Christmas in July

I love making Christmas cards, so I am thrilled this month's challenge is Christmas in July.

I love how the sky turned out.  I used light blue copy paper & stamped the tree line.  There are 1st, 2nd & 3rd generation stamping.  I like to call it ghosting, but that's just me.  I sponged the sky, but didn't like it so I sprayed it with water.  I really liked it a lot even though it started to crumple.  Ii hit the paper with the embossing heat gun & it left the sky with texture.

The snow is simply two torn pieces of white cardstock & the cut out snowman colored & tucked between the layers.

Stamps used are: Snowman ( C2937), Pine Forest (F3588), Sentiments 3 (UMS7020)

Fun Technique

I am previewing my sample cards from the class I will be teaching this Fall at our Scrapbook Fun Fest on the Coast event.

I used  3 Distress Spray colors, a maple leaf stencil I cut with my Silhouette & stamps from Just For Fun stamps.  I came up with 3 different looks.            

Stamps:

Bare Tree  ( F3328),  Grass (A012), & Sentiments (UMS7020)         

Here they are all together.  I mounted two on Sunflower cardstock & one on a red mat.  The card bases were Red, Dk. Green, & Sunflower.  The tree stamp pops differently on each card. 

I love this technique!  You use not only the stencil but the leaf mask.  When finished spraying on the stencil I turn it over & press it down (with wet spray stain still on the stencil) & gently rub on another 5" x 3 3/4" cardstock.  Voila...another background!  In fact, there is enough spray to make a 3rd background.

Butterflies R Free

Butterflies have wings & I love butterflies.  This month I actually made a few cards to give to people I know.  The card on the right was a wedding card to a wonderful couple of "kids".  Inside were two pockets which held their wedding gift of 2 checks - 1 for the groom & 1 for the bride.  Next month I will show you the pocket card with the pockets on the outside.  I reversed the instructions for the wedding card so the pockets were inside.

Of course, I forgot to take a photo of the inside of the card. Oops!


I stamped the butterfly (H3872) on the left on pattern paper & the butterfly on the right was stamped on watercolor paper.

You can see the right butterfly was stamped in multiple color ink.  I made my own "stamp pad" using the baby wipe technique.  In case you have never heard of this technique it is really simple. 
Put a couple of baby wipes in a plastic tray.  I used an embossing tray.  Choose your ink colors (use reinkers) & randomly drip drops over the baby wipe.  Make sure there is enough drops on the baby wipe to ink whatever stamp you are using but not too much so the colors get muddy.

I inked the stamp, held it away from my body & gave it a quick spritz with water.  Then, I stamped on the watercolor paper.  You probably can use regular cardstock, but I like the effect it gets on watercolor paper.

The sentiments used were from Sentiments1 (UMS7018) & Sentiments 2 (UMS7019).

Birdhouse Fussy Cut

Have I mentioned how I love to sit & cut?  Well, I do. 

Keeping with this month's Challenge - "Bird's of a Feather" I used the Bird House Row stamp (H3853) & fussy cut it to make, what I think is my favorite card.  Why?  For some reason it looks almost 3-D.  I really hope you can see it in the photo.  My Photoshop died & I am waiting for a new one so the photo is not what I hoped it would be.

Here is what the stamp looks like before all the fussiness.

Can you tell how much I cut?  It really did not take that much time either.  I first stamped the image on watercolor paper using Staz-On brown ink. I colored the image with my watercolor crayons.

I cut the birdhouse from the post & used double pop dots to make it really pop off the card.  Since the top of the birdhouse looks like wire, I used a silver chalk pen to go over the lines.  I also used the silver on the barbwire on the fence.  I bent some real wire & attached it to the top of the roof since I had to cut the stamped wire off the top.

On the bottom of the fence I stamped grass (A012) so it didn't look like it was floating.  Finally, I used a saying from Unmounted Sentiments 2 (UMS7019).

Class Card

One more week until Create-a-Retreat at Seven Feathers Casino Resort in Canyonville, Oregon.

Here is the other card I will be teaching in my class.  Using the perforator tool & an old ink pad, you can make faux stitch marks. 

The bottom photo shows the lines up close.  Cool huh?

Stamps I used:  Wicked Trees G3857 (I used only 2 of the stamped panels) & Unmounted Sentiments 1 UMS7018

Variation on 1 Technique

In three weeks is the Create-a Retreat event at Seven Feathers Casino Resort. I have a booth with my DH, and I am teaching a class, which BTW is sold out. I will also be teaching technique 4 make & takes throughout the event & a free one for the participants.

Below are photos of 5 variations of the  free make & take for the participants.  Part of the card is in the goodie bags. To finish the card they have to come to our booth to sponge & stamp the rest.  It is quick, using the "Northern Lights" technique.

Valentine & Easter Cards

I normally do not make or send Valentine's Day cards or Easter cards.  Just For Fun Stamps had some really cute hearts & bunny stamps that spoke to me.  Why?  Well, because they reminded me of candy.  I love candy hearts & probably my favorite candy next to Sugar Babies are Peeps!  When I say Peeps I mean stale Peeps.  When I bring them home I poke holes in the package & they are just right after a few days.  Crazy Huh?

Anyway I used the technique I am demonstrating at the Create-Your-Retreat event next month.  I will share the samples in my next blog post Feb. 25.

Here are my Valentine & Easter cards. Quick & Simple & I think I may send them to someone this year.

Stamps used - MC - Hearts Sentiment Hearts Mini Cube

UMS7018 Sentiments 1 Unmounted

 

 

 

 

Stamps used - G3813 Marshmallow Bunnies 2 - sided I mean do they not look like Peeps?

D3401 Grass Border

UMS7018 Sentiments 1 Unmounted