Sunday 25 July 2021

July Rudolph Days Challenge

Once again, it is time for the Rudolph Days Challenge. With these lovely summer days now, it is hard to think of Christmas. But we must make time to create some Christmas cards or we will be swamped trying to make them at the last minute!

Many of you have asked me if we are safe from the forest fires. Yes, we are very safe, but there are 258 fires currently burning in my province. 5,000 proerties are under evacuation, and 16,500 properties are on evacuation alert. That alert means they must be packed and ready to go on very short notice. 3,320 very brave men and women are fighting the fires and we just had 100 firefighters arrive from Mexico. As always, many Native fire fighters have joined in to firefight as well.

The town of Lytton was burned completely at the beginning of the month. My sister built a new house on some land near Spences Bridge and retired there. The Lytton fire has grown so much it now endangers her town. My son-in-law has a Father and Step Mother who alwo live in the danger zone. Their house is in an alert area and they also have land with camping trailers near 100 Mile House, another area under alert. It is scary for them!

We go through this wild fire season every year, but that huge heat dome and 100 plus degree weather I mentioned in my June post, made everything so hot and dry. Fires can be started from lightening, sparks from passing trains, careless smokers, careless campers/hikers, etc. It is so scary and dangerous for so many people. There are not enough places for the homeless to go and hotels and motels are full everywhere nearby. The government is asking people to stay out of fire danger areas and cancel or change their vacation plans as they need every available room for the displaced evacuees.

Now, back to our challenge. I have made two cards. The first is a Hunky Dory Nativity scene. It only has three layers for the scene itself so as to keep the depth of the card down. The background papers are snippets from 12x12 scrapbook papers. I think I bought them for a wedding album. The banner is a metallic shimmer snippet and the Nativity border is of course from Hunky Dory. The North Star is a Memory Box die and the Merry Christmas was a gift from a scrappy friend who sent me a set of gold and of silver sentiments. I love them as they are small, but heavily glittered, so they stand out!

My second card has a scene that I made with a Find It Media frame die. Frame dies are starting to become my favourite type of die. I cut this with a snippet of plain white cardstock but now wish that I had used a white or even a silver sateen card. I was trying to use up snippets on my desk and so...

The teal/green glitter paper is from the dollar store and the red mirri card is from there as well. They had three huge sheets of red, green, blue, silver and gold for $1.25. The sheets were maybe 11x19. I am almost out of the red now and sadly they do not carry it any longer. The Merry and Bright sentiment is a Sue Wilson Festive Collections die. I really enjoy those Sue Wilson dies. I try to pick up every one that my local shop brings in!

Linda at Snails Space blog has made up the cutest tags.

They will be so perfect this holiday season for wine and cheese parties! I love the image too..so very, very cute. Those little Santa hats made me snile! I can just picture a beautiful table setting for a wine and cheese party with these lovely tags taking top billing. Please pop over to Linda's blog and leave her a lovely comment.

Jenny at Cardsarus blog has made us two lovely cards featuring some tags that she made. The first is a beautiful vintage looking card with lots of texture and shimmer! I love the vintage Old World looking Santa on the Christmas bauble. It has a sort of old looking shimmery frosted look. The snow on the leaves and the corrugated card work together to make this a lovely vintage card.


For her second card, Jenny has made this adorable snowman tag card. I think it is so darn cute. The use of the greenery behind the tag really sets it off and of course it calls out for that lovely hollographic shimmer background mat! With the same shimmer as a mat behind the card background, it really makes the tag stand out. I hope you will follow the hyperlink and drop by Jenny's blog and leave her a lovely comment.

Looking forward to your entries and remember to leave a comment ofn this post when you enter. Our prize this month is this Tutti Designs Forest Friends Nativity die.

48 comments:

Sandma's Handmade Cards said...

Gorgeous cards Mo, by yourself and the DT. I hope that you and your family keep safe with all of the forest fires. Crafty hugs, Sandra xx

Alice (scrAPpamondo) said...

I'm so really sad for all the scary fires in your country!! Such a tragedy!!
Prayers for all humans and animals! Fingers crossed for abundant rains to help!
Lovely creations from you and the team!

Jenny L said...

Hi Maureen,
I am so glad that you are not affected by those dreadful fires.
I do so hope you continue to stay safe and well and also your family.
Your cards are really gorgeous and so brilliantly created.
Love the colours and the beautiful scene in the first just what Christmas is about.
Your second is a lovely scene created by that die cut on gorgeous glittery card and topped off with the lovely red mirri.
I will pop over to Linda and leave her some love shortly.
Lots of crafty love. Jenny L.

Carol L said...

Our world is such a sad place these days with wildfires and floods. I do hope and pray you are out of harm's way. Your cards are so pretty and so are the DT's contributions! It's a task to create Christmas cards when it's so blazing hot outside, but I finished one! Happy Rudolph Day! (playing just for fun this month)

mamapez5 said...

It really isn't the weather for Christmas cards, but there are some lovely ones here.
Thank you for continuing to host this challenge with such a trying situation in your area. In Germany and Belgium it is floods causing so much damage. The world is a very unstable place right now. Stay safe. Kate x

KT Fit Kitty said...

I'm so glad you are safe from the fires. That heat dome weather sounds crazy - it was super hot here but nowhere near the temperatures you experienced. I watched the news coverage about Lytton, so sad for all who lost their homes and businesses. You, Linda, and Jenny made some beautiful cards! I am so grateful for this challenge each month to help keep me on track. I'm not crafting much but I strive not to miss this challenge! My goal of 2 Christmas cards a month has gone out the window, but I'm getting one card made, thanks to you! I'll be posting it later today, trying to get in early this month. By the way, I already have the prize that's being offered - I believe I won it from you last year - so please don't count me on the draw this month. Please stay safe!

Verna Angerhofer said...

So much wonderful inspiration from you and the designers. And, please, continue to stay safe from the forest fires. My thoughts and prayers are with all in it's path.

Suzanne H said...

Beautiful cards! I'm so glad you are safe from the fires and pray for your extended family's safety. Thanks so much for the chance to win.

Anonymous said...

glad you're safe, Maureen. very scary for those who are in alert zones. you've made two beautiful cards; I love the mirri and glitter - so very elegant! and Jenny has outdone herself with her attention to detail - so lovely! I look forward to seeing everyone's holiday creations even if I'm not always able to leave comments.

Lady Joyful said...

Fabulous inspiration from you all! I love those cute mouse tags. I hope you continue to stay safe from the fires.

Vicky Hayes said...

My heart goes out to those affected by the fires. Thank goodness you are safe Maureen.
Thank you all for sharing your wonderful inspiration again this month. I love your nativity scene but especially like the glittery card with the frame die. Vicky x

Sandra H said...

Gorgeous cards and lots of inspiration from the Dt's as always .....the fires are so alarming please do stay safe xx

Judy Inukai said...

I'm glad I discovered this blog. It will inspire me to make Christmas cards year round. Glad you are safe from the fires.

cotnob said...

Fabulous inspiration cards Maureen, I love your Nativity scene.
Pauline - Crafting with Cotnob
x

Jackie T said...

Hi Maureen I am glad that you are safe. The design team's cards are gorgeous. Take care. Hugs Jackie

Sue's Crafty Corner said...

Gorgeous cards Maureen and from the DT too. I'm playing catch up at the moment and am hoping to get something made and join in later. Glad you are safe and out of the danger from the wild fires. Keep safe .

Sue xx

Linby said...

Thanks for the update on the fires - good to know.
Gorgeous DT cards as always.
L x

Becca Yahrling said...

An awesome array of cards and tags this month! I love the adorable tags by Linda and can easily see those turned into name plates at a dinner party with a few tweaks. And it looks like you & I had a very similar design thought, Mo. ;-)
Stay safe and be well!!! xoxo Becca

Bunny said...

Thank you for another month of Christmas. It's a pleasure to play and get inspired. Keep safe and take care.

Liz said...

Glad to hear that you're safe from the fires, I hope you and your family stay safe. Thinking of everyone affected by the fires, it must be a scary time for everyone in the area.

A lovely collection of Christmas make to inspire us again this month.
Take care. xx

Kath said...

Lovely cards from the DT - I will be joining you in this month's challenge soon.

I hope you and your family stay safe.

Kath x

KarinsArtScrap said...

wow beautiful and gorgeus work DT
Gr Karin

Sandy said...

Glad to hear you're safe. Between fires, floods, drought and heat, no place seems really safe anymore.
Such fun samples from the DT this time.

SHartl said...

We've been having a lot of wildfires here on the West Coast of the US as well, so I've been keeping up with those in other states too. I had no idea that the Lytton fire is still going on, how frightening! I hope and pray that your sister remains safe and that they can get these fires under control soon.
The cards from the DT always keep me motivated to keep on making my cards, even when time flies by. Thank you for the inspiration.

ionabunny said...

Happy Rudolf Days everyone. Awesome inspiration from the team and another lovely prize this month. Thanks for helping me get my card stash in order for the big day. Take care. Hugz

Loll said...

Fabulous makes from the Designers. Love the vintage style and mixed media cards. Those tags are ADORABLE!!

Darnell said...

Love all your cards, ladies! Such great inspiration for all of us! I'm playing just for fun. And I'm praying that the firefighters keep safe and the fires are pushed back. It's way too early to have this many bad fires ... take care, my friend. Hugs, Darnell

Lynne said...

All fabulous cards by the DT and so pleased you are safe from the fires. It must be very scary for those close by. Thank you for the challenge x

Chris said...

A beautiful gallery of cards from you and your talented design team, such a lovely variety of styles and techniques.
Glad you are safe from the fires, every year they same to be occurring more often and in more places- terrifying!
xx

Bonnie said...

I'm glad you are safe from the fires, Maureen! My prayers go out to all those affected by them both in Canada and the US. Love your sweet Nativity with the gold trim and your frame is beautiful with the glitter paper and shiny foil! So much awesome inspiration here!

Greta said...

So glad to hear you're not in the danger zone, Maureen. I've been thinking of you during this unprecedented heat! It's not as hot as a few weeks ago, but still way above average for us & I'm ready for Fall! Your cards are so beautiful! I really love the gold one & the border die makes such a beautiful card! Looks like the sentiment die is made so you don't have a separate dot for the "i" & that's the only kind I'm buying now. Darling tags & wonderful cards as always! Such a sweet die for the prize, too!

Karenladd said...

What a year it's been for wildfires in California as well. So glad you aren't anywhere near them, but I hope your family stays safe.
Seeing the beautiful cards form your DT are inspiring me to go up to my craft room and pull out a few Christmas stamps. Hope to squeak by with an entry.

Di said...

What lovely DT cards, as always Mo! Stay safe - the World seems to be tilting on its axis right now for sure.

Hugs

Di xx

KathyA. said...

Beautiful DT cards. And how frightening to hear of the true impact of the fires. We are being mildly impacted by smoke drifting down into the states, but I am so sorry to hear about the pain so many in your provinces are suffering. I pray for heavy rains to put out the fires... and soon!

Diane said...

Beautiful and creative designs by the DT!

cebelica said...

I'm happy to hear you are safe. I hope it stays this way! xx

Donna said...

I am glad to know that you are safe and I hope your loved ones are too. I am praying for all those who are affected by the extreme weather and fires. It's very scary. Add in the Covid problems and we all need prayers. Thanks for the fun challenge. I haven't had much time to create this month but I did want to play along with your challenge. Great inspiration form you all!

R's Rue said...

So beautiful.
www.rsrue.blogspot.com

Barbara Godden said...

Finally got mine done. Love this challenge, don't want to miss a month.

Robyn Oliver said...

So late with my commenting this month... fabulous cards Maureen, Linda and Jenny and living in Australia I can relate with the heat and making snowy Christmas cards, it just doesn't seem right..still my stash is growing... keep safe from those fires, Robyn

Swissie said...

So good to read that you are safe, Maureen!
This summer is awful for people all over. You have got the fires, and here in Europe we have had terrible storms and extremely rain. Two weeks ago cities were taken by the floods, many people died, many more lost all.
Here in our valley in Switzerland we are safe.

The inspiration cards are just wonderful, as always. Thanks to you and your designers!
God bless you! Stay safe!
Hugs, Liv (Swissie)

Helen said...

Hope you're staying safe?
We've had flooding here in London - the weather is so crazy at the moment!
Fabulous DT inspiration - thanks for another fun challenge!
Helen x

Shaz in Oz.CalligraphyCards said...

Phew finally after more than six weeks not blogging I’ve done it. Missed last few Mo so sorry. Way behind all year! Lovely DT work anD inspiration too.
Thanks for Sharing, God bless and keep you safe, and all those you love, hugs Shaz in Oz.x

{Wonderful Words of Life - Shaz in Oz}
{Calligraphy Cards - Shaz in Oz}

Valerija said...

Your cards are just amazing. Love them all. Thanks for the inspiration.
Valerija xx

Susan said...

Beautiful cards, Mo! And thanks for offering up that adorable prize!

Janis said...

Absolutely beautiful cards by you and the other talented designers. I esp love your glittery beauty!
So glad to hear you are safe from fires at the moment, but it is so worrisome for so many. I pray daily for safety for our firefighters and residents. We haven't had rain to speak of for many weeks and have thunderstorms predicted for the next four days. Eeek! It's soooooooo dry! We are getting Go-Bags ready...just in case.
Thank you for another lovely challenge. Take care and stay safe!
<3 J

jwoolbright at gmail dot com
HerPeacefulGarden.blogspot.com

Tina Z. said...

such beautiful inspirations!

ShazInOzCardsCalligraphy said...

Popping back to say no thanks to candy. And also sorry fires are so bad I remember in 2019, I had the car packed just in case for weeks the fires , several not one around us were do bad... and God in His mercy sent huge dumping of rsin on Christmas day which put out the biggest one whicu started as two but combined.
Then mercifully prayers answered and more rain put southern one out.
The peat fires are bad, we had two north and south but neither were near us. They were the longest to extinguish.
Praying now for rain for your fires in your summer.. and also for us, that the winter will bring rain and spring too as it's been very dry herr already and over 80 today. Not good.. putting my trust though in Lord.
God bless you, and fire-fighters and helpers, and may He keep you and all whom you love safe and well.
Prayer hugs, Shaz in Oz. X

{Wonderful Words of Life - Shaz in Oz}
{Calligraphy Cards - Shaz in Oz}