Let It Snow Card 2014

This winter has certainly been one that I have been wishing for a  long time in light of the very mild winters we've had for the last few years.  While the cold and snow isn't what most people enjoy, I love it!  Last Tuesday, we had just shy of 15 inches of snow; and yesterday, we got about another 3 inches.  So, this winter is living up to what it's supposed to be.  A lot of people get the winter blues but I tend to feel that way in the summer.

 With the cold and snow to inspire me, I set about to start making cards for next Christmas in an effort to have enough on hand when I need them.  It was a mad rush trying to get enough made to send out this past Christmas, so I hope to be ahead of it when the time comes.  The stamped snowman image from Inkadinkado used on this card is the same one I used in a previous post just colored differently with Copic markers and highlighted with Stickles.  The Go Kreate dies used for the frame were in the prize package I won from my very sweet blogging friend, Ellen Kristiansen.  The patterned paper is from my very favorite Christmas collection from My Mind's Eye, Festive & Frost.  An assortment of Martha Stewart snowflake stickers was placed around the frame edge.  The framed image was then adhered with foam dots onto paper embossed with a Darice snowflake folder.  I inked the edges with tea dye Distress Ink.

For some finishing touches, I made a banner and stamped "let it snow" onto it and highlighted the edge with gold Stickles.  The snowflakes were made with a Marvy punch from the same patterned paper and accented with rhinestones from Michaels.

Last year, my goal was to make at least one Christmas card a month but fell far short of that goal.  With one finished, hopefully, I'll meet my goal this year!  We'll see.  Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead and thanks so much for stopping by!

Nature Garden Tag

Hi everyone!  I hope all is well with you.  It's been fairly cold here which makes me crave warm, cozy things like snuggling under an afghan reading a good book.  Today, we had turkey with all the trimmings for dinner.  I love to cook when the weather is cold.

The tag I'm sharing today is in a spring theme.  Just about everything used here is from Prima except for a bit of Stickles, Liquid Pearls, and pieces of a Wilton doily.  The beautiful papers, chipboard and most of the flowers are from Prima's Nature Garden collection designed by the amazing Jodie Lee Patterson.  I love everything she makes.  The butterfly is from Prima's Lyric collection.

When I saw the little fairy chipboard piece, I thought she would look cute looking into a garden of flowers.  It's difficult to see here, but there is a little bird on the background paper between the fairy and the flowers which I thought was in a perfect spot.

I didn't get much done in the way of crafting this week due to a bit of pain in my finger joints but I hope to get some things made this week.  Thanks so much for stopping by and I hope the week ahead is a good one for you!

G45 Secret Garden Card and Box

Hi everyone!  A little while ago, I was lucky enough to win a giveaway at the wonderfully talented Ellen Kristiansen's blog.  Included among the beautiful flowers, stamps, and dies was a pad of Graphic 45's Secret Garden paper.  A friend of mine celebrates her birthday on Christmas Day and doesn't like any Christmas theme birthday card or paper for her gifts, so I decided to use the springy Secret Garden papers to make a  card and trinket box for her.

As you can see, there is nothing holiday or wintery here.  I did a bit of fussy cutting on some birds and the ribbon/key and popped it up with foam squares.  The little bird card, also from the papers, was placed atop a Wilton doily.  The flower/lace border strip is from Recollections.  I used some gold Stickles to highlight the key.  The wish stamp is from Papertrey Ink.

The trinket box was covered with the same paper pattern as the card.  The flower, butterfly and white trim around the lid are from Recollections.  A strand of pearls was glued around the base.  I added some vintage buttons to the lid to finish it off.  I apologize for the poor quality of the photo but I couldn't tone down the reflection.  You can click on the images for a closer view.

I think I managed to bring a bit of spring into the grey of winter.  I, myself, love winter projects but I also realize not everyone else does.  Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by.  I always enjoy reading your sweet comments.  Have a wonderful week!

Snowmen and Angels

My wish for snow has certainly been granted!  We received about 8 inches on Friday that ushered in an arctic blast.  Today, we woke up to freezing rain that left a coating of ice on everything.  The temperature has climbed above freezing, so conditions have improved.  We are expecting another arctic blast tomorrow.

The card I'm sharing today was made for Christmas but the sentiment can easily be changed to a winter one.

The snowman stamp is from Inkadinkado.  Don't you think he is adorable?  I colored the image with Copic markers and highlighted it with Stickles.  The pattern papers and chipboard are from K&Co.  I used a Martha Stewart embossed snowflake punch on some white cardstock to add another border.  Rhinestones are from Michaels.  A tiny gold bell and red bow finished it off.

I picked up some unpainted wooden ornaments at Michaels to decorate for Christmas gifts.  This angel was one of them.  I simply painted her white and gave her a coating of Martha Stewart coarse glitter and added a couple of rhinestones.

It's back to work for me tomorrow after a nice long holiday break.  Even though I work part time, I treasure my time off.  After the rush of the holidays, I managed to finish reading two books and just started reading "The Book Thief".  I hope the New Year has been off to a good start for everyone.  Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to leave a comment.  I appreciate hearing from you.  Have a wonderful week!

A Few More Christmas Cards

Hi everyone!  I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas.  Ours was very nice.  I had meant to post these cards before Christmas but never got around to it.  So, here we go...

The Vintage Christmas collection from MME has to be my all-time favorite!  I love the papers used on this card.  An image was punched from one of the papers and placed inside the Bead Landing bottle cap.  A clear epoxy sticker was placed over it.  Some snowflakes were made with a Martha Stewart punch; the others are Martha Stewart stickers.  Bits of tinsel garland at the bottom on the tag are from Tim Holtz.  I also rubbed some Inka Gold around the edge of the tag.  A vintage button was placed at the top of the tag.

The next card uses papers from Little Yellow Bicycle.  The trim is from MME.  The Jolly button is from Recollections.  The tree and snowflakes are wooden and from Recollections.  I painted them white and coated them in Martha Stewart tinsel glitter.  A couple of rhinestones finishes the tag.

Well, that's it for me tonight.  I do have another ornament and card to share that I made for gifts but I think they could be used other than for Christmas.  I'll share those later.  If I'm not back here before Wednesday, I wish everyone a happy and healthy new year!  Thanks for stopping by.

Making Snowflakes

Recently, I purchased some unfinished wood ornaments from Michaels that I wanted to paint and decorate.  I started with the snowflakes ones first.  The designs are so pretty.  Each one was painted white first and then given a generous coating of Martha Stewart glitter.

The quality of my photos isn't very good, but you can get an idea of what they look like.  Of course, in person, they are much prettier.

The blue snowflake diecut is from Me & My Big Ideas and the snowman is from Jolee's Boutique.

The cute little reindeer and layered snowflake are from Recollections.  I think this is my favorite one of the group.

I wish this picture was clearer because this delicate snowflake is so beautiful with its coating of sparkle.  The glittered snowflakes are from Recollections and the white flower (which I added a bit of glitter to) is from Michaels.

The last one in the group is adorned with a layered diecut from K&Co.  Each of the snowflakes are also finished off with pearls from Recollections.

I spent a couple of days in Cape May, NJ, this past week to enjoy their Victorian Christmas celebration.  We stayed at the same wonderful bed and breakfast we stayed at last year, The Gingerbread House.  These ornaments were purchased at a couple of unique gift shops in town, and I thought you might like to see them.  The snowmen heads are all fabric and handmade as is the stitched heart.  The Santa and little girl actually have some fur trim decorating their outfits.  The dimension on the snowflake is gorgeous in all its sparkly goodness!

Now, I need to get working on finishing up my Christmas cards.  I knew I'd be going down to the wire again this year!  The good news is that the house is decorated, gifts are bought and mostly wrapped, and cookies are getting done.   We have actually had three snowstorms this past week which made me very happy.  However, with a milder day today, a lot of the snow has disappeared.  Here's hoping for a white Christmas!  Have a wonderful week and thanks for stopping by!

Christmas Cards and Some Snow

Trying to accomplish too much this past weekend, I didn't get around to doing a blog post but here it is now.  I have two cards and a tag to share today.  Papers used are from MME and K&Co.

I really love the paper used for the background on this card.  The pretty diecuts are from Anna Griffin.  The doily is a Tim Holtz die that I just inked a bit with tea dye and added Recollections glitter.  A bit of Stickles and rhinestones from Michaels give the card some more sparkle.

Next up is a card made with K&Co diecuts.  The vintage buttons were in a jar of buttons a friend gave me that she found antiquing.

The lace is from Making Memories.  I added some red rhinestones to the bells and a little baker's twine bow.

I'm not sure I'm very happy with this tag but here it is anyway.  The snowflakes are from Martha Stewart punches.  Pom-poms are from Making Memories.  The acetate date and wish stickers are from K&Co.  Some gesso and glitter give some sparkle to the tag.

I'll end this post with this picture of my little furry guy enjoying the first of two snowfalls in three days.  Love the winter wonderland I'm seeing from my windows.

Thanks for stopping by!