Wednesday 8 January 2020

One Can Never Start Too Early

Hello Crafty Friends!

Today I'm sharing a couple of projects made for January's Christmas In The Air feature over at STAMPlorations. In this special feature Nancy and I are sharing a couple of Christmas projects each on the 2nd Wednesday in January, March and May. You can never start too early making Christmas cards. That way you won't be caught out, at least that's what I've decided to do this year.


I thought I'd start with sharing a couple of one-layer cards, perfect for sending abroad and overseas.

First up is a card with a stencilled holly border.


The inspiration for this card came from my chosen sentiment 'Have a jolly holly Christmas'. It was perfect for a stencilled holly background. My latest toy for blending ink, little eyeshadow applicator brushes, would come in handy too.

I first masked off the strip, positioned the Holly Background Mini Stencil and taped it down.


Next I chose 2 shades of green, 2 shades of red, 1 shade of yellow and simply used the brushes to blend my inks through my stencil ...


... and around the holly before removing the masking tape. I ended up with a nice decorative strip. The stamped sentiment finished my card off perfectly.

TIP!: For a different look, try moving the stencilled strip to the top of the card front and/or change the position of the sentiment.


Next up is my second card featuring a little pencil coloured Elf.


This little elf was so delicate that I felt a CAS card would be the best way to help it take center stage.

To colour the elf I used metallic pencils. Their subtle shimmer adds some extra interest interest as it catches the light. Sadly the shimmer doesn't show up in photos, but looks pretty on the card. A few stencilled stars and stamped sentiment finished my card off.


I decided to stamp my sentiment towards the top of my card front for a more balanced look. I felt it would look too heavy right next to the elf.


Pop over to the STAMPlorations Blog to check out the lovely projects my teamie Nancy made. The Christmas In The Air feature also doubles up as a mini blog hop. Shery will randomly draw one winner of a $15 gift code from all the comments left on the Christmas In The Air posts on the STAMPlorations Blog, on Nancy's log and on my blog.


Have fun hopping along.
hugs
Monika xxx


here is what I used from the STAMPlorations Shop

Holly Background Mini Stencil, Christmas Elf, Oh, My Stars! Mini Stencil
preview-web-stencil-holly-background-mini  preview-web-stencil-oh-my-stars-mini

19 comments:

  1. Beautiful stenciling! I love that elf!

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  2. Very cute elf. Lovely cards. Hugz

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  3. Super sweet and festive cards! Love your clean designs and use of stencils.

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  4. These are awesome! I like your idea of getting a stash built up for this year! I'm doing the same!

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  5. I love the painted holly border and the sentiment.
    Great start for Christmas 2020!

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  6. Cute cards, and a great start for the festive season!

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  7. Wonderful cards for the upcoming Christmas season. I can see where those little stencils are a great asset too.

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  8. Oh my goodness...I love your cards!! That first card is fantastic! I love the painted border with the stencil!

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  9. Great start for
    next year and the
    cards are darling!
    Carla from Utah

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  10. I like the holly border on the first card and the cute elf and stars on the second.

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  11. Great idea for building a stash. Just one card a week, creates almost 50 cards for next Christmas! Thanks for the inspiration.

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  12. That is so true, Monika! And I love your CASlicious designs which are easy to mail!! Hugs, Darnell

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  13. Fun cards. Love the pretty stencil work. I tend to make Christmas cards all year long so that I have plenty to give away!

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  14. Two fabulous cards! I LOVE what you did with the stenciled strip; it looks awesome!

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  15. I like how you kept the cards clean and simple. The stenciling on the bottom looks fabulous!

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  16. Love your gorgeous stencil work on the holly card. Very pretty! And that elf is adorable.

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  17. Cute cards! I love making Christmas cards all year long! Great inspiration!

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Thanks so much for stopping by. Your comments are very much appreciated. Have a lovely day! Hugs XXX