Welcome to another Paper Players Challenge! This week we have a color challenge and I got to select the colors! ‘Tis the season to be working on our holiday cards, so I picked what I think is a classic Christmas color combination:

• Texture! When wide margins of card base will show, go for the textured card stock! The linen-like appearance adds warmth and elegance!
• Neutrals! The warm tone of Naturals Ivory card stock coordinates perfectly with Deck the Halls. To add even more texture, I zipped a piece through the Big Shot with the Petals-a-Plenty Textured Impressions Embossing Folder. For slight contrast, I stamped the “Peace on Earth” sentiment from the Peaceful Season Hostess Level 2 set from the Holiday Mini onto Very Vanilla.
• All that glitters isn’t gold! In this case, it is Champagne…Champagne Glass Glitter, that is! Did you know that over time, the finish will slightly tarnish, giving an aged appearance to your cards and projects? To adhere, I simply use Tombow Multipurpose Liquid Glue.
• It’s all about the details! Sing along with me! Basic Pearls on boughs of holly! Falalalalalalalala! Scrunchy ribbon sure looks jolly! Falalalalalalalala! Use your Spritzer to add speckles! Falalalalalalalalala! See how they resemble freckles! Falalalalalalalala! (Need a refresher on how I scrunch my ribbon? Click here for a video tutorial from my archives.)

I hope that you enjoyed today’s card as much as I enjoyed creating it! And I hope that you will join us at The Paper Players! So leave me a comment, and then pull out these holiday colors and start creating! As always, if you ever have a question about the cards that I create or the techniques that I use, I am only an email away! Until next time…

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Stamp Set: Peaceful Season (W 120819; C 121124—Holiday Mini); Ink: Early Espresso (119670), Soft Suede Stampin’ Write Marker (120973); Designer Series Paper: Deck the Halls (120810—Holiday Mini); Card Stock: Cherry Cobbler Textured (119690), Naturals Ivory (101849), Brushed Gold (102935), Very Vanilla (101650); Tools: Big Shot (113439), Petals-a-Plenty Textured Impressions Embossing Folder (116824), Heat Tool (100005), Color Spritzer Tool (107066), Stampin’ Dimensionals (104430), Tombow Multipurpose Liquid Glue (110755); Glitz and Glam: Basic Pearls (119247), Champagne Glass Glitter (120997—Holiday Mini), Cherry Cobbler 1/2″ Seam Binding (120992—Holiday Mini)

Stampin’ Up! has released today that they will be offering an amazing Starter Kit Special beginning November 15th and running through November 30th. For two short weeks, the Starter Kit will be priced at $87.50 for over $310 worth of products. This is 50% off the regular price of $175. This is an unprecedented offer!

Here are just a few of the perks and benefits you would receive by joining Stampin’ Up!:

• Participation in the Occasions Mini pre-order which starts December 1st (and all other pre-orders a month or more before the customer sales period, often with additional discounts)
• Receive 30% off your first $150 order if placed within 45 days from your start date
• 20% off Stampin’ Up! products
• Earn additional income (called a volume rebate) on your monthly sales of $400 or more…if you decide to host parties!
• Earn free stamps with Stampin’ Start, Sale-A-Bration and other promotions
• Earn free hostess sets, and be able to purchase selected Hostess Sets with the release of the new catalog
• Access to a members only blog
• Receive Stampin’ Success magazine, an exclusive for demonstrators, which publishes monthly
• Access to Stampin’ Connection…Stampin’ Up!’s official blog site where you can share ideas with thousands of other Stampin’ Up! demonstrators, as well as benefit from video tutorials and projects
• CLICK HERE to see what is included in your kit! And remember, the kit can be customized!

What a fabulous early Christmas present!

There is absolutely NO catch or strings attached. You can keep everything in the Starter Kit and never sell a thing. However, IF you wish to remain active and maintain your discount, you would need to reach $300 in sales prior to March 31, 2011. The choice is yours! I would love to help you take advantage of this wonderful opportunity! Please EMAIL me…let’s talk! Until next time…

It’s Thursday and time to play with the Pals! This week, Pals Paper Arts is having an inspiration challenge based on this photograph:

When I first saw this opulent spread of elegant deserts, one thing really stood out…the gorgeous tablecloth. In addition, this buffet screamed “Holiday Open House” to me. So I recreated the tablecloth, in a slightly different color combination, added Basic Pearls for a touch of class, and mimicked the gold mirror by embossing a trio of festive trees. I hope you like my “Holiday Open House Invitation”! Enjoy!

The Stampin’ Schach Design Tips:

• Damask, you ask? The background of this card was made by brayering a layer of Bravo Burgundy ink onto the Damask Texturz Plate from the Backgrounds I collection. I then zipped it through the Big Shot with a piece of Bashful Blue card stock. This was the technique that I had seen others use, but I had never tried it myself. You know why? Because I thought it looked hard! I could not have been any more wrong. It was so easy! And to make it even easier, I used a freshly inked pad and dampened the card stock with a misting of water.
• Tree easy pieces! The “Tree Sections” from the Playful Pieces Hostess Level 3 set were actually cut from the “Swirl Rectangle”, which had been heat embossed with Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder. Don’t forget to use your Embossing Buddy to avoid the dreaded “Embossing Spotted Fever”. I then assembled the trees by adhering the pieces onto Very Vanilla card stock, after which I cut out the silhouettes.
• Texture! The trio of trees were then popped up on Stampin’ Dimensionals and adhered to a mat of Perfect Polka Dots.
• A touch of opulence! Basic Pearl triads accent three corners of the image and sentiment, while the smallest Basic Pearls adorn the damask!

There is a moral to this card: Never be afraid to attempt something because you think it is “too hard”. When I was teaching, I would never have allowed my students to use this excuse, for we need to stretch ourselves in order to continue to grow. The same applies to our craft. And you never know…it may be easier than you think!

I wish that all of you lived closer to me! Couldn’t we have a fun Holiday Open House? We could do a little stamping, you could let me teach you a technique (because old teachers never die, they just lose their class), and then we could eat! Of course, you could play with the Boxer Twins, too. How fun would that be! However, since nobody lives close to me, how about you leave a comment and let me know a technique which you would like to learn more about. Maybe we could at least do that part! Sound like fun? So, leave me a comment before you head out. And as always, if you ever have a question about the cards that I create or the techniques that I use, I am only an email away! Until next time…

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