Christmas

A Little Holiday Sparkle

Hello again. The Holly & Ivy Christmas Challenge has started a new challenge – the theme is always ‘anything goes Christmas‘. Here is my card:

I used a collection of Pinkfresh Studio products to create this card, received for as part of a previous virtual event.

The first step was to hot foil the plate with the images on them, then ink blend with my choice of colour scheme using Pinkfresh Studio inks, then use the matching die to cut them out.

For the background, I took a white panel and used a Spellbinders embossing folder, placing that behind a panel of gold glitter card stock from which I die cut an oval from the centre.

I added the hot foiled sentiment to the centre of the aperture, then arranged the images with a mixture of 3D foam and glue.

The final step was to add some teal gems here and there – quite a few actually – I just couldn’t stop….

I hope you can come and join us with your creations following our Christmas theme. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Just Add Ink – Christmas

Just Us Girls – stencils

Aud Sentiments – tags and/or Christmas in July and a sentiment

Peace On Earth – anything goes Christmas

Crafters Café – anything goes – option of Christmas in July taken

Joy Of The Season

Hello everyone. ABC Christmas Challenge has started a new challenge. We have reached the letters ‘N‘ and ‘O‘, and the Christmas themes this time are:

N is for Non-Christmas Stash

&/or

O is for One Layer Cards

Here is my card for the ‘O is for One Layer Card’:

I started by gold heat embossing the Pinkfresh Studio ‘Berry Branch’ stamp set onto a white card base, then used the matching layering stencils to colour the image.

The sentiment was also gold heat embossed.

So – truly a one layer card. No added bling (very unlike me!), and looking very clean and simple. The Design team has some fabulous inspiration for both of the themes for this month, and I hope you are able to join us with your Christmas creations following one or both of our themes. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Addicted To Stamps & More – make your mark

Everybody Art – Christmas

Daisy Chain – Christmas in July

Craft Rocket – Christmas in July

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

12 Months of Christmas Link-Up – anything goes Christmas

A Little Holiday Sparkle

Hello everyone. It’s time for the next challenge at ABC Christmas Challenge. We have reached the letters ‘L’ and ‘M’. Our Christmas themes this month for those letters are:

‘L’ is for Lights, ‘M’ is for Music

Here is my card:

This background chock full of lights is using a die from Concord & 9th, but instead of die cutting the background panel and inlaying all those lights, I decided to dry emboss the panel to create the impressions for the lights and the strings.

The lights were then die cut from colours of card stock, then placed on the impressions. The base of the lights was die cut from gold glitter card and then also glued into place.

The gold foiled sentiment was added with some 3D foam.

I hope you can come and join us with your Christmas creations following one or both of our themes. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Peace on Earth – anything goes Christmas

Lil Patch Of Crafty Friends – anything goes

Christmas (or not) Bingo – column ‘N’ – Christmas – free – glitter

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

12 Months of Christmas Link-up – anything goes Christmas – option of one or two layers not taken

Sweet Holiday Wishes

Hello there. The Holly & Ivy Christmas Challenge has started the new challenge. The theme is always ‘anything goes Christmas‘. Here is my card:

This card was created using products from a Pinkfresh Studio virtual event which occurred in October 2024, for which I also added the press plate add-on bundle.

The jar was created first by die cutting the back of the jar in a light teal card stock, then die cutting the inner white piece. This piece was dry embossed using a snowflake cover panel for added interest, glued to the base, then the lid was die cut from brushed gold card stock from Spellbinders.

All of the images were hot foiled in gold, then coloured using the matching layering stencils, die cut with the matching die, then arranged onto/into the jar.

I decided to create a coloured background panel by ink blending the panel in one of the colours used on the smaller images, and this too was dry embossed using the snowflake cover plate.

The final addition was the foiled sentiment.

I hope you can come and join us with your Christmas creations. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

52 Christmas Card Throwdown – Christmas with dies/punches

Cut It Up – anything goes with die cuts

Peace On Earth – anything goes Christmas

Love To Craft – anything goes

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

12 Months of Christmas Link-up – anything goes Christmas – option of one or two layers not taken

Christmas Bells

Hello everyone. I little lax in posting this past week or so – good weather here in the UK so I made the most of it.

The new challenge at ABC Christmas Challenge has started. Having reached the letters ‘J’ and ‘K’, we want to see your Christmas/festive creations featuring ‘Jingle (bells)’ and/or ‘Kraft’. Here is my card covering both of the themes:

I started by stamping the Tim Holtz bells onto some water–colour card several times with Archival black ink, as I wanted to layer some of the elements.

I then used mica sprays and Distress water-colour pencils to colour in the images. Once they were dry completely, I fussy-cut one whole image, then cut parts of the ribbon from other images and layered them on top.

The background panel was created using Kraft card stock, and stamping a Hero Arts rubber background stamp in a brown ink for a tone-on-tone look. This panel was adhered to the card base, then the bells attached with 3D foam pieces.

The sentiment was stamped, a rectangle die to cut it out, then a ran the brown ink pad along each edge to make it stand out more.

It’s very difficult to photograph the mica – but those bells really do shine.

As a finishing touch, I added glue to the berries then glitter.

I hope you can come and join us with your Christmas/festive creations following one or both of our themes. xx

Addicted To Stamps & More – Christmas

My Time To Craft Christmas – Christmas and use glitter

We Love 2 Create – anything goes mixed media

Creative Artiste – anything goes mixed media

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Shaker Holiday Cheer

Hello everyone. I have a fun Christmas shaker card to share today as The Holly & Ivy Christmas Challenge has started a new challenge – anything goes Christmas. Here is my card:

I used a Tonic Studios shaker pocket to create this. I first cut a panel of red card stock, then adhered the shaker pocket to three sides, added just a small amount of sequins and beads (a lot actually!), then stuck down the last edge.

This shaker panel was then adhered to a white card base.

The frame image is using the Pinkfresh Studio ‘Joy of the Season’ suite, and foiling the image and sentiment in black foil, then using the matching layering stencils to colour them in with a traditional colour pallet. Once die cut, the frame and sentiment were glued to the shaker panel.

I hope you can come and join us with your Christmas creations. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

My Time To Craft Christmas – Christmas and use flowers

Peace On Earth – Anything goes Christmas with optional mood board

Creative Fingers – anything goes

12 Months of Christmas link-up – anything goes Christmas – option of blue and gold not taken

Christmas Bingo – column O – free/sequins/vellum or clear plastic overlay

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Holiday Cheer

Hello. The Holly & Ivy Christmas Challenge has begun a new challenge. The theme is always ‘anything goes Christmas‘. Here is my card:

I started off with a lilac panel, and Pinkfresh Studio cover plate ‘Stitched Pinwheels‘ to the stitched background.

The frame image was hot foiled, then coloured using the matching layering stencils. I went a little darker with the blending for the centre of the larger poinsettias.

Once coloured, I used the matching die to cut it out, and also cut out the sentiment from the same suite – also hot foiled.

The lilac panel was attached to a white card base, the frame image added, then the sentiment, and some gems to add some more interest.

I hope you can come and join us with your Christmas creations. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

My Time To Craft Christmas – Christmas and use foil/foiling

Time Out – choose 2 or more – I chose stencil and florals

Die Cut Divas – die cuts and flowers

Sparkles Forum Christmas – Christmas Foliage

12 Months Of Christmas link up – Christmas anything goes – option of vintage not taken

Snowflake Swirl

Hello once again. It is time for the new challenge at ABC Christmas Challenge. We have reached the letters ‘H’ and ‘I’, and we want to see your Christmas creations following these two themes:

H is for Ho Ho Ho (Santa) and/or I is for Ice

Here is my card for the theme of Ice:

This is quite a clean and simple card for me, with only a few elements, but I do think it makes an impact.

I first die cut the Snowflake swirl die out of silver glitter card stock. This die is from Simon Says Stamp and is quite delicate.

I chose to highlight the die cut with a blue textured piece of card stock from my stash – goodness knows how old this card is – and used two strips of the same silver glitter card to run down each of the side edges.

I added the silver foiled sentiment and some silver gems to the centre if the snowflakes, with some extra for the edge of the sentiment.

I hope you can come and join us with your Christmas creations following one of both of our themes. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Ally’s Angels – anything goes

Crafters Café – anything goes – option of CAS

Christmas (or not) Bingo – column I – free, Christmas, no stamping

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Peace On Earth – anything goes Christmas

12 Months of Christmas Link Up – Christmas – option of vintage not taken

Warm Snowflake Wishes

Hello everyone. The Holly & Ivy Christmas Challenge has started a new challenge. The theme is always ‘anything goes Christmas’ Here is my card:

The background panel is a previously created panel using alcohol inks and water – you have a shallow dish of water big enough to take your card panel, add alcohol inks, stir a little – then place the card on top for a few seconds, lift it up – et voila…..a fabulous card panel. You can use any card – normal 80lbs – so I hope you give it a go.

This was cut down to just smaller than an A2 card base, then adhered flat.

The snowflake is from a Simon Says Stamps die, cut out of white glitter card – and layered with another plain white piece for more stability.

I added the silver foiled sentiment – from Pinkfresh Studio – then added some silver pearls to parts of the snowflake.

I hope you can com and join us and prepare your stash for the end of the year. xx

I shall be entering the following challenges:

Avenue 613 Create – anything goes – option any occasion

Crafts Galore – anything goes

12 Months Of Christmas Link Up – Christmas – option of owls not taken

Aud Sentiments – sentiment – with glitter and bling or St Patrick’s/green

Peace On Earth – anything goes Christmas

Ally’s Angels – anything goes

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – anything goes Christmas

Merry & Bright

Hello there. A new challenge has started at ABC Christmas Challenge, and having reached the letters ‘E‘, ‘F‘, and ‘G‘, we want to see your Christmas creations following these themes:

E is for Embossing and/or F is for Focal Sentiment and/or G is for Girls.

Here is my card following the ‘F is for Focal Sentiment‘:

The background panel was kept simple – a piece of gold glittery card stock – and the sentiment die from Spellbinders layered and added onto the top.

I chose festive colours for the individual letters which would match with the gold glitter. No extra bling was needed here as this Pinkfresh Studio gold glitter card stock really is very, very sparkly.