November Rudolph Day - Cards 38 and Card 39 Round II - Silver Bells

It is the final Rudolph Day challenge on Sarn's blog at Stamping for Pleasure. Sarn has done a fabulous job of keeping us on our toes all year, and inspiring us to get a head start on our Christmas cards.
She is stepping down from this role and I have volunteered to take over the Rudolph Day challenge starting on January 25, 2015.

So from the 25th and running through till the end of each month, you can submit your Rudolph Day challenge cards on this blog. Like Sarn has done, I will post a reminder a couple of days ahead and add the all important Mr Linky...perhaps I will even give you a peek of that months prize!

Here are my two cards for November's Rudolph Day. I made them to fit the theme of "Silver Bells", which is the theme chosen by Asha at Sunny Summer Crafts for the Christmas Card Challenge.  I seem to be falling a bit behind with my card commitments lately, so I am trying to meet the requirements of both challenges with these cards!

Card 38 - Gold background
I used my NBUS Tattered Lace Bell die and cut it from some DCWV  silver paper. I layered that onto a piece of DCWV Glitzy Glimmer Gold card and added a little  greenery with my Tattered Lace Lavish Winter Foliage fir die.
Added a Crafty Cutts NOEL sentiment and recut the bow, the ornament top,  and the bell clapper from the same aqua Glitzy Glitter paper.

Card 39 - White background
Didn't have any more gold card so I just let the white card base be the background. I do think it lets the bell's intricate cut work shine through a little better. This time I used my Tattered Lace Holly Flourish die for the foliage, and added a little Shabby Blue frantage around the corners. That was a bit of a nightmare as the heat gun bubbled the Noel diecut.
Ran a second NOELthrough the Big Shot and layered it over the first on...problem solved...whew!

These were fun cards to make. The glittery papers put me in the Christmas spirit and I even cut a few "extra" Christmassy dies from the scraps!

I am entering these cards in the following challenges:

1. Rudolph Days @ Stamping For Pleasure - must be 2 Christmas cards
2. Pixies Crafty  Workshop - must use snippets
3. Christmas Card Club - Silver Bells

Beautiful - Round II Card 37

Funny how sometimes when you see something, you just know you just have to have it. This stamp was like that.  I must confess though, I have been hoarding it! Thought it was time to let it out of the cupboard.

I am not very good at shading but used my copics to colour and added some green peeking through the peach petals. I say a Dahlia at a flower show that was similar, so tried to copy that idea. Added a little Stardust stickles to the curved up edges of the petals, just to add some sparkle.

The background papers here are from a 6x6 pad I picked up a while back, at my local dollar store. I really did not need any more paper but I am trying to make a few more vibrant cards so threw caution to the wind and bought it anyway. The colour is off slightly in the first photo...the closeup above is closer to the true colours! Sorry about that...love making cards...hate taking photos!!!

The jute mat is a DCWV jute 6x6 sheet that I cut to fit. I fringed the edges for a bit more texture and added another of the fine ivory cord bows.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

1. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must use snippets
2. Word Art Wednesday - Anything goes

Using up some scraps! Round II Card 36

My last couple of posts have mentioned that I am sort of kitting up my scrap images, along with some bits and bobs to go with them. I have been placing them into Michael's organizational shoeboxes, and employing the careful use of an index card in between each kit.

They are very simple kits but I thought they would come in handy once I have packed up my room. I will still be able to make cards even though I might be surrounded by a sea of boxes as I am working.
Once we are at the new house, I will still try to work from the kit boxes as we will be busy unpacking, and organizing the new place. (new to me at least)

Today I am sharing a card that I made from those boxes. It is a simple fishing card, but will come in handy for a birthday card for DH or my Son-In-Law..

The image is a rub on...not sure of the manufacturer any more. It is my VOS item...many, many years old. The background DP's are snippets from my VOS snippets box . Glad I got this one made up as Rubons are so fragile and I didn't want to damage it in the move. The plastic cover was long gone, so it is amazing that it lasted unscathed this long...and transferred like a dream!

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Pixies Crafty |Workshop - must use snippets

More forgotten treasure - Round II Cards 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, and 35

Quite some time ago I altered this little dollar store lunch pail. I planned to fill it with Thank You cards and use it for a gift. It was originally a Bart Simpson image on the front so I Mod Podged some black floral DP over it. I used a black background paper as I thought the Bart image might show through anything lighter in colour. Luckily the raised edges at the font and back as well as the sides of the lunch pail, were already just plain black, so I was able to leave those as is.  It only took the one rectangle of black floral DP and a snippet of glittery card to finnish the front. I then added some flowers that were left over from a scrapbook project...what luck.

I used matte Mod Podge but did not think to swirl my brush as I applied the top coasts. I think it would have given a nicer texture. Mine is a bit boring as I evenly ran my brush across in straight lines. Boring, I know...sigh...

As I was dusting it to pack away, I heard a funny "thunk". I opened it to find that I had already made 6 of the cards and had the bits inside to made 4 more. Could not fit all the cards in the photo so you will have to take my word that there are 6 finished!

I managed to find envelopes at the scrapbook shop that fit the pail. I then cut the cards to match that size. They are smaller than the standard...I think they are around 3 1/2 x 5.

 I made the flower on the front left card. I used a snippet of glittered paper and did not like that the pattern did not seem even.  I found some VOS premade flowers in my stash, and stuck them onto some snippets punched with Stampin' Up's scalloped circle. I like that they are all similar yet slightly different! This project lets me cross 12 flowers off my flower ticker for the year. I think my challenge to use up 365 flowers this year has been a dismall failure. Unless I can dream up a way to use up 247 flowers in the next 6 weeks, Well, I guess there is the hundred or more that I donated tot he thrift shop...perhaps I should have taken a photo of those...ahahahaha

 The Thank You cards on the left are for the gift tin. It will be a set of ten in all.  The  Follow Your Heart card is for my finished card box.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must use snippets.

Grey Ghost - Round II Card 29

I'm still uncovering forgotten treasures as I sort through more of my room. You will never guess what the circular fish hook image is, on today's card. It is a coaster, kindly given to me by my sister!  A couple of years ago, she sent me a large assortment of fishing and water themed tags, coasters, and other doodads  I tucked them away into one of my shoebox storage units and forgot all about them.

When I was sorting through and filing my precut dies I realized that the largest cog from my Spellbinders cog set, would work for a sort of frame around the coaster. I even had one left over from a previous project.  Presto...suddenly my card design was crystal clear.

A few more snippets, a bit of jute twine, and another masculine card for my finished cards box. I have left it sentiment free as it is more versatile that way. I will add an insert with an appropriate verse, when I finally use it.

Little update on the moving preparations. The movers are booked for Jan 23 and although I had decided not to start packing till well into December, DH has asked me to start now. He suggested I start by packing what I don't routinely use, in the craft room. That way, he can stack a few boxes each day rather than flat out packing and stacking towards the end.  He reminded me that we are both over 60 and it is so easy to get a muscle strain etc if we work flat out.

So today I packed up 18 boxes...all my 8x8 paper and albums, most of my glass jars of flowers etc, and all my shoeboxes of prefolded card and envelopes. I am quite embarrassed to say I have 6 shoeboxes full of the prefolded notecards! I did think about getting rid of those folded cards as the weight is so flimsy, but then decided that if they are cut in half they make great coordinating papers for building card designs. I am such a packrat! lol

He carried all the packed boxes upstairs to the dining room as we will not be hosting any big suppers till we move. I personally do not like the look of boxes all over the house, so may just take the leaves out of the dining table to shrink it down, and try to stack all the packed boxes in that room alone.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
1. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must use snippets...I think the fish scale paper might be Basic Grey but it is so old I am not sure...VOS for sure!

Rejoice - Round II Card 28

I am still working on using up that envelope of card kits I made up. Hope you are not getting too bored with them...

I want to get them all finished and put away in the finished cards boxes, as if I do not, then it is just one more thing that is a weird size to move. Although I do not need to start packing for a couple of months, I have started collecting boxes for the craft room. I need small boxes as everything in there is so darn heavy! Paper weighs so much as you all know!

So I have cleared a little spot and there is a tower of smallish boxes in varying sizes to suit my paper stash sizes. Bad enough needing so many different ones to fit 12x12 and 8x8 scrapbookpapers, 81/2 x 11 cardstock and the litany of embellies, flowers, brad, etc, etc. I have decided there will be no room for weird, odd sized things.

I sent a few days sorting everything this month and put all the wee odd bits into cardboard boxes from Michaels. They are shoebox sized and I tried to create more card kits from them. I had lots of dividers so set it up as one kit per divider. Anything not already filed in those shoeboxes needs made up of given away by January!

Enough waffle...here is my card for today. Used a vanilla tent fold base and added another of the red damask embossed card pieces. The green card is a swiss dot look EF and your probably remember the cream embossed snowflakes from my last post.

I went over the embossed design again with clear Wink of Stella and it has given that two toned faded shimmery look again. The Rejoice sentiment is a rub on...Bo Bunny methinks. It was from a huge kit of Bo Bunny supplies that my local scrapobook store had on an amazing special offer at the Xmas Open House last year. First time I have used it so a NBUS for sure!

It was hard to get a decent photo as I foolishly took the photo at night! Here is a bit of a closeup of the WOS on the cream embossed card. I know the photo is a bit blown, but i think you can still see the WOS shimmer...

A few gems from my stash to hilight the snowflake,s and a snippet of candy cane twine makes another Christmas card finished today!

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

1. Pixies Crafty Workshop - must use snippets
.

Christmas Card Club - Snowmen - Round II Card 27

Once again it is time for a Christmas Card Club Challenge.  Lorraine at Rainey's Craft Room  chose our Snowman theme this fortnight..

I am still working on using up that card kit I found.  I used my last prefolded brown card base and another of the already embossed, red damask card mats. You probably recall the kraft scalloped square, and you can just see the edge of another Swiss Dots brown embossed square, peeking out from behind the image.

The image is a precoloured Sassy Cheryl and I went over the snow with a Martha Stewart glue pen and sprinkled some sparkly WOW embossing powder. Here is a close up of that sparkle...

I punched the sentiment (I think it is a Stampin' Up sentiment) with a Stampin' Up Window Word punch and layered it onto a snippet of brown card using their Modern  Labels punch. The brown card does not match the rest of the browns,  but seems close enough that only you and I will know for sure!

What I do notice though, is the difference in the white of the image and the white of the sentiment. I broke my usual rule of stamping the sentiment onto the offcuts of the image. Instead I used up a sentiment that I had stamped out long ago and had stored in my Xmas bits drawer. Not happy with myself as it seems rather glaringly at odds, to me.

If you would like to have a peek at the other cards, I have hyperlinks to all the members cards on my right sidebar. You will not be disappointed as there are always wonderful cards there!!!

I am entering this card in the following challenges:

1. Pixies Crafty Workshop  - must use snippets.