Frosty the Snowman

Today's card features a cute Snowman stamp from Funstamps. I stamped him onto a snippet of watercolour paper, added a sentiment using one of the stamps from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz, then coloured him using watercolour pencils. For the background, I used snowflake papers from an unnamed Christmas pad from The Works (the aqua one) and the 'Snowscape' pad from Woodware (the pink one). I distressed the edges, then added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Crafts Galore Encore - Anything Goes
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes

Outline Snowflakes

Today's card features a Simon Says Stamp background stamp called 'Outline Snowflakes'. I stamped it onto a piece of black card using Versamark ink, then heat embossed it using metallic silver embossing powder from WOW, the coloured it using Cosmic Shimmers watercolours. I heat embossed a sentiment, using a stamp from the 'Festive Phrases' set from Funky Fossil, on some more black card, then used one of my Circle Nesties to cut it out. I cut a mat from some silver mirror card using the matching scalloped circle die, then added it onto the background, matting that onto some more silver mirror card before adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas
• Cut It Up - Emboss It
• Rudolph Days - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Make Your Own Background
• We Love Stamping - Anything Goes

Bunnies in Stocking

I have a Christmas card to share today, featuring another old Lili of the Valley stamp - this one is called 'Christmas Bunnies in Stocking'. I stamped it onto a piece of smooth white card, along with a sentiment, using a stamp from the 'Dasher Deer' set by Creative Expressions', then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I matted it onto a piece of red card, distressing the edges, before adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Crafty Animals - Anything Goes
• Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
• Inspirational - Christmas in July
• Little Red Wagon - Christmas in July
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Add Some Text

Present Pile

I have a Christmas card to share today, featuring an old Lili of the Valley penguin stamp called 'Present Pile'. I stamped him onto a snippet of smooth white card, coloured him using watercolour pencils, then carefully cut around the top of the image. I added a sentiment, using one of the stamps from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous, then layered it over a snippet of paper from the 'Pastel Watercolours' pad from The Works. I matted it onto a piece of bright pink card, distressing all of the edges, then added it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Christmas Kickstart - Presents
• Crafter's Cafe - Christmas in July
• Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
• I Spy With My Little Eye - Something with Wings
• Merry Little Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Sweet Stampin' - Christmas in July

Polar Pals

Today's card features an old Lili of the Valley stamp called 'Polar Pals'. I stamped it onto watercolour paper, coloured it using watercolour pencils, then carefully cut around the top of the image. For the background, I embossed a piece of watercolour effect paper from the 'Mystery Marbles' pad by Craft Sensations using an old Cuttlebug embossing folder, then lightly sanded over the raised areas to reveal some of the white core. I added a sentiment using one of the stamps from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz, then layered the image over the background before matting it onto a snippet of purple card, lightly distressing all of the edges, and adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Can You Handle the Pressure - Anything Goes
• C.R.A.F.T. - Anything Goes
• Crafty Catz - Anything Goes
• Fab 'N' Funky - Christmas in July
• Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
• Krafty Chicks - Christmas
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Four-legged Friends
• Sweet Stampin' - Christmas in July

ABC Christmas Challenge - N & O are for?

It's the second Wednesday of a new month, so that means it's time for a new ABC Christmas Challenge...Lynda is the host, and the themes are:

'N is for No Stamping'

&

'O is for Once in Royal David's City (Buildings)'

The prize for the lucky winner is the matching stamp & die from Your Next Stamp

For my 'No Stamping' card, I started by cutting a couple of baubles from snippets of watercolour effect papers (from the 'Pastel Watercolours' pad from The Works) using my Memory Box 'Classic Ornament' die, then cut the 'Snowflake Ornament' die from snippets of silver mirror card to layer over the top. I embossed another piece of the watercolour paper using an old Cuttlebug folder and matted it onto some more silver mirror card. I cut a sentiment from silver mirror card using my Poppy Stamps 'Folk Merry Christmas' die, then added it all to the embossed background using a couple of little strips of mirror card to 'hang' the ornaments.

For my 'Once in Royal David's City (Buildings)' card, I picked another Christmas Carol themed stamp - 'Bethlehem Nights' by Stampendous. I stamped it onto smooth white card using a Versafine pigment ink in dark blue called 'Twilight'. I stamped it several times to get a really clear image, then heat embossed it using 'Midnight Dream' embossing glitter from WOW. I matted it onto a snippet of navy card, then added it to a white card blank.

The card is really sparkly, and a gorgeous mix of colours, but a real pain to photograph!

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• A Cut Above - Anything Goes (First card only)
• Allsorts - Anything Goes (First card only)
• Christmas Cards All Year Round - M, N & O (O is for Ornaments) (First card only)
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes (Second card only)
• Creative Knockouts - Christmas in July (First card only)
• Sparkles Forum Christmas - Monochrome (Second card only)
• Sweet Stampin' - Christmas in July (Second card only)

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

Golden Holly

I have a Christmas card to share today, made using a Woodware stamp called 'Holly Spray'. I stamped it onto a piece of kraft card using Versamark ink, then heat embossed it using metallic gold embossing powder from WOW. I added a sentiment using stamps from the 'Christmas' Letter It set by Ranger, heat embossing it in gold to match. I distressed the edges a little, then added it to a kraft card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Alphabet Challenge - E is for Embossing
• CAS on Friday - Christmas in July
• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas
• Crafty Gals Corner - Anything Goes
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - Anything Goes
• Rudolph Days - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes
• Sweet Stampin' - Anything but Birthday

Caroling Chicks

I have a Christmas card to share today, featuring a Stamping Bella stamp called 'Caroling Chicks'. I stamped it onto watercolour paper, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I usually colour the chicks yellow (as on the packaging), but this time turned them into robins. For the background, I used papers from a magazine freebie pad by My Mind's Eye called 'Snowed In'. I matted all of the layers onto red card, distressing the edges, before adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Bees, Blooms and/or Birds
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Peace on Earth - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes
• Sweet Stampin' - Anything but Birthday

Guest Designer - 52 Christmas Card Throwdown!

Today, I'm excited to be sharing a Guest Designer card for the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown, where the theme this week is:

I combined snowmen from the 'Jolly Friends', 'Snow Much Fun' and 'Holly-Jolly' sets by Penny Black for my card. I stamped them onto watercolour paper, then used a black gel pen to add some lines for the snowy ground. I coloured them using watercolour pencils, then carefully cut around the top of the image. I layered the snowmen over a snippet of snowy paper (from the 'Snowscape' pad by Woodware), added a sentiment (using a stamp from the 'Snow Bunnies' set by Anita Jeram for the Colorado Craft Company), then matted it onto a snippet of blue card before adding it to a DL card blank.

For more inspiration from the fabulous DT, please pop over to the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown.

Dasher Deer

Today's card features a Creative Expressions stamp called 'Dasher Deer' that I picked up from a charity shop a few weeks ago. I stamped the deer, along with the sentiment from the set, onto watercolour paper, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I distressed the edges a little, then added it to a kraft card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Krafty Chicks - CAS
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - Anything Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes

Nordic Houses

Today's card features stamps from a Woodware Christmas set called 'Nordic Houses'. I stamped them directly onto a kraft card blank using Versamark ink, then heat embossed them using white embossing powder.

Challenges for this card:

• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Jingle Belles - One Layer Cards
• Krafty Chicks - Christmas
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Add a Sentiment
• Stamps + Fun = Creativity - Emboss It

ABC Christmas Challenge - L & M are for?

It's the second Wednesday of a new month, so that means it's time for a new ABC Christmas Challenge...I'm the host, and the themes are:

'L is for Let it Snow'

&

'M is for Mice'

The prize for the lucky winner is this Gemini 'Joyful Snowmen' Create-a-Card' die:

For my 'Let it Snow' card, I used one of the cute stamps from the 'Snow Bunnies' set by Anita Jeram for the Colorado Craft Company. I stamped it onto a snippet of white card, along with an old Penny Black woodblock sentiment, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I cut around the top of the image, then layered it over a snippet of snowy sky paper from the 'Christmas' pad by Craft Sensations. I matted it onto a snippet of grey card, then added it to a white card blank.

For my 'M is for Mice' card, I used an old Penny Black stamp called 'Holly Jolly Christmas'. I stamped it onto smooth white card, and coloured it using a sentiment stamp from the 'Holly Jolly' set, also by Penny Black. I coloured the image using watercolour pencils, then distressed the edges a little before adding it to a white card blank.

I'm also entering these cards into the following challenges:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes (First card only)
• Christmas Kickstart - Snow Day (First card only)
• Creative Inspirations - Christmas in June (Second card only)
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes (Second card only)
• Pixie's Snippets Playground - Use Snippets (First card only)

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

Par Avion

Today's card features a background stamp called 'Festive Background' by Woodware Stamps that I got from a charity shop earlier this week. I stamped it using Versamark ink onto a snippet of paper from the 'Mystery Marbles' pad by Craft Sensations, then heat embossed it using white embossing powder. I used it as a background for a trio of Penny Black chickens called 'Par Avion'. I stamped them onto a snippet of watercolour paper, coloured them using watercolour pencils, than carefully cut them out. I distressed the edges of the background, added the chickens on top, then added it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• As You Like It - Favouorite Season (Winter - I love a crisp, sunny winter's day, and of course there's Christmas!)
• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes
• Sparkles Forum - Three of Something (Chickens)

Falling Sparkles

Today's card features a background stamp from Stamps by Chloe called 'Falling Sparkles' that I got from a charity shop earlier this week. I stamped it onto purple card using Versamark ink, then heat embossed it using 'Magical Mauve' embossing glitter from WOW. I matted it onto some purple mirror card, then added a sentiment cut using a Tonic Studios die from more of the purple mirror card. This is so sparkly and shiny in real life, but a real pain to photograph!

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• I Spy with My Little Eye - Something Monochrome
• Little Red Wagon - Make Your Own Background
• Rudolph Days - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes

Joy to the World

I have a Christmas card to share today, made using one of the stamps from the 'Joy to the World' set by Penny Black. I stamped it onto watercolour paper, added a sentiment using one of the stamps from the 'Gift Exchange' set by Anita Jeram for the Colorado Craft Company, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I paired it with papers from the 'Ho Ho Ho' pad by Polkadoodles, distressing the edges and adding some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen, before adding them to a kraft card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• 52 Christmas Card Throwdown - Animals
• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Creative Inspirations - Anything Goes
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Cute Critters
• Stamping Sensations - Cute Creatures

PBSC May - Anything Goes (Optional 'Your Favourite PB Stamp')...More Inspiration!

It's the third Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for some more inspiration for this month's Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'

or

'Your Favourite Penny Black Stamp'

We're currently without a sponsor, so this challenge is just for fun.

I cheated slightly this time, and picked my favourite Penny Black Christmas stamp...'Snowy'! I stamped him onto a piece of watercolour paper, used a black gel pen to extend the snowy ground on either side of him, then coloured him using watercolour pencils. I added a sentiment, using a stamp from the 'Snow Bunnies' set by Anita Jeram for the Colorado Craft Company, then carefully cut around the top of the image. I layered it over a piece of snowy sky paper, from an unnamed pad from The Works, then matted it onto a piece of teal card before adding it to a white card blank.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Jingle Belles - Snow
• Krafty Chicks - Christmas
• Merry Little Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

ABC Christmas Challenge - J & K are for?

It's the second Wednesday of a new month, so that means it's time for a new ABC Christmas Challenge...I'm the host, and the themes are:

'J is for Just Enough' (CAS)

&

'K is for Knitwear'

The prize for the lucky winner is this 'Doe A Deer' A6 stamp set from Creative Expressions:

For my 'J is for Just Enough' card, I made a really simple one-layer card. I stamped an unbranded bauble stamp directly onto a kraft card blank using Versamark ink, then heat embossed it in white. I added a sentiment using a stamp from the 'Bubble Mini Baubles' set by Wooware, heat embossing it in white to match.

For my 'K is for Knitwear' card, I used three of the cute bears from the 'Beary Merry Christmas' set by Funky Fossil. I stamped them onto snippets of watercolour paper, coloured them using watercolour pencils, then carefully cut them out. I stamped a sentiment using one of the stamps from the same set onto a kraft card blank, then added the bears popped up on 3D foam pads.

I'm also entering these cards into the following challenges:

• Allsorts - Monochrome (First card only)
• Aud Sentiments - Embossing (Wet or Dry) and/or Flowers + Sentiment (First card only)
• Crafty Catz - Anything Goes (Second card only)
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes (Second card only)
• Stamping Sensations - Cute Creatures (Second card only)

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

Snowboard Ride!

I have a Christmas card to share today...featuring an old favourite Penny Black chicken stamp called 'Snowboard Ride'. I stamped it onto watercolour paper, doodled a snowy slope using a black gel pen, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I added a sentiment using a stamp from the 'Snow Bunnies' set by Anita Jeram for the Colorado Craft Company, then carefully cut around the top of the image. I layered it over a piece of paper from an unnamed pad from The Works, then matted it onto some navy card before adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Christmas Kickstart - Seasons Tweetings
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Creative Moments - Gone but not Forgotten (I love Margaret Sherry's designs for Penny Black - her chickens always make me smile!)
• Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Make It Colourful
• Sweet Stampin' - Things with Wings
• We Love Stamping - All Creatures Great & Small

Many Blessings

I have a Christmas card to share today, made using stamps from the 'Many Blessings' set by Hero Arts. I did a little bit of masking to have the trees behind the snowmen, then added one of the sentiments from the set before colouring the image using watercolour pencils. I paired it with papers from the 'May Your Days Be Merry & Bright' pad by Craft Sensations...I distressed all of the edges a little, and matted the image and base layer onto snippets of green and red card before adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Creative Knockouts - Two or More Patterned Papers
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Rudolph Days - Anything Christmas Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes
• Sweet Stampin' - Christmas

Snow Scroll

Today's card features a Penny Black Christmas stamp called 'Snow Scroll' that I picked up in charity shop over Easter. I stamped it a couple of times onto some navy blue card using Versamark ink, then heat embossed it using 'Fairy Dust' embossing glitter from WOW. I added a sentiment, heat embossed to match, using one of the stamps from the 'Winter Blessings' set from Crafter's Companion, then matted it onto some silver glitter card, distressing the edges a little, before adding it to a white card blank.

Challenges for this card:

• Crafts Galore Encore - Anything Goes
• Crafty Gals - Anything Goes
• Creative Fingers - Anything Goes
• Peace on Earth Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes