Joyeux Noel

Hello!

I don't know about you, but even with the bulk of my Christmas cards sent, I often find myself making "just one more card" right up until Christmas.  There's always a stamp set I can't pass up, or want to reuse.  And, if I don't need the card to send, it gets me a little ahead for the next year.  Today, I'm sharing a card, that came about because I really wanted to color the Holly Jolly Christmas stamp again.  

I began by stamping the image twice on a piece of white card stock, using a light ink for no-line coloring.  I colored in the image using my Polychromos pencils.  Once I finished coloring, I used the coordinating dies to cut the images out.   I set the images aside while working on the other elements.  

I took a card front sized piece of white card stock, and used The Flower of Life Stencil, and a Life Changing Blender Brush, to blend some Bundled Sage Distress Oxide Ink down from the top of the panel.  I faded the ink out about half way down the card.  I set this panel aside, along with the colored images.  

Next, I stamped and gold heat embossed the sentiment - from the Joyeux Noel Stamp Set - onto vellum, before fussy cutting it out.  I then die cut the largest circle die from the Scallop Framed Dies from more white card stock.  

I layered all of the elements together, and adhered the card front to a white card base.  To finish off the card, I added a few gems from the Sands of Time Gem Mix.  

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies specific to this card, are listed, and linked, in the blog post.  

To see the basic tools that I use on nearly every card, please click here.

Picket Fence Studios November Release

Hello!

It's the 14th of the month, and that means it is time for another new release from Picket Fence Studios!  This month, 

Find the full release in the shop now.  

As always, I have multiple cards to share with you today, so lets get right on into it!  

Card #1 | Aquarius Girl

For today's first card, I stamped the image from the Aquarius Girl Stamp Set, onto white card stock, using a light ink for no-line coloring.  I then colored in the image, using my Polychromos pencils.  Once colored, I used the coordinating die to cut the image.  

I cut a piece of navy card stock to a card front size, and then used Slimline Cloud Coverage Stencil, and my Life Changing Blender Brushes to ink in some clouds - using Spun Sugar, Shaded Lilac, and Salty Ocean Distress Oxide Inks.  Once the clouds were added, I heavily powdered the panel, and stamped the sentiment from the stamp set, before heat embossing it in Metallic Platinum.  Then, I splattered a little Sparkle Paper Glitz - mixed with alcohol - over the top of the panel, and allowed it to dry.  The image was adhered to the card front, then added to a white card base.    

♥   ♥   ♥

Card #2 | Iconic

I began this card by stamping the Iconic Beauty Kiara Stamp in Black Hybrid Ink.  I quickly coated the ink in clear embossing powder, so that I could do an emboss resist technique over the top.  Using a Life Changing Blender Brush, I inked the panel in Stormy Sky Distress Oxide Ink, keeping the ink darkest on the outer edges of the panel.  Then, I laid the Fancy Flourish Stencil over the top of the panel, and inked over that with Dusty Concord Distress Oxide Ink - again, keeping the ink along the edges of the panel and away from the image.  Once the panel was inked, I was able to go in with my Polychromos pencils, and add some color to the image.  

To complete the card front, I die cut two sets of letters from the Slim Line Stitched and Scalloped Rectangle & Alpha Die Cutting System Die Set. I adhered the second set of letters on the back side of the first. I lined the letters up on my work surface, and applied painters tape to hold them in a straight line while I glued them to the card front.    I positioned the sentiments from the stamp set, in my MISTI, and then removed the center sentiment, so that I could stamp and heat embossed the two gold sentiments.   I, then, repositioned the other sentiment, to stamp and white heat emboss it.  I matted the card front with a piece of black card stock, then attached it to a white card base.  

♥   ♥   ♥

Card #3 | Hello Wreath

This third card was super quick to make.  I stamped and gold heat embossed the A Wreath for All Seasons stamp image onto kraft card stock.  I then used just three Polychromos pencils to add a bit of shading.  

I die cut the sentiment from the Mini Slimline Double Stitched Rectangles Die Cutting System Die Set, out of green card stock, and adhered that to the card front.  Then a added a little highlight to the die cut using the white pencil.  A few gems from the Sands of Time Gem Mix finished the card front, and it was adhered to a white card base.  

♥   ♥   ♥

Card #4 | Hello Plumeria

Another super easy card!  I layered the Slim Line Plumeria Flowers Stencil over a panel of white card stock.  Using the Life Changing Blender Brushes, I inked the flowers with Kitsch Flamingo Distress Oxide Ink, and the leaves with Bundled Sage Distress Oxide Ink.  Then, I removed the stencil, and die cut the panel with one of the rectangle dies from the Mini Slimline Double Stitched Rectangles Die Cutting System Die Set.  I also die cut the sentiment from the set, out of gold card stock.  

I layered the inked panel and sentiment together, and added them to a white card base.  Then, to finish the card, I added a few of the Iridescent Moonshine Sequins.  

♥   ♥   ♥

Card #5 | A Paper Hello

The final project is actually two in one!  I pulled out the Peach and Piper Checking the Post Stamp Set, and stamped an A2 sized envelope, along with stamping one of the images onto a piece of white card stock.  Then I colored in both images with Polychromos pencils.  I die cut the image from the card stock, using the coordinating die.  

To finish the envelope, I  stamped a sentiment from the Hugs Enclosed Stamp Set in Black Hybrid Ink.  

Going back to work on the card, I wanted to create a stitched frame for my shaker element.  So, I partially die cut a rectangle from the Mini Slim Line Double Stitched Rectangles Die Cutting System Die Set, out of teal card stock. To do this, lay your top plate of your die cutting sandwich, only over the portion you want cut.  Then, I lined the die up with the stitch marks at the length I wanted the frame - you will feel the die "settle" into place once the stiches line up in the grooves  - and die cut the remaining portion.  Once the rectangle was cut, I used the same technique, with the cloud die from the same set, to cut out the inside of the frame.  I then added a sheet of acetate for the window.  The backing piece of the shaker was stamped and white heat embossed with the A Friendly Paper Hello Stamp. Before adhering the shaker element together, I added a generous amount of the Snail Mail Sequin Mix Plus.  

Before assembling the card, I randomly stamped a panel of white card stock with the envelopes image from the Peach & Piper stamps set, in aqua ink.  Then I layered my elements together, and adhered the card front to a white card base.  

♥   ♥   ♥

That's it for today's cards.  As always, there are several other fun new things in the release, and I did not have time to play with them all.  Be sure to stop over to Picket Fence Studios and take a look at the entire release.   

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies specific to these cards, are listed, and linked, in the blog post.  

To see the basic tools that I use on nearly every card, please click here.

O Holy Night

Hello!

One of my favorite Christmas carols, just happens to be Oh Holy Night.  So, when I first saw the sneak peek of Concord & 9th's O Holy Night Stamp Set,  I actually gasped.  I knew that I'd be making my personal Christmas cards this year with that beautiful sentiment stamp.  I made these cards en masse, so I know this particular design is pretty easy to assembly line - even with the embossing.  If  you work in groups of 3-5 cards at a time, you'll have plenty of time to stamp and emboss each panel.  

To begin with, I cut my card front panels from Navy card stock (I used Gina K In the Navy card stock, to match with the envelopes, however, Concord & 9th has a beautiful Midnight color as well).   I lined up the sentiment stamp, and building stamp in my MISTI.  Then I put the star stamp on a small clear block.  I generously powdered each panel, before placing it in the MISTI to stamp with Versamark ink.  Once the panel was stamped with the larger images, I pulled it aside, and stamped the star.  I stamped up to five panels in a row, before adding the gold embossing powder to each panel.   Once all were coated, I'd heat set the embossing powder (bonus to working with multiples is that the heat gun heats for the first panel, so the subsequent panels are super quick).  

Once the embossing was done for all of my card fronts, I pulled out a couple of Distress brand inks, and some Life Changing Blender Brushes.  I used a smaller brush to apply Speckled Egg Distress Oxide Ink over the top of the star, and to blend it down towards the buildings.  Then, I used a larger brush to apply Black Soot Distress Ink to the top corners, and down the sides of the card front. 

Before, I adhered the card fronts to a white card base, I splattered them with Sparkle Paper Glitz that had been thinned with a bit of alcohol.   The finished card will be mailed out inside In the Navy envelopes that I stamped and heat embossed with my personalized return address stamp.  

And that's the finished Christmas card.  I made quite a few of these, with just a little time here or there, over the course of a couple days. I like to put my cards in the mail no later than the day after Thanksgiving, so I have made these a little early in order to get them fully prepared for mailing - but they are quick enough to make at any point in the holiday season.   I think they're gorgeous, and due to the single layer card front - they will not require any additional postage. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies specific to this card, are listed, and linked, in the blog post.  

To see the basic tools that I use on nearly every card, please click here.