Merry Xmas ...

... although it is only relating to the card designs at the moment. But it is scary that we have already nearly reached the end of October and Christmas is not really that far away.

A lovely designed Christmas sentiment of a good size can also be a beautiful focal point of cards. And the large candle and holly merry Christmas image (XM137HF) by Crafty Stamps is just perfect for this. For this card I opted for a mainly monochrome design with splashes of colour introduced by paper roses and the candle and holy image within the stamped image, which I coloured in using Spectrum Noir pens.

For the topper I used a Spellbinders label die. The main feature of the panel underneath is black cardstock with a white core, which I embossed using a Snowflake embossing folder and sanded using a Tim Holtz sanding grip. A quick wipe with a Dust Buddy by Core'dinations then brought out the colours nicely.

For the holly die-cuts I used a Cheery Lynn die. The holly sections underneath the paper roses are created with the same die, but I trimmed off the end sections. A snow writer by DecoArt helped to give the snow on the letters more of a 3D feel. Clear adhesive gems and Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace' applied to the paper roses provided the finishing touches.

And Crafty Stamps/Stamper's Grove (that is their craft shop in Edinburgh) will also be at the Hobbycraft show at the SECC in Glasgow from 25 to 28 October 2012. If you are going, perhaps pop along to their stand C26 and say hello to Emma. Loads of gorgeous stamps are already packed up and ready for the trip to Glasgow.

A Sleigh with Presents

The first card that I would like to share with you today is again a Christmas card - and this time one that is a bit more colourful. It is built around gorgeous glittered paper from the First Edition paper pad 'Stocking Fillers' (a Trimcraft product) and mainly held in a vibrant red and the light and soft green tone featured in the paper design.

My image of choice is from the new Christmas collection by Crafty Stamps - the large sleigh (XM141F), a quality grey rubber stamp mounted onto kling-on, so it is ready for use with an acrylic block. I coloured in the images using Spectrum Noir pens. To create the topper I opted for Spellbinders octagon dies and arranged the die-cuts in an angle. I added it to the card using the large 3D foam squares by Trimcraft - one of absolute craft essentials.

For the border along the left-hand side I used a die by Die'sire, but pretty much any border die or border punch that can cope with cardstock would do the trick. Paper poinsettias, white paper roses in two sizes (10mm and 15mm) enhanced with a bit of Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace' as well as clear adhesive gems in two sizes are completing the card.

Large Champagne and Cracker

Large champagne? Oh, that is so me. Alright, alright, it does not need to be champagne. Normal sparkling wine would do.

And you are probably not surprised to hear that I just could not resist the large champagne and cracker image (XM138F) from the new Christmas collection by Crafty Stamps. And as their stamps are quality rubber stamps, which are already cling mounted, we crafters can use the stamps straight out of the package without the need for preparations. And we all know how impatient we crafters can be when it comes to craft goodies ...

And here is a list of the other 'ingredients' that I used for this blue and gold Christmas card:

* Ivory linen card by Southfield (the card is based on a 15cm square card blank)
* Ivory glass-smooth card by Southfield
* Dark blue pearlescent card
* Gold mirri card
* Black Memento ink pad
* Spectrum Noir pens
* Snowflake embossing folder by Darice
* Embossing folder from the Snowman collection by Crafter's Companion
* Rub-on sentiment from the Snowman collection by Crafter's Companion
* Gold metallic card
* Paper roses and rosebuds
* Candi with a gold mirri finish

Cheeky Season's Greetings

Mistletoe Kisses

Today I have got cards with a completely different style of images for you. Not so much elegant, but cheeky and humorous. And after working with these new images by Crafty Stamps for a while I have come to absolutely LOVE them.

For the card above I used the stamp 'Mistletoe Kisses' (XM136F) and coloured it in using ProMarker pens with ultra-fine nibs. My cardstock of choice was ivory glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield, kraft card and Core'dinations cardstock. I used octagon nesting dies by Spellbinders, star nesting dies by QuicKutz and mistletoe dies by Marianne Designs. The embellishments are paper roses and rosebuds, a rub-on sentiment from the Snowman collection by Crafter's Companion and Liquid Pearls in 'Bisque' for the berries on the mistletoe branches.

Happy Festive Couple

The New Year's card features the stamp 'Happy Festive Couple' (XM134F) and the sentiments XM115S (the words come as individual stamps, so a number of options are possible - very clever!) For the colouring I used again ProMarkers with ultra-fine nibs. The card is created with white glass-smooth cardstock from Southfield, white linen card from Southfield, purple mirri card and pink mirri card. The dies are by Spellbinders and the paper flowers by Wild Orchid Crafts. I finished the card off by adding Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace' to the champagne glasses, the earring and the flowers as well as plenty of adhesive gems.

A pearlescent Christmas greeting

The first card that I would like to share with you this weekend was actually only finished today. After seeing the amazing new production of the 'Phantom of the Opera' on Thursday I just felt like creating a card that showcases a bit of opulence, rich colours and shimmer.

I opted for the Crafty Stamps Celtic candle image (XM102M), which I stamped with black Memento ink and coloured it in using the Spectrum Noir pens IG1, BG1, BG2, BG4, BG5, BG7, CT4, OR1, DR1, DR3, JG5 and JG6. I gave the candle some sparkle by using a Sakura Gelly Roll pen in 'Clear Star'.

For the base of the card I used a 15cm square white card blank with linen effect from Southfield. Further materials are:

* Brown Centura Pearl cardstock
* Pearlescent cardstock in latte
* A small piece of green Core'dinations cardstock
* White glass-smooth cardstock from Southfield
* Die'sire Embossalicious 6" x 6" embossing folder (I know that some crafters doubt that they go through the Cuttlebug, but I use the 6" x 6" folders without problems with a second generation Cuttlebug)
* Dotted embossing folder
* Marianne Designs holly die
* Paper roses and rosebuds
* Special Delivery wooden ornaments by Trimcraft
* Stickles glitter glue in 'Diamond'
* Adhesive (including a good portion of silicone glue)
* Die-cutting machine
* Toolbox essentials

A Modern Twist

Sometimes we just need to let our creativity run lose. And why should we always stick with traditions and conventional perceptions? This is how this purple based Christmas card was born. Santa dressed in purple might be unusual, but why not for a change?

The image is the large Santa by Crafty Stamps (XM128M) - stamped onto glass-smooth card by Southfield and coloured in with Spectrum Noir pens. A square card blank cut from white pearlescent cardstock, sheets from the Contemporary Christmas Collection by Core'dinations, tea roses and white adhesive pearls are adding to the look. I also used a Darice snowflake embossing folder, a snowflake doily die by Cottage Cutz, a holly branches die by Marianne Designs as well as hints of Stickles glitter glue in 'Frosted Lace'.

Christmas with Crafty Stamps

Today I would like to share two more cards, which incorporate images from the new Crafty Stamps Christmas collection, with you.

For the first card I opted for a sparkly and yummy cream and brown creation. I used the gingerbread man stamp XM121F and the Christmas sentiment set XM113S. The images are teamed up with an ivory card blank, Centura Pearl cardstock, glittered paper from a First Edition 'Festive Treats' paper pad, Woodware organza ribbon, Stickles glitter glue in 'Diamond' and Liquid Pearls in 'Dark Chocolate'.

My dies for this project are round nesting dies, scalloped circle dies, a label die by Xcut and a die by Marianne Designs for the leaves. For the borders I used a geared punch by Tonic Studios. The paper flowers are by Wild Orchid Crafts.

For a softer look I stamped the gingerbread man and the sentiment in 'Rich Cocoa', a Memento ink pad. Spectrum Noir pens were my medium of choice for the colouring.

The second card is more experimental with white cardstock, silver mirri card (and crafters will know how difficult this is to photograph) and red metallic card. The holly branches are cut from silver mirri card using a die by Marianne Designs. The holly image is 'painted' using red and green embossing powders and then set with the help of a heat gun. The image comes from the holly and snowman set XM2S.

A bit more of that Christmas spirit

Here are now two more Christmas projects created with brand-new Christmas stamps by Crafty Stamps. The high quality rubber stamps on kling foam are really great for precise and evenly stamped images.

The first project is something a bit different - a plate-like card with a stand. For this card I used

* Candle and bell set XM3S by Crafty Stamps
* Black Memento inkpad
* Spectrum Noir pens in IG1, BG5, CT3, CT4, GB4, DR 6 and DR7
* Adorable Scorable cardstock by Hunydory/Crafter's Companion
* Core'dinations cardstock
* First Edition paper pad 'Festive Treats' by Trimcraft
* White glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield
* Circle and scalloped circle cutting dies
* Large circle and scalloped circle cutting dies
* Oval cutting dies
* Plate stand die by Joy! Crafts
* Poinsettia and holly dies by Marianne Designs
* Paper roses and rosebuds by Wild Orchid Crafts
* Stickles glitter glue in Frosted Lace
* Dovecraft adhesive gemstones 'Brights'
* Adhesive
* Grand Calibur
* Toolbox essentials

The second projects sports a distressed look in green and black with some hints of colour. The 'ingredients' for this project are

* Holly stamp XM125D by Crafty Stamps
* Black Memento inkpad
* Spectrum Noir pens in IG1, DG2, DG3, DR4 and DR6
* Tim Holtz Distress Marker in 'vintage photo' (for the shading of the reindeer)
* Core-dinations cardstock
* White glass-smooth cardstock by Southfield
* Round cutting dies
* Die'sire die set 'Waltz Frame' by Crafter's Companion
* Reindeer die by Cottage Cutz
* Holly die set by Marianne Designs
* Die-cutting machine
* Corner rounder
* Tim Holtz sanding grip
* Adhesive
* Toolbox esentials

Thanks for visiting my blog. And please look out for more Christmas projects, which will follow very soon.

Winter is on the way

Yes, believe it or not, even I am now on the Christmas card bandwagon. There are already so many gorgeous new products around that I could not resist any longer. And over the next weeks I will share many projects with new goodies with you.

Today I am starting with a lovely new snowman stamp by Crafty Stamps. Inspiration for this project was the nice clean and cold air on a winter's morning. To give it this more 'frosty' feel I opted for white, light blue and silver as the main colours with a lot of mirri card and a bit of glitter.

Here are the 'ingredients' for my 15cm x 15cm square card:

• Large snowman stamp XM129Q by Crafty Stamps
• Spectrum Noir pens
• Black Memento ink pad
• White linen cardstock by Southfield
• White glass-smooth cardstock (200gsm) by Southfield
• Textured light blue cardstock
• Silver mirri card
• Adhesive pearls
• Stickles glitter glue
• Circle and scalloped circle cutting dies
• Cheery Lynn holly corner die
• Snowflake embossing folder
• Die-cutting-machine
• Adhesive
• Toolbox essentials