Secret Santa Cards - Season of Joy

A group of us decided to take part in a secret Santa Christmas card exchange. I have now posted these to the recipients so I hope it's OK to post photos of them on here now.

The first card is a twisted easel card. These are simple to make and they are great as they fold flat so it is easy to post them too. The base card is made out of Real Red card stock and I stamped all of the images in Real Red too. A piece of whisper white card stock was embossed using an embossing folder and all the stamps came from the Season Of Joy stamp set with the message from the Contempo Christmas set.

A view from the front.

The folded card.
It will fold flatter to go in the envelope but it kept popping up for the photo.

The card showing the side view. The poinsettia props up the easel part.

The second card was also stamped using the Season of Joy stamp set and the message was from the Contempo Christmas set. The Old Olive card base was stamped in Old Olive and the Poinsettia was stamped in Real Red.  Two of the poinsettias were glued directly to the Whisper White card stock (that had been glued to a piece of Real Red card stock) but the third one was stuck on using dimensionals.

Oops. I did make three cards, and I've just realised that I did not take a photo of the third so I am not going to be able to share it with you. Sorry.

Hopefully Royal Mail will have delivered the cards by now. I did mail them first class but you can never tell this time of year how long it will actually take.

Lost for Christmas present ideas

I have to admit that I've not started my Christmas shopping yet and even worse I've not even written a list of what to get for whom. If all else fails I can revert to the Gift Card or some cash. I know what my children, nieces and nephews would prefer to receive, so I guess it may be gift cards all round from various and appropriate stores.

This being the case, I thought I should have a supply of Gift Card holders ready. I know I have already posted one idea for these but thought I should add a second option. This one was CASED from a video I saw on UTube by Monica Gale.  I liked the simple way to make the actual card holder, but I have adapted it a little as I have used a different way of keeping the holder closed.

Open card holder showing where the gift card slots in.

The card holder is made from half a sheet of A4 card stock and the basic holder is made using simple folds and then punching various pieces out to make the slot for the card and for the hole for the stamped image to show through.

Open folder showing inside embellishments. 

The hole was punched in the base card stock first and then the punched stamped image is placed through the hole so that everything lines up perfectly. The gift card holder is kept shut by a wrap. I choose the message from the Contempo Christmas stamp set. I stamped the message and then punched it out using the Scallop Oval Punch and the matching card stock was punched out using the Extra Large Oval Punch.

Finished gift card holders

             

For those of you wondering what stamps I used for the main images, I used the tree from the Contempo Christmas stamp set and also the Dasher stamp that is one of the À la Carte stamps.

A Week of Contempo Christmas - Part 7

Here is the last card in the series A Week of Contempo Christmas. My aim for the week was to design seven cards using one set of stamps and to keep the designs as simple as possible. I hope you think that I have achieved this.

As this is the last card, I thought I would add an extra dimension to it. I really love the 3-D effect on the middle ornament but the great thing is that it folds flat for postage.

I hope you have enjoyed looking at the cards as much as I have enjoyed making them. Your comments would be appreciated.

If you don't already have the Contempo Christmas stamp set and are interested in making the cards in this series (and obviously be able to come up with your own designs too), please check out the Kit that I have on offer. Click on the following link for details Kit Offer.

If you already have the stamp set but are interested in purchasing any of other supplies, please contact me, Fiona Whitten.

A week of Contempo Christmas - Part 6

Here is the sixth in the series of A Week of Contempo Christmas. 

As this is the penultimate card I decided to use the Christmas Tree stamp. This is such a cute tree - and this time round I decided to stamp it in one colour only.  You may notice that I have also stamped the tree on the Real Red card stock too. By using the same ink colour as the card stock you end up with a very subtle effect, great for making backgrounds.

The tree was stamped three times and then the whisper white card stock was matted onto a piece of Real Red card stock. The message was stamped in the bottom right and once the real red background had been stuck onto the left-hand side the christmas tree images were stuck on using Stampin' Dimensionals.

I have a Contempo Christmas kit of offer, please check out the following if you are interested in making all the cards in the series and don't already have the Contempo Christmas stamp set.  Kit Offer.

A Week of Contempo Christmas - Part 5

I hope that you have enjoyed the cards that I have posted so far. 

This design is the fifth out of the seven that I am posting as part of my Week of Contempo Christmas - seven simple card designs made using only one set of stamps.

The card features the ornament stamp from the set. I used three of the Stampin' Write Markers from the Regals Collection. This set of 10 markers together with the Contempo Christmas stamp set forms part of the kit that I have put together. Details of the kit are shown on my previous posts, or please click here for more information Comptempo Christmas kit.

A Week of Contempo Christmas - Part 4

This is the fourth card in the series of seven using the Contempo Christmas stamp set. As I said in the first post of this series, my aim is to try and keep the cards as simple as possible and I hope that I have succeeded so far.

Please check out the photos of the other cards that I have posted so far. 

I used Old Olive and Real Red Stampin' Write Markers to colour the tree stamp (but not the star at the top). The tree was stamped twice onto the card and then a third time onto a scrap of Whisper White card stock. The third tree (once cut out) was stuck onto the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

The Merry Christmas message from the Contempo Christmas set was stamped in Real Red into a scrap of Whisper White card stock and then punched out using the Oval Punch. This was then stuck onto a piece of Real Red card stock that had been punched out using the Decorative Label Punch.

A strip of the new Chocolate Chip 1/2" Scallop Polka Dot Ribbon was adhered across the card and then the message was stuck over the top using Stampin' Dimensionals.

If you would like to make the cards, I am offering a kit containing:

• The Contempo Christmas wood mounted stamp set - See page 25 of the 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalogue
• The Regals Collection Stampin' Write Markers (set of 10) - See page 93 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue
• Basic Black, Old Olive and Real Red Stampin' Write Markers
• 1m of Real Red 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon - See page 107 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue
• 1m of Chocolate Chip 1/2" Scallop Dots Ribbon - See page 107 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue
• A pack of Stampin' Dimensionals
• Instructions on how to make each of the cards plus a sample of each (card front only)

The price for all of this is £50.00 including postage and packaging.  

If you would prefer to receive the clear mounted stamp set, the price would be £47.00 but you would require a clear reusable block to mount them on. If you do not already have one, a clear block Size D (see page 127 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue) would be suitable and can be added for £6.50.

Please let me know at the time of ordering whether you prefer the wood-mounted or clear-mount set and if clear, whether you require the block as well.

You can contact me by clicking the following link Fiona Whitten

A Week of Contempo Christmas - Part 3

This is the third card in the series of seven that I made using just one set of stamps, Contempo Christmas. For this card I have reverted to the Christmas ornament from the set.

The ornaments are so simple to make and by using the Stampin' Write Markers, you can have whatever combination of colours you desire. Have fun playing with the different combinations and then everyone can receive something slightly different.

For these ornaments I used the a combination of More Mustard, Garden Green and Cherry Cobbler. All of these are part of the Regals Collection of Stampin' Write Markers that form part of the card kit on offer. See below for details. Once the ornaments had been stamped onto Whisper White card stock they can be cut out using scissors or punched out using the Ornament Punch.

The greeting was stamped in Cherry Cobbler and then the ornaments were fixed to the card using Stampin' Dimensionals.

If you would like to make the cards, I am offering a kit containing:

• The Contempo Christmas wood mounted stamp set - See page 25 of the 2011-2012 Idea Book & Catalogue
• The Regals Collection Stampin' Write Markers (set of 10) - See page 93 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue
• Basic Black, Old Olive and Real Red Stampin' Write Markers
• 1m of Real Red 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon - See page 107 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue
• 1m of Chocolate Chip 1/2" Scallop Dots Ribbon - See page 107 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue
• A pack of Stampin' Dimensionals
• Instructions on how to make each of the cards plus a sample of each (card front only)

The price for all of this is £50.00 including postage and packaging.  

If you would prefer to receive the clear mounted stamp set, the price would be £47.00 but you would require a clear reusable block to mount them on. If you do not already have one, a clear block Size D (see page 127 of the 2011-2012 Catalogue) would be suitable and can be added for £6.50.

Please let me know at the time of ordering whether you prefer the wood-mounted or clear-mount set and if clear, whether you require the block as well.

You can contact me by clicking the following link Fiona Whitten

A week of Contempo Christmas - Part 2

The second card of this week/series is using the Christmas Tree from the Contempo Christmas stamp set.

A piece of Old Olive card stock was matted onto a Real Red card base.

The Christmas Tree was stamped onto a piece of Whisper White card stock. I used an Old Olive Stampin' Write Marker for the tree and a More Mustard Stampin' Write Marker for the star at the top. I stamped the tree base in Real Red on a scrap of Whisper White and cut it out. It was then popped over the other base using Stampin' Dimensionals.

The Merry Christmas message is also from the Contempo Christmas stamp set and this was stamped in Real Red on Whisper White and then punched out using the Large Oval Punch.  I tied a piece of Real Red 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon into a small bow and added this to the greeting before sticking the whole thing onto the card with some Stampin' Dimensionals. I also stuck a Basic Rhinestone on the top just to add a bit of Christmas bling.

If you are interested in making the card or any of the others in this series please check out my Kit Offer, details of which will be available later in the week.

A Week of Contempo Christmas - Part 1

In my attempt of keep on top of things I've made a number of cards using just one set of stamps - Contempo Christmas. This set consists of four stamps, two of which are greetings, but this does not mean that the number of design options are limited.

Over the next week (including today) I am going to show you 7 designs I have come up with using this single set of stamps.

I have decided to keep my designs as simple as possible to show that you don't need to have all the crafting goodies in the world (although it's a good thing if you do :-)) and that cute cards that everybody would love to receive at Christmas can be made with a limited supply of items.

This first card was made using the ornament stamp.

The card is made from Whisper White card stock made into a small square card. A piece of Old Olive Patterns Designer Series Paper, that I found in my scrap box was matted onto the card base.

The ornament stamp was coloured using Cherry Cobbler and More Mustard Stampin' Write Markers from the Regals Collection. To save time (and having to look for my scissors),  the ornament was punched out using the Ornament Punch and this was then adhered to the Old Olive Pattern DSP using Stampin' Dimensionals.  The string and bow were hand-drawn using a Basic Black Stampin' Write marker.

The great thing about using the Stampin' Write Markers is that you can colour the ornament stamp in colours to complement whatever scraps of Christmas style paper you have. There are 10 markers in the Regals Collection so there is plenty to play with. Have fun with them.

For those of you interested in purchasing the Contempo Christmas stamp set and making all the cards that I show you, I am putting together a kit and there will be more details of that later in the week.