Christmas cards - refurbished cards for my Mom

 I have refurbished a few dozen Christmas cards for my Mom.  She is now 86 and it takes longer than it used to when she makes cards so I decided to make a few for her to take the pressure off of getting so many done before Christmas.  She likes cards that feature the nativity so I have saved the fronts of commercial cards that have been donated to me for reuse that feature Mary and Jesus for her.  It was a pleasant day in the craft room and it is so good to be able to do a bit for her after all she has done for me.  

We are blessed!!!

Therese

Slow Stitching - trailer journal cover is finished

My Trailer Journal is finally finished.  I have been working on it for a while and it is finally finished.  I used my Teesha Moore inspired patches machine stitched together to make the cover for a composition book to create the journal.  After that, I started adding stitching to all the patches one at a time.  It was great to be able to do any sort of stitching and be inspired by the fabric design as well.  I used embroidery thread in either coordinating or contrasting colours depending on the look I was going for.  It has been a very fun project and I am glad to have such a creative and interesting cover for our trailer journal.  Once we have filled the composition book we simply have to put in a new one and we are good to go!!

This is the front cover.

This is the back cover.

insides     

Below are some close ups of the stitching in the patches.  

Therese

 

Stamping on fabric and another little quilt top

I did some stamping on fabric while working on my little quilt top.  I used a background stamp (Worn- SU) and a dark red permanent ink pad to add a bit of texture to my fabric.  I stamped the strips I had cut for the border.   Worked very well!  I let them dry then ironed them on high to heat set the colour.  I really liked how the texture on the fabric worked with the other fabrics.  

 I started the quilt top with a panel of 2" squares which was already pieced.  I received it in a bag of fabric scraps last summer.  After cutting and stamping my fabric I added a red border around the panel.  I added a strip of gold fabric which I pieced using coordinating fabrics and then added another strip of red which created the proportions I wanted for my quilt.  Next, I cut strips of the golden palm tree fabric and stitched them all the way around.  I really like how it worked out.  I have put it away and am not sure when it will get finished.  I have garden coming in and am looking forward to a trip to go blueberry picking!!

Therese

Thinking of you card featuring a tree die cut opening, a paper scrap collage background and a little layered tag greeting

Another Thinking of you card for another friend who had surgery this past week.  

I started with a large brown card which I created to fit in a large envelope from my stash.  I pieced a collage background from green paper scraps simply using regular tape to secure them together on the back before mounting it to my card.  I die cut a tree (SX) from a rectangle of green cardstock, manually embossed the edges with a distressed embossing folder and added a line of piercing using my tracing wheel.  I mounted gold paper behind the opening before mounting this large focal element to my card front using 3D foam tape.  

I started with a little laser printed font greeting which I colour washed to coordinate with my card then added two pierced lines using my pattern tracing wheel.  I created a tag by layering two tag shapes in two different green cardstock which I had embossed, added my little greeting and then trimmed the edges of it to the side of the tag.  I punched a hole at the top and added a kraft fiber tie then mounted it to my card front using 3D foam tape.  

Therese

Gift wrap created from brown paper and paper napkins using a collage technique

I wanted some unique gift wrap for a wedding gift and decided to make some using a collage technique with brown paper and paper napkins.  I trimmed a piece of brown paper to 24" x 24".  Next I dug through my paper napkin stash and dug out several that included purple and green.  I separated the top layers off and then tore the napkins into pieces - 2" x 3" or so.  I put them on a tray and lay my brown paper on a surface protected with plastic.  I mixed some white glue with some gold glitter glue and added water enough to thin it down to runny.  I started adding the paper napkin pieces to the brown paper by spreading some glue, adding a piece of paper napkin and then adding more glue over the top to seal it.  I continued the process overlapping as I went until the whole surface of the brown paper was covered and I only had a few pieces of napkin left.  I left it to dry for a few hours with a fan/heater blowing over it.  Once it was dry I ironed it flat and trimmed out a 12" 12" piece to use to wrap my gift.  You can see below how nicely it worked for wrapping the gift and I now have all sorts left over to use for backgrounds for cards, etc.  It was so fun to be working on an artsy project using glue and paper!!!!!!   The glitter in the glue gave it just a bit of sparkle which was nice.     Therese

Little flannel chevron quilt

I have finished another little flannel quilt.  I added a border of solid blue around the chevron pattern I created with the half triangle squares.  This one is soft and comfy!!  It is 40" x 49" so would be perfect as a picnic blanket or an extra cover for a child's bed.  

Therese

Thinking of you card featuring a die cut opening of a dragonfly, a pieced collage background of paper scraps and a punchie greeting

We have a friend who had surgery this week after a couple of postponements.  A good thing!! 

I started with a blue card which I created to fit in a large envelope from my stash.  I pieced a paper collage of blue and pink paper scraps for my background and adhered to my card.  Love doing this!!

I attached them using regular tape on the back.  For my focal element I cut a square of blue cardstock, die cut the dragonfly, backed it with foil gift wrap and then added some texture using my pattern tracing wheel before mounting it over my background using 3D foam tape. The greeting was colour printed on gray, layered onto a white circle and then onto a pink scalloped circle (SU).  I pierced all the scallops with a push pin before mounting it to my card using 3D foam tape.  

It will brighten her day!!

Therese

Wedding card featuring embossing, layered hearts and a layered font greeting

A wedding card for our neighbour's son who is getting married in August.  I made them a little gift of cards and wrapped them in a gift wrap I made using a collage technique.  It was fun to be playing with paper and glue!

For this card I started with an aqua card and embossed a layer of white cardstock which I tore in two then trimmed to fit on the front of my card.  I added two lengths of beautiful lace discreetly adhered with a very thin strip of double sided tape.  I adhered the ends to the inside front of my card using double sided tape.  I layered three heart die cuts to create my focal element and adhered it to my card using 3D foam tape.  I layered a laser printed font greeting punchie onto a scalloped oval punchie (SU) in the same cardstock as my card and added it to my card front using 3D foam tape as well.  Wishing them every blessing as they start a new life together!!

Therese

Christmas cards featuring stained glass ornaments, decorative paper and an embossed panel

Having committed to getting my Christmas cards made early this year I have already made more than half of what I need but staying at home has facilitated getting farther ahead so I have made this set of cards.  I cut the ornaments and trees from a sheet of beautiful stained glass glitter paper my sister gave me a while back.  I cut a strip off the large sheet and cut the first three ornaments with one of the dies in the Heirloom Ornament die set from Nestibilities.  From what was left of the strip I cut a round one (Nestibilities) and three little triangle trees.  I wanted to layer my elements on black which worked with the round ornament because I have the double set of the Classic Circles ( Nestiblities) so I was able to cut a black layer for it.  The trees were easy as they are just triangles.  For the teardrop ornaments it required a bit more engineering.  I had created myself a tool for practicing and teaching calligraphy at one point in time by whittling down the sides of two pencils and then tying them together so I could easily demonstrate the proper angle and how the flat nib forms the letters.  I went looking for it and found it!!!!!!!!!  I used it to trace the shape of the ornaments onto black cardstock.  I then fussy cut on the second line which was relatively easy.  Pretty happy with how that worked out and will have to keep that in mind for any other custom layers I might need to make.  I then die cut snowflakes to mount in the centers using a Cuttlebug set which I have not used very often but were the perfect size for these ornaments.  I mounted them to the ornaments using tiny black brads and added little white fabric snowflake in between.  Love how they turned out!!  Next, I created toppers for my ornaments.  I used my scallop decorative scissors to trim the edge of a thin strip of bright silver foil and then trimmed them into segments which would be right for each ornament.  I mounted them to my layered ornaments using white glue applied with a fine tip applicator.  For backgrounds I decided on this funky snowflake paper in my stash which was laser printed a while back from a digital wallpaper file.  I decided to add a layer of embossed silver cardstock between them.  I coloured a length of thick white thread using a permanent marker to create the hangers for my ornaments.  I used different embossing folders for all of them and mounted the silver pieces to the backgrounds and then added the ornaments using 3D foam tape, adhered the thread hangers to the back of the background paper using regular tape and then mounted these large elements to coordinating card fronts.  I punched silver foil stars for my trees and mounted them with the silver strip as a backdrop.  I added a small black snowflake and then a white fabric one to one of the trees to make it stand out.  I decided against greetings as they seemed to be balanced without them.  So another few cards to add to the stash!!         Therese

Birthday card featuring a scrapbook paper collage background, one of my digital images and an epoxy sticker

I made this card for my sister for her birthday coming up soon.  I started with a large envelope and created a blue card to fit inside.  I used scraps of decorative paper to create a collage for my background.  I used regular tape to attach them to each other on the back and then trimmed it to fit on my card front and then adhered it in place.  I have a supply of epoxy stickers from a ways back and found them the other day looking for something else.  I thought I should see if I can use them up so I added one to this card.  It is a blue image that looks like a postage stamp and says "Rest and Relaxation" on the bottom.  I mounted it to a little blue rectangle of cardstock that coordinated with my back ground.  I watercoloured my floral image - a digital doodle that I create a while back - mounted it to yellow then to blue cardstock.  I ran my tracing wheel on the four sides of my greeting before mounting it to blue as well.  I played with the layout of my elements til I was happy with it and then adhered all the elements in place on my card front to finish it off.  Very happy with how it turned out and will be creating more collage backgrounds with scraps.              Therese

Anniversary card featuring die cut hearts, shimmery paper and cardstock and some lace

The last of my family cards for July!!  For my youngest daughter and her husband for their anniversary.  I found several heart die cuts in my stash and added several shimmery pearl hearts to go with them. I chose a large envelope and made a dark purple card to fit inside.  I cut a piece of dark purple shimmery paper to fit on the front with an even border.  I used my fingers to manually emboss this layer with a bit of texture using a texture plate.  It is not visible in the photo and some of the texture was smoothed out in the process of gluing it to the front of my card.  It still had enough to break up the expanse of the shimmery paper which is what I wanted.  I mounted the hearts on the top portion of my card.  I added a piece of lace to the lower section and added a small oval greeting punchie.  I have really enjoyed stretching my boundaries and trying new sketches and ideas for my July cards!!

Therese

Christmas cards featuring red foil backgrounds, black ribbon and laser printed digital nativity images

For my last set of cards I used some red metallic gift wrap with a swirly pattern adhered to black card fronts.  For my images, I used clear glitter gel pen on the stars and halos and watercolour on the cradles and baby. I added black ribbon between the greeting and images and tiny small confetti stars next to the greetings.  On the first one I layered it onto silver foil before adhering to my card front and on the second one I used a round corner punch before adhering to my card using 3D foam tape. 

Happy to have another set of card made for this Christmas season! It has been wonderful to have time to get cards made without having to cram it between everything else.  A blessing!!

Therese

Birthday card featuring torn background paper, a stamped vellum in a frame and a little bird punchie

Another July card - this one for my Mom for her birthday!  Blue is her favorite colour so I always try to incorporate it in her cards.  I started with a large white card I created to fit in a large envelope from my stash.  I found a file folder with some ephemera from a swap a while back.  I found this blue background which was created with masking tape which was the right colour.  I trimmed it and then tore it in two.  I adhered the two pieces to the top and bottom of my card leaving a gap in between.  I used my rectangle Nestibiities to cut an opening in a piece of blue cardstock and then trimmed it to be a frame.  I cut a piece of vellum to fit behind the frame and stamped a twig wreath on it with silver pigment ink and then embossed it with clear embossing powder.  It gave a very subtle look which worked very well for my layout.  I adhered the vellum to the frame and then mounted the frame to my card front.  I added a little bird to the middle of the wreath.  I punched it from decorative paper, added the beak detail and then used a tiny black brad to create its eye.  I punched the wing and embossed it as well.  I assembled the bird and mounted it over the vellum with 3D foam tape.  To finish off my card, I added a sponged punchie greeting on the bottom edge of the frame.  Really like how this card worked out and I am enjoying using supplies and tools which have not be on my "go-to" list in quite a while.  FUN!!!!!   Therese   

A long strip of 2.5" squares

I started with a bowl full of scraps - mostly 2.5" square sewn in twos.  Fortunately, they were mostly coordinating so I just kept sewing them together trying to avoid getting the same fabric to be too close to another one of the same and sprinkling a few lights in among the other colours.  I am very happy with my long strip of little squares. I have over 60 feet!!!!!!  I will see about how I can incorporate them into a quilt top.  I expect there are several ways and it will be good to include some solid fabric to provide some contrast as well.  Therese

Christmas cards featuring metallic background paper, ribbon and a digital nativity image

For this set of cards I chose a metallic gift wrap featuring holly for my backgrounds.  

For my first card, I layered the background to a red card front.  I used a clear glitter gel pen on the star and the baby's halo and a bit of watercolour on the cradle and baby.  I added a silver ribbon and a tiny star confetti next to the font greeting.  I layered some red and green cardstock to create a layer for my image and then mounted it to a crinkled foil.  I simply ripped the edge of the foil for an organic look before mounting the image onto my card front using 3D foam tape.

For my second card, I added a length of ribbon to my card after adhering the background using double sided tape to adhere the ends to the inside front of my green card base. The nativity image has the star and the halo finished with clear glitter gel pen, the cradle and baby with watercolour and silver ribbon and tiny confetti near the font greeting.  I layered it onto red cardstock before adhering to my card front using 3D foam tape.     Therese

Birthday card featuring colour printed background and greeting with star embellishments

Another July birthday card!!  For this one I started with a large black card I created to fit in a large envelope from my stash.   I auditioned two pieces of blue background paper (colour printed) and two lengths of star embossed white cardstock.  Once I was happy with the layout I adhered them in place.  I tore the edges of this colour printed birthday greeting which I downloaded from CLKER and mounted it in the middle of my collage using 3D foam tape.  I punched two different sizes of stars from this beautiful blue adhesive backed vinyl.  I applied them in an all over pattern until I was happy with the layout.  I added "stars" in the black background by using a clear glitter gel pen to make dots in all the visible black areas .  It was fun to create this card and do something I have not done before.         Therese

Christmas cards featuring metallic paper backgrounds, digital nativity images and silver accents

For this set of cards I used a blue and silver brocade gift wrap for my background and navy card bases.  

For my first card, I added a silver ribbon across my card after adhering the background to the card base.  The nativity image was laser printed, trimmed and then embellished with clear clear gel pen on the star, halo and cradle, a bit of watercolour on the baby and background.  I added silver ribbon between the image and the greeting and a little tiny star confetti to the right of the greeting.  I layered this onto dark blue cardstock and then mounted it to my card front.  

For my second card, I watercoloured the background, the cradle and the baby.  I used a clear glitter gel pen on the star and halo.  I added ribbon between the greeting and image and a small tiny silver confetti star below it.  I layered my image onto crinkled foil and then mounted this focal element to my card using 3D foam tape.          Therese

Christmas cards featuring glittered musical paper, foil and a laser printed digital nativity image

For my next two cards, I started with the musical scrapbook paper which has a iridescent glittery finish for my backgrounds.  

For my first card, I layered the background onto a dark brown card front.  I used shimmery gold watercolour on the star, a bit of watercolour on the cradle and the baby and a clear glitter gel pen on the baby's halo. I added a gold ribbon between the nativity and the font greeting and then layered it onto gold foil before adhered this focal element to my card using 3D foam tape.  

For my second card, I used silver shimmery watercolour on the star and then added a silver star confetti over it using a tiny silver brad.  A bit of watercolour on the baby and the cradle, silver gel pen on the halo and a silver ribbon between the greeting and the image.  Added a tiny silver star confetti next to the greeting before layering it onto a green foil.  I added a white/iridescent ribbon to the background before adhering it to a blue green card front.  Used 3D foam tape to adhere the nativity image to the front of my card.          Therese

Christmas card featuring a wax resist background, a sponged nativity digital image and some fiber

I was printing images for a couple of card kits the other day and thought I should get started on another set of Christmas cards so I printed several of this nativity from Cre8tive Hands.  

For this card, I dug through my stash of backgrounds and found this one which is a wax resist I made a while back.  White paper was placed over a snowflake embossing folder and clear wax was rubbed over the surface and then purple/blue watercolour was applied.  Love that technique!!  I adhered it to a purple card base.  I sponged the background of the nativity using purple ink and a torn edge of paper as a mask while masking the inside of the stable to highlight the baby Jesus.  I used a clear glitter gel pen on the star, a bit of watercolour on the baby and cradle and tied on a piece of purple fiber between the image and the font greeting using a double knot.  I added a tiny silver star confetti next to the greeting using a small piece of glue dot.  I layered the image onto a silver rectangle of metallic gift wrap before adhering this focal element to the front of my card with 3D foam tape. 

It is great to get back to Christmas cards and staying on track with my commitment to get my cards made before December.           Therese

Two all occasion cards featuring butterflies die cut from masterboard, embossing and metallic paper

I continue to make cards from the masterboard I created a while back.  I cut a peach cardstock layer the same size as the piece of masterboard (3 5/8" x 4.25") I had trimmed from my letter sized masterboard . I had to use a small cutting plate (broken piece) to avoid cutting more than the butterfly from my large Sizzix die (butterfly and dragonfly).  I was reasonably successful with two passes.  I embossed the peach pieces - a butterfly and a layer with a butterfly opening with two different embossing folders.  I die cut some bodies from black paper, trimmed them and adhered them to the butterflies.  I swapped the butterflies and then attached them into the openings using two pieces of regular tape on the back - one on the head and the other on the tail.  This allows the wings to be pulled up to give dimension to the card.  

For my first card, I trimmed my large focal element with the butterfly to 4", added scraps of the same cardstock as the butterfly to the top and bottom edge using regular tape and then two small strips of black paper to each edge.  I adhered this large element to the front of a kraft card.  

For my second card, I trimmed my butterfly focal element to 4", added two pieces of turquoise cardstock embossed with the same embossing folder - Swiss Dots - CB to the top and bottom.  I punched a long strip of gold metallic using the Ribbon border punch - SU, trimmed it into two and mounted these over where the two pieces join.  I trimmed the border to the edge of the layer and adhered this large element to the front of an ivory card.  

Therese