Have you ever made a card and then decided that you didn’t like it, so you try to fix it? Well, that happened to me with this card. I wanted to create a card that was fairly Clean and Simple…and those of you who are regular readers know that I have a difficult time with Clean and Simple cards. I am so envious of those that are masters of this style. I also wanted to use this yummy color combination. But I “overly distressed” my card base, and I appeared to be “spatially challenged” in my ornament arrangement. But instead of pitching this card, I decided to try and save it. Enter Attempt #2!

I raised the ornaments and added a sentiment to fill up the “empty space”. I layered my labels, and added Basic Pearls. But now, the edges of the ornaments seemed a little too stark…and the Very Vanilla card base still looked like it had been attacked by a possessed Sponge Dauber. Plus, I really did not like the two Early Espresso bows at the tops of the ornaments. But by now, I had too much time invested to start from scratch. Enter Attempt #3:

I switched out the Very Vanilla card base with Cherry Cobbler…and I liked it better. I switched out the Early Espresso bows with Chantilly Crochet Lace Trim, and now I am not so sure that I didn’t like the two little Early Espresso bows better. I distressed the edges of the ornaments with Soft Suede and a Sponge Dauber…but once again that dauber had a mind of its own, and I over-distressed. I probably should have used Crumb Cake instead of Soft Suede for a softer touch. Now I wish that I would have left the ornaments the way they appeared in attempt #1. Enter my 4th and final attempt:

I removed the ornaments, and trimmed off the overly sponged borders with Paper Snips. I punched out two more ornaments with the Ornament Punch from Very Vanilla, and layered the Cherry Cobbler ones on top. The lace bows were replaced with new Early Espresso bows. And my “Not So Clean and Simple card was finally finished…I think!

Final Day for Blog Candy Giveaway

Just in case you missed my previous posts, I am giving away blog candy this week! It is delicious…and calorie-free! I have assembled a collection of this and that, and with the exception of the lace, it is all Stampin’ Up! Here is what you will be receiving:

This week’s Pals Paper Arts challenge is to use buttons. Keep it Clean and Simple and use a button or buttons in your design! Of course, I always find it difficult to stay Clean and Simple, but at least I have no problem using buttons! I hope that you will join us this week…I love seeing what you create! You are all inspirations to me!

The Stampin’ Schach Design Tips:

• It’s hip to be square! Since all of the patterns in the Deck the Halls Designer Series Paper collection are beautiful, I could not decide on just one! So…I selected four, cut into 1-3/4″ squares!
• Lovely layers! Brushed Gold card stock adds understated “bling”. Here it is paired with Always Artichoke, while Cherry Cobbler gives a “pop” of color!
• Elegant embossing! The sentiment from Welcome Christmas was stamped in Early Espresso onto Crumb Cake and then embossed with Clear Stampin’ Emboss Powder. The sentiment was then stamped a second time in VersaMark onto River Rock card stock and embossed with Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder. I then snipped “Season’s Greetings” from the River Rock card stock and popped it onto the Crumb Cake base with Stampin’ Dimensionals. (Tip: Since I did not have any Early Espresso Craft Ink for embossing, I inked the stamp with VersaMark, followed by Early Espresso Classic Ink…going from the VersaMark pad straight to the Early Espresso pad. It worked great!)
• Who’s got the button? Stampin’ Up! does! Three styles of Designer Buttons in Cherry Cobbler, Early Espresso and Crumb Cake were dressed up with a snippet of Linen Thread.

The result is a card which is both elegant and country!

A few day’s ago, I promised a video to show how I make the bows that I use for cards like these:

I am using a cardboard template that my mother shared with me many years ago. I am sure that this video will help you make quick and easy bows!

Thanks for joining me today! If you have questions about the cards that I make, or the techniques that I use, don’t hesitate to email me. And please, won’t you leave me a comment to let me know what you think of today’s card? Until next time…

Click Here to Order Stampin’ Up! 24/7

Stamp Set: Welcome Christmas (W 118736; C 120597); Inks: VersaMark (102283), Early Espresso (119670); Designer Series Paper: Deck the Halls (120810—Holiday Mini); Card Stock: Crumb Cake (120953), Brushed Gold (102935), Always Artichoke (105119), Cherry Cobbler (119685); Tools: Heat Tool (100005), Embossing Buddy (103083); Glitz and Glam: Early Espresso 5/8″ Satin Ribbon (119753), Chantilly 1/2″ Crocheted Lace Trim (118480), Linen Thread (104199), Regals Designer Buttons (119744), Neutrals Designer Buttons (119743), Clear Stampin’ Emboss Powder (109130), Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder (109129)

Wednesday is always the day that the Pals Paper Arts Design Team members do our sneak peaks of our inspiration cards. I really like the card that I created for this week’s challenge, and I hope that you will, too! I would love to have you join me for the reveal tomorrow! And in the meantime, how about checking out the Pals Paper Arts Artist Picks for last week’s challenge!

Participation couldn’t be easier! All you need to do is leave a comment on any of this week’s posts, Tuesday through Friday, until 9:00 PM CST Friday, October 1st. You may comment each day, if you wish and increase your chances of winning. At that time, I will use a random number generator from Random. org to select a winner. The winner’s name will be posted on my blog Saturday, October 2. Note: The winner will have 24 hours to email me their name and mailing address! So be certain to check in on Saturday!

Need to order Stampin’ Up! supplies? Order on-line from me! I can help you purchase the perfect product for the perfect card or scrapbook page! Just email me if you have any questions! Until next time…

Click Here to Order Stampin’ Up! 24/7