This is one of the ideas that has been floating around in my head for a few days, so yesterday I sat down to plan and to match up papers and cards stock as I also thought this might be a good way to use up snippets.
My idea was to use the reverse image from a punch or die, that usually gets discarded, and back it with a piece of appropriate Christmas paper and to set it on a piece of plain, embossed card stock. Sounds complicated? Not at all, and another way to extend the use of those expensive dies and punches too.
I’ll apologise now for the photo quality, sorry to harp on but this little cheap camera struggles with more than one thing to focus on. One thing that has seriously impressed me though is it’s battery life. Bear in mind that I last charged and used this camera in October of last year…. I dug it out again when Andrew went to England but haven’t found the battery charger for it yet! After a year in a drawer the battery showed two green bars still, and now, three weeks later, it’s down to two red bars. It’s going to die on me soon so I don’t have the luxury of retaking these photos as I want to do my desk for WOYWW on Wednesday and I’ll need a pic of another card I’m working on too. But a whole year on a single charge! You have to admit that’s impressive!!
So, on to the cards. Small at 5″ by 4.5″, and very flat too, so easy on the postage costs. And apart from the card blanks, they’re all snippets, both card pieces and backing papers.
Hope you can make them out through the bad pics!! I embossed the plain card with various embossing folders, the one on the left is a Craft Concepts diamond patchwork type of thing, the pink in the middle uses the Cuttlebug Swiss Dots, the blue on the right is the Cuttlebug Snowflake folder and the top brown one is a Sizzix Ribbon folder. There’s a large Martha snowflake punch, a Provocraft heart die, a Memory Box snowflake and the Hero Arts tree die. The card is a mix of Bazzil, DCWV, The Paper Company and Recollections; and the DP is DCWV, MME and two digital pieces from Two Peas In A Bucket (the brown tree card and the blue snowflake on the right.) The top sentiment is from TPC Studio and the bottom three are all Fiskars. The one on the left is impossible to read, so I’ll tell you is says “Make A Snowman”, and the O of snow is actually a cute little snowman!
I have a couple more of these on the go, but as Rudolph Day is coming up on the 25th, I’ll show you those then!!
Card Recipe:
- Card: Blanks from Michaels ~ The Paper Company ~ DCWV ~ Bazzil ~ Recollections
- DP: MME ~ DCWV ~ Betsy Tuma for Two Peas In A Bucket (free digi paper)
- Stamps: Fiskars Seasons Greeting’s ~ TPC Studio Vintage Christmas
- Ink: DI Barn Door ~ Memento Pixie Dust, Night Sky, Gingerbread ~ Memento Brilliance Moonlight White
- Embellies: Buttons and Embroidery thread
- Tools: Memory Box Crystal Snowflake Die ~ Martha Stewart Himalayan Snowflake Punch ~ Provocraft Nester Heart Die ~ Hero Arts Christmas Trees Stamp/Die Set ~ Sizzix, Craft Concepts & Cuttlebug Embossing Folders
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Challenges:
Pixies’s Crafty Snippets Challenge ~ Use Up Your Scraps
ABC Christmas – U For Up To You (make anything you’d like)
Pile It On – Holidays
Stamptacular Sunday ~ No Rules
Totally Papercrafts ~ Christmas
Flourishes ~ Winter Themed
Angie ...aka Shozzy said:
What a great idea …my fav is the tree one …xx
Stamping For Pleasure (Sarn) said:
Great idea and very thrifty of you . . . I’m impressed.
Can’t wait to see your Rudolph Day make(s)!
Hugs
Sarn xxx
Di said:
Fabby cards Brenda – great to see you hopping round the Playground – now, would you care for a ham and pease pudding stottie sarnie? Sigh, I know, me too 😦 Must dig out a recipe for stotties that I do have tucked away………….Friday Feast sometime, which I’ve neglcected lately, but beans on toast ain’t gonna float anyone’s boat is it?!
Anyhoo – back to the cards – the gal done good seeing as how her OH did off with the main camera 🙂 Better than mine honey!
Hugs
Di xx
Mary H. said:
What a marvelous idea. I loved each one of them. Although I could see the emboss on one card,but not the others, these still looked very pretty. Great idea for snippet use, PLUS, it would be a super idea to assembly line each of these to get a lot of Christmas cards ready to send. Thanks for this inspirational idea, plus the eye candy of some pretty cards! (I struggle with camera issues too. I think in my case it is Operator Error! One more thing I gotta learn!) TFS
Darnell J Knauss said:
Okay, no fooling around this time, your idea for the negative dies and your designs and final execution – just brilliant, Brenda, and definitely going in my faves!! I hope your camera holds on for a few more days! What an amazing little battery!!
Carol said:
Fabulous use of your die waste Brenda….I have piles of this!! Love all the cards. Carol x
Jules said:
Hi Brenda
What a great idea .. .. but please don’t get me started on die waste!! It is bad enough using the leftovers and offcuts.
Found the heart by the way!!! LOL!!!
Defo go for the Fairy Lights download .. .. I have used that download more than any other EVER!!! Great not just for Christmas!!
Love Jules xx
Bonnie said:
What a wonderful idea to use snippets behind snippets! Double the fun!
Laine said:
Such a good idea, Makes great CAS Christmas Cards.
Thank you so much for joining us at TPC this week.
Hugs
Laine
X
céline said:
fab cards
thanks for playing with us at stamptacular sunday this week
hugs
céline
Dorte said:
Lovely christmas cards you are sharing.
Thank you for playing in our challenge at ABC Christmas Challenge this time.
Dorte,x
Hettie said:
Fabulous cards thee Hunny! Such a shame we have to think about the postage costs when making cards! Grrr!
What on earth are stotties?? Not sure whether to mmmmn or ewch!
Hugs
xx
Paula Gale said:
These are great B – I did a butterfly a while back – never posted so maybe I should so I can play along eh? No, I’ll leave it for another time because yours are great – a nice size too. Not enough people use the idea do you think?
WRT the freebie DP paper, you don’t mean Two Peas in a Bucket do you… just that I’ve been a member like for ages and have heard of Betsy Tuma there – I tried the TPin a P and wasn’t able to find anything… just a thought my friend.
Shame about the photo quality. Do you have a camera on your phone? I know my phone takes really good quality photos – better than some I see around blogland. At least you know what the problem is – they’re not too bad, i’ve definitely seen worse and it won’t be long until your old faithful is back… and the camera! lol….
big hugs
Paula x x x
Paula Gale said:
oops – meant to say… have you changed your blog background – or is it me not being very perceptive and its been like this for a while? I just noticed that gorgeous clamatis on your header.
P xxx
Annette said:
Wow, you’ve been busy making all these fab cards. Thanks for joining us at ABC Christmas this week. Annette xx
Jenn Z said:
Thanks so much for playing along with us this week for the Pile It On “Holiday and Holiday Challenge” with us! Just loved your cards, and hope to see you back here next week!
PIO DT
Jenn Zeeb
Lisa-Jane Johnson said:
I love these negative image cards that I’ve seen on your blog recently. Great colours too!