Icy Christmas Ornaments

This week I had read through all of the Christmas challenges to see what I should make and as I created, I eventually realized I had combined five challenges for a change. The Jingle Belles challenged us to emboss so I planned on using both dry and heat embossing. This lovely photo at Winter Wonderland was my inspiration for heat embossing some ornaments in shades of purple and silver.

After I embossed three ornaments and cut them out, I looked for an appropriate sketch. The best sketch was actually the one from 52 Christmas Card Throwdown this week, although I flipped it vertically.

Crafty Hazelnuts Christmas Challenge was to use stripes, so I selected a remnant of some My Mind's Eye paper from several years ago that went well with the purple and snow theme. The last challenge was ABC Christmas Challenge - I for Icy. Besides embossing three of the papers with different Cuttlebug snowflake embossing folders, I stamped icy drips with Versamark and embossed with silver powder, cut them out, attached portions in three places the way icicles form, and covered them with glitter gel. My thanks goes out to all of the lovely ladies who inspired my card with their challenge ideas and artwork!

Challenges:
Jingle Belles - Embossing around the Christmas tree
Winter Wonderland - photo inspiration (used pruple colors, ornaments, overlapping, and silver)
52 Christmas Card Throwdown - Sketch 5
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #71 - Stripes
ABC Christmas Challenge - I for Icy

6.5" x 5" Christmas Card Recipe:
Paper - My Mind's Eye; Close To My Heart Petal, Colonial White, Plum Mist, and Smoky Plum cardstocks
Stamps - Close To My Heart  Tannenbaum (sentiment), Holiday Trinkets, Adorn-able (ornaments), (wooden ornament stamp from LSS unknown)
Ink - Versamark,  Pansy Purple
Other - CTMH Pansy Purple and Silver embossing powders, Glitz glitter gel; Cuttlebug Snow Dots embossing folder and two others unknown, silver cord and ribbon from Michaels

Joy to the World with Pure Innocence

I haven't made a Christmas card for a while, so it's about time. There are three challenges that go together really well this week. When I saw that Crimbo Crackers Challenge #14 was ANGELS, I knew it was time to use my Pure Innocence angel from Heather Ellis. Winter Wonderland's challenge this week is Here Come the Girls, so it's perfect for girl angels. Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #70 is to use any sentiment without the word "Christmas." So let heaven and nature sing, Joy to the World!

I used the CPS Sketch #263 which provided the extra room my angel needed for her horn and a bird.
I knew some glittery snowflake paper would be great in the middle with white embossed snowflake panels on each side.

I added aqua blue sparkles on each side of the sentiment and bitty clear sparkles on the center of each embossed snow circle. The angel's halo is also glittered with a Sakura glitter gel pen.

Thanks for the inspiritng challenges!! May the message of Christ's birth bring you joy all year long!

Clean and Simple Joy to the World

Here's one of my very simple Christmas cards using Unscripted Sketch #153 for this week, Crafty Hazelnut's White challenge #67 (I used snowflakes), and Less is More Week #62 Colour Challenge - three shades of green.

I used two different snow embossing folders, Close To My Heart papers and one green patterned paper from Basic Grey. The Sentiment was stamped with CTMH New England Ivy using Just for the Holidays.

The Spirit of Christmas All Year

I spent today at the memorial service with a dear friend whose husband just passed away. We've been friends for 50 years, a really long time. Other classmates that I see occassionally or rarely were there. It fills your heart with a mixture of joy and sadness. Joy in seeing the strength of friendships in the healing process and still sadness, wishing I could take away some of the pain. And yet, this friend, always the cheerleader for us all, had that same radiance. Surely it was because she knew where her husband is and thankful for the time they had.

I used the sketch from Stampin Sisterhood challenge #12, the Christmas Card ChallengeWeek #13 to include music, and Craftyhazelnut's Christmas Challenge #62 to use red.

I had planned all day to make this Christmas card today for special challenges. When I selected the sentiment, I realized a little more of it's meaning. "May the Spirit of Christmas warm your heart all year long." All year means even today, even during the sad or difficult times. The joy of sharing, giving, caring should be year-round.  The minister talked about the gift of Jesus for us all. I chose this Christmas Carol for these words that I'm whispering as a prayer, personalizing it for my friend:

I love Thee Lord Jesus, look down from the sky
And stay by my (friend's) side 'til morning is nigh

Be near her Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
Close by her forever and love her, I pray
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
And take us to heaven to live with Thee there

ABC Christmas with 52(Christmas) Card Throwdown

We've had a lot of warm weather this winter. This week I've been scrapbooking photos from three Februarys ago when we had a 70 degree day in Kansas City. My three grandsons were playing in short sleeves on the playground. I took a million photos in the two hours I watched them play, so I still had a few I hadn't scrapbooked. It was a marvelous day, but tomorrow we'll have single-digit temperatures in the morning. Just the right time to make a few Christmas cards. ABC Christmas Challenge Blog is on the letter "C" for adding charms. I used the great sketch #2 from 52 (Christmas) Card Throwdown and paper-pieced an ornament for the card.

I love the way this ornament is cut out on the Cricut using the Art Philosophy cartridge. Then you stamp the die cut with the coordinating stamp. I'm entering this card in Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge to use die cuts. The stamp set tells on the clear carrier sheet what size to cut out each image. Of course, I stamped the ornament the second time in Cranberry and cut it out, and glued it in place over the green image. I outlined some of the features on the bird before cutting him out.

5.25" x 5.25" card:
Paper - Close To My Heart - "Mistletoe" paper collection
Stamps - CTMH - A Holiday (sentiment), (ornament -Nov. 2011 constant campaign special)
Ink - CTMH Black, New England Ivy, Cranberry
Other -heart charm and ribbon unknown from my "stash", CTMH Cranberry marker to outline bird features, sponge