Snowflake in a Night Sky

 

Viewed straight on:

Viewed when you tip it in the light:

I am in well into Christmas card making madness.  Snowflakes are one for my favorite design elements, and of course this Freshly Made Sketch screamed snowflake to me.

I have been playing with embossing folders and ink lately, so I went straight to my favorite snowflake embossing folder, Snowflake Swirls by Darice, for the background.  I started with black watercolor paper, embossed it and sprayed it with Juniper Berry mica spray by Tim Holtz, and Balmy Night shimmer spray by Dylusions plus water and let it dry naturally.  Once it was totally dry I embossed it again because all that ink and water flattened the design a bit.  Next I used a brayer to apply metallic pigment ink from Color Box to bring out the snowflakes and swirls. 

For the snowflake I used the Sizzix 3D Impresslits Snowflake folder by Tim Holtz  to cut one from silver and one from white 110 lb white cardstock and stacked them.  I topped it with two snowflakes cut using the Beautiful Blizzard die from Stampin' Up which I stacked and embellished it with a blue sparkle.  I heat embossed a sentiment from the Very Merry Christmas stamp set by Close to My Heart and edged the strip with more of the Color Box silver metallic ink.  I finished the card with some bitty sparkles from Close to My Heart in the centers of the background snowflakes.

I addition to the Freshly Made Sketches challenge, I plan to enter this card in the Cut It Up Add Embellishments,  Can You Handle the Pressure Anything Goes With A Twist Of Fall (optional), and BYSH (Build Your Stash Holiday) Cardmakers Falling for the Holidays 2025 Linky Party challenges.  Why not check out the other entries in these challenges and maybe be inspired to enter yourself? 

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Mooch at Peace

 

This card was inspired by this one made by Kath Stewart.  It also inspired me to order the Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Christmastime 2 stamp set which was part of the 2019 release.  Although I have used other stamps in the set, this it the first time I have used the stamp that made me want to buy the set to begin with.  Six years!  How could I let that happen?!

I started by spraying Villainous Potion and Uncharted Mariner Distress sprays and water on watercolor paper and let it dry naturally.  Then I stamped and embossed the sentiment in gold and while I had everything out I gilded the edges of the panel with gold.  Now it was time to stamp Mooch from Lavinia Stamps in black Versafine ink and clear heat emboss him.  Yes, his name is Mooch.  Lavinia sells individual stamps and gives names to the fairies and animals depicted.  I bought him Christmas 2020 and used him quite a bit for a while, but lately I have been using cat die cuts and he has languished in my stamp drawer for a couple of years.  I stamped the holly from the Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Stamptember 2018 set with Harbor ink, a dark teal from Close to My Heart.  The clear embossing resisted the ink, so it looks like the holly is behind him.  I used gray Prismacolors to create a shadow to ground him.  Once I had the sentiments, Mooch, and the holly in place, I knew where to put the stars using a Tim Holtz Sparkle stencil and transparent matte texture paste.  I had almost forgotten about texture paste until I broke it out for my Abigayil and Her Kittens card last month.  Amazingly it was still spreadable after sitting for a few years.  I had placed a piece of Press and Seal plastic wrap over the the jar before screwing the top on and it really did work to keep the paste from drying out.  The last step before attaching the panel to a card base was to use a Jelly Roll #700 sparkle pen in the center of the stars and along Mooch's head and left side to look like reflected starlight.  This is what the card looks like if you tip it towards light.

Working on this card reintroduced me to some older stamp and and other products that have been neglected, so I am entering it in the Shopping Our Stash "The Cat is in the Bag" and The Neglected Stuff challenges.  I also am entering it in the Jingle Belles "Baby It's GOLD Outside,"  Crazy is Our Fame, Stencils are Our Game (optional theme Nature), Addicted to Stamps and More "Make Your Mark," and Show Us Your Pussycats challenges.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Happy Hawaii Day

 

Colorful Options is celebrating Hawaii Day with a bonus mid month 1 week challenge using this color palette:

My first thought was a lotus or other tropical flower with blue, cool pink and aqua.  This provided the perfect use for my recently acquired Leaf Mix Die set from Altenew which I couldn't wait to play with.  I used this sample card from their website as inspiration but, when I tried to link it I found that the card no longer shows on their website, so I linked to the pin on my Pinterest.

First I needed a background.  I sprayed Snow Flurries, Shiny Bauble, and Fortune Teller Distress mica sprays and Dylusions White Linen mica spray on my craft mat, with no water, and smooshed a piece of water color paper in it multiple times until I was happy with the result.  Once it was dry I used the Sacred Spells stamp from Lavinia, curly corner stamp from Inkadinkado , and a cross hatch stamp from Stampin' Up's Timeless Textures set to stamp randomly with Hickory Smoke archival ink.  Lastly I gilded the edges of the panel by pressing it perpendicularly into a Versamark ink pad and Ranger super fine silver embossing powder and melting it.  All that mica means that when you tip the card in the light it really sparkles as you can see in the second photo.

I used my new Leaf Mix die set to cut the petal bases in white, top detail layers in silver foil, and the stamen and "leaf" pad in white paper that I ink blended with Seedless Preserves Distress ink.  After putting everything together on a card base I finished it off with a clear sparkle.  You may notice there is no sentiment.  I am working on building a stash of cards ready to go that I can put an appropriate sentiment on for whatever occasion I need a card for.  This one will probably have one embossed in silver on a white strip or one embossed in white on a black strip  placed below the lotus.   Because I am preserving the ability to use this card for any occasion I am entering it in the Addicted to Stamps and More Any Occasion challenge.

I am also entering this in the Beautiful Blossoms Anything Floral Goes and A Place to Start Optional Twist Summer Things Challenges.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Abigayil and Her Kittens

 This card was inspired by my all time favorite children's book, Abigayil, The Story of the Cat in the Manger, written by Rouben Mamoulian and illustrated by Marshall Goodman.  It has lots of text and beautiful watercolor and charcoal illustrations.  The story, told in the voice of Abigayil, a cynical streetwise cat who lives with her kittens in a stable in Bethlehem, is her testimony about the night Jesus was born.  Her paw was broken that morning when boys threw a rock at her while she was foraging food and now seems to be infected.  She is worried about being able to provide for her kittens and the possibility of not surviving her injury.  A woman gives birth while spending the night in her stable, and she hears the parents call him Jesus.  She is puzzled by the visitors that come to worship him and the fact that she feels his love and finds herself unable to attack the mice who are watching from their holes.  During the night a cold breeze begins to  blow through the cracks in the door, and as a mother herself, she is concerned about the baby, so despite her pain, she leaves her hiding spot and manages to get into the manger where she stretches out along side him to warm him with her body.  As dawn approaches Mary stirs, so she leaves Jesus and goes outside and sees a new star in the sky.  Abigayil is so filled with joy she does a high twisty jump before racing around the barnyard and fields.  Then she remembers her paw and stops in horror, sure that she has done irreparable, possibly fatal harm to herself, but when she checks her paw she finds it completely healed.  Come to think of it, the pain began to leave as soon as she touched Jesus.  Recognizing this as a miracle, she goes back to the manger, kneels at his feet and thanks him for healing her and showing her that love needs no reason.  She ends her testimony saying that Jesus is no ordinary baby.  He is a prescious gift of love and light to the world who will be a blessing to all.  

Now about the card:  I started by ink Smooshing Balmy Night Shimmer spray and plain water on watercolor paper and allowing it to dry naturally between layers until is liked how it looked.  Like with Brushos, the pigments broke into their component revealing other colors.  Next I used the Sacred Spells stamp from Lavinia and second generation to stamp along the sides.  I used the Star of Wonder die from Memory Box for the star, Cat D-Lites die from Spellbinders for the Mama cat, and Cat Set die from Impressions Obsession for the kittens.  After laying out the die cuts to check their position,  I used the Sparkle stencil from Tim Holtz and transparent matte texture paste for the smaller stars   I gilded the edges of the panel by pressing the edges a Versamark ink pad and then fine silver embossing powder and melting it with my heat tool.

I plan to enter this in the Christmas Crafts All Year 'Round "Oh Holy Night," Mix It Up "Mixed Media," Cut it Up  "Add a Sentiment" and Peace on Earth "Anything Goes"  challenges.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Winter Snowflakes

 

It is Christmas in July at the Just Add Ink challenge blog, and it is always Christmas at Peace on Earth Christmas.  Although the Peace on Earth challenge is always anything Christmas/winter holiday goes they put up an optional mood board which this time features snowmen.  The current challenge at Cut It Up is something monochromatic.  After thinking about all three challenges I had my concept. 

I embossed a piece of watercolor paper using the Sizzex Winter Snowflakes 3D embossing folder and sprayed it with Tim Holtz Distress mica sprays in Snow Flurries, Juniper Berry, and Brushed Pewter along with water to move the inks around.  Once it was dry I ran it through in the embossing folder again to crisp up the impression because all that liquid flattened it out a bit.  I used my finger to lightly rub Color Box Silver metallic ink on the raised parts to bring out the snowflakes.  Holding the panel vertically I pressed the edges into a Versamark inkpad and then Ranger Super Fine embossing powder and heated them.  I put a slightly smaller piece of heavy cardstock behind the panel to give it some lift and attached it to the card base.  I used a die from Paper Rose to cut Merry Christmas three times and stacked them for the sentiment.  I finished the card with clear sparkles in the center of some of the snowflakes.  

I now have two Christmas cards which I can repeat in other colors.  Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Cat Gazing at the Universe

 

I need another birthday card.  Yes, I do have a stash of them, but certain people get cards made just for them.  Plus I want to play the Seize the Birthday Anything Goes and The Die Cut Divas Birthday challenges.  I used this Freshly Made Sketch for inspiration.

For the background I started with watercolor paper, sprayed it with some water, and then began spraying with Seedless Preserves and Unchartered Mariner Distress sprays and more water, drying, spattering with water, drying, repeating, sometimes letting colors move, sometimes dabbing up some of the ink until I was happy with what I had and then let it dry naturally.  Next I partially inked a swirly corner stamp from Inkadinkadoo, a cross hatched stamp from Stampin' Up's Timeless Textures set, and a script stamp, Sacred Spells from Lavinia and, without blocks, randomly stamped the background with black ink for texture.  I then lightly brushed Hero Arts white pigment ink through parts of a Feathered Leaf stencil from Lavinia to provide still more texture.  Lastly I swiped some silver metallic pigment ink from ColorBox along the edges and my background was done.  I thought about adding white splatters, but then thought they might take away from the swirly feel of the background.

I cut the "A" or top layer of the Prismatic Triangle layering die set by Birch Press Design to use to ground what my pointy eared darlings will tell you is the most important part of the card, a cat cut using a die from Spellbinders' Kitty Cats die set.  One of the things I love about this die cut is that you can wrap her tail through other die cuts on a card.  The sentiment comes from Taylored Expressions' Birthday Simple Strips set and is stacked on another strip of paper to pop it up.  Now I have a mixed media card for the Mix It Up Anything Goes + Mixed Media Optional challenge.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

A Crazy Cat Lady Can Use Any Cat Die or Stamp on a Christmas Card

 

Every January I promise myself I will play the Christmas challenge blogs and make at least one  Christmas card a week to avoid the December card making blitz, so that maybe, just maybe, I can actually get them sent out before Christmas.  Alas, I always get distracted with making birthday, sympathy, encouragement, thank you, friendship, and you name it cards.  Seeing the Christmas in July theme on the Cut It Up and CAS on Friday challenges gave me the kick I needed to get started.  I checked the ABC Christmas challenge for this month and saw one of the letters is "N" for "non-Christmas stash."  As a proud crazy cat lady I can work a cat into any kind of card.  I still had the Cat Collage die from Poppy Stamps out after making this birthday card for my brother, so why not use it for a Christmas card?  The Peace on Earth Christmas challenge has a lovely mood board, so I went through my background stash and found one to pick up the blues.

When I am playing with ink or a technique, I will make lots of backgrounds and figure out what to do with them later.   This means I don't always remember exactly what I did on a particular one when I get around to using it.   On this one I ink smooshed with, I think, Dylusions Balmy Night shimmer and Tim Holtz Winter Frost mica sprays.  It is bluer than it looks in the photo.  I cut a piece of it slightly larger than the square I cut the cat from and, to pick up the silver in the above photo, swiped the edges with silver metallic ink from Color Box.  I cut the star from gold foil using a die from Memory Box.  I used gold embossing powder and a sentiment from the Stampin' Up set, Star of Light, on the front and a sentiment from Close to My Heart inside.  It says "A silent night, a star above, a blessed gift of hope and love."  Now I have one Christmas card for 2025!

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Happy Birthday Butterfly

I love this stamp, Indra, from Lavinia Stamps.  I have had it and used it for about four years but never posted a card with it.  Maybe it's because, although I make plenty of cards, I have often not had the time to photograph them and write a post.  I am going to try to be more regular in posting.  I saw that the Seize the Birthday challenge topping this cycle was use a silhouette, so I thought I would make a card featuring Indra and actually post it.  I am getting this in just under the wire.

I started with watercolor paper and sprayed with water, Distress sprays and lots more water, so the colors really ran and dried it with my heat tool.  Then I flicked on water, n mostly large drops, tilted the panel so they would run a bit, and then let it dry naturally which meant the ink that pooled at the edges of the drops dried leaving darker rings around them.  Next I used a swirly corner stamp from Inkadinkadoo and the Sacred Spells script stamp from Lavinia without using blocks to randomly stamp bits and pieces providing more texture.  I stamped Indra using black archival ink on the panel and on a piece of scrap paper to cut out a mask to protect her while I spattered white Dina Wakley Gloss spray around her. Lastly I inked the edges with black Versafine ink.  Now for the sentiment.  I planned on using sentiment strips from Taylored Expressions, but the card seemed too dark and needed contrast, so I ended up using a die from Gina K Designs which I cut three times and stacked.  The "happy" is a piece of one of those sentiment strips.  The larger die cut added the balance and brightness the card needed.

I am also entering this card in the Critter Crazy Birthday Bash, which is celebrating their 100th challenge, and Retro Rubber Stamps challenges to make a birthday card.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi

Trellis Kitties

 

This card which makes me think of cats sitting on a trellis looking out on a garden using this sketch from the Try a Sketch on Tuesday challenge.

I started with watercolor paper, and began spraying it with Distress sprays and water, drying, spattering drops of water, drying, sometimes spraying more and repeating until I liked what I saw and then let it dry completely.  I inked an assortment of stamps without attaching them to blocks, stamped off, and then touched just parts to the paper to get partial images to add texture.  I then lightly brushed ink through random parts of the Feather Leaves stencil from Lavinia Stamps.  Background pretty much done.

Next I cut twelve frames using the Essential Squares dies set from Ellen Hutson and stacked them in threes to make four squares.  I then cut three each of the cats using my favorite cat die from Impression Obsession and stacked them.  After I glued three squares and kitties on the background, I cut up the last square to make the "post."  I decided the background needed some brightening, so I covered up the cats and whacked a Posca paint pen with a ruler to make the splatters.  I ran a black Versafine ink pad along the edge of the panel to give it definition.  After attaching it to a white card base, I attached a cut up sentiment from Taylored Expressions.

I am also entering this card in the Addicted to Stamps and More challenge to use die cuts and/or stencils and the Cut It Up challenge to use die cuts on a card with a Critter.

Thank you for stopping by!  Until next time, Hansi