

I wiped the ink off the moon.

When they dried, I stamped a holly deer from Clarity onto each in versamark, and heat embossed in white. The different sized moons meant I had to position one higher and one lower for them to look right.

At this point I wasn't sure I liked them, they didn't have the feel I'd anticipated. However, when I cut them down to size (17x11.9cm for a 5x7 card blank) they came together somehow.

I framed each with a snowflake border wooden stamp. I mixed the gesso and heat embossing for a less uniform look.

I decided for the sentiment to use a blue drop shadow behind white embossing. Should be easy! However, I couldn't get the cobalt archival ink to dry - it must have been the surface. So the embossing powder stuck to my drop shadow as well as to the versamark. I brushed it off and tried heating to dry it, then left it overnight, then used my antistatic bag (which to be fair is nearly empty). In the end I had to leave it for a day then smother it in talcum powder to get the powder just where I wanted it.

To finish, I edged in the cobalt archival and mounted on the card blank.

 

These have ended up with a delicacy that I think is pretty, and are quite atmospheric. I don't often make scenes, this is the closest I get!

To join in with our colour challenge, head to the 5CCT blog. This challenge is open until Friday 16th October.

Christmas sketch

 

Wow, it's October already - and the weather's turned here in the UK so it's starting to really feel Christmassy!

Majda is our host at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown this month. This is the sketch she's chosen for us.

 

I couldn't resist snowflakes for this! I wanted to do something quite quick (didn't work out that way though) so pulled out two backgrounds from the stash.

I cut them to size - 14 by 14 cm for a 6x6 card blank.

The eagle eyed will have noticed that one doesn't look like the photo at the top! I decided the metallic one didn't work so swapped it at the last minute for this background from the stash.

 

I edged the backgrounds in gold paint, and then in black ink.

For the panel I had the idea to use a framed lattice. I cut the frames and lattices separately. The fine lattice is a Tim Holtz corner die, so I had to turn it four ways to get a big enough area - it's testiment to the quality of the card and the die that I managed it without cutting through it.

I cut my snowflakes from the offcuts of the metallic background. I used a mixture of sets. I've recently sorted out my dies and put them in folders on magnetic sheets so they're much easier to find - so I'm enjoying using the ones I'd forgotten about!

I needed two small ones for each card, which I heat embossed using the cosmic shimmer mixed media powders.

I love these powders so much!

The rest I painted with gold paint as a base, and then heat embossed some layers.

For the snowflake for the red background I used four layers, heat embossing in black, gold glitter and copper glitter.

 

The other large snowflake had two layers and a gem - I never usually use these, but have a few for the odd occasion they're just the thing I fancy. I also added the copper glitter embossing powder on the smaller layer.

When I started putting the cards together, I decided the large snowflakes needed some defintiion, so die cut the large snowflakes in black and put them behind the gold, offset slightly.

For this one, I also stamped some black swirls, I felt they were needed.

I love the prettiness of this, the snowflake die is gorgeous.

This was the background that I originally had in mind when I planned the card - and I managed to find it in my extensive stash! It was made with petite gel plates and stencils. I love the flash of green.

I hope you have fun playing with this great sketch. The challenge is open until Friday 9th October for entries, at the 52CCT blog.