Sometimes creating the card is the big challenge. I love the Sparkling Mandala from Spellbinders, but every little hole needs to be poked out. Using DMC metallic thread presents another challenge – it really splits, but the end result is lovely. Then getting the background – oh there was the real challenge. My DH got me lots of stamping goodies for my birthday. One I thing picked up was a roll of Spellbinders Speckled Prism foil to use with the Glimmer machine he got me for Christmas. I went to foil a piece of CS with the Pinkfresh Studios Hot Foil Plate and ended up foiling my shim. After much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth, I got it cleaned off (mostly) with the help of UnDu. After I got the sandwich right and got the CS foiled, I die cut it using the Snowflake Cover Plate by GKD. Every single cotton pickin’ hole had to be punched out. Some places on either end didn’t get enough pressure and wouldn’t punch out at all. I very carefully lined up the die and was actually able to get enough pressure to finish punching out the hanging chad. I cut a piece of Hero Arts White Glitter CS use for the backing behind the Snowflake Cover Plate, then added the Stitched Snowflake/Mandala. This really does have a lot of sparkle and shine in real life. I’m entering this in the Color Hues Silver and White Challenge. I also decided it would work for the Just Us Girls Photo Week Challenge. The snowcouple holding hands with the heart above them in the inspirational photo look like newlyweds who had just found out they were expecting and put Frosty’s ultrasound on this card to announce the happy occasion.

It’s Color Week at Just Us Girls with colors of Light Blue, White and Silver. I stitched the Sparkling Mandala from Spellbinders with Silver and Blue Opal Metallic Threads. The Blue Opal really looks more white, so I used the Snowflake Coverplate by Gina K Designs in a light blue CS from my stash, and placed it over a piece of Silver CS also by GKD, on a white card base. The sentiment is from the Winter Poinsettia set by Stamp Simply.

I used the Double Stencil technique Gina K demonstrated in a recent video.. I brushed Wild Lilac in over the Sunshine stencil, using the  mask from the stencil in the center. Then I brushed Red Hot over the Fizzy stencil. The sentiment is from Happy Birthday to You, part of the Birthday Essentials kit from 2015, stamped in Wild Lilac. I used a Wild Lilac mat on a Red Hot card base. I’m entering this in the current Mod Squad Challenge, which is to let the background be the focal image, the  Color Hues challenge to use Red and Purple, and the trend for the Just Us Girls challenge is to use and inked or sprayed background.

I needed one more Christmas card for a very dear friend that I thought I’d lost track of until I got a card from her. The green panel was already embossed with the Darice Holly Vines EF. I used a thin white mat on a red card base. The sentiment is from Sunny Studio Seasons Greetings set cut with the matching die was left over from a mass produced card, so this came together pretty quickly. I don’t think she’ll get it in time for Christmas since it’s got to be forwarded to her snowbird address, but she’ll know I was thinking of her. I thought this would be perfect for the Color Hues Red and Green Challenge.

It’s Color Week at  Just Us Girls using yellow, green and turquoise. I used the layered sunflower from the Hero Arts September 2020 kit sponged with the following inks by Gina K Designs: Sea Glass, Ocean Mist, Turquoise Sea and Tranquil Teal. The leaves are Grass Green and Lucky Clover. The die is also from the kit. The shadow layer is Lemon Drop and the sentiment is Turquoise Sea on a Lemon Drop card base. Thanks for stopping by to take a peak.

Sympathy cards are always hard to make when they’re needed. This has become my quick and CAS sympathy card that I try to keep on hand. I’ve done this in the past in shades of gray, but wanted to change it up a bit. I stamped the sentiment from Extra Grand Sentiments by JustRite in Ocean Mist.  The butterfly from the Beautiful Butterflies Kit from Simon Says Stamp was stamped in Sea Glass. The card base is Ocean Mist. I’m entering this in the Perfectly CAS challenge to make a sympathy card. Thank you for stopping by to view my card.

There is a new challenge Peace on Earth which is a year round Anything Goes Christmas Challenge. This will encourage me to make a few Christmas cards throughout the year to avoid the last minute rush. In my mind, nothing says Peace on Earth like the Wise Men seeking Him.  I spotted this image as I was leaving a stamp show at least six years ago. I don’t know how old it is or even who the manufacturer is, but I had to add it to my collection even though I usually avoid unmounted stamps. I cut a piece of cling foam and thanks to MISTI am finally able to get a good impression.  I colored the image with Prisma pencils. The sentiment is from Nativity Sentiments by JustRite from about 2016. The current challenge at Retro Rubber is also an Anything Goes challenge so I’m entering it there too.

The challenge at Color Hues is to use Orange and Green. Not colors I normally use together unless I’m getting ready to celebrate St. Paddy’s day. I used the layering sunflower stencil from the Hero Arts September kit. The brushed the first layer very lightly in Peach Bellini, then the second layer in Peach Bellini but with a slightly heavier hand. I used Sweet Mango for the center and Tangerine Twist for the highlights in the center. The leaves were brushed with Jelly Bean Green and Lucky Clover. The colors look more muted than they did when I first created the card.  I used the layered Hello die from the kit cut from scraps of orange and green, cutting two layers of each layer for a bit of dimension. The card base is Jelly Bean Green.  Thanks for stopping by to take a peek at my card.

Halloween is not really my jam, but I do usually make a card for my husband. Since Halloween is the word of the week at Just Us Girls I decided to get his card done early to save my usual last minute scramble. The pumpkin is part of the Jack O’ Lantern Fancy Die set by Hero Arts, cut from an orange scrap and brushed with Tangerine Twist. All stamped images inside and out are from Haunts and Harvest by Gina K Designs. After working on the layout, I decided the background was too plain. The Spiral Petals stencil by Hero Arts brushed with Soft Stone ink was the closest I could come to a spider web. For the panel that will go on the inside, I stamped the ghostly trio in Soft Stone to give them an ethereal look, then stamped the sentiment in Obsidian. I’m also entering this in the Mod Squad Challenge – Pumpkins Pumpkins everywhere.