Snowman Merry Christmas

I cannot believe how quickly the weeks are going by. It is the start of all the year end holiday season. Halloween is only two days away, and then before we know it, Thanksgiving will be over and Christmas well be in full swing (unless you are one of my followers to the north who has already celebrated Thanksgiving or from across the pond where Thanksgiving isn't celebrated at all). 

This week's sketch is really a nice one. Here it is:

It was really fun seeing how each member of the design team used this sketch. It never ceases to amaze me just how different each of our cards turn out each week. Even when they are similar (like last week when several of us used a snowflake theme), they always look so different.

I didn't plan on making my Christmas cards this year. The pressure I place on myself each year to make enough cards to send out just adds unnecessary stress to the holidays. I always tell myself I am going to take a couple weeks in the summer and just make all the cards then, but it doesn't seem to happen that way. However, when I saw this week's sketch, the snowman and snowflakes just seemed to be the right combination.

I have used a white card base (5 x 7"), and I've used a pattern paper from We Are 3 digital designs. It has been a little while since I've used a We Are 3 digital paper so I felt it was about time I pull a little weight and actually do a card with some digital paper. This piece is from a 4-paper set called "Howdy." 

The snowman is from a clip art file. I think it may have been a Provo Craft design, but I am not sure, so don't quote me. The image is actually a full snowman, but I needed the circle shape, so I have eliminated the lower part of the guy's body.

The patterned paper from which I cut the red dotty circle is by Michael's Crafts. It was from one of their yearly Christmas 8.5 x 11" paper packs (purchased last year). The two fish tail banners are cut from solid blue and solid white using a Memory Crafts die. I stamped the sentiment onto the white fishtail using a stamp from My Perfect Expression using SU's Real Red ink.

I punched two large snowflakes and three smaller one (Martha Stewart punches) and placed them around the bottom right portion of the circles. I then spread Stickles on top of the snowflakes to add some shimmer (sorry you cannot see that in the above photo, but it is pretty -- just enough glitter without being overdone).

And speaking of snowmen (yes, I know that it is incorrect to start a sentence or a paragraph with the word and, but just overlook it this time, OK?), check out the darling prize that some lucky winner will get to receive this week. Are you ready? Here it is:

Is that embossing folder cute or what? Just remember to make a card using this week's sketch and post it to the Tuesday Morning Sketches blog to have a chance to win that adorable prize. 

A Wish For You

Tuesdays keep coming around way too fast! This week we have a beautiful sketch for you at Tuesday Morning Sketches. With several layers and elements, this sketch works up quite lovely. I started with another beautiful print from Heartfelt Creations, and matched my papers to the colors in the print.

I started with a 5 x 7" burgundy card turned horizontal. I then a piece of pink stripe paper in my scrap bag that was a lovely compliment to the basket of petunias in the print. I used one of my lovely dies to cut the scalloped edge to the pink piece. I matched the green in the leaves with a piece of green scrap for my horizontal band, and I punched the tiny tags from scraps of Heartfelt Creations paper (from the same pad as the oval image).

After assembling the card, I added pearls to the "hole" in the tags and attached a sentiment (from the Heartfelt Creations pad) with a pearl on each side of the sentiment.

I hope you like our sketch and will play along with us this week at Tuesday Morning Sketches.

Happy crafting!

Christmas Snowflakes

This week's sketch is a bit different and at first may seem a bit challenging. However, it isn't as daunting as you may first think. Let me show you the sketch and then break it down for you a little so that you will see just how easy it really is. Here is the sketch:

You will notice that my card is not a literal version of the sketch. In place of the paisley shapes, I've substituted snowflakes. After I created my card, I learned that one of the other DT members had also used snowflakes in place of the paisley shapes. Two of the DT members used actual paisley shapes, and one of us very creatively used leaf sprigs. The point I am making is that you can take creative liberties with this sketch and use a variety of shapes in place of the paisley shapes. You may use leaves, flowers, stars, hearts, or even tea cups -- in other words, you are only limited by your own creativity and imagination.

I used a white 5 x 7" card base. I placed a piece of red snowflake paper, from an Imaginations Christmas pad, on top of the card base. The snowflakes are a combination of two different type pre-cut snowflakes that I got in packages from Michael's Crafts several years ago. The dimensional one is plastic whereas the flat ones are a silky type material. Since they were larger than the paisley images on the sketch, I only used four of them. The sentiment is from a card kit that I bought 7-8 years ago.

This was one very quick and easy card. The paper and the pre-made embellishments made quick work of this card. However, I think you will find that whatever theme you pick, this sketch is going to work up quickly. You really need to run over to the Tuesday Morning Sketches blog and have a look at what the other team members have created!!

If you still need more incentive to play along with us this week, here is a look at the super prize that some lucky person is going to win:

Show us what you come up with and post it to the TMS blog to have a chance to win that lovely stamp set!

Bird House and Flowers

Somehow I completely skipped last week -- oh, not in reality, but in terms of posting my Tuesday Morning Sketches DT card. I made the card. I even photographed it, but then I guess I went through a mind-warp and that's where my routine stopped! Anyway, I wanted to share my last week's card with you. This card was used as a birthday card for a very sweet lady's 82nd birthday. She is so kind and thinks my cards are lovely, so I enjoy creating something for her.

I used a 5 x 7" burgundy base. I placed a piece of floral DP from the Heartfelt Creations peony collection on top as a background. I then cut the image piece from the same peony pad. The oval and the pink background are actually one piece. It is matted with the burgundy. The sentiment is also from that peony pad. I cut a burgundy fishtail and adhered the sentiment to it so that the wording would stand out more. Lastly, I adhered some dainty flowers from Wild Orchid Crafts and some punched green leaves to the lower right edge of the image.

Once again, Heartfelt Creations has pretty much done all the work for me. Between Tuesday Morning Sketches and Heartfelt Creations, I can create some beautiful cards that makes my friends feel very special.

Anyway, thank you for letting me share (albeit late) my Tuesday Morning Sketches DT card. Stay tuned for this week's card in just a few hours from now (smile)!

Day Filled With Love

I was ready to write this post last night when my internet went out. Actually, my entire Xfinity went out because I not only didn't have internet, but I didn't have television service, either. Anyway, I hope you will forgive my tardiness.

This week's sketch is by Melissa, and it is a wonderfully classic design that you will be able to use in a variety of ways. Just a hint: those three turned squares can be a plethora of things such as hearts, song notes, other images, candy pieces, spiders, webs, etc. (think Halloween). Are you getting the picture?

I stayed pretty true to the exact design (minus a bow) for my card. I have been having to replenish my stash of adult birthday cards, so the original design fit my needs. The carnation image is colored with pencil and then I added a light coating of glitter shimmer to different petals (not all of them) and the center.

I started with a light pink 5 x 7" card base. All of the other papers (except the image) are from my scrap pile. Yes, you read that correctly. Other than the card base, I did not use any new paper for this card. I layered the image with dark pink to set it off from the multi-colored background paper. I punched three squares (using a Creative Memories punch), and I stamped the sentiment. The two gems that I used in place of the bow are dark green and match the green in the background. (Yes, I know they look a bit bluish in the picture, but they are green.)

Have a good week. Here's hoping that will include some crafting time! See you again next Tuesday, if not before.

Smile in Metal!

I don't know why I cannot seem to be organized any more (or any less -- wait, no, I don't want to be any less). The days are just flying by, and I can't seem to keep them straight. Just discovered that I failed to post this week's Tuesday Morning Sketches card here on my blog (hanging my head).

This is the new sketch. It is provided by Carol and is really much prettier and easier than it looks in the sketch. I know you are going to have fun with this one. The DT all came up with something entirely different from each other.

We also have a fun-tastic prize for this week's challenge, and here it is:

OK, so I went steam punk with my card. I have used one of Sherry Baldie's steam punk images and a variety of dies to create a "metal" look. The bear has been fussy cut and is sitting on a circle that has been topped with a clock face die cut. I ran my "cogs" die through a number of times to get enough pieces to create the elements coming out from behind the circle. Lastly, I moved the sentiment to the side of the card in order to have enough room and used a metal word from my stash. Didn't it turn out adorable?

Despite my being a couple of days behind posting my card, I hope you will still have time to possibly create your own and submit it to the Tuesday Morning Blog challenge. That die sure is pretty and would be a wonderful addition to anyone's collection. They can be used, not only for Christmas, but for wedding and anniversary cards, too. Don't you just love multi-functional tools?

Blue Birds of Happiness

Melissa said that I was either still clinging to spring or looking forward to it with my little image. I actually had not thought about it being a spring image. I thought of it more as a pretty summer image, and I admit that I am clinging to summer for a little while longer. After all, fall doesn't officially come until this weekend (22nd September)! I so like the images painted by Carolyn Shores Wright. I actually own five of her framed prints (2 birdie prints and three kitty prints).

I have combined pink, blue and green for my papers, picking up the colors in the print. The card, itself, is a 5" x 7" pink card. The blue print background is matted with green. My image is matted with the same pink as the card, and my embellishment is cut from the green. I have finished the front off with the three pink pearls in the upper right corner.

Since this card is all a matter of cutting and gluing, it made up very quickly, but I think it looks quite lovely; how about you?

This week we have a fun stamp set for our challenge prize. This is the CC Design set:

                                               

Wouldn't you like a chance to win that lovely background stamp? It could be yours. All you have to do is create a card using our sketch, post it to your own blog and then link it to the Tuesday Morning Sketches blog. You may be our random winner of the Autumn Leaves background stamp. There is one thing for sure. If you don't enter, you definitely will not win!

Have fun with this week's sketch, and I'll be back next week with another wonderful sketch to share with you.