Would you like one of these?

That's right. A Stampin' Up! Gift Card just for you!

(Or for somebody else, if you're in a giving mood)

They can be made in any amount, and you can redeem them with me whenever you'd like. Just leave a comment or email me and I'll get you all set up.

Thanks!

#1 - Wandering Words (Yay!)

This is it, I made it through ten Christmas stamp sets!

I only made one card with this stamp from the Wandering Words set because frankly, I LOVE this card and I'm not sure why anyone would want to make anything else with it. I love the saying, I love the Santa, I love his eight tiny reindeer, I LOVE "The Night Before Christmas" and everything about it. This might be my Christmas card this year. Unless I end up sending out all my one-of originals. We'll see.

I own a few copies of the book, but my favorite is this old one I bought at a used book sale a few years ago. Here's a link to Amzon.com where they are selling it for $6.95. You'll love it!
http://www.amazon.com/Night-Before-Christmas-Clement-Clarke/dp/082340417X#noop
The illustrations are beautiful, (cool and quilty looking) and it has the correct "Happy Christmas" line at the end instead "Merry Christmas" (boooo!) which is what many of the newer additions are coming out with these days. What is wrong with people?

Anywho, here is a picture of the cover and what I tried to copy into card form:

For this card I used:

*Wandering Words and Christmas Punch (for the snow flakes) stamp sets

*Night of Navy and Whisper White card stock

*Night of Navy, Bashful Blue, Crushed Curry, and White Craft inks

*Top Note Bigz die, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, 1 3/8" Circle punch

Tip: I punched out a circle of scrap paper and held it tight to the white die cut sheet while I sponged around with Bashful Blue and then over that with Night of Navy trying to make a graded dark to light look from the top to bottom. Then I took a larger piece of paper with the same sized circle punched out, laid it over my blank moon and added some Crushed Curry to a clean sponge and made it a nice warm yellow.

And here's a shot of the cute inside. When I use a dark color like this for the card base, I try to line the inside with white so it's easier to write in and since its there I figure I might as well stamp it. Right?

#2 - Berry Christmas

We're almost there, only one more Christmas stamp set to feature in the top 10 countdown. Are you so excited? I know I am, because that means I can start making cards that I might actually send to someone. I know. Pretty amazing idea huh?


I was feeling so lame about the last post only having one project that tonight I was determined to make up for it.
This first project was inspired by Lisa Mekeel at http://creativecucina.com/?p=1125

I'm a sucker for window cards! Here's the inside:

I used:

*Real Red, Whisper White and Old Olive

*Christmas Cocoa d.s.p., 1 3/4" circle punch

This next card was SOOOO fun to make. I've been loving the holly pattern paper all season and I finally found a perfect use for it. I mimicked the paper pattern for the red-on-red background as well as the punched out image. So fun and so easy!

I used:

*Soft Suede, Real Red and Whisper White

* Christmas Cocoa d.s.p., soft suede polka dot ribbon and the 1 3/4" punch

Inspiration for the next card came from Amanda Mertz's fantastic blog:

http://didyoustamptoday.blogspot.com/2009/08/sunflowers-using-new-christmas-set.html

I loved how she used punches for the poinsettia image so I just had to copy it.

Do you see the little birdie? So cute right?

I used:

*Real Red, Garden Green and Whisper White

*1 3/8" circle punch, scallop square punch

As you can probably tell, I copied A LOT for this post, so here is Tessa Wise's blog where I got the next card idea.

You really should check out this card because it is soooo much better than mine. Seriously, check it out.
http://craftygrl.blogspot.com/2009/09/make-merry-card.html

I used:

*Always Artichoke, Pretty in Pink, Real Red and Whisper White

*Photo corner punch, Real Red polka dot ribbon and Crystal Effects

The inspiration for this next project did not come from a blog. It came from Lowe's. Strange, I know. So here is the outside and inside of their cute gift card holder thingy.

Pretty simple, yet alarmingly cute. So, of course I made one myself.

Cuter right? Well, I think so at least.

If you'd like to make one of these yourself (because I know you have gift cards to give to people) here are the directions:

*cut card stock to 3 3/4" x 5 7/8"

*score at 2 3/4"

*decorate

I used:

* Real Red, Soft Suede and Whisper White

* Christmas Cocoa d.s.p and Mistletoe ribbon

* Corner Rounder punch and Slit punch

Christmas Countdown #3 - Season of Simple Grace

This is my one and only Christmas set that did not retire with the last catalog so its sort of been taking a quiet back seat while I play with all the new stuff.
I spent all night playing with this set and guess what? I made one card. That's right, ONE card! Granted, its a pretty complex one, but still, I feel a little lame.
Here's a great tutorial on how to make this Tri-Shutter card:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/trishuttercard/



And so you don't feel too sad about my one project, I thought I'd post a card I made last year using the baby wipe swipe/striped wipe technique. Its fun and works perfect with solid image stamps like the ones in this set.
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/stripedwipe/

And for your viewing pleasure, here are some more shots of the Tri-Shutter card. Remember, if you're going to make one of these, make sure you REALLY like the person you're giving it to.

Christmas Countdown #4 - Sweet Season

2 days in a row! Pretty good huh?

Well, I should be making 8 pies right now but, I just couldn't resist. My sister in law, Jenny, ordered this set to make some cute cookie swap invites and I asked if I could play around with it before taking it over to her this afternoon. Yay! Thanks Jenny!

Because I was a little short on time, I copied a couple of these ideas. Here's is where I found inspirations for this one. Isn't it cute? http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/1529167?&cat=17528 It's just too bad I didn't have the french version. I really liked that part about it.

I used:

* Sweet Season stamp set

* Kraft, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip and Real Red card stock

* Chocolate Chip and Close to Cocoa ink

* Real Red marker, Chocolate 5/8" grosgrain ribbon, 1/4" Red grosgrain and the wide oval punch

Tip: to make the snowflakes, I stamped off the page once so the Close to Cocoa ink would be a bit lighter.


And here is a close up of one of the tags I made:

Here's where I found this:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/1547154?&cat=17528

but I sort of wish I'd had time to make her entire cute project. Oh well right?

I used:

* Sweet Season stamp set

* Real Red, Whisper White and Garden Green card stock

* Real Red and Garden Green ink

* 1 1/4", 1 3/8, and scallop circle punches, and 1/4" real red grosgrain ribbon, and the slot punch.

Tip: I attached the snowflake with two Stampin' Dimensionals (foam dots) around the hole I punched with the slot punch so that the ribbon can still slide freely through the hole.

Yes, I know I need to change my cutting blade. It's bugging me too.

And here are two invites I made. I planned to make them the same, but then I just kept trying different things. Both are pull out cards that would just get printed with cookie swap details.

You need to look at both and then answer the following:

* Do you like the words crooked or straight?

* Do you like the folded over snowflake or the punched out one to work as a pull?

* Do you like Real Red or Soft Suede as the back card stock for the pull out piece?

* Do you like the longer or shorter front flap?

* Which ribbon do you like better?

Either way, I hope Jenny likes them.

To make an easy pull out card like this:

* cut a piece of card stock in half lengthwise at 4 1/4"

* score in half at 5 1/2"

* trim 2" or so from one of the sides

* decorate

* Pull out is 3 1/2" x 5 1/4"

Now, I'm off to make pie...for real this time!

PPA 17- Season of Simple Grace

Okay, I've really cut this close today! This is another Pals Paper Arts Challenge http://www.palspaperarts.com/ and this week it was a sketch. I've never done this format before and so I had a really hard time coming up with something, then last night at 1:30 a.m. I got it!

The colors I used are Always Artichoke, Kraft and Night of Navy because I wanted it to feel a little desert-y, and also to look like an actual night sky. I also used Champagne Shimmer paint to accent the star. Because the Champagne color is so translucent, I daubed it on top of my white craft ink. I also daubed Champagne shimmer paint on the Baby Jesus on the inside of the card to make him glow a bit.

The only other accessory I used is some fantastic linen thread. It makes every project better!

Thanks for checking it out!

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, yes, I will be featuring this set more in a few days...

I hope!

Christmas Countdown #5 - "Joyful" and "Little Leaf" Sizzlits Dies AND PPA16

Here's my card submission for the PPA 16 - Christmas Cheer Challenge. http://www.palspaperarts.com/
For this card I used the Little Leaves Sizzlits die to make a stencil with acetate and then I used a sponge dauber in Always Artichoke ink to make the leaf images in varying shades of green. The only other thing I used on this card is another Sizzlits Die (Joyful) some real red grosgrain ribbon and coordinating card stock. This card is almost completely flat so I know the post man will like this one!

Here's a close up:

While playing with my dies I made a few other cards as well. While this may seem like an ordinary post, I used NO STAMPS at all on any of these creations. Weird isn't it?

I made this quick easy 5 minute card a while ago and it's sort of been growing on me ever since.

I used:

* Real Red and Old Olive card stock, Merry Moments d.s.p.

* Joyful and Little Leaves sizzlits dies.



This one is pretty simple too actually but it uses the die in a little bit of a different way. Instead of popping the leaves out and using them to embellish the card, I used the card stock that was left once the leaves were gone. I had to try this a few times to get the leaves in the right place and going in the right direction.

I used:

*Real Red, Old Olive and Whisper White card stock and Old Olive d.s.p.

* Joyful and Little Leaves Sizzlits dies

* Silver brads and the ticket corner punch

This is my first criss cross card of the season. I love these, they always come out elegant and pretty no matter what paper you use. To see a quick tutorial on this card and to get the dimensions check this out: http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/criss_cross_card/

I used:

* Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Old Olive and Very Vanilla card stock and Merry Moments d.s.p.

* Joyful and Little Leaves Sizzlits dies

* Chocolate Chip 5/8" grosgrain ribbon and the corner rounder punch

Here's what the pull out looks like:

The last card I made is a bookmark holder. To make this, just cut a sheet of card stock in half lengthwise at 4 1/4", fold in half then trim 2" off of one side. Add a little glue and some brads and you have a nice little pocket card. The Bookmark inside is 2 1/2" x 5 1/4" but you could use any size.

I used:

* Real Red, Old Olive, Whisper White card stock and Old Olive d.s.p.

* Joyful and Little Leaves Sizzlits
*Large oval, oval scallop and corner rounder punches

* Brad and Jumbo eyelets

* Real Red 5/8" grosgrain and Old Olive 1/4" grosgrain

And here's what the bookmark looks like: I try to make sure my bookmarks are pretty flat as they'll be inside of an actual book someday so that's why there's no ribbon or brads down below. I don't know if anyone else likes pretty bookmarks, but I know I do!

If you've been admiring the pretty glass votives in this post, they are called glassybaby and they are all hand blown in Seattle. Aside from stamps, they are my favorite things to obsess over. Check it out! http://www.glassybaby.com/

Class Update

I KNOW you all want one of those boxes and a chance to win a stamp set... right?

Well, my card class is only days away and I still have some openings! The class will include one of those adorable boxes (with typed instructions inside) as well as four of each of the three cards you see (12 total) AND a chance to win a stamp set.

Saturday Nov. 14th at 2 pm

and

Thursday Nov. 19th at 6 pm

Did I mention the cost is only $17? And I have pre-stamped kits available for only $22!

Don't miss out!

Christmas Card Class!!!

My 3rd annual Christmas Card Class is here! Yay!!!

The class will be held at my home on two separate dates. The cost of the class is $17.00 and includes 12 cards, (4 each of the 3 designs pictured above) envelopes, door prizes, snacks and a day out!

The dates of the class are:
* Saturday November 14th, 2:00 pm, and
* Thursday November 19th at 6:00 pm

Some of the supplies you see above are limited so please sign up quickly to reserve your spot. If there are any supplies left over, I will be selling pre-stamped kits for $22.00 (plus shipping).

As always, friends are welcome!

To sign up, or request a kit, leave a comment or email me at
natdecker@hotmail.com

Hope to see you soon!

PPA 14 - In the Pink

I've stepped way from my Christmas Stamp Set Countdown today to enter my very first challenge.
http://www.palspaperarts.com/
I've been meaning to submit something to the Pals Paper Arts for a while now but this week was so fun and for such a great cause that I couldn't resist any longer. So here they are, my pink, breast cancer cards. Yes, they're still Christmas, and yes, they're pretty similar to some cards I made a few posts ago. What can I say?

You may not be able to tell from the picture but these two cards are covered in glittery embossing...and pink-ness. If I were a princess these would totally be my Christmas cards!
Both cards use the same supplies and techniques, just arranged a little differently on each one. To see a great tutorial on how this technique works , click here:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/embossing_resist/

I used:

* Snow Swirled stamp set (and Teeny Tiny Wishes for the little tag)

* Chocolate Chip, Whisper White and Pretty in Pink card stock

* Regal Rose, Versamark, White Craft and Chocolate Chip ink

* Iridescent Ice stampin' emboss, stamping sponges, Top Note Bigz die

Christmas Countdown #6 - Yuletide Christmas

I've been really excited about this post for a while now because I get to show two things that I am totally in love with. The first is this awesome gift card holder. I would go through the step by step but it's already been done in this lovely tutorial I stumbled across.
http://destampincorner.blogspot.com/2009/09/top-note-gift-card-holder-tutorial.html

You may notice that I used a different stamps set to decorate.

I used:

* Yuletide Christmas stamp set

* Real Red, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla card stock

* Chocolate Chip ink, Chocolate Chip, Real Red and Old Olive markers

* Top Note Bigz Die

* Wide oval punch, scallop oval punch, antique brass jumbo eyelet, Chocolate Chip 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, stamping sponges

And the next thing I LOVE is this fun technique I found at splitcoaststampers called Retiform. I don't know what that word means, but if you'd like to see a tutorial, click here:

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/retiform_grid_technique/

As you can see, I followed the tutorial pretty closely (I never used the second color) for the card on the left and then for the other card and the bookmark I just went nuts. It was soooo fun!

I used:

*Yuletide Christmas, Snow Swirled and Many Merry Messages (to add variety to the images) stamp sets

* Very Vanilla, Soft Suede, Real Red card stock and Christmas Cocoa d.s.p

* Soft Suede ink, soft suede, Real Red and Old Olive Markers

* Real Red 5/8" Grosgrain, Linen Thread, Soft Suede 1/2" polka dot Grosgrain Ribbon

* Wide oval punch, scallop oval punch, Jumbo eyelets, stamping sponges

Isn't it fantastic? After I made this card I got to thinking, "hmmm, this is totally flat. I bet it would make a lovely bookmark," so...

Ta Da! Bookmark. Too bad I don't have any time to read anymore because I'm always stamping. Someday I'll use this bookmark. I know it!

These next two cards are pretty fun to make. I measured a piece of very vanilla, stamped the stocking/nutcracker on it, colored it in using blender pens and chalk (Stampin' Pastels) and then wadded it up as much as possible. Once it was sufficiently beat up I chalked the edges with some brown and then slapped the card together. I tried making two versions of the same idea so you can see how versatile this idea is, but as it turns out, I sort of hate one of these, but I'm not telling which one.

I used:

* Yuletide Christmas

* Chocolate Chip, Real Red, Very Vanilla card stock, Christmas Cocoa d.s.p.

* Chocolate Chip ink

* Blender pen, Stampin' Pastels, Real Red 5/8" Grosgrain ribbon, brads

And here is the 5 minute card that I made with this set. So quick and easy! No coloring, cutting, sponging, measuring...etc. Just stamp it, punch it and stick it together. (Ok, I did use markers on the greeting and I inked around the edges of the Vanilla and Olive card stock rectangles, but still, super easy.) Josh hates it, but I think the Nutcrackers are charming. I can just imagine them on the back of my Mother's piano staring out at all the gifts under the tree.

I used:

* Yuletide Christmas stamp set

* Real Red, Old Olive, Chocolate Chip and Very Vanilla card stock

* Chocolate Chip ink

* Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, and Real Red markers

* Wide oval punch, scallop oval punch, Sleigh Bells ribbon

Snow Swirled Continued...

After making all the navy and silver cards for the last post I just had to use this set in a different way. By the way, if you check my "Dasher" post you might notice that I used the snow flake and greeting images from Snow Swirled on almost all of them. Snow Swirled is one of those stamp sets you can just use over and over and over and never get sick of. Trust me, I would be sick of it by now.

For this first card I used the embossing resist technique with iridescent ice embossing powder and Not Quite Navy ink on a sponge. Its a fun technique to try but it does take a couple tries to get it just right. Here's a great tutorial if you'd like more info:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/embossing_resist/


I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Not Quite Navy, Kraft and Whisper White card stock
*Not Quite Navy ink
*Top Note Bigz Die
*Kraft taffeta ribbon, Iridescent Ice embossing powder, stamping sponges

For this next adorable card I used chalk. Yep, no ink at all...Well, except Versamark. For a tutorial on this technique, check this out:
http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/poppin_pastels/
I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Real Red, Garden Green and Whisper White card Stock
*White satin ribbon, Versamark ink, corner rounder punch, Stampin' Pastels and sponge daubers

Next up...Glitter! (This one's for you Baby!) I was at a craft store the other day and saw the prettiest wreath made of turquoise and brown glittery jingle bells (sorry there's no picture) and I thought, hmmm, I bet that would make a cute card. So here it is. What the picture doesn't show well is that there is glitter on the tree as well.
I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Close to Cocoa, Chocolate Chip and Whisper White card stock
*Tempting Turquoise and Versamark ink
*Top Note Bigz die, Tempting Turquoise 1/4" grosgrain ribbon, Tombo liquid glue and Dazzling Diamonds glitter

And last up is a card copied from page 4 of the Holiday Mini catalog except with different stamp set. It measures 6 1/2" x 3 1/4" and fits in a long open end envelope. Its a fun size, especially if you're going to put money inside!
I used:
*Snow Swirled stamp set
*Real Red and Whisper White card stock
*Real Red, Old Olive, and Chocolate Chip ink
*1 1/4"circle punch, rhinestone brads, Old Olive 1/4" grosgrain ribbon