CHRISTMAS THANK YOU

At the Card A Day Blog we are showing examples of "Christmas Thank You" cards this week.  I wanted to stay in the spirit of Christmas, but I didn't want my card to be too 'Christmas-y' looking.  So, I used a little gold and a lot of flourish, and came up with a tasteful, but quick-to-make card.

I started by choosing the stamp for the sentiment.  I knew I wanted something with a little bit of the flourish I was planning, and a Just Rite 'Be Happy' set provided the perfect stamp.  I used my favorite Versafine 'Onyx Black' ink for stamping.

I used a die set from Spellbinders to cut the layering pieces.  You should be able to see some embossing in some of the photos.

I chose black and white for the wonderful contrast and the formal look.   The die cut pieces are layered using foam tape and mounted on a patterned paper backed with solid black.  The gold card stock is from Stampin' Up and the solid black as well as the patterned paper are from Recollections.

The whole layered piece was then affixed using my Scotch ATG to a solid white Georgia Pacific card base.  You can see the dimension a bit better in the next photo.

As you can see, a quick and easy, but still very elegant design.

Thank you so very much for your visit!  I'll see you again soon.

'Til next time.....

Big HUGS!!!
CHRISTINE

Shining Star

Welcome!!  For my post this week for the Card A Day Blog I've designed a super quick and easy Christmas card.  Our theme this week is 'Christmas Ornaments.'  Just to be very clear, we're not making actual ornaments, although the card could have an element that can be removed and used as an ornament.  We are definitely featuring cards that include ornaments.  It could be an ornament-shaped card or it can be any shape card featuring one or more ornaments in the design, be they stamped, die cut, sticker or whatever.  So, here is my offering:

I was going through my collection of dies looking for my wreaths and ornaments.  That was my original idea.  I came upon this wintery frame, and knew immediately what my card would look like.  The frame has embossed snowflakes in the design as well as the snowflake-looking cuts around the outside.

I decided to use a pearly white cardstock for the frame, and mount it on a navy blue background.  I used a frosty white ink and an opaque white pen to create a snowy look.  The star ornament was cut from a scrap of sparkly holographic wrapping paper which was first glued to cardstock for stability.

I think the embossing on the frame shows up pretty well in the photos, but not so well in the star which is a star within a star.  I used a bright cherry red embroidery floss to attach the ornament to the frame, tied a double bow and then affixed everything with foam tape.  Here are some angled pics to show the dimension.

                                                 

 I did consider leaving the star free-floating, but I didn't intend for it to be removed so I used the foam tape so keep it stable and show off the bow a bit better.  And that's it!  Really quick.  I haven't done the inside yet, thinking I would wait until I know who will receive the card, but I do believe the greeting will be done directly on the dark card base using white embossing powder.

One of the nice things about this card is that even though there is dimension, it is still very flat for mailing.  The remaining details are few:

           Paper:  Gina K Designs "In the Navy"
           Ink:  Color Box "Frost White" pigment
           Pen:  Inkssentials "Opaque White"

Thanks, as always, for stopping by today.  'Til next time.....

Big HUGS!!
CHRISTINE

A Christmas Bouquet

Welcome!!  I'm so happy you've come to visit.  As today's designer for the Card A Day Blog I have a fun gift card holder to show you for our theme of Christmas Gift Cards.  I had seen some variations on this card style some time ago, so I knew right away what my design would be.  Now, if you have a good imagination you might see some poinsettias, but if you're like me you'll see a pretty pot filled with lovely Christmas-y red flowers.

Let's start with the empty flower pot.  I wanted my card to fit into a standard A2 sized envelope so I had a bit of figuring to do.  I cut the single sided patterned card stock at 8 1/4" x 4 1/2".  It could have been wider, but I wanted the card to look balanced.  Any wider would just look strange.  I scored at 1 1/8" from either end and right in the center at 4 1/8".  I folded the piece in half, then tapered the two sides, leaving tabs on the front to attach the front and back together.  The two scored ends are folded to the outside creating the rim of the flower pot.  I taped the ends down lightly; then secured them with a pretty red ribbon.  You could also cover the white with different paper as desired.

For the actual card holder, I used a coordinating piece of card cut at 4" x 3 3/4" with the design side to the back, and the top corners rounded.  I used an old gift card to measure for the corners that would hold the new gift card, and made the corners from a scrap of green card.  I used the same green for the die cut leaves and several red scraps to die cut the flowers.

I layered the flowers using liquid glue, then affixed them with thin foam tape.  I added the leaves, some pearls for the centers, and, just for fun, a little white dove.  I was careful when placing the flowers not to let them overlap the top edge too much (needing the keep to the 4 1/4" card size), and to be sure the card went easily into the base.  Here's a photo with the gift card inserted:

You can see the 'flower pot' next to the insert.  Here is a closer look at the flowers:

All you do is insert the gift card and slip that piece into the base 'flower pot'.  A greeting or signature can be written on the card before the gift card is inserted.

So that's it.  You can easily adjust the sizes if you want a bigger bunch of flowers, as well as changing up your papers and colors for any season.  By the way, this was another card created entirely from scraps!  This time I didn't even plan it that way; the right sized pieces just happened to be right where I needed them.

I hope you'll have lots of fun making your gift card holders, and thank you so very much for stopping by today!!

'Til next time.....

Big HUGS!
CHRISTINE