Give a girl the right paper...

Another day of Christmas card making and once again finding super easy ways to get those cards finished in time to mail them out!  I'm well on my way now!

As I was thinking of a title for this post, I thought about how perfect certain papers are.  Sometimes I can see a paper and immediately know what to do with it.  They can make scrapbook pages as easy as matting a photo and adding it to a gorgeous background.  Some can be the inspiration for a perfect 3D or repurposing project.  And others just scream "Buy me and I'll make really cute cards really fast!"  I love it when paper talks to me!!

Over the summer, I was in our LSS and came across just this kind of paper.  There were fun, vintage images already in 3x4 rectangles just waiting to be cut apart.  I also found some coordinating red and green paper to finish them off perfectly.  Then I promptly brought them home and forgot about them.  My recent cleaning reminded me of them and I got busy.  Some of the images were so great, I didn't even mat them.  I just grabbed some embossing folders to add a little texture and tada! Instant cards!!

I felt just like Cinderella with the right pair of shoes...or maybe Dorothy with her ruby slippers... either way-it just proves that if you give a girl the right item, she can get things done!

Aren't those images just the best?!  I'm almost positive these were Simple Stories, but since I tossed the end strips I can't be 100% sure.  

Well, I'm back to work this week and going to do my best to carve out some creative time, so hopefully I'll have a few scrapbook pages in the future.  I do have more cards to share, but they'll have to wait for another day!

 

Merry Monday (and not a minute too soon!)

Hello!  While I am not nearly ready for Christmas, I am ready to get those cards going so I'm not rushing around at the last minute!  If all the rest of my cards are as easy and quick as today's I'll be done in no time!

I recently purchased a sheet of paper that had 12 3x4 blocks on it and they were absolutely perfect for making Christmas cards.  I know I made a pledge to use up my stash, but if it helps me get cards created quickly so I can make more pages, well...guess I just had to make the sacrifice! Ha!

I found that some of the blocks worked better with different shades of green, red, or blue, but once I had that figured out, it literally took me minutes to emboss the base and glue the layers together. Easy peasy! There were two blank frames that I stamped with sentiments, but other than the embossing, there really wasn't much to do.  Sometimes it's nice to have pretty papers do all the work for you!

So now I have 12 cards in my Christmas stash.  That's not nearly enough, but it's a start!  Thanks so much for stopping by today. I promise my next MM will have a little more effort put into it!  Have a wonderful week and I hope you find some time to be creative too!

Flashback Friday- Surprise!!

Do not adjust your monitor! I am really here with a Flashback Friday again!!!  I am really trying to keep up with my Christmas card making so I'm not freaking out mid December!  So I pulled out some retired Snow Festival dsp.  One of my favorite sheets from this set is the various images placed perfectly in squares.  It is soooo easy to make cards with this and I didn't use a single stamp on these!!  So easy that I managed to make 4 cards in one short sitting!

Another flashback item- Baja Breeze seam binding

Like I said, these were incredibly simple, but I think they turned out pretty cute!  I hope I've inspired you to dig into some of your older supplies and make something new too! Have a wonderful weekend and happy crafting!

Card Recipe:  Paper-Snow Festival, gumball green, primrose petals, soft suede, Accessories- Petals a Plenty embossing folder, Baja breeze seam binding, gumball green stitched satin ribbon, vintage faceted button

Glitter and Framelits, and Folders...OH MY!

So, are my fellow American crafters still eating turkey?  As much as I love Thanksgiving, I think I've had enough turkey to last me till next year!! 

I'm busy trying to get our house ready for Christmas and the girls are 'working' on cleaning out their closets and reducing their inventory of stuff in their room!  Not sure they will be finished by Christmas eve...

Today I'm sharing the last card from my stamp club.  What would a Christmas card be without glitter, framelits, and embossing folders?? The colors are not what I would normally use, but I decided to use the color coach to add some variety!  I really like the colors together!

When the Holiday catalog came out, I was instantly drawn to the set Evergreen.  I love the two step stamping giving so many options!! I spritzed the main image with vanilla shimmer smooch, but of course that doesn't photograph nearly as shimmery in person.

I was having some trouble with the bottle of smooch trying to clog up and stick.  It was getting quite frustrating trying to use it, but then I remembered the new Stampin' Spritzer bottles that were waiting for a purpose.  I emptied the contents of the vanilla smooch into the spritzer bottle and it worked like a champ! Now I have to be careful not to saturate my card when spraying...

I hope you are still managing to find plenty of crafting time during this busy season!  I'm sure trying to squeeze in as much time as possible!!  Have a wonderful rest of the week and happy crafting!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-pink pirouette, soft suede, whisper white, Stamp Set-Evergreen, Ink-certainly celery, soft suede, Accessories-dazzling details, vanilla shimmer smooch, perfect polka dots folder, Petals a Plenty folder, Labels framelits, big shot

Flashback Friday-Merry Monday #4

I am on quite the roll with the Christmas cards!! I hate to admit, but I'm actually enjoying this!  I thought being limited to two packs of DSP would drive me batty, but it has actually made things easier.  Of course, there is still the temptation to dig into one of the newer packs...must be strong...

Today's card is based on sketch #4 from Merry Monday.  Sorry for the shadowy pictures... I waited a bit to long to try and take pictures outside...

and I even decorated the inside!!

My next project is making a 6x6 Christmas album.  I'm thinking that will just about finish off my Merry Moments paper (sniff...).  Only a few more days before my July preorder for the Holiday goodies!!!!

Well, that's it for me today! Another busy weekend with little time for craftiness... good thing there's still over a month of summer vacation left!  Have a wonderful weekend and happy crafting!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-real red, very vanilla, Merry Moments DSP (ret), Ink-real red, chocolate chip, soft suede, Stamp Sets- Snow Swirled, Tags Til Christmas, Accessories- petals a plenty folder, ornament punch, photo corner punch (ret), decorative label punch

Flashback Friday- It's almost gone!

I am so happy to say that I have almost used up 2 packages of Christmas DSP! Woo! Hoo! As an added bonus, I actually have a few Christmas cards too!! Yea, Me! (sorry...too much Disney channel...)  My oldest DD looked at my cards yesterday and asked "Christmas? Already?"  She is quite the procrastinator as well, and was in complete awe when I told her that some people make them year round! That's my girl!!

So I have finished sketch #3 from Merry Monday.  I took a little liberty with the sketch and turned the base but kept the elements the same to fit my stamp. I also pulled out one of my favorite Christmas stamp sets.  Sadly, it hasn't seen ink in over a year since I didn't use it for last year's Christmas cards.

It was a little odd making Christmas cards inside and then going out into the sweltering heat to watch the girls play ball!  Sort of like being in a time warp...wait...maybe that's just my life!

Hope you have a marvelous weekend and happy crafting!

Card Recipe: Cardstock-real red, very vanilla, Merry Moments DSP, Ink-crumb cake, soft suede (distressing), Stamp Set-Miracle of Christmas, Accessories-Petals a Plenty folder, pear pizzazz seam binding (ret), linen thread, vanilla shimmer smooch