I have no idea why I’m still making Christmas cards, I have more than enough created for this year already, all the airmail ones are already on their way, and the local ones will be written by the end of this weekend too. But here I sit, ideas whizzing through my mind, and I can’t resist a good challenge either. So this afternoon, after errands, and trips to the post office, decorating the tree and getting a few more decorations out around the house, calling home to the UK and a general dust and tidy up I made time to sneak off to my craft room for a while! A couple of the challenges are looking for Clean and Simple cards, and I was in a very CAS mood! I might give this one to some good friends of ours this year, and not put it in the box for next Christmas.
I pulled out a couple of Stampendous stamps, one never used before called Poinsettia Corner and the other, a favourite sentiment called Family Season. I stamped the Poisettia on to a small square of card and them stamped it again on to an offcut so I could could out and decoupage the flowers. The first stamping was done in Brilliance Cottage Ivy so it’s nice and shiny. Actually it’s incredibly shiny, but it’s not the ink, have a look at this!
After colouring the flowers with Prisma pencils, I covered them with Versmark ink and clear embossed with Tim Holtz Holographic EP, and boy, is that ever sparkly stuff! Haven’t seen enough sparkle yet, here, here’s another pic!!
The sentiment was embossed in JoAnn Gold EP, but now that I look at these photos I fear it’s a bit wonky! I’ll have to stamp and emboss it again and stick it over the wonky one. I’ll edge the new bit in TH Antique Linen, like I did with the main panel, and it’ll look like it was there all the time, lol! I really need one of those stamp positioner things.
Card Recipe:
Card: 5″ Square Blank from a UK craft fair I went to in May ~ GinaK Pure Luxury White
Stamps: Stampendous Poinsettia Corner & Family Season
Ink: Brilliance Cottage Ivy ~ Tim Holtz Antique Linen ~ Versamark
Embellies: Tim Holtz Holographic Embossing Powder ~ JoAnn Gold Embossing Powder ~ Prisma Pencils
Tools: Fiskars Corner Rounder ~ Heat Gun
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Challenges:
Papertake Weekly ~ Anything Goes with an option of CAS
Stampendous ~ CAS Christmas
Hazel’s Christmas Challenge ~ For Someone Special
Hazel’s Christmas Extra ~ Anything Goes
Sister Act Card Challenge ~ Anything Goes
Pixies Snippets Playground ~ Use Up Your Scraps
Penny Black & More @ Allsorts ~ Traditional Christmas Colours (Red, Green and Gold)
Winter Wonderland ~ Embossing
Stampin’ For The Weekend ~ Use Some Red
Stamping Sensations ~ Free And Easy
Jingle Belles ~ Wrap Up & Link Fest
Stamp And Create ~ Anything Goes
Deep Ocean ~ Santa Is Coming To Town (Anything Christmas)
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And finally, you all know that on the first day of Christmas my true love gave me a Partridge In A Pear Tree?? Well, “My True Love” obviously doesn’t live in Michigan, as this morning we had a deer in our Pear tree! A Whitetail doe to be precise and she spent quite a long time foraging on the ground eating up all the ornamental pears that had dropped from the tree. Then she started reaching up into the branches, seeing if the squirrels had left any tasty morsels for her. After that she sat on the lawn, where the sun was poking through, and chewed the cud for a good twenty minutes before wandering off.
The photo is a little blurred but she wasn’t more than 15ft from the dining room window and wasn’t bothered in the slightest that we were watching her.
Famfa said:
Gorgeous sparkly shiny card. Do you remember I was going yo make cards – well I haven’t made one yet. Maybe next year. The deer is beautiful. Good capture (the photo not capturing the deer) x
linda said:
oh, wow, brenda – this is gorgeous!! i love the layered poinsettias and it’s a beautifully designed CAS card. now i need to find me some holographic ep. thank you so much for playing along with us this month at penny black and more.
linda
Shaz in oz.x said:
ah Brenda fab card – but had to laugh at the pear tree deer!! wonderful! Shaz in Oz.x
Brenda said:
What a very elegant card for our theme this month, thanks so much for sharing with us at Stamping Sensations challenge.
B x
Brenda said:
Apols Brenda, I should also have thanked you for sharing your lovely card with us at Penny Black and More.
B x
Scrappymo said:
Your card and the photo of the deer are wonderful. How amazing to see her so close to your window!
Your card looks so lovely and sparkly. That embossing powder is fabulous! is
SARN said:
Wonderful schparkly poinsettia card Brenda. I was also making Christmas cards yesterday, despite having written out all the ones I need for this year . . . you can never get started on the following year’s one too soon!
How amazing to have the company of a deer for so long. Thanks for sharing.
Hugs
Sarn xxx
Mrs A. said:
Wow! That really is brilliant stuff. Must go and get myself dome of that toot sweet..
Love your CAs Card. hugs Mrs A.
ps. used to work in a place that regularly had roebuck deer come and peer in at the ground floor windows.
Di said:
Oh wow B, what a stunning card – it sparkles like anything, and a gorgeous design! I’m also onto next years cards, it’s nice to make festive cards when everywhere seems to be so Christmassy.
LOVE your adorable doe – what a beauty, how lucky you are.
Hugs, Di xx
Susan Stacey said:
Lovely sparkly card.
Thank you for joining The ‘Traditional Colours’ challenge over at Penny Black & More @ Allsorts and good luck x Susan x
Mary H said:
Wow! Your poinsettias are gorgeous & really liked the technique you explained. They really did sparkle (you mentioned not being happy with your gold EP…if you get a chance, try some Ranger Queen’s Gold. I love this stuff) That said, I thought your EP looked wonderful & sparkling and worked pretty with your flowers. You can bet I’m going to try to remember how you did this, and CASE! Great picture of your deer also. What a treat to see out your window. Great photo too. TFS & Hugs.
Hazel said:
Wow! to the deer in the pear tree! And what a gorgeous card – love those poinsettias – thanks for entering both of my CHNC challenges – hope to see you again soon. x
Jennyff said:
I don’t know why you are still making Christmas cards either, especially given the price of postage, I’m still reeling from buying my stamps today. However I do know I’d love a deer in my garden, so sweet.
Debbie said:
A beautiful card and a lovely photo. Thank you for joining us at Winter Wonderland this week. x
basslady said:
a brilliant CAS-card!
hugs and kisses from germany,
silvi xoxo
Greta H said:
I just adore this card–a real standout! The stamps are fabulous & used to perfection! What a great picture of the deer–thanks for sharing!
Sandy Dehon said:
I like clean and simple cards – really better than the “can I put one more thing on this card” cards. That photo is amazing – I think you lucked up with it being blurred!!!!
Wonderful photograph!
sandy
Princess Judy said:
Love your ultra sparkly creation. Never fear about making extra Christmas cards. I have it on good authority that we’ll do that Christmas thing again in 2014. Great deer photo too. So fun to see wildlife in the wild.