Christmas cards...

I've started working on my Christmas cards, have you? The holidays will be upon us, and time will slip by before you know it! This first card is a delightful Santa from Plum Purdy Designs. I love her stamps, and plan to get quite a few more in the next few weeks.

I stamped Santa on Whisper White cardstock from Stampin' Up! using Memento Tuxedo Black ink. I colored him with Copic Sketch markers then dusted the edges with the Colorbox Stylus using New Sprout ink from Memento. I added highlights with a white Signo gel pen, then started putting the card together. The designer paper is a mixture from JoAnn's and Hobby Lobby. I finished the card with a white grosgain bow, rhinestones and a holly leaf button. Card size 5 1/4 x 5 1/4 inches.

(closeup of Santa's face)

For my next card, I borrowed an idea from a friend on one of my Yahoo Groups, and did my own interpretation of her creation. I've been seeing a lot of "clear" cards on cardmaker's blogs and thought to try one of my own. I didn't have any sturdy transparency (acetate), so I cheated and used a sheet of Frosted Shrinky Dink. It's a bit expensive to be using it, but it gave me the look I wanted! I'm sure there's something better on the market, but it was what I had in my stash.

The ornament cut out is from a template from a member on the Yahoo group and the challenge was to make a scenic ornament using it. I stamped my scene using stamps from Stampscapes onto glossy photo paper, then used the Colorbox stylus to add more blues and purples to evoke the winter setting. All inks used are by Memento. With my white Signo gel pen, I added stars to my sky. I cut another ornament out and stamped my sentiment and snowflakes (Inkadinkado) and laid it aside with the other ornament. Next, I stamped my snowflake (Inkadinkado) onto the Frosted Shrinky Dink card using Vibrant Violet StazOn ink. I added decorative pearls and a satin ribbon then mounted both ornaments to the front and back of the front panel of the card. The last touches for the front side of the card was a glittery snowflake with a soft blue rhinestone, and a silver peel-off sticker for the ornament "cap".

For the inside of my card, I used my Cuttlebug to cut out a scalloped square from glossy photo paper then stamped my Stampscapes scene using Memento Tuxedo Black ink. With the Colorbox Stylus, I added my color using the same blues and purples I used for my ornament. I finished the scene with my white Signo gel pen and added stars and ripples in the water. I mounted this piece to the inside back panel of my card. Lastly, I cut out an additional scalloped square from white cardstock and mounted it to the back of my card. Card size: 5 1/4 x 5 1/4 inches.