Poinsettia Keeping Christmas

It's the 25th of the month and time again to join some of my crafty friends for our monthly Keeping Christmas Inspiration Hop! The idea of the hop is to both to bring you a little dose of holiday inspiration throughout the year and also have some Christmas cards and projects in our stash all ready to go for December 2018. If you've already been hopping along, you should have arrived from Claire's blog. If you're just popping in, read on for all the details!

For my April installment, I started out with the Sugar Plum paper pad from My Mind's Eye. I bought this pad of paper a couple years ago and am not sure I've ever successfully made a card with it! I loved the soft pastel, non-traditional colors, but something almost always draws me back to red and green for my Christmas cards. I didn't really stray too far, though... a soft green and pink. 

I also had in my head some beautiful marbled looking pink poinsettias I saw at the grocery store last season and wanted to try to recreate them with stamps. So I pulled out the Pinecone Christmas stamp set and my trusty MISTIs and got to work inking up the outline image in archival black. Next came the solid poinsettia in rose quartz. Then I applied puffy heart to just the center of each solid poinsettia stamp and used a waterbrush to spread it out and stamped again.  I used the same technique with the green inks for the leaves.  This was my first real attempt at multi-step stamping with the MISTI, and oh my word does it make it easy to do multiples! I had both my original and mini MISTI out so I could keep the stamps in place and just turn the paper as needed. Such a time (and sanity) saver!

The poinsettias are cut with the coordinating Poinsettia Pinecones die set and then accented with some rhinestone stickers. The sentiment is from the Beyond Measure stamp set.  I cut it out with a stitched circle die and then used the die as a stencil to sponge some of the rose quartz inside to pull some more of the pink into the design of the card.  I matted this with a scallop circle die cut.  For the trim, I cut both of the dies from the new Lacey Trim Duo die set in white, then layered them together for an elegant accent.

Since I was having so much fun making poinsettias I decided to make a matching box to go with this card. The design is a 3.5" square soap box (click here for the tutorial I used) made from thin white cardstock using the envelope punch board. It seemed like the perfect size to tuck in a treat, gift card or other trinket for the boys' teachers next year. I used the same basic design as the card, with a slightly smaller circle and a different sentiment from the Beyond Measure set. I attached my stamped pieces directly to the belly band, which I also adorned with 3.5" lengths cut with the Lacey Trim Duo die set. That way in December I can just slip off the belly band, fill the box and I'm ready to rock and roll!

Okay, now it's time to hop along and check out all the other fabulous posts on the hop. I'm so excited to hop along and see everyone's creations! The hop is hosted on the fabulous Kelly Lunceford's blog, so head over there to start from the beginning. Or continue on to visit Kim Heggins if you've already been hopping along!

Kelly Lunceford

Lesley Croghan (taking a break this month)

Anita Madden

Broni Holcombe (taking a break this month)

Claire Broadwater

Julee Tilman {You are here}

Kim Heggins

Lori Tecler

Nance Salkeld

Nina Forsyth

Rachel Bergfeld

Vicki Finger

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Pinecone Christmas, Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Sugar Plum (MME), white (Neenah)
Ink: rose quartz, puffy heart, moss, frayed leaf (Altenew), black archival (Ranger)
Accessories: Poinsettia Pinecones and Lacey Trim Duo die sets (A Cut Above by VERVE), rhinestone stickers, MISTI, stitched circle die, scallop circle Nestabilities (spellbinders), Envelope Punch Board (WRMK)

Keeping Christmas with Glad Tidings

It's the 25th of the month and time to join some of my crafty friends for our monthly Keeping Christmas Inspiration Hop! The idea of the hop is to bring you a little inspiration throughout the year and also have some Christmas cards and projects in our stash all ready to go for December 2018. If you've already been hopping along, you should have arrived from Claire's blog. If you're just popping in, read on for all the details!

Confession time. No matter how on top of things I felt in January, February is down in the trenches real life around these parts. So as I was sitting in a bookstore in between birthday parties yesterday afternoon and happened to flip through a magazine that had a Christmas card in it, I thought, "I should totally start working on my Keeping Christmas project for this month." Then I panicked... "is today the 25th? Mark, what day is it? Is it the 25th? Oh good, it's ONLY the 24th!" Man, did a month fly by quickly, or what?! So after we got home late last night I started my last minute Christmas project. I guess a little late night stamping each month beats nights and nights of it in December!  LOL

My go to when I'm crunched for time is a square card. I really like how easy layouts come together in this size. I typically make my square cards 4.25" x 4.25" so they can fit in a regular A2 envelope. I  knew I didn't want to dig in the back of the closet to get the Christmas papers I packed away and risk waking up the twins, so I decided to pull out my box of Christmas scraps. I sort my holiday scraps by color... mostly red, mostly green, mostly neutral, or non-traditional piles. The reds called to me, and I started by cutting 2" squares out of four different scrap papers. I sponged lightly around each square with antique linen  and vintage photo distress ink, then sticky taped them together in a square formation.

Next I cut two stitched circles and left the die cut in the die to use as a stencil to sponge a nice soft glow of antique linen around the inner part of the circle. This is a great way to get the contrast effect of a mat without adding an extra layer of cardstock, plus it can really add a lot of depth to your project. I chose two different sentiments from the Beyond Measure stamp set for my similar but different cards. Next I cut the leafy branch die from the coordinating Christmas Spirit Die Set four times and used the MISTI to line them up easily and stamp with moss ink. I watercolored with the same ink just to fill in the leaves.  Then I added some seam binding and paper flowers and layered it all together.  I felt the Christmas blessings needed a little something more, so I took a tiny distressed tag from my stash and inked up the glad and tidings words separately to fit it, before adding to the project.

So there you have it, my February last minute installment for Keeping Christmas. Hope you enjoyed it! If you're looking for some new Christmas stamps, Verve's Christmas products are 25% off today only (2/25/18). 

Okay, now it's time to hop along and check out all the other fabulous posts on the hop. I'm so excited to hop along and see everyone's creations! The hop is hosted on the fabulous Kelly Lunceford's blog, so head over there to start from the beginning. Or continue on to visit Kim Heggins if you've already been hopping along!

Kelly Lunceford

Lesley Croghan

Anita Madden

Broni Holcombe

Claire Broadwater

Julee Tilman {You are here}

Kim Heggins

Lori Tecler

Nance Salkeld

Nina Forsyth

Vicki Finger

Enabler's List
Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: various designer papers, cream (Neenah)
Ink: early espresso (SU!), antique linen, vintage photo distress (Ranger), Moss (Altenew)
Accessories: Christmas Spirit Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), stitched circle dies, seam binding, paper flowers, vintage tag, MISTI, seam binding (SU!)

Quick and Easy

Hi friends!  I'm popping in with some quick and easy little gift card holders I made.  The only stamping is the Christmas Joy sentiment on a couple of them (from Beyond Measure).  I dug deep in my Christmas drawer and found these lovely Jolly by Golly papers from Cosmo Cricket from Christmases long long ago.

The Technique Lovers challenge over on Splitcoaststampers this week is the Easiest Ever Gift Card Holder tutorial by KellyJean Gettelfinger. She has an alternate version on her YouTube channel and I made mine from memory after viewing both, so mine are kind of a hybrid between the two styles, with a diagonal pocket for the gift card and then the 1/2" tab folds over the back with a glue dot to keep the whole thing closed and secret until opened. I wanted to use my slot punch for the closure, but couldn't find it.  Must be time for a thorough re-org in the stamp room!

I didn't take any photos of the inside, since my little loves were under foot and I'd already pushed their patience enough taking these photos.  So here are the individual photos. For this top one, I stamped the Christmas Joy sentiment in the corner with early espresso.  I sponged the outer edges of the designer paper with frayed burlap and also the stitched circle, which is part of the Springtime Stitches Die Set.  It is layered over an early espresso snowflake cut with a Darice die.  The reindeer woodcut was a find in the Target Dollar Spot this year. Love these sweet little reindeer and they seemed like the perfect accent for either masculine of feminine gift giving.

I wanted the golden tones of the paper in this one to shine, so simply added the sentiment and cut the snowflake from cream and added a bit of sponging and a vintage brad.

 For this one, I used the same reindeer ensemble as the first one, but tucked in a little tag as the sentiment, cut from the strip on the paper that tells the paper's name.  I made quite a few of these little holders, they're so quick and easy.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope you were inspired. :)

Enabler's List
Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Jolly by Golly (Cosmo Cricket), early espresso (SU!), cream (Neenah)
Ink: early espresso (SU!), frayed burlap (Ranger Distress)
Accessories: Springtime Stitches Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), snowflake die (Darice), reindeer woodcuts (Target), vintage brad

Mojo Christmas Joy

Hi friends! It's the first Monday of a new month and that means it's contest time over at Mojo Monday.  Play along for a chance to win a Verve set of your choosing.  I chose a classic and simple sketch for this busy time of year. I hope it inspires you to get a little crafting done this week.

It's also our last Mojo sketch of 2016, as the design team is on holiday break through the end of the year. We hope you have the happiest of holidays.

For my card, I used this sweet little reindeer from Jolly Jingles that's been sitting on my desk for a little while.  He's stamped a few different times and fussy cut and popped up in pieces and colored up with Copic markers. I added just a hint of sparkle to his antlers, and cut the bottom most layer out with the coordinating die from the Winter Friends Die Set.

He's hanging out on a deckled rectangle die cut that I sponged with antique linen distress ink.  My horizontal piece is a piece of my favorite striped ribbon from May Arts, threaded through a big wooden snow flake and tied in a knotted bow.  I stamped the Christmas Joy sentiment from Beyond Measure onto the edge of an old dictionary page, then cut out and tucked behind the snowflake, accenting with a teeny star rhinestone.  The background papers are from the Christmas Basics paper pad by recollections and I used a Flourished Trim Die as the divider.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you have a wonderful week. If you've got a moment, be sure to head on over to the Mojo Monday blog to see what the other designers are sharing today.

Enabler's List
Stamps: Jolly Jingles, Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Christmas Basics (Recollections)
Ink: onyx black (Versafine), cherry cobbler (SU!), antique linen (Ranger Distress), markers (Copic)
Accessories: Winter Friends Die Set, Flourished Trim Die (A Cut Above by VERVE), wooden snowflake sticker (Recollections), striped ribbon (May Arts), stardust stickles (Ranger), deckled rectangles nestabilities (Spellbinders), tiny nail art star rhinestone

Noel

Hi friends! It's Monday again and time for a brand new Mojo Monday challenge. This week it's time for a square sketch (but you can easily adapt it to an A2 card size if you prefer).  I love making 4.25" square cards.  The smidgen of a smaller canvas always seems to come together quickly for me.

I went rustic woodlands with my take on the sketch with lots of layers, distressed edges and sponging on my cream layers. I also added a bit of subtle faux texture by stamping the berry stamp from Beyond Measure randomly in antique linen all over my bottom two cream layers. The focal stamped panel is stamped in mossy meadow with the one of the greenery stamps from Beyond Measure and I added the Noel sentiment in early espresso.  A big snowflake die cut in early espresso and a bit of twine and rusty jingle bells complete the look.

Super fun and it came together so nicely.  For a little more inspiration, head on over to the Mojo Monday to see what the other designers cooked up with this week's sketch.

It's Cyber Monday in the online retail world and the final day of Verve's Thanksgiving Day Sale, with all sorts of bargains to be had.  If you missed it over the long weekend, I wrote a post on the Verve Blog with a little heartfelt backstory on my family, my business and my "why" for Verve.  It's worth a read, and it's got a super cute pic of my boys and all the details on the Verve sale, too.

Thanks to all of you who have already ordered! I was a happy little stamp elf all day Friday and have a huge pile of orders to start in on today, too. Can't wait for everyone to get their stamps!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a fantastic week!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: cream (Neenah), early espresso (SU!)
Ink: mossy meadow, early espresso (SU!), antique linen, vintage photo, ground espresso (Ranger distress)
Accessories: pierced squares stax (MFT), snowflake die (Darice), rusty jingle bells, twine

Big Teal Bow

Hi friends! It's the start of Thanksgiving break for me as the kiddos are home from school for the rest of the week. We're all a bit under the weather, so I thought I'd pop in with this simple little card before things get too crazy.

I started by embossing the dove, leaf sprig and sentiment from Beyond Measure in silver onto vellum card stock. Next I die cut in a circle, coloring the leaves with copic markers and adding a bit of flower soft to the dove's body.  I layered this onto a piece of ivory card stock, embossed with snowflakes and added a bit of music washi tape here and there.  The outer edge of the circle is accented with bisque liquid pearls and I finished off with a big teal and white striped bow.  (I just LOVE that ribbon).

In Verve news, our Thanksgiving Sale has officially begun. We have a few promotions going on over the coming week. No codes needed, discounts are applied automatically. Stack up the savings and have a fabulous time crafting over the coming winter months!

1. 25% off ALL in-stock stamps, dies and embellishments
2. Buy one stamp set, get its coordinating dies for 50% off
3. 15% off orders over $50 (based on subtotal after any other discounts)
4. Free US shipping on orders over $30 (based on subtotal after any other discounts)

'Tis the season for a bargain and in addition to a 25% off everything sale, we're sweetening the deal with a fun sale on stamps and coordinating dies! When both the stamp set and its coordinating die set have been added to your cart, the price of the dies will automatically update to 50% off the regular price. Sale prices valid on in-stock merchandise, while supplies last, November 23-28.

Enabler's List
Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: cream (Neenah), vellum (SU!)
Ink: Versamark
Accessories: classic circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), silver embossing powder (JudiKins), bisque liquid pearls (Ranger), ribbon (May Arts), ivory flower soft, washi tape, snowflake embossing folder (Darice)

Wise Men Mojo

Hi friends! Another weekend has flown by and it's already time for a new Mojo Monday sketch. In keeping with my simple sketches theme this month, I've got another sketch that's easy for you to dress up or down, depending on your mood.

When I sat down to stamp I was feeling like distressing, so I just went with it. One of my favorite tricks with sponging is to start with white cardstock and then blend three shades of brown around. It gives such a glow.  I sponged all of my layers using distress inks in antique linen, vintage photo and ground espresso.  The stamps are from the Beyond Measure and stamped in midnight muse ink.  I added in some speckled ground with a copic marker for the wise men silhouette, then sponged a bit of the ground with a gothic stencil and some vintage photo ink.

The back panel is also stenciled with the same gothic stencil and the back rectangle piece is resist canvas that I sponged with the same colors of ink.  I chose to have my banner piece at a diagonal and this piece of vintage lace was the perfect touch.  The star is stamped in midnight muse, cut with the coordinating Christmas Spirit Die Set and then highlighted with a white gel pen and an itty bitty rhinestone.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you've been inspired and find a little time to get creative this week. For a little more inspiration with this sketch, head on over to the Mojo Monday blog to see what the design team is sharing.

Enabler's List

Mojo Monday 475 Sketch

Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Regions Beyond Paper Stash (Tim Holtz Ideaology), brown paper bag cardstock (Paper Accents), white cardstock (Neenah)
Ink: midnight muse (SU!), antique linen, vintage photo, ground espresso distress inks (Ranger), white gel pen, copic markers
Acccessories: Christmas Spirit Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), stitched circles stax (MFT), resist canvas (Prima), gothic layering stencil (Tim Holtz), vintage lace, tiny rhinestone

Joyful Tidings

Hi friends! I'm back again with a more "me" take on this week's Mojo Monday sketch. I had made the card I posted on Monday while the boys were sick and wanting to "do art" a couple of weeks ago and had every intention of making another "fancier" card in time for Monday's challenge post. BUT life with 4 year olds said otherwise. {grin}

So yesterday I snuck a little time while the boys were at school to make the card that's been hanging out in my mind for a while.  I started with the berries from Beyond Measure, doing a little no line coloring (stamping in a light color, then coloring the image with darker colors).  I stamped the berry sprig in antique linen, then colored with copics and cut it out with the coordinating die from the Christmas Spirit Die Set.  I highlighted the berries just a bit with a picket fence distress marker, then sponged the edges with antique linen and ground espresso distress inks.

Next I stamped the dove from the set in early espresso, shading lightly with a Copic marker, then die cutting and finally sponging around the edges. For the Luke 2:10 verse, I masked off the Behold portion so the sentiment would fit in on a square die cut, then I stamped some berries on the side, using the same no line coloring technique. Some sponging around the edges of all the panels and a strand of adhesive pearls to accent the paper banner and I was done.

It's contest week at Mojo Monday, so be sure to play along for a chance to win some new Verve!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Lost & Found Christmas (MME), early espresso (SU!), cream (Neenah)
Ink: early espresso (SU!), antique linen, ground espresso, picket fence (Ranger Distress), Copic markers
Accessories: Christmas Spirit Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), pierced squares stax (MFT), adhesive pearls

Verve Release Day Spotlight Hop

Hi friends! It's release day at Verve and that means the sets we've been previewing this week are all available right not in the Verve shop!  Hooray!  And to celebrate the release, we're putting on another blog hop with a chance to win the whole release just for commenting.  I'm the first stop along the hop, so let's get to it.

This is one of my favorite cards I've made in a while.  I just love how that green spray looks with all the neutrals. I started by scraping heavy gesso onto a piece of cardstock.  I made sure it was really uneven, because I wanted a lot of texture.  When it was dry, I sprayed with dirty martini dylusions spray and then some water to cover my background.

Next I stamped the reindeer from Jolly Jingles, coloring with Copic markers and cutting with the coordinating Winter Friends Die Set. He looked really good next to a scrap of designer paper I had on my desk, so I cut that with a stitched circle die and embossed the sentiment from Beyond Measure in white.  I needed a little detail to stand out, so I just lightly went around it with a copic marker for a shadowing effect.  Next I stamped the greenery from Beyond Measure  in pear pizzazz ink and then cut with the coordinating Christmas Spirit Die Set.  I colored the greenery with a blender pen, then added a bit of sparkle to the leaves and antlers with some Nuvo Crystal Drops.

Now that everything was dry, I layered my circle and elements together and decided the background needed a few snowflakes.  I stamped them around and embossed in white.  My finishing touches were some distressed edges and a bit of seam binding, twine and rusty jingle bells.

Okay, thanks so much for hopping along with us this week!  I've so enjoyed reading your sweet comments.

Next up on the hop is the fabulous Lee Ann Barrett.

Want to win some shiny new Verve? Today's prize is a BIG one. We'll be picking a random commenter on one of the hop spots below to win our ENTIRE new release! So be sure to leave a little comment on all the blogs below to increase your chances! Check out the Verve Blog today for the full hop list and all the prize info and deadlines!

1. Julee	7. Charmaine
2. Lee Ann (Guest)	8. Betty
3. Lynn (Guest)	9. Maureen
4. Tenia(Guest)	10. Teresa
5. Marisa	11. Christyne
6. Laurie

Enabler's List
Stamps: Jolly Jingles, Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: dp scrap (Teresa Collins), white
Ink: dirty martini spray (Dylusions), Pear pizzazz ink (SU!), black (Versafine), copic markers, versamark
Accessories: Winter Friends Die Set, Christmas Spirit Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), stitched circles (MFT), heavy gesso (Prima), Nuvo Crystal Drops (Tonic), jingle bells, seam binding, white embossing powder

Beyond Measure Day 2 Hop

Hi friends! Welcome to day 2 of our November Release Spotlight Hops! Over the next couple of days the Divas and our November Guests will be sharing their first looks at two brand new sets and coordinating die sets that are releasing this Friday, November 4. Each day we're running a comment prize drawing to win the new products, so be sure to give a little shout out for each of the projects as you hop about. I'm the first stop along today's hop, so let's get to hopping.

Today's featured set is Beyond Measure, a faith inspired Christmas set perfect for putting the focus on the true meaning of Christmas.  The set also coordinates with the new Christmas Spirit Die Set.

From the first moment I put my hands on this set, I knew I wanted to make a card with the holy family silhouette front and center with just a watercolor wash. So the other day when Trevor was home sick and begging me to paint, he painted hands connected with rainbows and I made this quick, fun little card with Kuretake Gansai Tambi watercolors. I embossed the image in white on watercolor paper, then did the watercolor wash, hand tearing the edges.  I splattered a bit of watered down gesso for a snowy look, then embossed the sentiment in white.  When everything was dry, I added a bit of shadow around the image and text with a Copic marker to make things stand out.  I finished with a jingle bell/ribbon embellishment and some super distressed edges to add lots of texture.

Okay, that's all from me today.  Thanks so much for hopping by! I hope you have a fabulous time along the hop!

Next up on the hop is Lee Ann Barrett.   

Want to win some shiny new Verve? We'll be picking a random commenter on one of the hop spots below to win today's featured products! So be sure to leave a little comment on all the blogs below to increase your chances! Check out the Verve Blog today for the full hop list, a little more about our new products and all the prize info and deadlines!

1. Julee 7. Charmaine 2. Lee Ann (Guest) 8. Betty 3. Lynn (Guest) 9. Maureen 4. Tenia(Guest) 10. Teresa 5. Marisa 11. Christyne 6. Laurie

Enabler's List
Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)
Paper: distress watercolor paper (Ranger), white (Neenah)
Ink: Versamark, Gansai Tambi watercolors (Kuretake), Copic markers, gesso
Accessories: embossing folder (Darice), jingle bells (Michaels), ribbon, paper distresser, white embossing powder

Mojo Butterfly

Hi friends! It's Monday again and time for a brand new Mojo Monday sketch.  As the last sketch of the month, we're stretching ourselves with a square layout this week.

I'm right in the middle of a lot of things right now... it seems like life is moving at the speed of light and my hamster wheel is having a bit of a time keeping up. Can you relate? Anyhow, right at the forefront this week is prep for Verve's holiday release this Friday. So when I was able to sneak in a few minutes in the studio between breathing treatments for my sick boys, I gravitated to a sentiment from one of this week's new releases that was on my desk.  I love this sentiment and thought it would also make a beautiful birthday card, so that's where I went with it. And that means you get a teeny sneak peek at the title sentiment from a new Christmas set releasing on Friday.  :)

The papers are also from a Christmas collection, since that's the state of my stamp room right now, but I think I made them work, just adding a bit of gesso where needed to obscure a partial Christmas tree image.  Three circle dies, a pennant and a butterfly finished things off.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I hope you'll swing back by on Wednesday for the first day of Spotlights on our new release!  And if you've got a little time, head on over to the Mojo Monday blog for a look at all the other Mojo designers take on this week's sketch.

Enabler's List

Stamps: Beyond Measure (Verve Stamps)

Paper: Sweet Peppermint (Prima), cream, crumb cake, pretty in pink (SU!)

Ink: soft suede (SU!)

Accessories: stitched circles stax (MFT), butterfly, gesso

Mojo Monday 472