The 10th card..

For the 10th card, we have a guest designer, Karen Barker. She has produced 2 different cards using Kaisercraft paper...

This collection reminds me of one Christmas I wrapped up all my gifts in brown paper and string!

Card 1: This card has a pocket for a gift voucher or money:



1. Copy the template below onto Kraft cardstock (you will have to do this on the diagonal) and cut it out. Then score along the lines and fold.


2. Cover the bottom inside flap with patterned paper and ink the edges with distress ink. Fold over and glue to tabs. This makes your voucher pocket.



3. Turn the card over now so you can see the front. Cover the first and third panels with patterned paper and ink the edges.

4. Cut out 2 borders from the Billy Cart paper. Using a corner rounder, scallop the edges and adhere to the top of the card (panel 1). Roll the edges of the scallop using your fingers and attach the beige border underneath and against the bottom of the card.

5. Cut a 1.5" circle from the Bicycle paper and ink. Ink a large white flower with distress ink, adhere to the circle and top with a large red button. Embellish with twine and adhere to panel 1. Stamp a border stamp along the bottom of the beige border.

6. Back to the inside - Cut the dear Santa tag from the Billy Card paper and 11.2cm x 11.4cm of the same paper (you use the reverse).

7. Stick the green card to panel 2 and then the santa tag on top. You may have to trim this to fit.

8. Ink all the edges and draw round the edges.

Card 2:

1. Copy the template on to the Bicycle paper and cut out.


2. Score from the top at 11.7cm and 12.7cm with a bone folder and ruler and then fold. Ink all of the edges with antique linen distress ink. Cut a slit in the bottom panel with a craft knife.

3. On the Billy Cart patterned paper cut 3 strips - layer these on top of each other and adhere to front of the card.

4. Cut out the wish list tag from Billy Cart paper, ink the edges and mount on to Kraft cardstock. Round the corners. Punch a hole in the top and add an eyelet, then thread ribbon through the top. Adhere to the card with foam pads.

5. Ink 3 small prima white flowers with distress ink and adhere to the border and then add green buttons to the centres.

6. Stamp the border stamp along the bottom edge flap with stazon timber brown ink.

7. Cut a square of Kraft cardstock 12.4cm x 12.4cm, ink the edges and adhere to the inside middle panel. Add a green border to the bottom.

8. Lastly draw around the card edges.

The 9th card... Happy October Afternoon

I used the new Christmas line from October Afternoon for these cards...

Here is the first one...


The next one is this one...



I loved these little houses soooooooo much that i had to use them. I used a scalloped edge punch to create the feeling of snow along the bottom.

I then created this little tag ...
And lastly this one....

I hope you all have a wonderful xmas and thanks for looking xxx

For the 8th card... some layering

Today's card has been made by Karen...


For this card you will need two pieces of patterned paper and three co-ordinating sheets of Bazzill cardstock. I used Merry Berry, and Silly Chilly from the Jolly by Golly range by Cosmo Cricket, a dark brown ink pad and some flat backed gems. I also used a Bazzill In Stitch'z circle template and a woodware 1" circle punch.

Cut the red cardstock to make a 6" card base, a 5.5" square mat from cream cardstock and a 5" square mat from the green cardstock. Cut or punch a total of thirteen 1" circles and eight 1.5" squares. Ink the edges of all the cut pieces.

Assemble all the pieces, as shown, not forgetting to slip 5 circles under the right hand edge of the green cardstock before sticking down, to give you a scalloped edge.

Next use the template to mark out 2 circles, one in the emplty square, and one through all the squares.

Add a circle of flat backed gems as shown, and one on each corner of the cream layer. Then stick the punched circles of patterned paper on top of the squares, using foam pads.

The final touch is a computer printed 'Happy Christmas' layered with foam pads on a punched circle of red cardstock.

For the 7th card of Christmas, my stash shop sent to me...

Colourful Christmas by My Mind's Eye.

I cut a piece of patterned paper slightly smaller than my card blank.



I then used a white gel pen (white pen review) to draw a line around the edge of the paper.



I cut a piece of white card slightly larger than the tree stamp. Next I created a mask by punching some snowflakes from scrap card which I adhered to the white card using temporary adhesive. If you don't already have a snowflake punch tucked away in your stash, they can be found here, here, here or here.



I sprayed a light coat of glimmer mist (see this article for some tips on getting started with glimmer mists) and allowed the piece to dry.



My next step was to stamp and emboss the tree onto the glimmered card. I used Brilliance Dew Drop in Crimson Copper and clear embossing powder.




To assemble the card, I first adhered the embossed card onto the patterned paper and then adhered the layers to the card blank.



I used buttons and crystals for baubles.



Finally, I printed my greeting onto white card, cut into strips, inked with chalk ink and adhered to the card using foam squares.



Of course, the papers called out to be used again so here's number two:

I started my second card by putting a line of painted circles across the lower part of a card blank. I used a plastic pot as a stamp.



I then cut/punched several circles of different patterned papers just a little smaller than my painted circles.



Once I'd inked the edges of all the circles, I adhered them onto the card. I allowed some of the circles to overlap the edges of the card blank and then trimmed them.



As before, I printed my greeting onto white card, cut into strips, inked with chalk ink and adhered to the card using foam squares.




And finally, I came across these giant bottle tops that I'd had in a drawer for absolutely ages and was inspired to create this little hanging ornament. Cute to hang in your own home or to give as a gift.

Carols Card - the 6th card of Christmas

So, we've reached day 6 in the 12 cards of Christmas theme.

Here is the card I've created for today!

to create the card you will need:-
base card 12" x 5 1/2"
patterned paper/cardstock
matching plain paper/cardstock
I have used:- Paperartsy Nut and Meg stamps 4, 6 and 7
stickles
Rock candy
pins, bling and ribbon - embellishments of your choice.

Step 1
Take your cardstock and score at 2", 4", 8" and 10"
Turn your cardstock so that the 5 1/2 " length is at the top, and mark the cardstock 1.5" in from each side - cut the card between the score marks at 2" and 10", gently score your card so it looks like the picture:-

Decorate each section as desired.

On my example I have used patterned papers from the Basic Grey eskimo kisses range and also October Afternoon "good cheer" papers...

I have prepared my base card by cutting out patterned and plain papers- I have used patterned paper for the front and back sections and plain card for the remainder of the sections - all card has been cut leaving a small border and adhered in place.

the front - I have cut an oval out of cream card using nestabilities oval cutters, the Christmas fairy from Nut and Meg plate 6 was then stamped onto the oval - a mask was created by stamping the image out again onto a post it this was then cut out and placed over the stamped image on the oval. Then stamp the oval, over the mask, with versamark ink and emboss with clear embossing powder, a versamagic pad was then gently swiped over the top to create a resist effect. Remove the mask from The Christmas fairy and add colour and ink edges. The oval was then coated with rock candy distress paint - when dry, stickles were used to hi-light the wings - the edges were also chalked with blue ink....I then layered the oval onto a piece of eskimo kisses paper which had had the edges distressed. A flower was cut, using scraps from the two patterned papers, with the flowers die by quickcutz - the edges were distressed and inked, bling and a pin was added. The foilage was created by using a martha stewart punch.

The small sections have been stamped with white ink using the text stamps included on the Paperartsy plates.

The sentiment section was created by taking a piece of plain card and stamping the large tag stamp from Nut and Meg 4 - cut out the tag leaving a small border - using distress inks - ink up the tag - colour the holly leaves and add a touch of red stickles for the berries - layer onto plain card already adhered in place.

The longer sections were created by using the small scroll and holly stamp on Nut and Meg 6 plate - if you use the edge of your card stock as a guide you can create a length of swirls and holly leaves - I then swiped a red ink pad over the top, hi-lighted the swirls with white pen and added green stickles to the leaves.

For the rear section - I stamped the Christmas fairy onto shrink plastic, shaded, cut out and shrank....added stickles and added to a small section of patterned paper. The holly was stamped along the edge of the card, a section of ribbon was knotted and adhered to the panel. The mother christmas head was stamped onto plain card and coloured and hi-lighted before being cut out - and adhered to the ribbon....stickes were added to the hat and neck, holly leaves on the hat were hi-lighted using glossy accents.

Eskimo kisses for the 5th Card...

Basic Grey have done it again and come up with another beautiful Christmas line, Eskimo Kisses, in the traditional colours of red and green, but with an added twist of plum, pinks and aqua. For my card, I've gone for the red and green combo, and decided to see what I could do with a variety of punches.

I first made a 6x4" card blank from a deep red shade of Bazzill cardstock, and trimmed a piece of patterned paper slightly smaller, to 5 3/4" x 3 3/4". I also cut a 2x3" piece of contrasting paper:



I used a corner rounder on the corners of this smaller piece:



and mounted on more of the red cardstock, again rounding the edges. I adhered all pieces to the card blank as shown:



This time I used 2 square punches, one plain and one scalloped, to create a background for the word 'joy', using AC Thickers:





and finally I used a Fiskars border punch to make a decorative strip across the card:



I added a strip of festive ribbon and some holly, to make the finished card:



Nicky x

The 4th Card: Fun and Easy to Make - with My Minds Eye!

If you are like me and love making Christmas Cards, but always find yourself with little time to do so, you will find this little recipe fun and easy. I have used the My Minds Eye - Colourful Christmas Collection. A small selcetion of the Patterened Papers in this range and a 12x12 sheet of the Die Cuts too.

Start with a plain card blank.

Cut with a square punch or die cutter 4 squares of the same size.

I like to ink my edges to help create a better contrast against the white card. I feel this finishes it off much better.

When using the die cuts, I like to sand the edges for a better finish before inking. I use a Basic Grey kit for this.

I then stick all 4 squares down. I've used 3d foam pads.

But obvioulsy you can use tape or glue too. And then I've added very basic embellishments using the die cut sheet to match. To finish I've added stickles glitter to add a touch of sparkly Christmas. And that's basically it.

Here are a slection simply using 3 sheets of paper and the dies cuts.

You can vary the design. Here I've added 3 diamantes and on the card at the back I brushed on some acrylic paint and let it dry before adding the 4 squares.