Framed Trees

This is another of the cards I designed for the Christmas Card Workshop at my church last weekend.  This one was my favourite because I was really pleased with the way the sponged background worked out.  I positioned post-it notes around the edges of the white piece of cardstock and sponged in Bashful Blue before stamping the trees in Not Quite Navy.  I purposely made the “window’ a little smaller than the size of the tree stamp so the image would go the edges.  I’m not sure why, but it was what I wanted!   I then embossed the sentiment in white e.p.

I liked the framed area idea so much I tried it with the lone pine from Lovely as a Tree as well.  This time I sponged in Mellow Moss and stamped in Always Artichoke.

It needed a white insert so I used the complete sentiment from All Year Cheer with a bit of tree on the side.

By the way if you are ever searching for cards using a particular stamp set, my categories are pretty much all stamp sets with a few exceptions and are listed in the drop down menu on the right hand side labeled Categories.  Thanks for dropping in, there are a couple more from the workshop which I hope to post soon.

Supplies:

Stamps: Lovely as a Tree, Best Yet,  All Year Cheer
Inks: Versamark, Not quite Navy, Bashful Blue, Always Artichoke, Mellow Moss
Cardstock: Not quite Navy, Always Artichoke, Whisper White
Also:  White e.p.

CAS Three Square

When I saw this card on Susan’s blog I knew it would be perfect for the Christmas Card workshop I did for the ladies at my church on Saturday night.  There is plenty of room for creativity with three pretty squares and “merry & bright”.  Some women are happy to create the cards exactly as I designed them.  Others like to change it up a little.

Susan was inspired by this card by Donelda and when I went over and looked at her blog Wiggy’s World I found inspiration all over the place.

There isn’t really much to say about making my card other than go and try it, you’ll like it.

Supplies:

Stamps: All Year Cheer
Inks: Real Red
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Garden Green
Also:  Merry Moments D.P.

Stamped Brindabellas

Hi again, it has been a while between cards hasn’t it?  Life has been very busy here with one thing and another.  Sadly there has been no time for stamping and no time even for posting cards already completed.

I made this one quite a few weeks ago.  The inspiration was a card from my parents which was sitting on the cabinet next to my stamping table.  It sits there because it has such a beautiful moonrise on it.  The photo was taken by my father and made into a card for me.  When my dad saw it there he suggested I try creating a similar stamped image.  This is my attempt at stamping a scene from the Brindabellas, an Australian mountain range.

It has been so long since I stamped it I hope I can remember the process I used.  I know I threw away the first attempt.  To begin I stamped the moon, a little circle stamp from a flower set and then embossed it in clear.  Then I worked on the coloured sky.  I sponged in Bordering Blue, Going Grey, Apricot Appeal, Pretty in Pink, Pale Plum, Perfect Plum and Almost Amethyst to create the sunset.   The silhouette of the hill was sponged in over a torn paper masking sheet.  The trees are from Branch Out and Lovely as a Tree.  I inked parts of the Branch Out tree so I could create a little variety on the horizon and mimic the trees in the original photo somewhat.  The moon was meant to be in the space between two trees but I missed so I reheated the moon slightly to heat set the black branch on the embossed moon.

The original photo taken by my dad is below.  The trees are blackened and bare because of horrendous bushfires which destroyed forest in the area.

Thanks for dropping in, it shouldn’t be so long between posts next time as I have a Christmas card workshop next weekend so some stamping must happen this weekend!  I hope to have designed four cards by tomorrow evening.

Supplies:

Stamps:  Branch Out, Lovely as a Tree
Inks: Basic Black, Bordering Blue, Going Grey, Apricot Appeal, Pretty in Pink, Pale Plum, Perfect Plum, Almost Amethyst
Cardstock: Whisper white, Basic Black, Buckaroo Blue