Pretty and slim

The third Saturday of the month is our theme challenge at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown. Goga has chosen "Slimline Cards" for us to play with.

I've been seeing these all over the place for the last little while, but haven't had a go - I'm a bit stuck in my 6x6 and 5x7 cards!

I had a bit of a search to see if there are specific measurements for these cards, but there don't seem to be. It seems to vary - in the US it's based on letter size cardstock, in the UK on A4 (and I don't know about elsewhere!).

I went with a DL card, i.e. A4 cut to two thirds, or 19.8cm along the long side, then folded. This allowed me to use the offcut for my topper, although I matte and layered so cut another.

This card was my play on Mother's Day, so no process photos I'm afraid.

I started with distress reinker in salty ocean, which I dropped onto the corner then spritzed to get it to run, down and across.

The stamping is in pumice stone distress oxide, with some frayed burlap.

I also stamped and drew lines and dots, and embossed in white, on the top and bottom.

 

I blended the browns round the edges, and also swiped a dark brown stazon ink on the very edge.

The holly and pine cone die cuts were smooshed through the brown inks, the snowflake was dipped into salty ocean. I overstamped the snowflake in cobalt blue archival ink.

 

The sentiment was also stamped in the cobalt blue, and edged in the browns.

The other touches are thread wrapped round, some sparkly white net, and a pearl in the middle of the snowflake.

The layer behind is blended with the two brown oxides.

 

I find this so pretty. I love the blue and brown together, and the shabby chic feel.

The different dimensions of the slimline card were fun to play with too. I have a couple of others that I cut and started, so can go back and play some more when I fancy.

To see the wonderful inspiration from my design team colleagues, head over to the 52CCT blog.

This challenge is open for you to share your slimline cards, until Friday 26th March. I really look forward to seeing what you come up with!

A new metallic for me!

It's Goga's colour challenge at the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown this week. She's chosen an unusual combination, but I like it a lot!

My white is basically my card! I started with the grey, and mixed stamps over it, using a grey pigment ink.

I cut this down to size, then overstamped in versamark and heat embossed in the rose gold. I didn't have a rose gold embossing powder, but I messaged Jo at my brilliant local arts and craft shop, and she had a pot. However, when I tried it, I found it more brown than I think of rose gold. It's a nice colour, but not right for this challenge. So, I mixed it with some copper, and it has come out in what I think is the right colour.

 

I also edged the background in the rose gold.

For my topper, I die cut a banner - I didn't have a die long enough so partially cut a shorter one then moved it along and cut the other end. I didn't quite line it up perfectly but I think it's okay. I stamped a sentiment and heat embossed in the rose gold, and then stamped the same holly and ivy as the background in grey.

I die cut the swirls - they are actually the antlers of a reindeer. I heat embossed these in the rose gold as well.

I put it all together on a 6x6 card blank. I decided I liked the background the other way up! So if you were to be unkind enough to look really closely, the music is upside down.

 

 

I really like these colours, they're so elegant! I'm very happy to have rose gold added to my stash, I'm sure this will be used again.

 

 

 

 

I hope you have fun playing with these colours. You can see the inspiration from the rest of the design team on our 52CCT blog, and then share your card.

The challenge is open for a week, until Friday 19th March.

Have fun!!

Faux lace

Goga is our March host at the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown. As always, we kick off with a sketch.

I felt like getting inky for this one! I wanted to make the banner (green in the sketch) translucent or lacey, I had to think for a while how I wanted to do it!

I started by blending ink over my card - distress oxides in Victorian velvet and hickory smoke. I then sponged ink through a snowflake stencil, in the same colours.

I cut a mask for the banner from copy paper, with a knife so I had the outer and inner.

I used the inner first, and stamped across the card (cut to size for a 5x7 card blank), using the same inks and a journal stamp, a fancy swirl, and "Let it Snow" sentiment.

Time to swap the mask for the outer. I stamped snowflakes with versamark, and heat embossed in white.

Using an embossing pen and ruler, I went round the edge of the banner then heat embossed in white again. I went over it twice to get the coverage.

I really like the effect, a faux snowflake lace layer over the card.

I got a bit stuck on how to add the other elements of the sketch. I had offcuts of the background to use. I stamped a heart frame, which came with a matching die to cut it out.

I stamped and cut another piece, but after playing with it and cutting it various ways, gave up as it just didn't fit.

In the end I stamped directly onto the card with the "Let it Snow" sentiment, and heat embossed. Where it went over the previous embossing, it got lost. I went around with an inktense pencil and water pen first, then a grey drawing pen, to try to define it. It worked, but is a little inelegant. If I'd planned this upfront I'd have avoided the embossing under the sentiment, but hey ho!

The heart was a little empty, and I didn't want another sentiment, so I used a tiny bauble stamp to add a little something.

I put it together, then added the little touches that finish it but also take a lot longer than you expect! I edged with the hickory smoke and inktense pencil, and added pencil drop shadow around the heart. I used the grey pen around the banner to give dimension.

I love the pretty, French feel to this card. The background stamps work beautifully together - this swirl is one I've had for ages but tend to forget about.

The colours are lovely and soft - maybe not Christmassy, or even snowy, but I really like them.

 

 

 

Please do head over to the 52CCT blog, to see the wonderful ideas from my DT colleagues, and to share your card inspired by our sketch. The challenge is open for a week, until Friday 12th March.