Christmas Card Club

Yes another fortnight has passed and it's time for Christmas Card Club Challenge. This time the lovely Lorraine has set the challenge. We had to make a card where the sentiment was the key feature of the card.  I think I've achieved that and this card does exactly what it says on the tin! 

Stampin' Up! Timeless Type Junior Alphabet Sizzlits with Holly Berry DSP

A great way for you to cut out letters is for you to use your Big Shot and the Stampin' Up! Timeless Type Junior Alphabet sizzlits.  They offer you both upper and lower case letters and here you can see I've used the upper case die cutting letters from the different sheets of the Holly Berry Bouquet Specialty Designer Series papers.   Snowflakes in soft suede from the Serene Snowflakes stamp set and the lace border punch gives a pretty decorative border along with pearls, rhinestones and taffeta real red ribbon. 

Don't forget to check out the other challenge members blogs for more inspiration and if you fancy joining please let one of us know.

Back with another Christmas Challenge on 17 June.

Zx

Challenges
Christmas Card Challenges - Bling

Stampin' Up! Winter Post for Christmas Card Club

I joined the Christmas Card Club for a fortnightly challenge and to get better organised with making my Christmas cards.  I never dreamt it would challenge me quite so hard!  The first week was a card using more than 2 folds.  You can see my card here.  I thought that was a tough one to start on, but Sally has set the challenge of winter sports this time and as I'm committed to using Stampin' Up! products I found I didn't have a single winter sport set, so thanks to my fellow demonstrator Bekka I had some stamped skaters to play with.  Here's my first card which I wasn't really happy with, but my daughter ooh'd and ahh'd so I've decided to share it with you. 

The early espresso background has clear embossed snowflakes from the Serene Snowflakes set and the sentiment is from Pines and Poinsettias.  Brushed gold and real red cardstock frame the image having been cut out using the Big Shot and the Petal Cone die.  Real red striped grosgrain and victoria lace ribbon are gorgeous accessories.

My second version is more pleasing to me.  It features the lush, luxurious Stampin' Up! Mocha Morning Designer Series Papers, along with glimmer brads, gold glitter adhered with heat and stick powder and versamark ink and also the very versatile oblong frame from the Designer Frames embossing folder.  A sentiment from new Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set and the finishing touch is vanilla velvet ribbon from the Stampin Up spring Mini 2012.  Also featured is the eyelet border punch which I used to trim the bottom edge of the card and then reinstated it with chocolate chip cardstock.

Don't forget to look around the other blogs in Christmas Card Club to draw lots of great inspiration.  You can find their blogs in my sidebar.

Happy Stampin'
Zoë x

Supplies
Stamps - Winter Post, Serene Snowflakes, Pines and Poinsettias, Teeny Tiny Wishes
Cardstock - brushed gold, crumb cake, real red, early espresso, chocolate chip, very vanilla, Mocha Morning Specialty Papers
Inks - versamark, real red, chocolate chip, early espresso

Tools - Big Shot, designer frames embossing folders, 11/4" circle punch, 23/8" scallop circle punch, modern label punch, paper piercer and matt pack, heat gun
accessories - velvet designer ribbon, victoria lace ribbon, real red grosgrain ribbon, glimmer brads, fine galaxy glitter, clear embossing powder

Challenges
Love to create - monochromatic
Sweet Stamps - monochromatic
Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge - Glam it up with glitter

More snowflake beauty!

independent stampin up demonstrator uk zoe tant

Hi everyone, I hope you are all keeping safe and managing to prepare for a special Christmas.  By now you have probably realised that I really like the stamp set Serene Snowflakes.  I'm sorry if I've used it alot but it really is beautiful and here I've teamed it with some dry embossing using a stencil that was a gift from a friend in the US.  I dusted off my light box and and made my backdrop for this beautiful gold embossed serene snowflake.  A simple message from the Tiny Tags set and a wee pearl to finish this simply elegant card. 

Keep warm my friends and I'll be back soon once we've done our gingerbread house!

Hugs Zx

Serene Snowflakes

independent stampin up demonstrator zoe tant

Hi here's a quick post as life is passing me by and much as I love teaching others how best to use their stamps and stash, I'm fast running out of time to do my own crafting with all the teacher gifts, taxi driving etc that I've been doing. 

This is similar to a card I saw on Dawn Griffith's blog and I love it.  I love emboss resist and this is a really effective but simple card.
1. Stamp sentiment in staz on onto whisper white card stock.
2. Stamp snowflake in versamark over sentiment.
3. Add clear emboss powder and heat.
4. Brayer or sponge colour over the whole piece of card in a colour to co-ordinate with your base card, here it's cherry cobbler.  Wipe off excess ink with a tissue to reveal the snowflake.  The more ink you add the more the image shows up.
5. Adhere to base card and add glitter or rhinestones for 'bling'.

Quick and easy but so effective.
Back soon or at least I plan to be.....!
Hugs Zx

Oops I missed it!

Hi everyone.  Hoping you are continuing to keep warm and safe! I made this card last weekend with the intent of  putting it in a sketch challenge, but the weather and being busy with the children I forgot to submit it, but thought I'd share it with you all anyway.  It's a great one for showing off the Jolly Holiday DSP patterns and everyone seems to love the new colour cherry cobbler with old olive and very vanilla.  Then old kraft now crumb cake cardstock is as popular as ever and provides a useful base for any project. 

Serene Snowflakes stamp set is one of my favourites this season and embossing it in gold shows it off a treat.  I've also used versamark ink followed by cherry cobbler to emboss it in colour on the crumb cake.  This gives a subtle shade of the colour that you use, but gives you the chance to emboss with colour using clear emboss powder.  Pearls add to the opulance for Christmas, some of which are from our retired Pretties kit threaded onto gold elastic cord and some from the new self adhesive basic pearls packs.  Tiny Tags stamp set is as useful as ever with the medium jewellery tag punch and adds just enough sentiment. 

Finally I've 'smudged' some of the edges of the centre section to soften the design.  I believe the technical term is distress, but in my opinion smudged says it all!  You do your smudging with daubers by the way!

Once again be happy and safe.

Hugs Zx

independent stampin' up! demonstrator Zoë Tant

Serene Snowflakes are just beautiful

independent stampin' up! demonstrator

Plans just don't go the way you planned do they!  Today we have a burst water main and so now I have one child at home and one at school.  It has to be Charlie at home of course who will gloat when Olivia comes home and wind her up that she didn't get the day off!  She is so much more tactful and would have brushed it off. ' Ho hum' said Pooh. Just as well I made this card yesterday  to enter two challenges, one at  Sweet Stamping Challenge  where you needed to have snowflakes and also for a sketch challenge at Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge #93  I've tried to use different products and colours a little different to the traditional Christmas themes.  The new designer series patterns stack of paper in brights came in handy here.  I've used pacific point, real red and tempting turquoise. The latter I embossed with white snowflakes from the Serene Snowflakes set which is also where the large flake comes from also: that has been embossed with white on different coloured cardstock and then carefully cut out for layering purposes and embellished with a sparkly rhinestone.  I've also used one of the sentiments from one of my favourite new Christmas sets Contempo Christmas which is so easy to use. 

It's sparkly and brights and fits the sketch and the theme. Hope you like it!

Until next time,

Hugs Zx