Justine's 12 Days of Christmas - Day 2 & Day 3

My day began with a trip to the dentist—fortunately, I only needed a check-up, clean and polish. With that out of the way, I spent the afternoon catching up on the next two instalments of Justine’s 12 Days of Christmas and creating my own cards inspired by her designs.

Day 2:

The Day 2 brief called for white heat-embossed text, ink blending through a stencil and a circular sentiment to finish the design. I dug out a very old Hero Arts friendship-text stamp, stamped it in Versamark and embossed it in white. For the background, I used a Tim Holtz Holly Bough stencil.

My first attempt at colouring the berries did not go to plan, but I managed to rescue the background with red glitter die-cut dots. Looking back, I would choose a darker green for the holly leaves to create more contrast. To make the circular frame, I combined two Spellbinders Nestabilities dies: a plain circle and a smaller scalloped circle. I stamped a sentiment from Rosie’s Studio Hearth & Home set on the centre circle, popped it up for dimension and adhered the outer frame directly to the card. Three tiny glitter dots added the final touch.

Day 3:

Justine’s Day 3 card featured three embossed cardstock strips and a label with a stamped sentiment. I borrowed those key elements while putting my own spin on the design.

I chose her alternative palette of white, pale blue and dark blue, then cut the strips and embossed them with the Gina K Tapestry folder. For the label, I used a Catherine Pooler Merry Labels die. Instead of stamping a sentiment, I added a black die-cut Christmas tree topped with a silver star.

What I enjoy most about Justine’s approach is her encouragement to use what you already have. You do not need the exact same products; the fun lies in adapting the ideas, experimenting with the techniques and making each card your own.

Stencil It - Simon Says Stamp Flickr group challenge.

There’s nothing quite like happy mail to spark a burst of creativity! Today, my new supplies from Simon Says Stamp arrived.  I had won a gift voucher and was pleased to get these. Once I had received the notification that they were there, I decided to finish work early so I could head home and make something.

Simon Says Stamp runs a monthly challenge on their Flickr group page, and June’s theme is “Stencil It.” It was the perfect excuse to put my new goodies straight to use.

I started with the Simon Says Stamp A2 Nested Stitched Rectangles, using one of the dies to cut a panel for my card. For the background, I pulled out Tim Holtz Doily stencil and did some soft ink blending with the leftover ink on my blending brush. The result was a subtle, pretty background that added just the right amount of interest without overpowering the focal image.

For the main image, I used another new arrival: the Simon Says Stamp Iceland Poppies die. This one-piece die cuts petals for two flowers, along with two stems and two flower centres. I cut everything from white cardstock, then used the remaining ink on my pinky-red, yellow, green, and brown blending brushes to add colour. Once the pieces were blended, I layered the flowers together and added them to the panel.

To finish the card, I stamped a sentiment from the Simon Says Stamp Handwritten Sentiments stamp set and die cut it with the smallest of the nested rectangles. For a little extra oomph, I blended a touch of soft pink ink over the sentiment while it was still in the die.

I’m also adding this card to Darnell’s NBUS challenge, as both dies are getting their very first outing.

On a personal note, today is my youngest grandson’s third birthday. I had a quick video call with him this afternoon while he was enjoying time at Perth Zoo, which was lovely. His birthday card still hasn’t made its way to him, even though I posted it nearly two and a half weeks ago. Hopefully it arrives soon!