ABC CHRISTMAS -- Y IS FOR YOUR FAVORITE COLORS, AND Z IS FOR ZOO ANIMALS

 Hello, and welcome back to my blog!  I am a bit late with my ABC Christmas Challenge blog post this month, as I was behind on getting Christmas cards sent out, and on getting some ornaments made for my coworkers.  BUT, that is all done now, so here we go!  This month's letters are:

Y is for Your Favorite Colors

 and

Z is for Zoo Animals

 What my favorite colors are can depend on the day, or the mood I'm in, so I chose to create a card with a zoo animal as the focus:

EEEEEEEEE, isn't this little polar bear just so cute?!?!?!  I love that this image can be used all winter as well, since it doesn't really scream "CHRISTMAS."  I sized the image in my Silhouette software so I could die cut it with a Spellbinders Classic Square die.  I matted the image panel with a deckled edge square die that I inked with Weathered Wood oxide ink to match the blue gray in the image.  That was then matted onto another deckled square panel that I ran through a 3D snowflake embossing folder.  My only wish is that I had started out by making the image panel smaller, so I could have more of a border with the snowflake layer.  Maybe next time!  I adhered the image panel and the gray panel flat but popped up the snowflake panel on thin foam tape.  I will most likely add my sentiment to the inside of the card, since I hate to ruin the aesthetics of it. 😊

Be sure to head over to the ABC Christmas Challenge blog, if you haven't already, to see the rest of the DT gorgeous inspiration.  I saw earlier that there were already many cards in the linky, so make sure you add yours in as well!

Until next time, take care! 

💗💗 ~ Marie 💗💗

LAST-MINUTE INSPIRATION FROM THE NOVEMBER 2024 RELEASE AT A COLORFUL LIFE DESIGNS -- NOV 30, 2024

 Hello, crafty friends!  I'm back on the blog today to share my last 2 cards for the November 2024 release at A Colorful Life Designs.  These cards both feature the Geometric Christmas Duo 6x9 stencil. 

**Use my code MarieFan10 to save on your complete order when you shop!**

The purple card was created by (carefully!) smooshing Versamark ink through the stencil and heat embossing with Ranger's Holographic embossing powder.  I added the panel to a panel of my favorite white glitter cardstock from Walmart's Pen & Gear brand.  To finish this simple card, I added a layered die cut "merry" sentiment, with the top layer also coming from that white glitter cardstock.  I replaced the star on the stencil with a puffy-looking star gem from my stash.

Now, the second card, which is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE of all the cards I made for this month's release, was inspired by the incomparable Laura Bassen's Christmas rainbow.  I binge watched a few of her related videos to make sure I was getting the proper Christmas rainbow colors, and I think I did a good job!  I ink blended the tree shape with the following oxide inks:

Spun Sugar

Picked Raspberry

Lumberjack Plaid

Carved Pumpkin 

Mustard Seed

Lucky Clover

Mowed Lawn

Rustic Wilderness

The star was ink smooshed with Versamark and heat embossed with gold tinsel embossing powder.  I felt like the edges of the card needed something, so I did more smooshing with the Versamark and heat embossed with the same gold tinsel embossing powder.  The sentiment was die cut from Recollections gold foil paper using Honey Bee Stamps' Bitty Buzzwords:  Holiday Honey Cuts.  I really love how this card turned out, and I don't know if I can send it out this year!  Maybe next year??

Drop on by the shop at A Colorful Life Designs to check out this stencil, and many, many more! Time is definitely ticking to get those Christmas cards done so they can be sent out.  I feel like I have a pretty good stash built up, but then again, I haven't decided who all I am sending cards to yet! 😬

Anyway, thanks for stopping by, and I hope you were inspired!  Until next time, take care!

💖💖~ Marie 💖💖

Edited to add:  I decided to join a few challenges while hanging out in blogland!

--CHALLNGES--

Rudolph Days November Challenge:  ATG Christmas

Christmas With The Cuties #87:  Sparkle and Shine

The 12 Months of Christmas Link Up #116:  ATG Christmas

Merry Little Christmas Challenge Blog #59:  ATG Christmas

Creative Moments#264:  ATG option

Love to Craft Challenge Blog #83:  ATG 

Classic Design Challenge #11: ATG option

The Paper Funday Nov 24 Challenge #71:  ATG option

A Place to Start Nov 24:  ATG option

Ally's Angels #88:  ATG

Crafty Catz #683:  ATG option

Word Art Wednesday #675 -#676:  ATG

As You Like it:  Favorite -- Gold, Silver, or Glitter (my 2nd card is covered with gold tinsel embossing powder -- I usually prefer gold over silver on my Christmas cards, and I love glitter all the time!)

Simon Says Monday Challenge:  Trees

Polkadoodles Wk #48:  ATG

ABC CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE -- W IS FOR WATERCOLORING, AND X IS FOR XYLOPHONE

 Hello, crafty friends!  Welcome back to the blog.  It's time for the next to last ABC Christmas challenge of the year...can you believe it?  I know I'm finding it hard to fathom that 2024 is almost over, but anyway...this month's challenge is

W is for Watercoloring

and 

X is for Xylophone (inspiration pic)

And here is my card:

I'm not all that comfortable with water coloring, so I made a card following the X is for Xylophone prompt.  I have to say that this inspiration photo is pretty darn cute, and I had lots of fun making this card!

I incorporated the rainbow colors of the tone plates (Yes, I had to look that up!) with this cute striped paper from my stash, and the adorable bear is called Cocoa Bear from Impression Obsession.  I placed him on a panel die cut from my favorite white glitter cardstock from Walmart, and he is holding a cute gingerbread cookie, also from Impression Obsession.  The speech bubble and sweet sentiment are from My Creative Time.

If you still need to bump up your Christmas card stash for this year, or you are already creating for next year (#jealous), head on over to the ABC Christmas Challenge blog for lots of gorgeous inspiration from the rest of the DT.  Enter your card creations into the challenge for a chance at a fabulous prize!

Until next time, take care!

💗💗 ~ Marie  💗💗

{BYSHC} FALLING FOR THE HOLIDAYS LINKY PARTY -- OCTOBER 18-25, 2024

Hello crafty friends!  Welcome back to my blog!  It's time for another fabulous Linky Party with the Build Your Stash Holiday Card Makers! 

Please use hashtag #fallingfortheholidays2024byshclp when adding your cards to social media platforms.

Here is my first card:

I am killing 2 birds with one stone again by using the current Sketch 50.

This sketch is wonderful for mass producing cards, which can be necessary during this time of year!  All you really need is some pretty patterned paper and a sentiment!  I did not use patterned paper for my card; rather I utilized one of the many stencils I have from our wonderful sponsor for the month of October, A Colorful Life Designs.  This particular stencil is called Dotted Flakes.  Such a pretty pattern that can be used in so many ways!  Here I chose simple ink blending with Tumbled Glass and Broken China oxide inks.  Before I did anything else, I moved both the panel and the stencil to my splatter box and sprayed it with water and Perfect Pearls.  I die cut the stenciled panel with a deckled rectangle die, which I then layered onto a piece of my favorite white glitter paper from Walmart (which I need to get more of!).  I adhered that layer onto another panel that was inked with the Broken China oxide ink, and all of these layers were adhered to the card base.  The iridescent ribbon across the middle was a scrap on my desk.  For the sentiment, I inked a scrap of cardstock with the Broken China oxide and die cut the "believe" sentiment several times from Honey Bee Stamps Bitty Buzzwords:  Holiday Honey Cuts, and also cut the shadow layer from a scrap of vellum to provide some definition from the stenciled panel.  As a last-minute addition of sparkle, I adhered some A Colorful Life Designs card bling in Opalescent Maui to the 6 whole snowflakes on the panel.  I love how this card came out!

The BYSHC Linky Party starts today, October 18, and runs thru Oct 25...plenty of time to make a bunch of cards for your stash, and possibly win a prize from one of the linky party sponsors!  WOOT, WOOT!  Thanks so much for stopping by today!

~ Marie

ABC CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE -- U IS FOR UNUSUAL CHRISTMAS COLORS; V IS FOR VELVET

Hello crafty friends!  Welcome back to my blog!  It's time again for a new challenge at the ABC Christmas Challenge blog:

U is for UNUSUAL CHRISTMAS COLORS

and 

V is for VELVET

I pondered for a bit how to include velvet on my card, and then the answer suddenly slapped me in the face -- RIBBON!  DUH!!! 😖  And of course, out of ALL.THE.RIBBON that I have, I actually had NO VELVET ribbon.  So, a trip to Hobby Lobby was necessary to acquire said ribbon.  I swear that is ALL I bought!! 👌  Ok, enough chatter, here is my card:

It really makes me happy when I am able to combine both letters on one card!  The colors I used are definitely unusual for a Christmas card, and the white velvet ribbon is just yummy!  I even have a triple whammy with this card, as the colors I used are Aged Mahogany and Victorian Velvet oxides.  HA!  The pretty stencil I used here is called Snow Doily from A Colorful Life Designs.  After I finished the ink blending, I cut the design in half, so I would have room for the "joyful wishes" from Lawn Fawn's Winter Scripty Sentiments set.  I stamped it with the Aged Mahogany oxide ink.  I think this card turned out very pretty!

Oh, and a note about the white velvet ribbon.  It is very see-through, so I glued it to a scrap of white cardstock first, and then glued that onto the card.

Don't forget to head on over to the ABC Christmas Challenge blog to check out what the rest of the DT has created.  This challenge runs from today, Wednesday, October 9th to Saturday, November 9th.  I look forward to seeing what you will share with us! 

Until next time, take care!

~ Marie 💗

ABC CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE -- S IS FOR STENCIL; T IS FOR TRADITIONAL CHRISTMAS COLORS

Hello, crafty friends!  Welcome back to my blog; it is so nice to have you come by for a visit!  Today, I am sharing the cards I created for the current ABC Christmas challenge:

S is for STENCIL

and 

T is for TRADITIONAL CHRISTMAS COLORS

Here are my cards:

These cards were easy and fun to make, using stencils from the amazing A Colorful Life Designs.  For the top card, I used the All Over Trees Stencil and kept it mostly monochromatic with kraft cardstock and Vintage Photo oxide ink, with the exception of that one tree in the lower left center that I slathered in green Stickles.  The card with traditional Christmas colors features the Chunky Chevron Stencil, which is one of my favorite stencils!  The inks I blended on this card are Lumberjack Plaid and Mowed Lawn oxides.  To cover the transition between the 2 colors, I added a die cut piece that mimics the icing on the sweet gingerbread man (Thanks for the idea, Karen!).  Speaking of the cute gingy, he is from the Small Gingerbread Bag Topper die from KS Crafts.  His adorable face comes from the Faceless Gingerbread and Marshmallow Treats stamp set from Peachy Keen Stamps.  For fun, I adhered him to the card panel with an action wobbler.  The sentiments on both cards are from the Sweet Holiday Wishes stamp and die set from My Creative Time.  And that's all there is for these cards!

Thanks again for stopping by my blog!  Check out the rest of the DT card makes over on the ABC Christmas challenge blog, where you are sure to be inspired!

Until next time, take care!  😊

~ Marie

GUEST DESIGNER AT THE RUDOLPH DAYS CHALLENGE!

Hello, crafty friends!  Welcome back to my blog!  Today, I'm here to share the card I made as a guest designer for the Rudolph Days Challenge.  I was lucky enough to be chosen by Helen to join her this month, and here is my card:

I used the new Waffle Flower Postage Collage Gingerbread Stencil set with the coordinating Postage Collage Die to create my fun, pastel Christmas card.  Anyone who knows me IRL will tell you that I am obsessed with all things gingerbread!  Oh boy, was this quick and fun!  I used oxide inks in Kitsch Flamingo, Salvaged Patina, Vintage Photo, and Ground Espresso, and I think these colors work nicely together.  I think I could also do this card again and switch the Kitsch Flamingo and Salvaged Patina.  SO CUTE!  The only thing I would do differently in the execution is to NOT die cut the panel before ink blending.  I had some trouble lining the different layers up, but I managed OK. 

The scalloped die cut layer behind the postage collage die is from Whimsy Stamps Sprinkles Scallops Rectangle Set, and I blended the Salvaged Patina ink onto the panel so it would be a perfect match.  I adhered the postage collage panel to the scalloped layer with dollar tree foam squares and glued that combo flat to the card base.   The sentiment is also from Waffle Flower and comes from the new Elegant Christmas 2 Combo.  I added some beautiful Opalescent Lanai card bling from A Colorful Life Designs to the uncolored circles on the snowflake cookie.  They are the perfect match for the Salvaged Patina color!  😊  I love, love, LOVE these products from Waffle Flower SO MUCH!!

Anyway, that's my guest designer card for the Rudolph Days Challenge.  Thanks so much, Helen, for allowing me to play along this month.  Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that this is an Anything Goes Christmas challenge, so when you join in, let your creativity run free!  Thanks so much for stopping by and take care!

~ Marie

ABC CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE -- P IS FOR PINK, Q IS FOR QUARTET, AND R IS FOR RUDOLPH

 Hello, crafty friends!  It's time for a new challenge at the ABC Christmas challenge blog, and this month we are featuring the letters P, Q, and R.

P is for Pink 

Q is for Quartet

R is for Rudolph

As usual, I was running behind again, so I only managed to make one card for one letter:

I used all products from My Creative Time to create my card, and I think it turned out super cute!  I was trying to go for a well-used grandma-looking apron, but I think I just ended up making it look dirty, LOL!  I had a fun time doing all the die cutting and inking for this card, and I even managed to use the BYSHC Sketch 48!  I realized after gluing my doily down that I had glued it onto the wrong side of the card, but I had to go with it at this point!  OOPS! 😕

Well, it's late, and I gotta get to bed!  Until next time, take care!

~ Marie

IT'S CHRISTMAS IN JULY TIME AT BUILD YOUR STASH HOLIDAY CARDMAKERS -- JULY 2024

Hello, hello crafty friends!  It's time for the Christmas in July Linky party at {BYSHC}, WOOT!  WOOT!  We have a great lineup of sponsors for our hop again, which you can see in the blog post HERE.  Take note of the dates on the graphic:  

Here is my card:  

I used a sponsor's product on this card, but you can't see it!  It's called Sticky Lines, and it's from Therm-o-Web.  I had never used the Sticky Lines product before, but I am definitely a fan!  It is supposed to be used to adhere ribbons and borders, and it works absolutely perfectly!  My ribbon width wasn't as wide as the Sticky Line, so I did spend some time removing the exposed adhesive (crafty OCD), but I think it was well worth it in the end.  The ribbon is a super cute transition between the patterned paper and the card base.  Let's go over the card ingredients.

SUPPLIES

Brown Gingham Patterned paper -- My Creative Time Christmas Gingers 6"x 8.5" paper pad

Teal paper with white polka dots --My Creative Time Ginger Chefs 6x6 paper pad

Circle die -- Pretty Circle Layer dies from My Creative Time

Cute Gingerbread person -- Ginger Boy & Girl dies from My Creative Time

Stamped Face -- Faceless Gingerbread and Marshmallow Treats stamp set from Peachy Keen Stamps, stamped with Lawn Fawn Jet Black ink

Sentiment -- You Warm My Heart Stamp set from My Creative Time, stamped with Versa Fine Clair Nocturne ink

Peppermint clay pieces -- from my stash

Ribbon -- from my stash, most likely from Walmart

Rosy cheeks -- Worn Lipstick oxide ink

white gel pen

red glitter gel pen

Thanks for stopping by my blog for DAY 1 of the Build Your Stash Holiday Cardmakers Christmas in July Linky Party!  I hope you will also take some time to visit the rest of the DT blogs to read about their creations and to leave them some comment love!  We can't wait to see what YOU will create for the Linky Party -- the more you join in, the more chances you have to win a prize!  Until next time, take care!

~ Marie

SQUIRRELZ STASH BASH -- JULY 16, 2024 -- FAVORITE HOLIDAY

Hello friends; welcome back to my blog!  My Squirrel Sisters and I are back at it again, hoping to inspire you to dig out your supplies, old or new, and get creating!  This month's theme is 

FAVORITE HOLIDAY

If you've been around my blog a while, there should be NO QUESTION in your mind what my favorite holiday is:

CHRISTMAS!!!

As long as I can remember, I have always enjoyed the festive season, the brightly colored lights, the smells of yummy goodies baking, the fun decorations, all of it.  I haven't forgotten The Reason for the Season, but all the other "stuff" just makes me so happy!  Of course, it IS a bit different now that all of the effort to decorate, bake, etc. falls on me (and hubby), but I still take time to enjoy all the things.  Anyway, here is my card:

So, the panel for this card started out as a "stamp off" from a stencil project that will be shared soon.  I couldn't bear to waste all of the gorgeous Gina K layering inks in Spruce that I used for that project, so I sprayed the stencil with a water and Perfect Pearls mixture and stamped it down onto another piece of cardstock.  The end result is this fun panel. This stencil is actually part of a set called Mid Century Mod Pods from A Colorful Life Designs.  I took the partner stencil and placed it over my dry panel and traced onto the ovals with a gold gel pen.  Super fun look!  I had this cute peeking deer die in my stash and decided to use it as the focal point.  I didn't have the sentiment I wanted to go with my deer, so I printed one out myself.  The scalloped rectangle behind the panel was cut with a Gina Marie Designs die.

Ok friends, you know how this goes by now...for more inspiration, hop on over to the next Squirrel Sister in line, who is the amazing Anna.  I wonder what her favorite holiday is??  Here's the hop lineup for you:

V at Passions and Distractions

Karen at Misplaced Mojo

Marie (you're here!)

Anna at CraftyAnna Studio

Lounon at Craft.Me.Craft.Moi

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a great week! 😊

~ Marie

ABC CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE -- N IS FOR NO STAMPING AND O IS FOR OFF THE EDGE

 Hello my friends!  It's time for another new challenge at the ABC Christmas challenge blog!  This month's themes are:

N is for No Stamping

and

O is for Off the Edge

I was really hoping to get a card made for both letters this month, but sadly I only had enough time to get one made for the No Stamping theme:

I don't know the name or maker of this die, but it sure is pretty!  I die cut it and the JOY sentiment from my favorite Pen + Gear white glitter cardstock, and simply adhered them directly to my card base on which I ink blended Gina K Sea Glass ink.  I think this would be great to mass produce using different shades of blue ink to make a nice gift set.  And that's all there is to it!

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today!  Now don't forget to head on over to the ABC Christmas challenge blog to see the rest of the DT inspiration, and to join in!  You have until Saturday, August 10, 2024, to play along, so what are you waiting for? 😊

Take Care,

~ Marie