Quick and pretty Christmas cards.

 I need to make a few quick Christmas cards last week and saw a fabulous tutorial from Brandy's Cards - found the tutorial from BrandysCard.com.  It's a great sketch design.  I've made 2 cards - both using the same paper and design - just different die cut sentiments 

Such an elegant design and really easy to make.   The patterned paper piece was a 12" x 3" left over stripe from a Rosie's Studio scrapbook paper. So easy to cut to the 4" x3" needed for each central panel.  Used a Couture Creations embossing folder, some white and grey green card to make the matting layers.  The die cut sentiments were gut from gold card and matted with some dark green.   Added some gold dots. 

Loved the ease of this design.  

I'm adding this to the If It's Christmassy, Link It Up!  at Christmas Kickstart Challenge 

Not a lot of crafting done over this last week or weekend.  We went away weekend with our son, daughter in law and the girls.  They put the tent up at on our friend's backyard to see how the girls coped with sleeping in the tent.   Luckily we had amazing weather and other than the girls getting a bit cold overnight, they loved it!   We've given them three nights at a beach side camping ground after Christmas.  And it's awesome to see the next generation going camping in. 

Roll on Christmas and the Summer Holidays

Christmas cards made quickly

 Hi there.  Thanks for stopping by.   Yesterday (Friday 28th) my friend Suna came over to have a play date with me!   She came after lunch but I started my crafting earlier in the morning after I'd done my housework.   I managed to make 7 cards!   

But today I have 4 quick Christmas cards - inspired by this video from Sophia Laframbois.  It uses two sheets of single sided patterned paper to get two cards, so I used four sheets of paper from Sugar & Spice Studio Nostalgic Christmas and made 4 cards.   I made these last weekend, but had a busy week and didn't get to share. 

I cut the PP into 4" x 51/4" and cut them diagonally both ways.   Then alternate the pieces.   I used some copy paper to add the pieces together then trimmed to 3 3/4" x 5" panels and matted with some red card.   All the sentiment are from a Kaisercraft set Christmas Quotes (had this for nearly 15 years)  Used circles from Gina K Master Layouts 3 and the rectangle is Spellbinders Hemstitch rectangles.  Matted them onto the red card.   Used some die cut Pinkfresh Studio Curvy Leaves and  Altenew Bitty Branches.  

I'll share all the other cards over the next few days.  Tomorrow is the end of November so have my DT card for Die Cut Divas.

Use your scraps....

 The January challenge at my local swap group was to use up some of that pile of scraps. 

I decided to use a Simply Scored technique that I learnt at a Cardmaking Summit last year.  It involved using squares of scrap patterned paper and scoring on a card panel.   I had a strip of 12"x12" Christmas paper in blue tones and though it would look elegant using this technique.

The technique was designed by Wendy Lee and can be adapted to different sized squares of Patterned paper.   Mine are 7/8" in size.  I love the elegance of this one in the blue tones.  The sentiment is from Paper Rose All Occasions pre-printed sheets.   I foiled it with some silver deco foil and my laminator. 

Postage Collage - Four card mix and match set

I finally got some crafting time Thursday and Friday evenings,,  and pulled out my Waffle Flower Postage Collage dies ... the original one and my new block die.... Another of the purchases from the Craft Fair last month...   It's great... it cuts out a slightly larger frame that the original and cuts out the panels.   

I used five sheets of patterned paper from Rosie's Studio pack called Twinkle All The Way and cut the Blocks Die from each.  Then I cut the original die from some light olive card and mixed up the patterns.  I ended up with four cards - messed up a couple of the panel pieces so still have a few pieces over to use on another card.  Some of the cards, I used the frame from the panels behind the original and some I didn't. 

Added a sentiment from Gina K - Holiday Tapestry cut with circle dies from Gina K Master Layout #3

This one used a sentiment panel cut from another patterned paper pack - 

And used the Gina K sentiment for this one too.   I had to use two of one of the pattern on this one, due to messing up some of the other panels. 

For this one I used a circle sentiment from The Stamp Village - the Concord & 9th one.  Cut with a circle die.  All used the Postage Collage stamp set for the added stamping.

And yesterday my package from Krafter's Cart arrived with two more of the Postage Collage stencils to use.  One summer and one the Poinsettia Christmas.  Now to find time to do some stenciling!  

Christmas Box Card for Die Cut Divas

 I'm back today to share my final card for this month's challenge at Die Cut Divas.... Our lovely sponsor is Scrappy Tails 

I was lucky that Arlene send me a pile of Scrappy Tails stamped and die cut pieces and included in it was a box card die cuts.  

I used the box card die cuts to make this little scene.  I used the German Winter Village Pop up box with some Christmas papers from my stash.   I coloured all the images with Alcohol markers and added some glue and Diamond Dust Glitter to my house and Church and some Gold and Blue glitter glue.  Added some red Nuvo drops to the tree.

Do come and join us on the last day of our "add some glitter " challenge. 

Gifts at Christmas Kickstart

 This month's challenge at Christmas Kickstart is "It's A Gift" 

I has some play time on Sunday afternoon and got three cards made for Christmas 

This one is a mini slimline card.  I used some PP from Uniti - Christmas pack.  I used  Pinkfresh Studio Mini Slimline Bundle to cut the PP and some pale green card.  The sentiment is from a Kaisercraft set - Christmas Quotes.  Added lots of Sparkle shimmer pen on the card, snow, tree etc.   Hard to see in the photo but lovely and shimmery IRL.

Next I used the same PP - up the top of the page.  I used a sketch from Jess Craft - from the Stress Free cardmaking Summit)  The floral and red dot papers are both from a Carta Bella pack - Letters to Santa.

For this one, I used a sticker from Journalsay.   I added it to some white card and fussy cut it before adding to a red card that was embossed with a Holly folder.  The sentiment was a free print out from Craft Al last Christmas.  

My Christmas card stash is growing slowly and good to have three more added. 

Hope you managed to get some crafting done over the weekend.  

  

Using Patterned paper for Christmas

 I have a couple of cards to share today using some of the Anko (K-Mart) paper that I got the other week.  

This one used a small panel of the patterned paper.  I layered it with some red card, and layered it onto a white embossed panel, also layered onto some red card and onto a green card base.  I die cut a Spellbinders Poinsettia out of red and green and layered to make my flower.  I added some printed sentiments (from Lily of The Valley)   

I am entering this into the Christmas Kickstart Challenge...If it's Christmassy - link it up

I used two different papers to make this one.  Layered a gold strip across the join and added another of the Lily of the Valley sentiments.  They are a digital set.  A very CAS card.  

Thanks for stopping by... Christmas is sneaking up quickly... 

Christmas Slimine - Big and Mini

 I recently watched a You Tube video where a talented card maker used a 1/2 sheet of 12" x 12" paper to make a few slim line card.  Her cards were very long.... I decided to make my bases a little smaller than hers and adapted the papers.  I ended up making two long cards and then decided mini slimlines are more my style.  I made one using some of the papers I had cut (still have three small peices to use) 

Here are the two long slimlines.

I found a pack of Christmas 12" x 12" papers and cut this one in half.  I measured a peice and cut it diagonally.  Stuffed up the first half which ended up in the bin.  FOr this one I ran a narrow bit of glittery 3M tape down the diagonal.  I made the thin strip by laying the tape onto my glass mat and used my craft knife to cut a strip off.  I die cut the white card with a die from Gina K's Master Layouts.  I glued it onto some gold card stock and trimmed around to make the mat.

Card two used a whole strip of the patterned paper.  I miss measured the panel so had to add the strip of gold paper.  So decided to die cut the big sentment from Paper Roses from teh sme gold card,  I found a little Greetings stamp in a freebie set from a few years ago and after gold embossing it found the perfect sized die cut from one of Gina K's Master Layouts die sets.  

So after decided I prefer the mini slimlines I made this one

I used the same design as my first card.  I added a slightly wider strip of the black tape.  I then added strips of the tape onto some scrap card and added the sentiment die cut and trimmed around it.  The panel is a very dark green.  

Today I spend the afternoon finding some tutorials and templates for making some mini slimline envelopes.  There are so many as mini slimlines vary in size as well.  I like making mine 3.25" x 6.25".  I managed to adapt an envelope that was designed for a 3.5" x 6.5" one and cut myself a template.   

Hope all is well in your part of the world.  I'm still working from home - find out Monday afternoon, if Auckland goes down a level.   Looking forward to some easing of the levels.