Christmas or New Year's ?

When I made a card with this Christmas Cactus set by Doodle Pantry, I made this one too.  If you look back at the first card, you will see that I used it as a Thanksgiving card because my Christmas cactus thinks it is a Thanksgiving Cactus.  Now we come to this card.  Even though it is meant for Christmas, I really think that this is great advice for a New Year's Resolution.

Here is a pic of the set:

You really need to put a sticky note on your calendar for Jan. 1 and 2 because on those two days Laurie Wilson at Doodle Pantry is having a 50% off sale on orders of $15 or more. 

This is my last post for 2014 so let me wish you a Happy New Year.

Challenges:
Pile It On - holidays
Scrappyland - holiday (Spellbinder die)
Simon Wednesday - anything
Di's Digis - any winter holiday
Through the Craft Room Door - anything 

2015 Almost Here

At the Kraft Journal, our challenge this week is to make a New Year's card.  There are only 3 more days of 2014!  Can you believe it?

I just love these little Round Metal Edge Grunge Prim Tags at the Kraft Outlet.  The silver rim gives them just enough sparkle to set them off.  I stamped each tag with one word of a rubber stamp I have, using the same colors as in the patterned paper and then adding a ribbon and gem of the same colors.
The card base is Light Kraft Cardstock.
So, let me take this opportunity to wish you a Happy New Year and also to invite you to come to the Kraft Journal to play our challenge this week.  It starts today and ends Sunday, Jan. 4.

Challenges:
Classy Cards and Such - photo inspiration plus bling
Pile It On - anything holiday
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Simon Wednesday - anything
Di's Digidesign - any winter holiday

Merry Christmas 2014

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Most of you will be celebrating Christmas today in one way or another.  We had our family Christmas gathering Monday, the 22nd, so today my husband and I have a relaxing (boring! LOL) day.    No, actually, it is lovely because we celebrate the birth of Jesus, the birth of a Savior and this gives us a quiet day for that without a lot of crazy distractions.  Now keep reading because I'm not going to give you a sermon.  I just want to say that this historical event is one of most important ever.  Jesus was born because He loved you and He lives today making eternal life possible.

This beautiful paper and sentiment are by Diane's Daydream Designs.  Unfortunately, she is closing her store because of the VAT.  The good news is that she is having a 50% off sale through December 30.
The sentiment which is pre-colored, is cut out with a MFT circle Die-namic, as is the little ring right under the ribbon.  The other silver piece of the ornament hanger is cut out with one of the Spellbinder Shapeabilities in the Office Supply set.  I just trimmed it down to make it look like an ornament top.  The snowflakes are cut out of more of the DDD paper with a Cuttlebug die.
At Die Cut Diva's, our challenge all month has been Christmas or Snow.  Our wonderful sponsor is Dies R Us where you can find the MFT Die-namics and the Spellbinders that I used.
There are just a few more days to enter the challenge.  I hope you get a chance.
Again, Merry Christmas and if you ever have questions about the salvation, peace, and joy that Jesus can give you, I'd love to talk with you about it.  Just send me an email at mkdrain at gmail dot com.

Have a wonderful day.

Challenges:
Pile It On - anything Christmas
Papertakes -pick a favorite challenge (last Christmas card of the year)
Crafty Sentiments - anything 
Scrappyland - holidays
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Simon Wednesday - anything
Pink Gem - anything Christmas
Stamp and Create - Christmas
V's Sweet Ideas - holiday theme 

From Our House to Yours

Christmas Day is almost here.  Here is my card I wish I could send to each of you, my wonderful followers and my cyber friends.

This adorable house is a die cut set by Elizabeth Crafts.   LOTS of tiny pieces but very fun to create!
Using a piece of white cardstock as the BG panel,  I stamped the trees with a SU stamp and then sponged on the blue and green.  Aren't those tree brads the cutest?  The Verve sentiment is cut out with a Spellbinders Grommet tag.

This is the inside of the easel with a Christmas wish (Verve) cut out with a Spellbinders Labels Four die.
The house and spellbinders can all be found at the Dies R Us store which is our generous sponsor this month at the Die Cut Diva's Challenge.  It is a crazy time right now but maybe you can find a few hours to make and enter a Snow or Christmas card into our challenge.  Two winners will receive $10 gift cards. 
I'll be back Christmas Day to wish you all a Merry Christmas with another card.  Til then, ENJOY this holiday season.

Challenges: 
Pile It On - Christmas
Through the Craft Room Door - anything
Crafty Sentiments - winter
Clear It Out  -anything
Scrappyland - holiday with die
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Pink Gem - Christmas
Di's Digidesign - any winter holiday
Stamp and Create - Christmas
V's Sweet Ideas - holiday theme

What's Hot? Burlap Ribbon

It is What's Hot Wednesday at the Kraft Journal and I am there (and here !) to show you a few things I have done lately with Burlap Ribbon.
Burlap is big right now.  In fact I am making swag curtains with it right after the holidays.  Have you tried burlap ribbon on your cards or for projects?
Thanksgiving Day was three weeks ago but I wanted to show you the napkin rings I made.  I really love how they turned out.

I used the Natural Burlap Ribbon from the Kraft Outlet to wrap around the napkin, making it a ring by using a large brad.  That way I could keep one of the ribbon ends loose.  The leaf is cut with a Cuttlebug die out of Buff Ivory Cardstock.  Holding the ribbon ring in place with my finger, I removed the brad then replaced it going through the leaf, the tag, and then the ribbon again.  Lastly I added a bow out of Wraphia, securing it around the brad.  Easy, elegant and yet casual.  My kind of decorating.
So that was 3 weeks ago.  How about an anytime card with Burlap Ribbon?

I thought it would be fun to pleat some of the burlap ribbon instead of using just a straight piece.  I just made loops and then sewed it onto the designer paper with my sewing machine.  The papers are from my stash.  The photograph buttons are chipboard.  The others are cut from Brown Kraft, Dictionary Pages and ruby cardstock.  Each of the buttons are sewn into place with the Natural Hemp Cord.
Both these projects featured the Natural Burlap Ribbon but the Kraft Outlet also carries Black Burlap Ribbon.
Thanks for looking.  Check out some of the other wonderful products that the Kraft Outlet carries.

Challenges:
Simon Monday - anything
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Stamping Boutique - anything but a card
Clear it Out - anything
Through the Craft Room Door - anything 

White on White

Kraft cardstock is so pretty with touches of white.  I reversed this beautiful combo with white and touches of Kraft.
The challenge this week at the Kraft Journal is White on White.  Here is my interpretation:

The white snowflake is cut out with my Silhouette and then I backed it with one a bit larger using Light  Kraft cardstock.  The solid white snowflake is part of the snowflake file.   Because I am in love with the Natural Hemp Cord, I used a few strands and made a bow with it too.
The embossed snowflakes is a Cuttlebug folder.
Happy birthday sentiment (Unity, I think?) and snow flake (Verve) are stamped with Versamark then embossed with winter white embossing powder.  Most of the pearls in my stash are creamy white but I did find two really white ones so I could put them in the centers of the snowflakes.
We at the Kraft Journal hope you play along with the White on White challenge this week.  It is always fun to see your creations.

Challenges:
Paper Takes - anything
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Craft 4 eternity - winter
Crafty Creation - emboss

Corvette

Recently I was asked to make a card with a Corvette on it.  Where would I find a Corvette image?  Doodle Pantry, of course, and a beautifully pre-colored one at that.   Doodle Pantry has many cars and trucks, classics and clunkers.

The papers come with the Corvette set.

Other items used:
Black burlap ribbon - the Kraft Outlet
Route 66 - image by Diane's Daydream Designs
Spellbinder Ovals
Cuttlebug folder
Sketch - Mojo Monday

BTW - have you entered the challenge at Doodle Pantry Digital Challenge?   Use any digital image to play along but only until December 22.

Challenges I am entering:
Mojo Monday - sketch
Paper Takes - anything
Through the Craft Room Door - anything
Party Time Tuesday - anything
Word Art Wednesday - anything

Christmas Accordion Decoration

Last month I showed you some of the Thanksgiving Accordion Decorations I made.  Here are a few pics of some with the Christmas theme, all of them made with the Doodle Pantry Classy Monogram set.

The first two have the same style lettering.  The one below has the block style letters.

 

And one of my favorites: 

I love having different styles of letters to choose from.  Here is a pic of the set and it comes with SVG files too!

It was fun making these for the craft fair; it is more fun giving some away as I tuck them into gift baskets.
Here is the link for the post showing the  Thanksgiving ones, just in case you are interested.

Challenges:
Sweet Stamps - Christmas spirit
Paper Takes - anything
Through the Craft Room Door - anything
Party Time - anything
Crafty Sentiments - anything
Word Art Wednesday - anythiong
Simon Wednesday - Christmas

Christmas Cactus

It is Release Day at Doodle Pantry.  One of the sets we could choose to work with is this lovely Christmas Cactus set.  Because I love Laurie's coloring much better than my own, I printed a pre-colored image.

 

I have a fondness for Christmas cacti.  I have a huge one that is 22 years old.  It is 43" across and thinks it is a Thanksgiving Cactus; it always blooms in the last two weeks of November. 

There are some lovely sentiments in this set, but the one caught my attention because of the time-table my plant is on.
I used some of the paper that comes with the set.  Here is a pic of some of the images and papers in the set:

Gorgeous !
There are many more new beautiful sets released today and a new monthly challenge starts today too.
Head over to the Doodle Pantry store for more sets and ideas and to the challenge blog to link your card for a chance to win some wonderful Doodle Pantry goodies.

Challenges:
Crafty Sentiments - use die cuts
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Simon Wednesday - anything
Penny's Paper Crafting - anything
Sister Act - anything
Crafty Catz - anything
Suzy Bees - keep it simple
Simon Monday - Holiday cards

 

Snow and Christmas

That is the new challenge this month at Die Cut Divas.  For some reason I am really excited about Christmas this year and I was really excited to use some new products to make a few out of the ordinary cards.   Dies R Us, our sponsor this month,  carries many dies from companies.  This card is made with two die sets by Elizabeth Crafts.

This tri-fold card is made with the Square with Circle Frame Edges die set.  This is the first time I made a card like this.  Very fun.  The penguin is also a die.  He is called Chilly the Penguin.
The snowflake on the center circle and the snowflake on the right circle are cut with my Silhouette.  The little snowflakes are made with a Cuttlebug die. The sentiment is Sweet and Sassy.
Here are some close-ups of each panel:

We hope you will take our Die Cut Diva's Challenge and enter one of your snow or Christmas cards.  You might be the winner of a gift certificate to Dies R Us.

Challenges:
Simon Monday - Holiday cards
Crafty Sentiments - use die cuts
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Simon Wednesday - anything
Di's Digis - for kids
Paper Creators - all about Christmas
Crazy Challenge - snow 

Christmas Tag

Kraft and Turquoise is such a beautiful combination so for this Christmas tag, I started out with a piece of Brown Kraft Cardstock from the Kraft Outlet and cut some corners to make a  2 1/2" X 5 " tag.

The beautiful tree and deer image is by Diane's Daydream Designs, called Christmas Wonderland. It is just one of over 40 Christmas sets she has in her store.
The sentiment is Verve which I stamped with Timber Brown Ink.
The turquoise poinsettias are fussy cut and then put on with dimensionals.  Even though the image looks like it already has glitter on it, I added Stickles to the deer and dabbed some on the stars and flowers for more sparkle.
I'm sure I could use twine on every card and tag I make - for this tag I used Earthy Hemp Cord from the Kraft Outlet, tying it on a piece of sparkly ribbon from my stash.
At the Kraft Journal our challenge this week is Christmas Tags.  We would love to see your creations .  We pick a top 3 every week - it could be you!

Challenges:
Word Art Wednesday - anything
Pennys Paper Crafting - anything
Simon Wednesday - anything 
Sister Act - anything
Stampin Boutique - sparkle
Crafty Catz - anything
Susy Bees - keep it simple
Pink Gem - Kraft and one color