Nativity Christmas Cards using an LC Designs Stamp and Distress Oxide Backgrounds

Hello My Crafty Blog Friends

Well that was a busy weekend. I hope you had a good time and did something nice. On Saturday I went to a Craft Workshop for most of the day. My husband got my car to the garage to be fixed, it needs picking up today. Then he drove to Aldershot to collect his 90 year old mum. He drove her to Mottisfont so she could see the Kaffe Fassett textiles exhibition. After lunch they came home and waited for me to return. Then he drove us back to Aldershot to collect his dad. Then we all went to Farnham for my husband's brother's 60th Birthday party. Yesterday we went to the first rehearsal for a Christmas choir we have volunteered for to sing  at Church.

I have been making cards with Distress Oxide backgrounds again. I do love Distress Oxides.

I made fourteen cards altogether. I started by using Distress Oxides to make backgrounds on water colour paper. You put the Oxides on your craft mat, spritz them with water and run the card through. You just repeat until you are happy with the effect. I did dry the sheets with a heat gun so the layers of ink are dry before applying the next layer.  I used the Falling Snow embossing folder to create one of the layers.  

I used my Tim Holtz Stamping Platform to stamp the image and the sentiment at the same time. The stamp is called Silhouette Manger by LC Designs. Once stamped I coloured over the image with a black Spectrum Noir sparkle pen to so the image sparkles. 

I made ten of these small cards. I wanted them for the small group we meet with. 

I have been having a bit of a think about blogging and why I do it. I do like sharing what I make and I enjoy being on Design teams and entering competitions. But the blog has become a bit of a time consuming monster and weirdly I am finding I have less time to devote to it now I am not working. I think it is because I can say yes to more of the things I want to do.  So I think I will be blogging less and commenting less. I wonder if I will be able to stick to this? There is also  a pile of cards that hasn't been used so I don't need to make as many at the moment. 

Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie

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Gold and Black Christmas Card

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

I hope you had a good weekend. We spent Sunday with my father-in-law celebrating his 91st Birthday. We enjoyed a meal out and cake back at their house afterwards. His present was some whisky to put in his tea he likes that a lot. Well it is back to the working week now. Why do weekends go so fast?

I was having a play with some of my stamps while I was working on a design and incidentally this card came into being.

I was trying to design a quick and simple card for a Design Team project this one takes just a bit too long.   After cutting the mats I started on the background.  I stamped a Clarity Snowflake stamp and a Creative Expressions stars stamp with Perfect Medium and heat embossed them with a gold embossing powder.

Here is the close up detail of the stamp it is the Silhouette Manger by Little Claire Designs. It stamped with Perfect Medium and heat embossed with a gold embossing powder. I love this stamp so much I will be using a lot this year. 

The Not Just Cards first birthday Blog Hop is still going on until the end of the month. Click on the logo above  and you will be taken to the hop there are lots of prizes to be had a long the way.  

I hope that you have a good week. 

Happy Crafting 

Hugs Jackie

Alphabet Challenge Blog - Letter "O" One Layer

Hi My Crafty Blog Friends

I have made it to the end of the week the first week back at school takes a bit of getting used to. I hope you have had a good week and are ready for the weekend. This weekend the plan is for us is to try and sort out all the furniture we are now storing for our daughter. I can see a few trips to the tip coming up so we can make some space.

I have joined the Design Team at the Alphabet Challenge Blog. I am in Team B and our letter was O and that was taken to mean One Layer and that is the theme of the current challenge. This was a real challenge for me as everything I make has many, many layers.

I put my thinking cap on and this is what I came up with.

I took a smooth slightly off white 6" x 6" card blank. I cut a piece of card the same size as the card blank and I cut an aperture with a square die in the middle of the card to make a mask. This was taped with low tack tape over the front of the card. Then I used a brush to apply Distress Ink through the aperture sweeping the ink from side to side. This gives a lovely smooth finish to the ink.

Once I had removed my homemade mask I stamped the Silhouette Manger stamp from Little Claire Designs with Perfect Medium it was then heat embossed with a sparkly black powder.  The sentiment was added in the same way.

To finish the card off I used a Versa Marker pen with a ruler to draw round the edge of the inked square. This was then heat embossed with a silver powder. I also used the pen to add silver to the center of the star.  I found the pen so useful I feel a bit silly as I have had it for a long time and not used it. 

This was not an easy card to photograph. I was so pleased with how it came out though I have made a few more in different colours. I have a feeling a lot of my Christmas cards will be in this style this year. They are quick to make, look lovely and  are flat for posting. 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Thank you for stopping my at my little corner of Blogland. 

 Happy Crafting

Hugs Jackie