Aurora Snowflake Frame with Decorated Vintage Lantern by Anne Thompson

Today's card uses the Aurora Snowflake Frame as the background for a decorated Vintage Lantern.

to make this card

Cover the front of a white note card with paper from GARLAND PP1010.  I used one that had the corner floral and arranged that to be in the upper left.

Die cut the AURORA SNOWFLAKE FRAME 94750 from white card stock.  Use a glue pen to adhere it to the front of the note card on top of the other paper.

Cut a piece of white card stock 2 1/2 X 4.  Glue it to a piece of red card stock and trim it for a narrow border.

Die cut the VINTAGE LANTERN 94743 from red card stock.  Glue the lantern to the white panel.

Use dimensional foam to add this panel to the card front.

Die cut CLASSIC PINE NEEDLE SPRIGS 94757 from dark green card stock.  Glue them to the lantern beneath the candle.

Add a small bow to the center of the pine sprigs/lantern to finish the card.

This is another card design that lends itself to a variety of papers and treatments.  For example, you could change up the background paper to a full floral or a plaid.  You could cut the Aurora Snowflake Frame from a piece of colored card stock, mirror paper, or glitter paper.  You could fancy up the lantern using multiple papers or cut it from watercolor paper and paint it.  Even the pine sprigs could be cut from a print or plaid paper for more texture.  Instead of a bow, make a small cluster of berries using Memory Box jewels, crystals, or gemstones.  See what I mean?  All kinds of possibilities!

Happy Crafting!

 

 

 

Aurora Snowflake Card by Anne Thompson

We had our first snowflakes of the season on Friday, so for today's card I used both the AURORA SNOWFLAKE CLING STAMP CS2083 and the AURORA SNOWFLAKE DIE 94753. 

to make this card

• Select one of the card stock papers from the STORMY BLUE 6X6 PACK SP1006.
• Ink up the AURORA SNOWFLAKE CLING STAMP CS2083 with VersaMark Ink and stamp it on the blue card stock. 
• Add Opaque White Embossing Powder to the image and heat set it.
• Use that panel to cover the front of a white note card, trimmed to fit.
  
• Die cut the background of the AURORA SNOWFLAKE DIE 94753 from another piece of blue card stock.
• Die cut the detail snowflake from both a silver mirror paper and a silver glitter paper and audition them against the background snowflake and the card front.

• I chose to use the glitter snowflake and glued it to the background one.
  
  
• I added the snowflake to the card front using dimensional foam.

• I chose the "warm wishes" stamp from the SHINING STAR CLEAR STAMP SET CL5285, stamped it with VersaMark Ink on a scrap of the background snowflake card stock, embossed it with Opaque White Embossing Powder, heat set it, and trimmed it down before adding it to the top of the card front.

And that's it!  This is another of those designs that would be easy to reproduce in a number of color combinations.  I can imagine making up a pile of snowflakes and then adding them to embossed papered note cards in coordinating colors.  This design is also one that would work for a number of occasions throughout the winter.  

Happy Crafting!

Glorious Poinsettia Merry Christmas by Anne Thompson

I promised to change up colors for November so I'm going with a traditional red and green focus for the next few posts.  Todays' card features the Glorious Poinsettia die.

materials used

• white note card
• poinsettia paper from POINSETTIA GARLAND PP1024 paper pad
• dark green card stock
• white card stock
• papers from GARLAND PP1010 paper pad
• GLORIOUS POINSETTIA 94734
• AUTUMN FAIRY JEWELS JWL004, gold ones
• one of the Merry Christmas FOIL GREETINGS WHITE TABS  ST001

to make this card

• cover the front of a white note card with one of the poinsettia papers from the POINSETTIA GARLAND PP1024 paper pad

• add a small rectangle cut from dark green card stock to the front of the card--you'll want the flower and leaves to extend a bit beyond it
• die cut the GLORIOUS POINSETTIA 94734 three times--from white card stock, from one of the mostly green papers and from one of the mostly red papers in the GARLAND PP1010 paper pad

• glue the white stem and leaves to the green rectangle on the card front
• glue the green stem and leaves on top of the white ones, exposing a bit of the white along one edge on each piece
• glue the red pieces of the poinsettia on top of the white ones, exposing a bit of the white along one edge on each piece
• assemble the flower using glue dots
• glue the poinsettia onto the card front at the top of the stem
• add gold Fairy Jewels to the poinsettia center

• add one of the "Merry Christmas" Foil Greetings White Tabs to the bottom right corner of the green panel

The thin white edge helps to define the stem, leaves, and poinsettia blossom against both the solid dark green card stock and the busy poinsettia print background.  

This will be a busy card-making week as I prepare samples and class kits for a class I'm teaching next week at the local senior center.  Hope you're getting a good start on your holiday cards.  There are so many products in the 2023 Christmas Collection to choose from!

Happy Crafting!

 

One More Pretty in Pink Holiday Card by Anne Thompson

I have one last Pretty in Pink holiday card for this month of October--I'll be switching up colors in November.  This is a very simple quick card using Poinsettia Garland paper, a Poinsettia Rub On, and a few Christmas Fairy Jewels along with a white Merry Christmas Foil Greetings Tab.

materials used

• white note card
• POINSETTIA GARLAND PP1024 6X6 paper pad
• white card stock
• POINSETTIA RUB ONS RUB 102
• MERRY CHRISTMAS FOIL GREETINGS WHITE TABS ST001
• CHRISTMAS FAIRY JEWELS JWL005

to make this card

• begin by covering a white note card with one of the poinsettia print papers
• add one of the poinsettia rub ons to a scrap piece of white card stock; trim to 3X4; ink the edges with a pink ink, direct to paper
• add one Merry Christmas White Foil Greeting tab in the lower right corner after adding a bit of the pink ink on the edges
• attach that panel to the front of the note card

• place five of the solid gold Fairy Jewels in the poinsettia center

Simple enough for creating a number of cards at once--which I did in preparation for this post as I covered several card fronts with papers from the Poinsettia Garland paper pad and then used six poinsettia rub ons on white card stock pieces trimmed to 3X4.  I finished one card to post and with a little ink, greeting tabs, and Fairy Jewels I'll have six more cards ready to go in a jiffy. 

Happy Crafting!

 

 

 

More Pretty in Pink Holiday Cards by Anne Thompson

Today's cards use several items from the Memory Box 2023 Christmas Collection--printed papers, rub ons, a stencil, and a clear stamp set.  Here's the trio I made, again with a focus on pink.

materials list

• POINSETTIA GARLAND PP1024 6X6 PAPER PAD
• SNOW FLURRIES 88626 ART STENCIL 6X6
• POINSETTIA RUB ON RUB102
• SHINING STAR CLEAR STAMP SET CL5285

to make these cards

• cover the front of a white notecard (or trim the paper down so there's a white border around the edge) with paper from the Poinsettia Garland paper pad

• cut a smaller piece of white card stock; use the Snow Flurries stencil, pink ink, and a fingertip dauber to add scattered pink dots

• add rub ons from the Poinsettia Rub On pages to the dotted panels

• stamp sentiments from the Shining Star stamp set using black ink (VersaFine Clair Tuxedo is what I used)

• add the finished panel to the front of the notecard

Here are close-ups of the cards individually.

This is another set of cards that went together fairly easily and quickly in assembly-fashion-style.  I certainly could add more dimension and sparkle to them by adding Glitter Glue to the berries or using Fairy Drops, Jewels, Crystals, Dewdrops, or Gemstones--Memory Box offers quite a few choices in the Glitz department!  

Happy Crafting!

 

Pretty in Pink Merry Christmas by Anne Thompson

As a two-time survivor of breast cancer I was inspired by Trina's post yesterday to work up a pretty in pink card also in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  

to make this card

• cover the front of a white note card with one of the pretty pink poinsettia papers from the POINSETTIA GARLAND PP1024 6X6 paper pad

• emboss a piece of white card stock using the POINSETTIA CORNER 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER AND CUTTING DIES SET EF1038
• trim it to 3 1/2 X 4 3/4

• use a fingertip dauber and pink ink to lightly add pink to the raised image and around the edges of the embossed panel

• select one of the large poinsettias from the POINSETTIA RUB ON SHEET RUB102, and use the wooden stick to rub over the image to transfer it to a scrap of white card stock
• use the die that coordinates with that image from the PERFECT POINSETTIA 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER AND CUTTING DIES SET EF1037 to cut out the poinsettia

• add the large poinsettia to the center of the embossed panel using dimensional foam tape and then adhere that panel to the front of the note card
• add one of the AUTUMN FAIRY CRYSTALS CRY101 to the poinsettia center

• to finish the card select one of the extra thick gold foiled WHITE TABS ST1001 that says "MERRY CHRISTMAS" and add it (I used Scor-Tape on the back) near the stem base

And that's it! 

I like this particular embossing folder because of the open space in the center for adding any number of holiday elements--rub ons, die cuts, stamped images--from the Memory Box 2023 Christmas Collection.  And I love that both of the embossing folders--Poinsettia Corner and Perfect Poinsettias come with coordinating dies.  I'm just getting started with holiday cards and I have so many more to make.  I think I'll be making multiples of this design.

Happy Crafting!

(Think I may need to update my photo since I've added streaks of mermaid teal to all the white this week...and my hair is now quite a bit longer...)

Happy Fall by Anne Thompson

We're having gorgeous weather this week in Maine--so warm that it hardly feels like fall, yet the leaves are turning colors and the evenings are cool.  I love this season!  Today I have two fall cards for you...to celebrate my favorite time of the year.

materials used

• white note cards
• plaid papers from POINSETTIA PLAID PP1023
• dark gray, medium blue, and white card stock
• silver mirror card stock from VINTAGE PASTEL MIRROR PAD FP1002
• WINTER TREE ARCH 94735
• A2 RECTANGLE FRAMES DIE SET 94672
• HAPPY FALL POSH SCRIPT 94747
• LEAF BUNCHES 94745

to make this card

• die cut the Winter Tree Arch twice, once from silver mirror paper and once from a dark gray card stock
• die cut rectangles from plaid papers using the size die from the A2 Rectangle Frames Die Set that fits neatly behind the tree arch 
• assemble those panels--plaid papers behind the Winter Tree Arches

• cut two more rectangles a bit larger from white card stock and two a bit larger than that, one from a dark gray card stock and one from a medium blue card stock

• assemble the panels--plaids behind the Winter Tree Arches get attached to those white rectangles and then to the colored rectangles and finally to the white note cards
• die cut the Happy Fall Posh Script backgrounds from scraps of the plaids used and the detailed lettering from the silver mirror card and the gray card stock; assemble and add to the base of the Winter Tree Arches on each card

 

• die cut some leaves using the Leaf Bunches die and another plaid paper

• add a large leaf bunch to each note card

Two fall cards ready to go!  I hope you are enjoying autumn wherever you are.

Happy Crafting!

Birds Among the Branches by Anne Thompson

I'm back today with another fall card using products from the newest collection, 2023 Christmas.  This time I used a lot of plaid (surprised?!)  from the Poinsettia Plaid paper pad as well as one of the leafy prints from the Poinsettia Garland paper pad.

to make this card

• cover the front of a white note card with one of the plaid papers from POINSETTIA PLAID PP1023
• cut a smaller rectangle using one of the leafy prints from the POINSETTIA GARLAND PP1024 paper pad
• add that rectangle to a scrap of white card stock and trim so there is a narrow white border around the print paper
• die cut the BUNDLED BIRD 94760--without its accessories--from two different but complementary plaids from POINSETTIA PLAID PP1023 
• assemble the two birds mixing the plaids a bit and add tiny black jewels for the eyes from AUTUMN FAIRY JEWELS JWL004

• use dimensional foam of different thicknesses to add the birds to the panel with one bird raised up on top of the other

• die cut the LEAF BUNCHES 94745 from a brown plaid and tuck them under the birds

...and that's it!  A cute card that you can send anytime to a friend for any occasion!

Happy Fall!  and Happy Crafting!

 

Supplies

 

pp1023 Poinsettia Plaid 6x6 pack

pp1024 Poinsettia Garland 6x6 pack

94760 Bundled Bird

jwl004 Autumn Fairy Jewels

94745 Leaf Bunches

Glittery Pumpkins on the Vine by Anne Thompson

I've got more pumpkins--glittery ones on a glittery vine!

to make this card

• start with a plain white notecard and add a piece of green plaid paper 5 1/4 X 4 to the front; this plaid that was in my scrap box is from MAGNOLIA PLAID 6X6 PP1021
•  die cut the MAGNOLIA LEAF BRANCH 94721 in green glitter paper from GLITZY GLITTER PAD GP1007

• die cut two pumpkins from orange glitter paper and their stems and leaves from green glitter paper, both from GLITZY GLITTER PAD GP1007 using the AUTUMN PUMPKIN 94690 die

• add the leafy branch to the front of the note card

• use glue dots to adhere the stems to the pumpkins
• put dimensional foam in two different thicknesses on the center back of the pumpkins 
• at this point I decided to orient the card with the fold at the top in order to place the pumpkins in the bottom right corner
• loop the stems over the branch and adhere the pumpkins to the front of the card, one slightly higher and on top of the other
• add one leaf to each pumpkin and place the other pumpkin leaves on the vine

There's plenty of room to add an appropriate sentiment in the upper left once I decide who will get this card and for what occasion.  I've been doing this with most of the cards I've been making lately as I'm building up a stash of fall-themed cards and I don't send many at Halloween.  

Happy Crafting!

Glitzy Glitter Pad GP 1007
Magnolia Leaf Branch 94721
Autumn Pumpkin 94690
Magnolia Plaid PP 1021

 

 

Glitter and Shine Pumpkin Card by Anne Thompson

This month's blog challenge is all about orange.  This card uses orange mirror paper, orange glitter paper, and an orange plaid paper (as well as some green mirror paper).  It's quite difficult to photograph all of those shiny textures and have it look right, but here's an angle shot that is the best out of twenty or so pictures I took.

to make this card

• start with a white note card
• cover the front of the card with orange mirror paper from RAINBOW REFLECTIONS MIRROR PAD PP1003
• die cut the CELESTE PLATE 94699 with green mirror paper from the RAINBOW REFLECTIONS MIRROR PAD PP1003
• add the Celeste Plate to the front of the note card using a glue pen around the outside edges

• die cut the AUTUMN PUMPKIN 94690 from a scrap of the orange mirror paper for leaves, a scrap of the green mirror paper for the stem, and a piece of orange glitter paper from GLITZY GLITTER PAD GP1007 for the pumpkin itself
• assemble the pumpkin with the stem and leaves attached...I used Glue Dots

• make a base panel for the pumpkin from a scrap of an orange plaid paper (this one from the Garden Folly papers was left from a pumpkin I made on my last card) just a bit larger than the pumpkin and mount it on a scrap of the orange glitter paper and trim that to be just a tiny bit larger than the plaid piece...I found it best to use Scor-Tape to adhere the plaid paper to the glitter paper
• pop the pumpkin onto the panel using dimensional foam
• add this panel at an angle to the front of the notecard
• and there's still plenty of room on the front to add an appropriate sentiment

Plenty of shadow across the front of the card in this outdoor photo..

I do love all the textures and shine on this card!  And it's another one that I could send any time this fall.  It's certainly starting to feel like fall here in Maine--cooler nights and the leaves have begun changing color further north.

Happy Crafting!  And enter our Crazy for Orange blog contest for September--the information is here.

Rainbow Reflections Mirror Pad PP1003
Celeste Plate 94699
Autumn Pumpkin 94690
Glitzy Glitter Pad GP1007