Pretty Pines Sparkle & Shine

Hi Stampers,

Even though temps are still in the 80's here, I was thinking about how beautiful an evergreen tree looks after a heavy snowfall - that's what this card reminds me of.

I used a mixture of old and new products in this design.  The pines are from Lovely as a Tree (and incidentally, the first Stampin' Up set I ever purchased!) and the sentiment is from Wondrous Wreath. The die-cuts are the fun Pretty Pines Thinlits (#141851) in the new holiday catalog, as is the Presents & Pinecones Designer Series Paper (#141986).  I love the way the sentiment is framed in the Layering Ovals Framelits (#141706).  

I'm all about glitter and the dryer sheet technique on this card is right up my alley.  You've seen the t-shirt that says "I craft so hard I sweat glitter"?  That's me.  There are a lot of You Tube videos available on the dryer sheet technique if you don't know how it's done.  It's really pretty simple-start by stamping your image.  I used Early Espresso to stamp the pine from Lovely as a Tree.  The darkest images are stamped full strength then I stamped off once more before re-inking.

Next you'll need a well-used dryer sheet, preferably one that has gone through 2-3 loads of laundry. What most of the videos don't show you, and this is Very Important, is iron the wrinkles out of the dryer sheet using the low setting on your clothes iron.  It only takes a few seconds and it's so much easier than trying to work the wrinkles out after you place it on the card!  With your nice, flat, used dryer sheet ready, spray the stamped image thoroughly with spray adhesive - I like one made by 3M.  Place the dryer sheet on the card and smooth it with your hand or a brayer.

Trim the excess dryer sheet from the edges of the card.  If you're only going to use the tops of the trees like I did, trim the card front to the size you want it.  I did this so I could incorporate some beautiful Designer Paper into my card.  You may want to use the entire piece for even more sparkle!

Finally, and this is so much fun, give the card one more very light coat of spray adhesive.  Sprinkle Dazzling Diamonds glitter over the entire piece and prepare to "ooh" and "ahh"!  

Can you see all that glittery goodness?  Ooh!  Aah!  I almost forgot to mention that I embossed the sentiment with Emerald Envy Glitter Stampin' Emboss Powder (of course).  

Another pine finishes off the inside.  This sentiment is part of the Wondrous Wreath set, too.

I made so much fun with the dryer sheet technique that I made more...many more!

I hope you're inspired by my ideas!  If you would like to purchase any of the products mentioned here, please visit my online store here.  

Happy stamping,

Pat

Happy Mail!

Hi Stampers,

Just a quick share with you today to show some of the beautiful handmade cards that have come to my mailbox recently -

Aren't they beautiful?  You are all loved and appreciated more than you will ever know!

Gratefully,
Pat

Christmas Wishes from Across the Miles

Hi Stampers,

Here's a Christmas card I created for friends in far-flung places.  I really like the color combination of bold Emerald Envy and soft, subtle Mint Macaron.  You can see how well these colors work together in the Presents & Pinecones Designer Series Paper.

 You may recognize the globe, it's from a stamp set in the annual catalog called Places You'll Go - #141741.

I think this stamp set is easy to overlook in the annual catalog.  The images are simple, but the sentiments are wonderful and work for a lot of occasions.

Here's the inside of my card:

Here are the details:  The globe stand is stamped in Versamark and heat embossed with Copper Stampin' Emboss Powder.  The wreath was stamped in Emerald Envy.  I used my Real Red Stampin' Write Marker to add a few red berries around the wreath.  The rest of the stamping was done with the Holly Berry Happiness stamp set.  The bow and the holly berries were stamped in Early Espresso ink on Real Red cardstock.  The holly leaves were stamped in Emerald Envy ink on Emerald Envy cardstock.  Everything is punched with the Holly Berry Builder Punch.  The stamp set & punch are available as a bundle - #143505.  The card base is made from Mint Macaron cardstock and the Designer Paper is Presents & Pinecones.

My card was inspired by a design from another Stampin' Up demonstrator.  Here is her version:

Don't forget to stock up on Designer Papers for this and other projects, the best paper sale of the year is going on NOW!  Buy 3, get 1 free on selected designs including Presents & Pinecones.  Click here to shop in my online store.

Thanks for stopping by,

Pat