XMAS STOCKING GIFT CARD HOLDERS

Saw this template on the internet and decided to give it a go.  I have made 3 for Xmas this year and have put money instead of a gift card into each of them.  They are quite cute and fit into a square envelope.  If they were going to be hung on a Xmas tree I would have punched a hole on the top right hand side of the red flap, reinforced it with eyelets and put a piece of ribbon through it.

This will be my last Xmas post for the year.  Best wishes to all for the festive season, and to those travelling, take care and be safe.

PEACHY KEEN - WINTER PEEKERS & PHRASES

This is the second card done with my made up penguin.  This time I added a couple of snowflakes to match the pink stripe in the scarf.

The sentiment is a Hero Arts one and the label punch is SU Word Window.

PUNCH ART - SANTA IN CHIMNEY

Not too sure if I like this one or not.  The photograph was not taken in optimun light and is not great.  The chimney is made using the Fiskars hand squeeze brick punch adhered onto card stock then trimmed and the sack of presents is hand cut - I took a bit of cotton wool and stuck it underneath to puff out the bag.  My creative consultant (aka husband) advises for the next one I should make the chimney smaller and I think I will use the Nestabilities squares to see how that fits the bricks.

PEACHY KEEN - ICE SKATING PENGUIN COUPLE

Another adorable penguin stamp (yes, I like penguins !).  Again I cut out the image and popped it onto an iceflow - think it might be a Dee Greunig stamp.  Just had to try my other Martha Stewart corner and edge punch and seeing I actually read the instructions and watched the You Tube clip, I was able to use the corner punch on the front of the card.

SANTA GIFT BAG

Instead of trying to wrap up 2 liquid soaps for a gift, I decided to use one of the Merrypak paper bags again.  This time I covered it in SU Old Olive, topped the front with SU christmas paper, popped on one of the Santas I had made and added a sentiment which I had already stamped but not used, so have no idea which stamp set it came from.  The handle was cut from Nestabilities labels.

PEACHY KEEN - SNICKERDOODLE GIFT ELF

Another Peachy Keen stamp.  I cut out the image and put it onto a mat on which I used the Martha Stewart corner and edge snowflake punches.  The secret to using these punches successfully is to take note of the size paper to be used as instructed on the insert (that would be the one I threw away and had to dig out of the recycling !).  The beige scalloped edge background paper is CM.

PUNCH ART - SANTA IN CHIMNEY

The chimney is made with Fiskars brick squeeze punch - I think my bricklaying skills are not too bad !  The top of the chimney is an embossed paper.  Santa's legs and arm are SU Word Window punch with his hand being a cloud punch. 

The blue background paper is from our local store, The Deckle Edge, and I used my new Martha Stewart corner and edge snowflake punches liven the card up.  The dotted ribbon is also local and I glued on a couple of white snowflakes (the byproduct of the snowflake edge punch) to finish it off.

The sentiment is Hero Arts with the punch being from SU.

CUTTLEBUG -

I am not much of a sewer these days but as I had the machine out, I decided to have a bash at sewing cardstock.  I was pleased with the end result and would do it more if my machine was permanently out.

The Cuttlebug folder is rather plain on it's own so I embossed two, one in blue and another in white, using the white one for snow at the bottom.  With the white gel pen I highlighted the snowflakes in the sky as well as the roofs of the houses.  The white card in between the two red cardstock has also been embossed, this time with CB snowflakes.

PEACHY KEEN - WINTER PEEKERS & PHRASES

I am new to Peachy Keen stamps and was delighted when the order arrived.  This stamp consists of the penguin head and scarf (in one stamp) and then the two hands (two stamps).

After colouring them in and cutting the shapes out I did not quite know what to do with them and decided  to make up a body.  It was so simple - I punched out 3 wide ovals, 2 in grey and one in cream, and the two feet are an EK Success punch scalloped edged photo corners.  Pop them altogether and you have a realistic looking penguin !

All my punch art attempts at penguins have been rather disasterous, so I was really delighted with this one.

The dotted background is CB Swiss Dot embossing folder with a blue chalk ink pad lightly rubbed over it.  The blue frame sponged with white ink is a CB die and the striped background is CM paper.  The sentiment also belongs to the Winter Peekers set.

STAMPIN UP - SNOWY PLAY

Not wanting to throw away the outer frames after cutting out a couple of Nestabilities deckle edged rectangles, I paired them up with a scrap piece of silver dot paper, popped on the skater which I had lying around and used a SU sentiment which was punched out using the SU Scallop circle.

I did cut the card down to size as it looks a bit odd being longer.

PUNCH ART - SANTA IN A BOOT

After being a year in a boot from a broken foot, I made this card for the orthopaedic surgeon.

The boot is made from a sticky backed furry type paper which I have had for ages and have no idea where I bought it !  The background paper is SU with the ribbon being from a local source.

PUNCH ART - ANGEL WITH AN ATTITUDE

By now my sister has seen the picture, double checked she has come to the correct blog and gone "omg !!". 

I saw this punch art figure on http://blinkthinkink.blogspot.com/ and immediately thought "that is how I would look if I had to portray myself as an angel !" 

Most of the paper used is from scrap bins and the background paper is from CM.  The arms are perhaps the only puzzle - they are photo corners (EK Sucess punch).

PUNCH ART - GOLFING SANTA

DH (dear hubby) wanted a card for the golf club and as I am on a roll with punch art Santas I thought I would adapt one after seeing it on another blog.

The background paper is CM and the golf bag is from a retired SU set using paper piecing instead of colouring in the whole bag.  The hat is a Cuttlebug die and the shoes are hearts cut down with the spikes being the SU spiral punch using the actual punch outs upside down.

ART IMPRESSIONS - GIANT SNOWMAN

There is a bit of a story attached to these cards.  One wintery Saturday afternoon in July this year I decided to try out my new snowman stamp.  Before colouring it in I wanted to see what his buttons looked like with blue Stickles but I squeezed the bottle too hard and a great big dollop came out onto a piece of scrap paper (fortunately).  Not wanting to waste it, I quickly stamped out another dozen images and used the all the Stickles up.  I coloured them all in which is easy once you have done the first one, popped them onto purple cardstock and embossed the white backgrounds.  Then I packed them away into my Xmas container.

This past weekend I was checking to see if I had made enough Xmas cards and found myself a bit short.  On going through the Xmas container I was delighted to find my hidden stash and vowed to do Xmas cards in July again next year !

ART IMPRESSIONS - CHRISTMAS ELVES

This is a set of stamps from AI and I copied their idea for this card.  The elves are a bit fiddly to cut out but I think it is worth the end result. 

SARAH KAY - ROSALIE'S BICYCLE

I think I am getting the hang of colouring in Sarah Kay images.  The only thing I struggled with is the colour of the bicycle frame.  I tend not to take notice of them (have never been able to ride one !) and eventually used a gel pen to give it a bit of colour.

The image is stamped on watercolour paper and cut out using Nestabilities labels.  The rust and blue papers are CM and the border punch is EK Success.

FLOURISHES - SANTA - I BELIEVE

I had a couple of tries to stamp this Santa and eventually settled on using sepia ink.  The holly is coloured in using a blender pen to tone the colours down.

The red paper is CM with the buttons and embroidery thread being from my stash.  Initially I pricked the border and was going to leave it plain but decided on a fine red thread to match up with the stitching on the red paper.

STAMPIN UP - TOP NOTE

Another card I found on SCS and decided to copy.  The background paper is SU as is the Top Note die used for the shoes.  I like this card for being different and not your normal Christmas card.

FLOURISHES - GERBER DAISIES

My new Flourishes stamps are really pretty and before I had a bash at colouring in the gerber daisies (which I had never heard of) I looked on Google images to see what colours they came in.

I used SU markers and a blender pen to get the desired effect and thought it would make a good sympathy card.

PUNCH ART MOUSE - TAKE 2

Yes, I know I have already posted one of these but seeing I made two I just had to share them both with you. 

MATCHBOOK - ART IMPRESSIONS GIANT SNOWMAN

I wanted to make something different and quick with the AI snowman image I had coloured in and cut out before it got damaged.  This matchbook cover was perfect and after cutting and scoring I ran the front part only through the  CB using the Swiss dot folder.  Taking a white gel pen I highlighted the dots and stuck on the image.   The inside is a rectangle piece of cardstock concertina'd at both sides.  Ideally it should fit some sort of candy and I will have to take it to the local supermarket to see what works.  One could always make the whole project bigger and put a gift credit card inside.

 STAMPARVIE - SARAH KAY - PRECIOUS MOMENTS

This was such a delightful image to colour in.  The flourishes are CB die cuts, the sentiment is SU and the background paper my usual CM.

PUNCH ART - SINGING MOUSE

I saw this delightful singing mouse on a blog and although it is similar to the reindeer I made, I just had to try it.

The head is the Christmas Ornament punch from SU, ears are CM smallest heart, mouth is Nestabilities oval, hands & feet are SU word window punch, body is a one & a half inch circle & the tail is made from creative punching using the SU wide oval punch.  The book he is holding is a Nestabilities label punch.

The green patterned paper is SU, beige backing it is CM ; green mesh is local from The Deckle Edge ; the orange is CM ; the green circle is Old Olive SU and the dotted paper is from a pad in my stash.  The card is SU Old Olive.

STAMPARVIE - TINA WENKE - MOUSE CARRYING CAKE

I wanted to make a pink, green and brown card and thought this image would allow me to do it.  The lace on the side of the card proved to be a bit of a challenge as none of my adhesives would work (and I tried everything in my drawers).  Eventually I cut another piece of the brown cardstock slightly smaller than the width of the lace and tacked the lace onto it using a fine needle and white cotton.  As the cardstock was thick I had to pierce the holes first, but at least it got to stay in place.

The icing on the top of the cake was coloured in using one of my Smooches.  The sentiment is Inkadinkadoo purchased locally and the background paper is my usual CM.  They make such wonderful paper packs just the right size for cards. 

PUNCH ART - OWL CARDS

When I saw this card on a blog I thought it was so cute.  With having to make a few cards for family and friends one weekend a while back I decided to do two of the same (something I seldom do).  Although the cards look small they actually fit into a normal card sized envelope.

The head is a SU Top Note die cut from SU Creamy Caramel cardstock, folded in half and sponged around the edges with SU Close to Cocoa ink.  The nose is a square cut in half (used a paint sample from our local hardware store).  The biggest scalloped circle is Nestabilities - the largest one.  The feet are a SU Scallop Circle punch cut into four - 2 for the front and 2 for the back. Inside the card is a plain circle covering where the feet have been stuck on and on which the sentiment is stamped.  The rear of the owl is the same as the front using only the large brown circle with the orange feet.

STAMPARVIE - GILLIAN ROBERTS - CHRISTMAS STOCKING

Took myself out of my comfort zone on this one mixing different papers.  The background papers are SU with the Nestabilities circles being CM.  The sentiment is Hero Arts and the ribbon is one picked up locally.

The Stamparvie images are such a delight to work with and the designs are so cute.

                        CHRISTMAS REINDEER GIFT BOX

Another one I saw on SCS and decided to copy.  The antlers are made on my Slice machine which I think I am finally conquering and the front and back are the SU Top Note die.  I always struggle with drawing freehand so the mouth was a bit of a challenge.  A small pot of Ranger Crackle Paint was close by so I used that as a guide and think the result was just the right amount of 'smile'.

I have made 4 of these for the neighbourhood children at Christmas.  Not too sure what will go inside the box but Cindy suggested using some brightly coloured tissue paper visible from the sides.  Thought that was an excellent idea.

                ART IMPRESSIONS - SCRATCH

This is one of my favourite stamps for a middle aged male card - just love the boep !

I tried a new watercolour paper made mostly from bamboo and it is thicker than my normal one which I tend to struggle with.  The result was impressive as it was super absorbent.

The red background paper is SU Real Red with the striped paper being an odd scrap from my stash on which I used the SU scalloped edge punch.  I sponged the background with a Ranger Distress Ink and was pleased with the finished effect.

                           CD PHOTO CUBE PROJECT

Recently received a mail advising of a workshop making this project.  As I am unable to go I decided to have a bash at it on my own and was delighted with the result.  The base is a bit of a problem, but I am working on it. 

We have loads of old CD cases from computer backups no longer needed and in no time at all I had taken the insides out, unhinged the cover and swung it around and assembled all 4 which clipped into each other.  I dug out some old family photo's (yes, Debs, it really is you, think you are about 19) and used some new CM paper which I had just bought.

The cube sits on my craft desk full of work in progress.  Every couple of days I turn it around and smile.  They might not be the most flattering photo's but they bring back so many memories !

   

STAMPIN UP - GIFTS OF JOY

Instead of starting from scratch on a card I decided to look in my container for toppers I had already stamped and made.  I tend to make a whole lot and forget about them.

The green paper and ribbon is from SU with the rust colour being CM.  The snowflake punch is also CM and the sentiment is SU.

 SARAH KAY - ELODIE IN HER GARDEN

This is one of my new stamps from Stampavie, designed by Sarah Kay.  The papers are all CM, the labels are the usual Nestabilities, the Scallop edge punch and sentiment are SU with the ribbon and lace being from my stash.

I raided my sewing box the other day and was amazed at the treasures hiding there.  Found some lace that must be at least 20 years old so would probably be classed as vintage as well as some amazing buttons.

STAMPIN UP - HOLIDAY LINEUP

Sometimes keeping simple is all that is required.  My SU Holiday Lineup stamps are getting a lot of use and I when I spotted a card with the snowmen all coloured in blue, I thought it was a good idea - simple and uncomplicated.  As can be seen, I am new to paper tearing and decided to wet it with a paint brush along a line, then tear it.  I think my hands and fingers are too small as I struggle to get it right.  Perhaps I should try one of those jagged rulers next to see how that turns out !

       

 HALLOWEEN TREAT HOLDER    

 I made these Halloween candy bar holders in preparation for our young neighbour and his friends when they knock on the door on the 31st.  The challenge was to get the right candy bar and I eventually settled on a peanut butter one as it was the perfect size and my husband hates peanut butter !  That way I knew they would last until Halloween !   I cut 3 holders lengthways  from an A4 piece of black cardstock, scored it, punched holes for the ribbon (which I looted from the gift packs at a conference we recently went to).   The opening for the candy bar is made with  SU word window punch.  The images are SU Twick or Tweet set and the rear side spider and bat are Cuttlebug dies.  Think I will have to lightly glue the flap shut, but will have to ask the advice of our young neighbour first.

SMALL GIFT BAG

A while back in Merrypak I came across these white paper packets and remembered I had seen a tutorial using them cut down to a smaller size.  Being Merrypak I had to buy in bulk and after making 2 of the small bags wondered just what I would do with the rest.  Anyway, I recently saw a picture using the whole bag on SCS and decided to make my own version.  I covered the bag with cardstock and then used CM paper front and back.  The hedgie image is from a Penny Black stamp set and I used Nestabilities for the circles.  The handle is a stroke of genius even if I say so myself !  It is using Nestabilities labels dies - the 2 largest sizes.

I usually make a project like this a couple of times before I get it right, tweaking things along the way, but this is my first go at it and I am quite pleased with the outcome.  It would be the perfect bag to use for a pair of socks or a couple of  liquid soaps.

      

ART IMPRESSIONS - RETIREMENT CARD

Was asked to make this card for a retirement of a colleague.  The main stamp is Oscar (in the recliner) with the other AI stamps being the bookshelf, mat, stool and washing basket.  The chair is from one of the SU sets but it had a pot plant sitting on it.  I coloured the back & seat area on the stamp with a black marker (leaving out the pot plant), stamped it on the patterned green paper and paper pieced it onto the chair.  The cat is from a Penny Black stamp set and the clock is a CM sticker.  The background papers are CM with the 'carpet' being a plain paper on which I used a speckled SU wheel to make it more realistic.

Inside the card I used SU sentiments.  All the stamped images on the front were stamped on watercolour paper, coloured in and cut out.

STAMPIN UP - HOLIDAY LINE UP

Another easy card to make. The top section was run through the Cuttlebug - Swiss dots embossing folder.  The middle is a border embossing folder on which I highlighted the dots with a white gel pen. The image is SU Holiday Line Up which is a long stamp and I had never thought of using only part of it in this way before I saw something similar on one of the craft sites.  The sentiment is also SU.

PENNY BLACK - TINY WISHES

This is another idea I took from Splitcoast Stampers using SU paper for the background.  I am not usually a lace fan but thought it looked good on this occasion.  The flowers are die cut and embossed with Nestabilities as are the oval shapes.  Once the paper has been chosen (always a challenge for me) it was a surprisingly easy card the make as the image was quick to colour in and the rest was easy to assemble as I had a picture to follow.

PENNY BLACK - CRITTER PARTY

This is an unusual card in that you use a normal card, on the front you cut down the score line and then cut horizontally.  I decorated the front with CM papers using a couple of different flourish stamps to liven it up a little.  The labels are Nestabilities and the sentiment is Inkadinkado (I think).  The inside of the card was decorated and the brads holding the hinges were affixed before I stuck the inside section down.  The card is closed with the hinges and to open it  the recipient has to undo the hinges.  It is just another idea for a card which is easy to decorate and it makes it a little different.                                         

REINDEER PUNCH ART

When I saw this card on Splitcoast Stampers I just knew I had to try and copy it.  I have never seen such an animated reindeer and am really pleased with the way it turned out.  Should you want to try it I have the recipe as to what punches have been used.  The only problem I had was with the antlers and eventually settled on the bows from a Sizzix die (Gift Box #2).  The Xmas tree is a Michael Strong stamp which I popped onto rises.  The music notes stamp is a local one I have had lying around for ages and not used which proves you should never get rid of any stamps as you don't know when you might find a need for them !

MOTIVET - DORALINE & DEXTER, BRIDE & GROOM

This is one of the nicest wedding stamps I have.  The background papers are a copper colour & free apricot colour paper from a magazine with the image being stamped on watercolour paper cut out with Nestabilities labels.  The ribbon was off a gift I received and the stickers are from my stash.  I also sponged the watercolour paper with a matching colour ink just to finish it off.