Nativity scene cards...

 I had some nativity scene die-cuts that were given to me, and I used a couple of them for this year's Christmas cards.

This card features the entire scene, including the angel in the sky above the creche. The nativity scene was added to a swiss dot light blue panel that was matted with a navy blue panel. I die-cut the word "noel" from navy blue cardstock and adhered it to the card front.

A star had been cut separately from gold glitter cardstock and included in the assortment of nativity die-cuts, so I glued it over the one that was a part of the navy blue scene.

I stamped a sentiment on the inside with Night of Navy ink to finish the card.

I had a scrap of navy blue swiss dot cardstock in my scraps. It was too narrow to cover the whole card front, so I centered and adhered it to a kraft cardbase, leaving a 1/4" border on the left and right. I liked the look of this layout.

This time I used a white nativity die-cut and glued it about 3/4" above the bottom of the card.  So that it didn't seem suspended in air, I added three gems beneath it. The star was colored with a gold metallic marker, and then some sparkle was added with a glitter pen.

The sentiment was stamped, die-cut and popped up on foam squares.

I added a short, stamped sentiment to the inside and the card was finished.

*****

We are essentially ready for Christmas at our house. I say "essentially" because we have some last-minute cleaning and cooking to do, but that won't take long. 

My grandson stopped by yesterday and said, "I'm here for cookies!" I just had to laugh. And, of course, I filled a box with cookies for him to take home. They'll get another assortment of them on Christmas Eve, but since they have kids coming and going all the time at their house, the cookies don't last long!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

A merry little line-up of gnomes...

 

This is another AI-generated image I found on Facebook. It was offered for free use, so I grabbed it to make a few Christmas cards. I especially liked how the lights seem to actually glow. I thought my inexpensive laser printer might not be able to capture that glow, but it definitely did!

If you would like to use this image, you will find it here.

I added a die-cut "Merry" as a sentiment on the front.

I matted the image with red cardstock and then adhered it to a slimline cardbase.

Each image was 3 1/2" x 7 1/2", so my card ended up being 4" x 8".

On the inside, I stamped a little tree scene and a sentiment. I thought the trees coordinated nicely with the ones that are in the gnome image.

I had some envelopes that were just the right length, but too deep. It was easy enough to cut off part of the bottom and glue it back together. Some day, I'll do a post on how I alter envelopes like this.

This envelope just happened to have a liner that coordinated perfectly with my card, too.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Intricate Christmas ornament card...

 

I have this pretty ornament die and made quite a few cards with it this year.  It cut beautifully, but it took some patience to get the excess pieces out of the die each time. However, it was worth it!

I cut the finial (the top hanger piece) from silver metallic cardstock.

To finish it off, I added a ribbon bow and some clear and red gems to the centers of the snowflakes.

The sentiment was stamped, die-cut and popped up with foam tape.

On the inside, I added a stamped sentiment and a few stamped snowflakes.

*****

I have all the holiday gifts bought, most of them wrapped, and those that needed to be mailed have already arrived at the intended addresses. The cards were mailed last week and I am now finishing up the baking. 

I've made cinnamon almonds and five different kinds of cookies, so far. I will make just a few more. The peanut blossoms dough is made and ready to bake today, and I will still make gingersnaps, orange teasers, butter tarts and, possibly, krumkake. I need to make a plethora of cookies because we share with half a dozen neighbors and our local family members.

This is when I appreciate Minnesota's cold winters. They make it possible for me to store all those goodies in the unheated back porch!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Using a couple of AI images for Christmas cards...

 

This happy snowman was offered for anyone's use on one of the Facebook AI sites that I follow. I just love how he beams with joy.

I sized him to use on a bookbinder card, meaning I made the whole image about 4" x 4". 

The baker's twine was tied around the binding portion of the card before I glued that section together.

While you can't really see it in the picture, I printed the poinsettia portion of the image twice and fussy-cut two extra poinsettias Then I added them with dimensionals, so that the flowers popped.

I stamped a sentiment on the inside to finish this card. It was so quick and easy!

I have some relatives who live on farms so I used this AI image of a Christmas barn for their cards. I think the barn is so festive and the "Merry Christmas" underneath it was actually part of the image.

This card measures 4 1/2" x 6". The picture was still sized at about 4" x 4". I cut a 4 1/4" x 5 3/4" panel of red DSP and added my AI image to the top. Then I wrapped a length of green ribbon around the red panel and tied on a little bow of baker's twine.

After gluing the panel to the card front, I further embellished it with some die-cut holly and a couple of enamel dots.

The dots were not the right shade of green to start, so I simply colored them with a dark green alcohol marker.

One of the AI image sites I visit often is "Free Printable Designs" on Facebook. If you're on Facebook, check it out. There are always incredible images there.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

A couple of quick cards...

Every Christmas I make a few "tea cards" to donate to the thrift store. Customers seem to enjoy them and they sell quickly. I don't put any tea bags in them, as the store is not licensed to sell food (they are allowed to give food away via their food shelf). I leave a little note inside the card to put a tea bag in the pocket.

I started with an A2 card base and put an extra score in the front of it 2 3/4" from the center fold line. I folded the resulting 1 1/2" section towards the inside to form a pocket. When I make a couple more of these, I am going to make the second score 3" from the center fold line because that will allow a little more room for the tea bag on the inside.

I printed the little poem with my computer and then cut it out so that it just fit inside a postage edge rectangle die. After adding some DSP to the front, I centered the sentiment panel on my card front and glued it down only on the left side.

I die-cut the cup and added a holly sticker to it. Then I adhered three tiny red gems for the holly berries.

This is how the card looks on the inside (the tea bag is just for this photo). I added some DSP to the pocket (which was glued down on the top and bottom edges) and then used a circle punch to create the thumb notch. You can see that the tea bag BARELY fits inside the card. That's why I want to make the pocket 1 1/4" deep next time, instead of 1 1/2". That will give the tea bag another 1/4" of room, yet still hold it inside just fine.

I added the plaid DSP with the card closed so that I could place it correctly. Then I measured the remaining space and added my white panel. I had stamped a sentiment on it and added a holly sticker.

This card was SUPER simple! I have several of these card bases. They're 4" X 5 1/2" and came with envelopes. I bought them at least three years ago, and each year I think I'm going to use them up, but  they must multiply when they're stored away in the box of Christmas cardmaking supplies!

"Season's Greetings" was a sticker given to me by the thrift store. It actually came popped up on tiny dimensionals. I just added the die-cut holly and tiny red gems for the berries.

This sentiment panel was in my stash. I think it was cut from one of those freebie cards that sometimes comes in the mail from nonprofits. I try to use parts of them when I can.

Now I need to work on making some Christmas crackers for each place setting at our Christmas table. If you want to see what I mean, check out this post.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

A Christmas card in red and gold...

 

I have some specialty paper that is a vibrant red with metallic gold polka dots. It is soft and pliable like mulberry paper. I'm not sure exactly what it is because it was given to me, but I thought it was perfect for a few Christmas cards.

I made several of these cards by cutting some 3" wide strips of the red paper and centering it on my A2 card front. I finished each side by adding some thin, decorative, gold sticker strips.

I used a fancy Christmas tree die to cut the gold tree and glued it to a plain white one. After adhering it to the red paper, I die-cut a little star out of the gold cardstock and glued it to the top.

The sentiment is a gold sticker that was adhered to a narrow strip of white cardstock which was popped up with some foam tape.

I stamped a sentiment on the inside and added a strip of the red paper, finished with a thin gold sticker, at the bottom.

This is such a simple layout for a card, but the eye-catching red and gold make them seem special. Besides that, they were fun and quick to make!

I am currently working on getting my Christmas cards signed and into envelopes. Hopefully, they will be in the mail in a day or two.

I'm still making lots of Christmas cards, however, to donate to the thrift store. I will be doing that up untill the last week before the holiday.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Masculine get well cards...

 

I wanted to make some masculine get well cords to donate, and when I came across this DSP in my stash, I thought it was the perfect background. This particular piece was mostly brown with light blue streaks, and it reminded me of the ocean depths. I think everything would look mostly brown down there with a few light streaks here and there.

The sentiment was stamped, die-cut and popped up with some foam tape.

I added a die-cut fishing net, trimming it to the size I wanted. Then I also die-cut a couple of starfish and added them with dimensionals.

I had another piece of the same DSP, but with light green streaks instead of blue. This time it reminded me of something woodsy, so I grabbed a couple of dimensional leaf stickers. I happened to have the light green square beneath them sitting on my desk, so I added that first to anchor my leaves.

Once again, the sentiment was stamped, die-cut and popped up with foam tape.

The two leaf stickers were from Dollar Tree. Sometimes they have great stickers, and I always try to grab them when I see them.

At left is a photo of the sentiment on the inside of both cards.

I think these two cards would work well for the guys, don't you? They are such simple layouts, with masculine-looking papers and images.

*****

I have two big accomplishments to share with you. I have finished all the Christmas cards I need for my personal use and I have purchased and wrapped all my gifts except for my brother's and husband's. Yea, me! Now I'll make some cookies and finish decorating. I actually really enjoy those last two holiday "chores," so they don't seem like work at all.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Let's Craft and Create Challenge #226: Anything Goes or (Option) Vintage Feel...

 
Oh, my goodness, it's December! Doesn't it seem that December comes more quickly with each passing year? 

For our last challenge of the year at Let's Craft and Create, you can enter under the "Anything Goes" umbrella, or, like me, you can create something with a vintage feel. And because I still need to make a few Christmas cards, that was what I decided to do.

I started with a top-folding kraft card base and added a deep red panel of patterned DSP. I found some printable sheet music online and printed off a copy of "Silent Night." It already looked like a vintage copy, but I added some distressing around the edges with a distressing tool. Once that was done, I did some light inkblending before adding the nativity die-cut.

I also ink-blended around the edges of my die-cut bow in the corner and added a low-profile enamel dot to its center.

I colored the star in the nativity scene with a gold metallic marker. Once that was dry, I added a top layer of sparkle with a clear glitter pen.

I did some ink-blending around my inside panel before I added the greenery and bow, and stamped the sentiment.

The sentiment was also heat-embossed with clear embossing powder.

Now it's your turn. If creating with a vintage feel is not your thing (it's rarely mine), you can always enter any other type of creation. We love to see them all!

Be sure to check out all of the wonderful creations of the Design Team. They will definitely give you some great ideas. Click here to take a peek.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Flip up and flip out wedding cards...

 

I decided to make some colorful wedding cards using a flip up and flip out fun fold. First I looked through my stash for some coordinating papers and then went to work.

This is the first card I made. I cut the front of my A2 card base from the upper left corner down to the lower right corner to create a triangular card front. I also cut a piece for my center top-fold mini-card. I believe the dimensions for that were 2 3/4" X 8" scored at 4". After adding a piece of DSP to the inside, I adhered the mini-card, centering it as well as possible.

This is how the card looks when the mini-card is flipped up and the card front is flipped out.

I added some DSP on the inside of the triangular front because I had it handy and I thought it would look better.

This is the front of the second card. Instead of using DSP on the mini-card, I used some embossed cardstock instead. I popped up the sentiment circle and added some gems to both cards.

I had a lot of scraps of those pretty papers left over from making the two wedding cards, so I used some 3/4" strips to make this card. 

When adding the paper strips, I didn't calculate my spacing correctly and ended up with a wider white space in the center. To disguise it, I added a peach-colored piece of twine, tied in a bow. If you look closely, you'll see two tiny notches in the card front that hold the twine in place. I made those with a 1/8" hole punch.

I die-cut two dragonflies and added some gems to their bodies. I really like this particular dragonfly die. The wings are so delicate and the curved tail adds a certain flair, don't you think?

I stamped a sentiment on the inside to finish the card.

I hope you'll give the flip up and flip out funfold a try. And be sure to use up those left-over scraps on another card!

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl

Sometimes handmade cards just need a little boost...

Because I volunteer at a local thrift store and also donate hundreds of cards to them each year, they ask me to sort, price and display a lot of the craft supplies they receive from others. When a cutting machine, such as a Cricut Expression comes in, I test it to make sure it works before pricing it and putting it out for sale.

Sometimes we get partially made crafts--even cards--that I try to finish or enhance before putting them for sale in the store. Here are a few of the cards the store received recently that I finished or embellished.

I added the chipboard snowman and sentiment to the card on the left, the two chipboard poinsettias to the card in the center and all the gems to the card on the right.

I added the snowflake, sentiment and felt snowman to the card on the left, the sentiment and felt snowman to the center card and the chipboard snowman to the card on the right.

I added the thin red strips and the die-cut poinsettias to the two green cards and the trees and sentiment to the top card. I embellished the trees with some glittery snow to make them a bit more festive. I also added some sparkle to the star.

Each card also got a stamped sentiment on the inside. The one on the left is just an example, as they weren't all the same.

I really enjoy taking a partially made card and finishing it. Some of these cards had very chunky, plastic embellishments, which I removed because they make cards so expensive to mail. I always try to keep the cards at the thrift store not only affordable to buy, but also affordable to mail.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and remember to laugh--a little or a lot--every day.

Cheryl