Shabby Christmas Concept

Hi friends!  Today I'm excited for a new challenge at the Card Concept.   I'm guest designing this month for the shabby chic/vintage style and it has been a lot of fun!

I just loved that gingham chair and all the country Christmas decor in the inspiration photo, so that's where I started.  I found some papers in my Christmas stash that I loved including the printed wreathed bird for my sentiment and a background gingham paper.  I added a bit of gesso to the bird panel, embossed the Luke 2:14 verse from  Richly Blessed in gold, then distressed around the edges of the panel with antique linen and frayed burlap ink and a paper distresser.

For accessories, I pulled out one of my favorite ribbons for Christmas cards, tied a bow and accented with a glimmery rose from my stash.  I added part of a gold doily and a strip of vintage lace to the background, then embossed some wood veneer snowflakes with frantage embossing powder for a super fun snowy look.  I love how everything came together and this is the card I based this month's Viva la Verve November Week 1 sketch on.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  Be sure to head on over to the Card Concept blog today and check out what the challenge design team did with this inspiration piece!  And thanks so much to the Card Concept crew for allowing me to guest with y'all!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Richly Blessed  (Verve Stamps)
Paper: ivory (Neenah), Lost & Found Christmas (MME), gold paper (Recollections)
Ink: Versamark (Tsukineko), antique linen, frayed burlap (Ranger Distress)
Accessories: gold doily, wood snowflakes, ribbon, rose, lace trim, frantage embossing (Stampendous), gold detail embossing (JudiKins)

Much Love this Christmas

Hi friends!  It's Thursday and about time for something other than Halloween here.  Today's card is inspired by a rough sketch I had for a mixed-media canvas, but haven't had the time to create it yet.  I figured why not try a little prototype in card form? 

The tree is hand cut in layers, then modpodged down and doodled in.  The background is two patterns of dp (hounds tooth and red text paper) that I added gesso and paint and gelatos to, as well as a little texture stamping with the Snowflake Splendor set.  The top sentiment is the Much Love Plain Jane, which I colored with a gelato and water brush, then finger painted a little white paint for some dimension and added a few little doodles.  It's matted in black and then I clipped a little mini library clip to it.

I completed the sentiment with a partial sentiment (I masked off the top part of the stamp) from Richly Blessed so I could stamp just the this Christmas and always section.  I cut this out and matted it to match the much love panel up top, then got to the business of decorating my tree with some flatback pearls and a star rhinestone from Pizzazz Aplenty.  A little paint on the tips of the ornaments completes the snowy scene.

This is truly my "style".  I enjoy trying a lot of different things in crafting, but I just find the messiness of mixed-media so freeing.  Maybe it's me rebelling against a lifetime of exacting perfectionism.  In so many ways I've felt like a wannabe artist my entire life, but working on mixed-media projects is the only time I ever feel like I might actually BE an artist.  And that's a GOOD feeling.  {grin}

Hope you have a wonderful day today!  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Much Love Plain Jane, Richly Blessed, Snowflake Splendor (Verve Stamps)
Paper: misc DP scraps, Black, cream
Ink: Black (Mix'd Media), acrylic paints, gesso, gelatos (Faber-Castell), black micron pen
Accessories: pearls, rhinestone star (Pizzazz Aplenty), mini library clip (SU!), paper distresser, waterbrush, Mod Podge

Unto Us

Hi friends!  Happy Monday!  It's time for another Mojo sketch to jumpstart your week and since it's the first Monday of the month it's CONTEST time!  Woohoo!  We've got some Verve prizes up for grab, so be sure to sneak a little stamping time in this week to play along with our challenge!

I just love this Lost & Found Christmas paper and decided to go with an elegant feel for this traditional Christmas card.  A little gold embossing always seems to up the elegance factor, so I embossed both the sentiment from Richly Blessed and the Curvy Cross plain jane in gold detail embossing powder.  The cross is cut out with the Cross Die Set and I added some layers of shimmer gold cardstock cut with scallop Nestabilities for even more shimmery goodness.  The background is embossed with a Snowflakes embossing folder and I finished off with a seam binding bow and some shiny gold pearls.  All in all, it was a super quick card to make, and I know my parents (who I had in mind when I made it) will love it.

Hope you have a fabulous start to your week.  Be sure to check out the Mojo Monday blog to see what the rest of the design team came up with for the sketch, then play along for a chance to win some prizes!

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Richly Blessed, Curvy Cross Plain Jane (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Lost & Found Christmas (My Mind's Eye), Shimmer Gold Cardstock (Pizzazz Aplenty), Cream
Ink: VersaMark, Antique Linen (Ranger)
Accessories: Cross Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Classic & Scallop Ovals & Rectangles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Snowflakes Alterations embossing folder (Tim Holtz), Detail Gold embossing powder (Judikins), Dove seam binding ribbon (TCP), shiny gold flatback pearls (Pizzazz Aplenty)

Hope

It's Monday morning and that means it's time for another Mojo Monday sketch!  Be sure to check the Mojo blog for this week's sketch and a peek at all the samples from the design team.

I fell in love with this Salt Air paper from Cosmo Cricket the moment I saw it in a preview and couldn't wait to order it.  It's just so happy and colorful.  I chose the leaf sprig from Great Friend to coordinate with the paper, and made my own background for the Jeremiah 29:11 verse using daffodil delight and peach parfait ink.  The edges are sponged with Vintage Photo ink and I used a QuicKutz Nesting Label for the shape.

I gave an honest effort at reconnecting with my estranged sewing machine, but don't look too closely - it wasn't a happy reunion for either of us!  {grin}  For the diagonal ribbon, I wrapped some yummy fibers from a new Etsy shop I tried out .. bluehollow. Then added a tag using the Embossed Oval Die stamped with the Hope sentiment from Richly Blessed.  For accent I added some orange rhinestones and a triple pearl stick pin from Pizzazz Aplenty, as well as a metal photo corner from my stash.

Well, I'm on day 8 of my no-good, very-bad cold, which after seeming to zap the very life from me this last week, has now left me with out a voice and a healthy dose of excruciating ear pain.  So I'm hoping to get in to see the doctor today, then it looks like another day of hanging out in bed.  Hope y'all are staying healthy!


Oh, and it's the start of a new Get Your Diva On challenge over in our forum today!  Check out what Tosh's challenge is and play along for a chance to be a Verve Guest Diva!

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Great Friend, Jeremiah 29:11, Richly Blessed (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Salt Air (Cosmo Cricket), Cream, Early Espresso
Ink: daffodil delight, peach parfait, early espresso (SU!), Vintage Photo (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  Embossed Oval Die (Verve), Nesting Label (QuicKutz), sewing machine, orange rhinestones and triple pearl stick pin (Pizzazz Aplenty), washer (Tim Holtz), fiber (bluehollow), photo corner (WRMK)

Fall To Christmas

As I was meandering through blogland the other day, I came across this week's Fall-To Layout and since I hadn't dusted off my Top Note die in quite a while, decided to give it a go.  The card is simple and elegant, using scraps from the mojo card I had made just before this and only took a little over 5 minutes to make.  Bonus!

The sentiment from Richly Blessed is embossed in gold directly on the Holly Jolly My Mind's Eye paper and I embossed the cross from the same set in gold, then cut out and layered over the top note and some lace trimming.  The background for the card is embossed with the SU! Victorian Wallpaper folder, then I added a few shiny gold pearl accents from Pizzazz Aplenty to finish out the card.  So simple.

Okay, that's all for today.  Short and sweet!  :)  Thanks so much for stopping by!