A Christmas Wrap-Up

Hope everyone had a great Christmas week-end. My youngest son arrived
from the East Coast on the 19th so we had a wonderful family celebration.
New Year's Eve is just a few days away - soon all of the Christmas stamps,
dies, punches and decorations will be tucked away for another year.

Alert:  This is a very loooong post with lots of pictures!!

I have quite a few projects to share today since I haven't updated my blog
for a while. It's  "A Christmas Wrap-Up"  with some of the cards, tags and packaging that were included in our Christmas celebrations this year.
I love the stamps, dies and accessories from Papertrey Ink, and the holiday season certainly gives me a chance to play with all the things I've 'collected'.

Tags and Packaging

I loved using this festive paper for the little gifts I sent 

my grand nieces and nephews and decided to make 

matching tags with a similar design and colour scheme.

PTI's Tag Sale Die #3 was cut from Pure Poppy card stock and then layered with a white Doily Detail die cut. Winter Penguin was stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and coloured with copic markers. The little bow around the penguin's neck is from the new Tiny Tags II set. Finally, a 'flurry' of green snowflakes were stamped around the penguin.

For these parcels I used a lot of the same details as 

above, but stamped the images onto the matching 

die cuts and then added them to a 2 1/2" circle.

Red and green snowflakes were stamped around the penguin and the 

larger snowflake die cut (from Winter Penguin) was added to one side. 

I heat embossed a strip of Background Basics: Circles 

with clear embossing powder to create an 'icy' effect 

on the lower half of the tag. Finally the names were 

added with  Stampin' Up's Rough Type. Stamping on 

top of the embossed circles gave an unexpected result!!

A Little Penguin Treat

This parcel has two tags attached to the front: one using Mat Stack #2 

and the matching stamp set (Mat Stack 2 Collection), and one using the  

Seed Packet Die. The penguin is from Tiny Treats: Christmas. The seed 

packet was stamped with the various snowflakes from Winter Penguin 

and a sentiment from the stamp set: Yummy (Stampin' Up)

A Snowman Set

I have one grand niece who loves snowmen, even though she lives 

in New Zealand and hasn't experienced the 'real thing' yet. 

I purchased a book about snowmen and then I made her a large 

Snowman tag, a little "Build a Snowman" kit and wrapping paper 

for her Christmas gift.  Here's everything all wrapped and ready to mail.

The wrapping paper was made with 11" x 17" white paper and LOTS of stamping!! The circle snowflake from Tag-Its #8 was stamped all over and
then the snowman and mittens from Tiny Treats: Christmas and sentiments
from Winter Penguin were added inside the circles.  A circle snowflake
stamp from this set filled in the spaces between the larger snowflakes.

I die cut and stamped three snowman and accessories  

(Shape-Up Snowman) 

 in order to make the tag and the little "Build a Snowman" kit.

I packaged two of the snowmen and accessories  in a cellophane bag.

The final snowman was used to create the tag. I layered a blue patterned paper onto white card stock as the base of the tag. The snowman and accessories, along with lots of die cut snowflakes were added to the tag. I made the snowman's scarf using several lengths of Pure Poppy Baker's Twine. The sentiment was created by stamping 'let it' and adding 'snow' using the Block Alphabet die cut letters in Pure Poppy.

This is what I added to the back of all the tags. 

I think the tags would look cute hanging on the Christmas 

tree in years ahead; a little reminder of Christmas 2011.

Holiday Travel

It was so great to have my youngest son home for a week. We just don't get to see him very often, so we made the most of every minute.  One of his gifts was a ticket to Vancouver to visit his girlfriend for part of the holiday season and New Year's Eve. I created this tag and wrapping for his tickets. Some leftover white tissue paper was stamped with the string of lights from Holiday Lights.

The tag was made using Mat Stack #2, the stamped frame from Tag-Its #9 ; the sentiment from Tiny Tags II and the airplane image from Tiny Treats: Valentine.

Card

While my son was here he asked me to make a card for his girlfriend. He looked through all of my stamps and accessories and chose the colours and design for this sweet card. The little princess was coloured with copic markers and the little berries add some glitter to the holly leaves.

 
Main Stamp: Everyday Princess (Stamping Bella)
Small Sentiments: Tiny Tags and Tiny Tags II
Dies:  Nestabilities Label #4; Holly Jolly; Quatrefoil Cover Plate.

Gift Card Holder

Here's a combination card, gift card holder and 'recipe' for Snowman Soup. This was a great stocking stuffer along with a gift card to a favourite coffee shop and a little package of hot chocolate with marshmallows and a candy cane. The card stock is Polar Expressions * Comfy Cozy - a two sided patterned paper from Imaginisce.  The Friendship Jar and  Friendship Jar Holiday Fillers was a great match for this paper. 

I used the red side as the main card base and then added the pale blue snowflake paper as the mat for the jar of "hot chocolate, marshmallows and snowman".  The marshmallows and the snowman's pom pom were covered in Stickles to create lots of glitter. Pure Poppy Baker's Twine wraps around the jar lid and attaches the little tag. In order to make the tag, I printed "Snowman Soup" on my computer with blue ink and then stamped the 5c and the tag outline before hand cutting it.

Inside I used more of the red patterned paper to create a gift card holder on one side. I used my 1 3/4" scallop punch to create the opening at the edge. On the opposite side I attached the recipe for Snowman Soup, along with some stamped snowflakes and the little cup image from Tiny Treats:Christmas.

So ... that "wraps up" all of my Christmas projects for 2011 !!

Thanks for taking time to visit with me today. 

Best Wishes to you for a great 2012!!

I'll be back in January with some birthday cards and projects. 

Karen C. 

Holiday Lights: The Sequel

The Hoilday Lights Christmas stamp set has fun images and sentiments. I made this one a few weeks ago that used red and yellow embossed 'ligt bulbs', but I wanted to try a different design. I just received  Holiday Photo Finishers in my most recent order from Papertrey Ink, so added the large round tag to the upper corner. The tag was stamped in PTI Pure Poppy ink and then overstamped with the snowflake flourish from Tag-Its #8, with Bamboo ink. A green marker outlines the red circle image.   It's a very festive look and an easy design for mailing!!

Here's the inside of the card, using another string of lights and the 'twinkle' sentiment from Tag Its #8.

Card Details:

Stamps:  PTI Holiday Lights, Holiday Photo Finishers, Tag-Its #8

Inks:  PTI Pure Poppy;  CTMH Clover Meadow, Bamboo, Sunny Yellow, Crystal Blue;   Memento Tuxedo Black

Paper:  PTI Stamper's Select White.

Other Supplies:  green marker; Sakura Clear glitter pen.

Thanks for visiting today.
Karen C.

Many Thanks

I needed a thank you card last week and decided to use some stamp sets that I just received..
The Bloom Builders #3 die was also in my most recent order from Papertrey Ink. I had made a flower with cranberry card stock to 'test out' the die and it was sitting on my desk .... so I used it as the starting point for this card. 
10 layers of cardstock  (2 of each of the 5 sizes of petals) were layered to create a very thick and fluffy flower. I then added a beige button and embroidery floss to the center to hold them all together.

 Heather Nichols used Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo with the Stitches and Swirls stamp set for this card. I thought the combination of cranberry and Chai inks would create a really warm and rich look, so I used her card as an inspiration.
I wanted a ribbon across the middle of the card, so decided to create a plaid effect on the bottom portion of the card using Waltzingmouse Stamp's Off Beat Background.  The sentiment is from Fillable Frames #1 .

In order to make the flower 'pop' I ended up layering it over a beige circle  
(from one of the Limitless Layers 1 3/4" Circles) and a single green flower that I cut from  Stampin'Up's Daisies #2 die. I really like how the green flower looks like a set of leaves around the cranberry bloom.

Here's how I created the layered effect with various dies ............

Stampin'Up :  I cut all three flowers from the die, but used the middle size for this project.

Limitless Layers:   I used one of the 1 3/4" circles from the Limitless Layers die collection. Here's the metal die and the 2 card stock die cuts, before they were assembled.

The 'petal points' of the green flower fit perfectly 

in between the points of the Limitless Layers.

You can see the green and beige just peeking out from under the 

cranberry flower. It adds just the right touch of contrast and interest.

Card Details:

Stamps:  PTI Stitches & Swirls, Fillable Frames #1 ;   Waltzingmouse Stamps Off Beat Backgrounds .

Inks: Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo; Close to My Heart Cranberry .

Papers:  PTI Rustic white; ColorMates Light Coffee beige; cranberry and green from my stash

Dies: Bloom Builder's #3; Limitless Layers 1 3/4" Circles;   Stampin'Up Daisies #2 die .

Other Supplies: Cranberry satin ribbon, beige button, beige embroidery floss .

Red or Blue Snowflakes?

Just a quick post today. 

I've been finishing up Christmas cards and letters so I can get them into the mail this week-end. I first saw Tammy's card  during Papertrey Ink's November Blog Hop and then Stephanie's interpretation of that card here. 

My first card uses all the same elements ... white card stock with red snowflakes and PTI's Quatrefoil Cover Plate. Tea for Two's label was die cut and then the corresponding stamp was selectively inked so that only the border is visible. Red brads were added on either side of the sentiment (from 2010 Holiday Tags) Finally, the label was added to the card with dimensionals.

The second card uses a combination of Rustic White card stock, light blue Quatrefoil Cover Plate, Close to My Heart Twilight (blue) snowflakes.

Thanks for visiting today.

Karen C.

Love Lives Here: Trees

I've been having lots of fun using my stamps and dies from the Love Lives Here: Holiday set. I made two cards using the tree images using a non-traditional colour scheme of green, aqua and chocolate!!

The first one uses the three part die and matching stamp set to create a single tree for the focal point. The green oval was embossed with a polka dot folder and then stickles were added to each dot. The oval was matted with an aqua oval and the added to the white card base. Polka Dot Basics was used on the card front with SU Pool Party ink; the outer edges were sponged with Vintage Tea Dye Duo.

The sentiment, from Love Lives Here: Holiday was stamped with Sweet Leaf ink onto an Angled Die that was stamped with the border from Label Basics.

The inside of the card was stamped with the sentiment, pine boughs and stars from Love Lives Here: Holiday.

The second card uses three different papers from PTI's Green Boutique paper pack and the three part die to create a trio of  trees. The little jeweled stars were added to the top of each.
The white background panel was stamped with Pool Party ink using the Woodgrain stamp set and then added to an Aqua Mist card base. A brown marker was used to outline the white panel and create some contrast between the focal panel and the card base. The sentiment, from Holiday Lights, was stamped in Chocolate ink.

The inside sentiment (from Holiday Lights) was stamped with chocolate ink and then accented with a yellow die cut star.

Single Tree Card Details:

Stamps:  Love Lives Here: Holiday; Label Basics; Polka Dot Basics; Text Style

Inks:  SU Pool Party; Close to My Heart: Chocolate, Sweet Leaf, Sunny Yellow; PTI Vintage Toch Tea Dye Duo

Papers:  SU Pool Party, Certainly Celery; PTI Stamper's Select White

Dies:  Label Basics: Angled Dies; Love Lives Here: Holiday

Other Supplies:  Creative Memories Oval Cutting system; EK Success small star punch; Cuttlebug Polka Dot Embossing Folder; Stickles: Diamond

Trio of Tree Card Details:

Stamps:  Love Lives Here: Holiday; Holiday Lights; Background Basics: Wood grain

Inks:  SU Pool Party; Memento Rich Cocoa; Close to My Heart: Goldrush

Papers:  PTI Aqua Mist, Stamper's Select White; Green Boutique Paper pad.

Dies:  Love Lives Here: Holiday Collection

Other Supplies:  White Blossom Jewel Stickers; brown marker.

Thanks for visiting today.

Karen C.

Wreath for All Seasons Birthday Wishes

Wreath for All Seasons is one of my favourite sets for birthday cards. I used a colour scheme of aqua, pink and 'seaweed' to create this card.

I started by creating an embossed front panel, using this technique  described by Betsy Veldman for Papertrey Ink's Make It Monday #38:  Brayer and Impression Plate Techniques.  After embossing the card front with the Vineyard Impression Plate I used a brayer to add the SU Pool Party ink. I was suprised how vibrant this looked when it was completed.

The wreath was stamped onto the scalloped die from Limitless Layers 1 3/4" dies and then layered on top of Mat Stack #3, Doily Details die and a Nestabilites Label #11 die. Pink, aqua (SU Pool Party) and a darker green/blue (Seaweed) colours were used for these layers. Two butterflies were added with a small pearl accent. The sentiment, from Tea for Two Additions was stamped onto the Mat Stack that was also stamped with an image from the Mat Stack #3 Collection.  The edge of the Confetti White card base was sponged with Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo.

The inside of the card was stamped with the dandelion image from Botanical Silhouettes and a sentiment from Daydreamer.

Here's another version ... minus the  Seaweed Nestabilies mat and butterfly accents.  I thought it looked too light/pastel  for a December birthday, but now that I look at it again, I think I like it after all !!

Card Details:

Stamps: Card Front - Wreath for All Seasons,  Tea for Two Additions, Mat Stack #3 Collection
Card Interior -  DayDreamer, Botanical Silhouettes, 

Inks:  SU Pool Party; CTMH: Blush, Chocolate; PTI: Vintage Touch Tea Dye Duo

Papers:  SU Confetti White, Pool Party;  CTMH: Blush;  Core'dinations: Seaweed

Dies:  PTI: Mat Stack #3,  Doily Details,  Limitless Layers 1 3/4" Circles Collection; Nestabilities Label #11;  SU- Sizzix Beautiful Wings Embosslits.

Other Supplies:  PTI: Vineyard Impression Plate; brayer; Sakura Gelly Roll Glitter Pens: pink & clear; 
pink satin ribbon; pink mini pearls; corner rounder.

Make a Cake and Eat It Too!!

I've  wanted to use this fun image from Krafting Kimmie to make a birthday card.  "Agnes" is busy mixing up some chocolate cake batter just in time for my niece's birthday celebration!! Agnes was stamped and coloured with copic markers and then fussy cut.
I layered her onto an altered Spiral Notebook die cut. Since this die was too short for the image, I cut the top and sides with the die and then removed it from the Cuttlebug so that I could add some additional length to the bottom.

I wanted to create the effect of a recipe or note card, so I stamped the lines and the 'notes' sentiment on the card stock.
The sentiment, from Just the Ticket, was stamped onto the label from the Friendship Jar set and then the little chocolate cookies stamp (from Everyday Treats) was added.

 

The sentiments from PTI Table Service along with the die cuts and stamps for the plate and fork were used on the inside of the card. I stamped the cake image in Chocolate and the strawberry in Hollyhock ink on a separate piece of card stock and then fussy cut them so that I could add them to the plate. The stem and the leaf were added with brown and green markers.

Card Details:

Stamps:  Kraftin' Kimmie: Agnes;  PTI: It's Official, Friendship Jar, Just the Ticket, Everyday Treats, 
Mini Scrapbook Series: Tabs,  Table Service

Inks:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Rich Cocoa; CTMH: Blush, Hollyhock, Crystal Blue; 
SU: Caramel; Colorbox: Wild Hare

Papers:  patterned paper and pink card stock from my scrap box; PTI: Stamper's Select White; Bella White

Dies:  PTI: Spiral Notebook die, Friendship Jar Label, Table Service

Other Supplies:  Copics;  pink pearls; Marvy markers: pink, green, brown.

Thanks for visiting today.

Karen C.

Papertrey Ink November 2011 Blog Hop

 For this month's blog hop inspiration we've selected something perfect for the 

upcoming holidays.  Embrace the festive red and green color scheme or perhaps 

the gingham and toile patterns that are prominent.  The ice skates, evergreens and 

snowflakes used to adorn the banister could possibly be another source of inspiration. 

 

I love the new Papertrey Ink Loves Lives Here: Holiday stamp and die set. There's great details to choose from and many relate so nicely to this month's Blog Hop inspirational photo.

Pine boughs and the traditional red and green colour scheme gave me some starting points for my cards. The angel is such a pretty stamp, and with matching dies for the body and wings, it creates a beautiful focal image. I had so much fun using this set I ended up making several different colour combinations.

First up: three cards using a colour scheme of Cranberry and Garden Green.
I started by cutting an oval from SU Confetti White card stock and then randomly stamping the pine boughs over the entire area. The little heart trio was stamped amongst the pine. The Angel and wings were die cut and then stamped with Cranberry(angel) and Blush (wings) and then positioned on the oval background. Some Pure Poppy felt was used to die cut the little heart that the angel is holding.  Another oval was cut in order to create a green matting for the focal panel.

The sentiment panel was stamped with more pine boughs and hearts, along with the sentiment and then added to the front card panel. Stampin'Up's Square Lattice embossing folder creates a very textured background for the Angel and the sentiment panels. SU's Confetti White card stock was used for the main card base and it creates a bit of a rustic impression.

The inside always deserves some attention. I used the pine boughs and hearts to add a border to the lower edge of the card and added a sentiment.

The second set of cards used Holiday Red and Sweet Leaf with Sunny Yellow wings. Most of the same details from my "Cranberry Angel" card were repeated in these cards. I added some glitter pen to the yellow wings and the heart was made with several layers of Holiday Red card stock, as I didn't have the right felt to match this colour.

Inside of Card:

Finally, I made one card using a non traditional color scheme with a dusty pink (Hollyhock and Blush) and light green (Sweet Leaf) combo. This is a repeat of the original design with the addition of Raspberry Fizz felt for the heart and a change in the inside sentiment.

Inside of Card:

When I finished I had a set of six cards for my Christmas stash!!

I also stamped the back of each card using a sentiment from the original Love Lives Here.

All Cards share the following Details:

Stamps:  Love Lives Here: Holiday; Love Lives Here

Papers:  SU Confetti White

Dies: Love Lives Here: Holiday Collection; Love Lives Here (heart)

Other Supplies:  Creative Memories Oval cutting system; SU Square Lattice Embossing Folder; corner rounder.

Additional Details

1. Cranberry Angel Card

Inks:  Close to My Heart: Cranberry, Blush, Garden Green

Papers:  CTMH: Cranberry, Garden Green

Other Supplies:  PTI: Pure Poppy felt (heart)

2. Holiday Red Angel Card

Inks: Close to My Heart: Holiday Red, Sunny Yellow, Sweet Leaf

Papers:  CTMH: Holiday Red; SU: Certainly Celery

Other Supplies:  Sakura Gel Glitter Pens: Clear & Yellow

3. Pink Angel Card

Inks:  Close to My Heart: Hollyhock, Blush, Sweet Leaf

Papers: SU: Certainly Celery; Bazzill: Dusty Rose

Other Supplies:  PTI: Raspberry Fizz Felt (heart)

Thanks for visiting today. Enjoy the rest of the Blog Hop.

Karen C.