When I sat down to make my August Christmas cards, I had a rough idea of what I wanted to do. I made one card with that plan and decided that wasn't it. The card turned out okay (I added it to my Christmas card stash), but it just wasn't what I had pictured, and the process took me longer than I thought it would. So instead I went a completely different direction and ended up with a group of very clean and simple note cards featuring a little winter scene.
I used the Snow Front stamp set (Stampin' Up!) for the images and the Tiny Words Christmas set (Simon Says Stamp) for the little sentiment on the bottom. I think these watercolor-style scene-building sets are so fun, but I often have trouble putting the images together in a way I like. So for these cards I did an online search to get some ideas, and the card that most inspired me was made by Shelly Godby. I kept the placement of the mountains and trees but switched up the other elements a little -- and I especially loved the little red cardinal perched on the sentiment.
Once I decide on a layout, cards like this are very quick to stamp -- I simply choose one image (I started with the mountains) and stamp that on every card. Then I clean off that stamp and move to the next image. You could use a stamp positioner for the stamping if you want to, but I just used clear blocks because it was faster, and it didn't really matter if the placement was exactly the same on every card. With the stamping done, I simply added three sequins to each card for a subtle sparkle. (Well, they're not exactly sequins because they don't have a hole, but I'm not sure what the correct term is. Confetti? Anyway, actual sequins, or any other embellishment, would work just as well.)
I made ten of these cards, so I think that brings my total for the year up to 68 Christmas cards. Woohoo! I'll have to make a list of card recipients to be sure, but I shouldn't need too many more than that. So maybe I'll just do one more small batch in September and then be done. Of course, that's when a lot of the stamp companies start coming out with their new holiday products. Oh, well. If I end up buying any holiday goodies and not using them, they can be first up when I start the process over again in January!
Thanks for stopping by!
6 comments:
These are fabulous, Andrea!!! I love them!!! And great job working on your Christmas cards way in advance---instead of waiting until the last minute like I seem to do each year ;) I bet it makes the holiday season so much less crazy and stressful. I should make a resolution to try that next year :) Thanks for the inspiration!
Oh these are so lovely! Yes, I LOVE that little red Cardinal too! He looks perfect on the sentiment! I like the placement of all the things on these cards, I did look at Shellys cards, but prefer your placement of trees etc.
I have some of those 'sequins' without holes too, no idea what they really are!
Great job Andrea:-)
Hugs from Sunshine xx
Thanks, Lisa! It is nice to have Christmas cards made when the holidays roll around. But I always forget how long it takes to write them out and address them!
Thank you, Sunshine! There are actually two little cardinal images in that stamp set, so I used the second image to stamp on the sentiment inside the card. :)
Love these - the colors, the peaceful scene, all perfect. And how great to have cards for the holiday season almost done before it's even fall?!
Judy
Thanks, Judy! I always love a holiday card with a nice peaceful scene!
Post a Comment