Enchanted Purple Christmas Card (...and a partridge in a pear tree)

Every year I make a purple christmas card for my parents, because my mum likes purple.
I thought about the purple christmas card while working on another project with the "Partridge & Pears" stamp set, then suddenly I had a vision of a very majestic looking purple christmas card with the partridge in a pear tree. The finished result didn't quite turn out exactly as I had imagined, but it'll do...

Stamp Set: Partridge & Pears
Card Stock: Whisper White & Elegant Eggplant
Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Rich Razzleberry, Calypso Coral, Daffodil Delight, Strawberry Slush & Perfect Plum.
Framelits: Circles
Extras: Gold Embossing Powder, Venetian Crochet Trim, Gold Sequin Trim, Gold Bakers Twine & Gold Metal Buttons.
Techniques: Embossing, Sponging & Watercolouring.

Keeping in mind I was just experimenting with this card, when I started by embossing the image with gold powder, then made a mask from post-it notes for just the "partridge" and the "pears, then sponged over the whole thing. After sponging I wanted to go over the leaves with the Aqua Painter to blend the ink from the sponged colours, but when I applied the water pen to the first leaf a big blob water leaked out... so I blotted it with some paper towel which actually took some of the colour off, after that I decided to just do them all the same way, which is why they look a little washed-out.

 The tree trunk and branches changed colour a few times. It started with Perfect Plum, then I remembered I like Blackberry Bliss, but after adding that colour it was too bright, so I went over it again with Elegant Eggplant. Because the pears & partridge had been covered with masks they were still white after sponging, therefore I was able to add any colour without it being tainted by the sponged ink colours.

I'm not sure why but the light isn't the same in this photo, which make the colours appear different than the pictures above. I almost forgot to mention that I added a bit of Gold Glitter to the little round fruit on the tree, for extra gold sparkle....as if I didn't already have enough on there.

Monsters Inc. Punch art card

On the weekend our little neighbour Max, turned 3. Every year year his parents give him a nice big birthday party with a theme, this year it was Monsters Inc. So of course I had to make him a Monsters Inc, card for his birthday.

Stamp set: Word Bubbles
Card Stock: Pacific Point, Coastal Cabana, Lucky Limeade, Wisteria Wonder, Whisper White, Basic Black, Bermuda Bay & Naturals Ivory.
Ink: Pacific Point, Coastal Cabana, Old Olive & Versa Marker.
Punches: Owl Builder, Scallop Edge Border & lots of circles.

The horns are from owl punch, the eyelid is just cutting a moon from a circle & the teeth (could've been better, but run out of time) are made from punching the white with the scallop edge border punch, then moving it back in between the scallops instead of matching them up.

Phoenix - Perfect Peacock

Ok, so it was my Good friend Shari's Birthday again, and it seems every year on her birthday there's a movie released that we go and see. The last couple of years it's been "The Hunger Games" and "Catching Fire", so this year it was "Mockingjay part 1". Now I know peacocks and phoenix are not quite mockingjays, but phoenix are a fire birds and Shari likes red... so it was close enough.

Stamp sets: Perfect Peacock, Good Greetings & Four Feathers.
Card Stock: Cherry Cobbler, Basic Black & Whisper White.
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Calypso Coral & Cherry Cobbler.
Blendabilities:  Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Calypso Coral, Cherry Cobbler, Melon Mambo & Old Olive.
Extras: Washi Tape, Gold Glitter & Gold Sequins.

Here you can see the gold glitter & sequins shine.
I didn't put the gold sequins on every eye of the tale because I thought it might be too much, but then needed some more somewhere (the bottom) else, for some balance.

I used Melon Mambo as the lightest colour to finish the body & wing, I found that it gave it more of a crimson red (not that you can tell from the photo).

Shari said she wanted Lemon Meringue Pie for her birthday cake, so I made it then added a little Mockingjay, which I made out of modeling chocolate & painted with edible gold paint. It was the first time I have made modeling chocolate & found a little tricky to work with, probably due to the warm weather we had.

Partridge & Pears & Blendabilities

I think I'll always love to colour in, childhood pastimes or new mediums to play with, it will always be a favourite thing of mine.

The images on these cards have not been stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black, But with Stampin' Up! Soft Suede and Baked Brown Sugar, these inks are water based and will not bleed with Blendabilities (Alcohol Markers).

This card was inspired by a card I seen by Tanja Kolar. It was simple yet beautiful.

Stamp set: Partridge & Pears.
Card Stock: Naturals Ivory & Whisper White
Ink: Soft Suede
Blendabilities: Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie,  Bronze, Natural & Colour Lifter.
Textured Embossing Folder: Filigree Frame
Extras: Gold Glitter & Gold Baker's Twine.

Here you can see a bit of the gold glitter on the fruit.

I wanted to do something a little different with this one and I think the soft pink with the other colours reminds me of a fairy tale/fantasy kind of Christmas... but that was not intentional, it's just how it turned out.

Stamp set: Partridge & Pears.
Card Stock: Blushing Bride & Whisper White
Ink:  Baked Brown Sugar, Pear Pizzazz, Daffodil Delight, Blushing Bride & Crisp Cantaloupe.
Blendabilities: Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight, Calypso Coral, Blush,  Bronze, Natural, Ivory & Colour Lifter.
Framelits: Circles
Extras: Gold Sequins, Gold Baker's Twine, White Taffeta Ribbon & Venetian Crochet Trim.

Nothing else seemed to be working with this card, so I just layered several pretty ribbons in coordinating colours, added a greeting on a banner curved with the bone folder & popped up with dimesionals.

I softly sponged the background of this stamp with similar colours to that which I have coloured it in with, that way the colours wouldn't clash if I happened to be too heavy handed with sponging straight over the top of the image.
I also cut the partridge out and popped it up on dimensionals too.

Screen Card- with Holiday Home Blendabilties & sponging the seasons

I hadn't made one of these screen card before, but discovered it was a great card for practicing sponging techniques & Blendabilities. All sun and moon masks were made with post-it notes and 1 1/4" Circle punch.

All the ground (grass/hills) were made with acetate, cut into a wavy shape. The clouds in the wintery night scene were also made with acetate, just cut into a scallop cloud shape. The autumn cloud was made with the Cupcake builder punch. All houses were stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black, and coloured with Belndabilities.

Stamp sets: Holiday Home
Card stock: Naturals White, Basic Black & Whisper White.
Punches: Decorative Label, 1 1/4" Circle & Cupcake Builder.
Framelits: Holiday Home (+scissors).

Sponged Ink: Melon Mambo, Calypso Coral, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive & Bermuda Bay.
Stampin' Write Markers: Chocolate Chip & Always Artichoke.
Blendabilities: Calypso Coral, Melon Mambo, Crumb Cake, Pumpkin Pie, Night of Navy & Colour Lifter.
+ White Chalk  Pen

Sponged Ink: Daffodil Delight, So Saffron, Soft Sky, Marina Mist, Smokey Slate & Pear Pizzazz.
Stamin' Write Markers: So Saffron, Pumpkin Pie, Calypso Coral, Crumb Cake & Baked Brown Sugar.
Blendabilities: Calypso Coral, Pumpkin Pie, Night of Navy & Colour Lifter.
+ White Chalk Pen

Sponged Ink: Soft Sky, Marina Mist, Night of Navy, Smoky Slate & Mossy Meadow.
Stamped: Early Espresso
Blendabilities: Night of Navy, Daffodil Delight, Smoky Slate & Colour lifter
+ White Chalk Pen

Sponged Ink: Soft Sky, Pool Party, Coastal Cabana, So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, Crushed Curry, Wild Wasabi & Garden Green.
Stampin' Write Markers: Chocolate Chip & Old Olive.
Blendabilities: Coastal Cabana, Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie, Marina Mist & Colour Lifter
+ White Chalk Pen

Workshop Projects - Slider & Card in a Box

Once a year for the last few years Shari, and I have gone down to Melbourne, to do a class with a friend of a friend's crafting church group. We split the group in two and Shari done her project with half the group while I done my project with the other half, then we swapped.  Here are some prizes and projects for the day.

Door Prizes.

Slider card. This was my project.
I've done this card in a few workshops now, & it's always a good one to do, because it's nice & easy.

Stamp sets: Endless Wishes
Card stock: Pear Pizzazz, Whisper White & All is Calm dsp.
Ink: Pear Pizzazz & Versa Mark.
Framelits: Labels Collection.
Extras: Piercing tool/matt, All is Calm Washi Tape,  All is Calm Sequins & Gold Embossing  Powder.
Ribbon: Pear Pizzazz Taffeta & Gold Sequin.

Not that you can tell from the photo, but I have stamped off some of the Pear Pizzazz ink when stamping some of the images to achieve different shades of green.

Slider Card Instructions!

 Shari's Project was the card in the box.... which I didn't take a photo of (yet). It was such a lovely card, it looked like a red front door with a christmas wreath on it when closed and when opened it had three little punch-art angels inside, singing "Glory to the newborn king" ( well not really, but that's the impression). Anway.... It was gorgeous. Like I said, I don't have photo of Shari's card-in-a-box, but I did make a sample while testing out her instructions for her (because she changed the measurements). So this is it - even though my card looks nothing like Shari's.

Stamp set: Holiday home
Card stock: Baked Brown sugar, Garden Green, Soft Sky & Nordic Noel dsp.
Ink: Black Stazon, Garden Green, White Craft, Baked Brown Sugar, Real Red, Calypso Coral & Soft Sky.
Framelits: Holiday Home.
Punches: Word Window
Techniques: Watercolouring
Extras: Real Red Ribbon.

Peek a boo (of a different sort)

I came across this version a Peek a boo card on pinterest while looking for other instructions, and of course I have to have a go. It is a bigger card than I am use to (6x6) and I was attempting to make it smaller, but it didn't quite work. I think I should have gone back Norma's Blog where I followed the step-by-step instructions to make this card.

Stamp set: Best of Snow
Card stock: Early Espresso, Very Vanilla & dsp
Ink: Memento Black & Blendabilities
Punches: Label Bracket
Framelits: Deco Labels

When the card is opened the second image slips into place over the first one.

Coloured with blendabilities.

Close up of the front.

Check out Norma's Blog, she has a step by step photo tutorial that I used as a guide to make my card, and lots of other gorgeous "peek a boo" card of this style (by style I mean cut & fold)