Christmas Cocoa Specialty Designer Series Paper is one of the most beautiful paper collections that I have ever seen. Its metallic sheen is complimented by the luster of the gold Encore! ink which was used to stamp the tree image from Snow Swirled. Paired with a snowflake medallion from Serene Snowflakes, this card is my favorite of all of the Christmas and winter themed cards that I have created this year. The Mojojanette sketch was the perfect starting point for “Another Cup of Christmas Cocoa”. It’s oh, so sweet!

• Prepare a standard card base from Soft Suede.
• Ink the “Tree” image from Snow Swirled with Soft Suede and stamp onto Very Vanilla. Ink the stamp again with Gold Encore! ink. Using the Stamp-a-ma-jig, stamp this image slightly to the left of the original image. (Tip #1: This will result in a “shadow” image which is very striking in person. If you have never tried this technique before, please do! I like it better than Gold Encore! by itself.)
• Mat onto Soft Suede. Add a few Red Rhinestones for just the right touch of bling. Although you can “dissect” your Circle Fire Brads to retrieve the rhinestones, I happened to have some small rhinestones on hand, so I did not have to sacrifice five brads.(Tip #2: Because this card borderlines on monochromatic, the red rhinestones, circle brad and ribbon add just the right “pop” of color, transforming an already pretty card into one that is stunning! Try the “color pop” when you want a card to really stand out.)
• Ink one of the “Snowflakes” from Serene Snowflakes with Soft Suede and stamp onto Very Vanilla. Shadow with Gold Encore! ink. Punch out with the 1″ Circle Punch and layer onto a Real Red circle that has been punched with the 1-1/4″ Circle Punch. The scalloped circle was prepared by zipping a piece of Christmas Cocoa Specialty Designer Series Paper through the Big Shot with a Nestabilities die. A Red Circle Fire Brad in the middle completes this element.
• Using the Scallop Edge Punch, prepare a piece of Christmas Cocoa paper. (I selected the “Small Metallic Stripe” pattern.) Position and adhere this to the beautiful “Snowflake” pattern from the same designer paper. Add a snippet of Real Red 5/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon, and adhere to the card base.
• Position and adhere the Tree mat and the Snowflake medallion to the card base.
• Ink the “Merry Christmas” sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes with Gold Encore! ink and stamp onto Very Vanilla. Punch out with the Word Window Punch and adhere on top of the ribbon.

Stampin‘ Schach Design Tip of the Day: When participating in sketch challenges, it is acceptable to make the sketch your own. In this case, I deleted a bow in order to maintain the clean lines of the card (and to keep from competing with the swirls). The added sentiment achieved the balance I desired. Challenges are meant to be an inspiration, and Janette Olen did a wonderful job in creating this classic sketch.

This is a classic card, with classic lines, which are just perfect for this paper and the Snow Swirled stamp set. Christmas Cocoa Specialty Designer Series Paper will be available on September 1st, as will the Serene Snowflakes stamp set. Serene Snowflakes is definitely a set that will be usable throughout the year, as the medallion on this card illustrates.

Please remember to leave a comment! I do appreciate them, and read each and every one. Your comments and questions help me improve my card making and blogging skills. Never hesitate to email me your questions about any of the cards that I make or the techniques that I use! Until next time…

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Many years ago, one of my passions was collecting paper memorabilia, including old Christmas cards. I would display them on my mantel, as well as nestle some of them within the branches of my Christmas tree. Therefore, you can imagine my excitement when Stampin‘ Up! released the Good Cheer stamp set. Coupled with patterns from the Merry Moments Designer Series Paper collection, the result are cards with a definite vintage flair! With this particular card, I switched out the “Happy Christmas” greeting, which is actually on the main stamp of Good Cheer for the “Merry Christmas” image from the Hostess Set, Holiday Best. I wanted to add a little burst of color and bling, and this greeting afforded me the opportunity. The holly berries on St. Nick’s wreath have also been “glammed up” with Red Micro Beads. Combined with ink distressing, I have the best of both worlds…”vintage bling“!

• Prepare a 5-1/2″ x 5-1/2″ card base from textured Very Vanilla card stock. Round the two upper corners using the Corner Rounder. Distress the edges using a Sponge Dauber and Chocolate Chip ink.
• Ink the “Santa and Deer” image from Good Cheer with Basic Brown and stamp onto Very Vanilla. Color the images using a Blender Pen and the following inks: Close to Cocoa, Handsome Hunter, Real Red, Blush Blossom, Pretty in Pink, Creamy Caramel, Sahara Sand. Using the Handsome Hunter Stampin‘ Write Marker, accent the holly leaves. Snip out the image with Paper Snips.
• Using Tombow Adhesive, adhere Red Micro Beads onto the holly berries.
• Mat the image onto Real Red, Chocolate Chip, and Real Red that has been zipped through the Big Shot with the Stampin‘ Up! Textured Impressions Petals-a-Plenty Folder (available September 1st!) (Stampin‘ Tip #1: To make the flowers on the embossed card stock “pop”, I brushed over the top with a Sponge Dauber inked with Chocolate Chip ink. Stampin‘ Tip #2: To simulate the vintage look, ink distress all edges with Chocolate Chip.)
• Position and adhere the image mat to a selection from Merry Moments Designer Series Paper. Add a Chocolate Chip scalloped edge to the bottom, punched using the Scallop Edge Punch. A snippet of Chocolate Chip 5/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon completes the look. Position and adhere to the card base. (Stampin‘ Tip #3: Paper piercing the scallop border allows the Very Vanilla card base to peek through for even more visual interest. I did not adhere this edge to the paper, since I did not want to “smoosh” the paper pierced holes!)
• Ink the “Merry Christmas” sentiment from Holiday Best using Chocolate Chip and Real Red Stampin‘ Write Markers. Stamp onto Very Vanilla, and mat onto Handsome Hunter. Paper Piercing and a Red Circle Fire Brad add interest to the sentiment block. Position and adhere to the image with Stampin‘ Dimensionals.

Stampin‘ Schach Design Tip: When mixing stamp sets, keep in mind the styles of the set. When using a vintage style image, it is best to stay with a vintage style sentiment, such as what we see with today’s card!

What a relaxing feeling it was to be able to create a card today! Last week was a whirlwind, with three days of meetings, an open house, the first two days of students, and taking Brady back to college. Whew! However, I was able to visit the Pals Paper Arts challenges, and leave comments on your entries. Wow! What great projects there are! Of course, there is still plenty of time to participate in the “Anything But a Card” challenge. Mr. Linky will not close until Noon (CST) Tuesday. If you haven’t checked it out this week, head over to the PPA!

I want to thank all of you for your patience as I transition into the school year! Your support and understanding about my reduced blogging have been overwhelming. I always knew that stampers were wonderful people. This just validates what I always knew was true! As always, your comments are very important to me. Please add a comment before you leave! And, if you have any questions about any of the techniques that I have used, don’t hesitate to ask! Until next time…

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It’s Thursday, and we are quickly learning that Thursday means “It’s Time to Play at PPA!“ This week’s challenge was “Anything But a Card”. With school starting, I turned to Designer Paper and the Big Shot to create this “Shabby Chic” desk set! It’s fun! It’s easy! It had some of my colleagues asking the question “Where did you get your journal?” and my son commenting “She really does love the dog more than me!” It is made entirely from Stampin’ Up! products, except for the notebook which I covered and the large metal paper clip. (The cardboard that forms the frame is from a package of Designer Paper!) Plus, you can customize the set to fit your personality. To coordinate with the “lab table gray” of my classroom, I opted for Night & Day Designer Series Paper, a Holiday Mini Catalog selection available September 1st! Sometimes it’s just fun to play with paper!

My Chic Journal

• Select two pieces of Night & Day Designer Series Paper. (I selected a darker geometric pattern to cover the spine, and a light pattern for the front and back covers.)
• Cut a strip of Designer Series Paper wide enough to cover the spine, and attach with Sticky Strip.
• Measure two pieces of Designer Series Paper that will fit the front and back covers and adhere.
• At the interfaces of the spine and covers, adhere Real Red 5/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon using Sticky Strip.
• Ink the “Baroque” image from Friends 24-7 with Basic Black and randomly stamp the front of the journal. (Tip: The paper that I selected had a beautiful swirl, which I positioned along the lower edge…No stamping necessary!)
• The teacher next to me wanted one of these so badly, that I made one for her as a “Welcome Back to School” gift!

• Zip Basic Gray textured card stock through the Big Shot with the Stampin’ Up!Matchbox Bigz Die. Do this three times, and assemble each.
• Stack the boxes and adhere to each other using Sticky Strip.
• Size a selection of Night & Day Designer Series Paper to fit around the matchbox tower and adhere.
• Attach a Red Circle Fire Brad to the front of each box to serve as a handle.

Classy Paper Clip/Book Mark

• Punch two scallop circles from Real Red card stock using the Scallop Circle Punch.
• Punch a section from a selection of pattern paper from the Night & Day Designer Series Paper collection using the 1-3/8″ Circle Punch. Adhere to one of the Real Red scallops.
• Add a Red Circle Fire Brad to the center of the Designer Paper.
• Use Glue Dots to attach the scallops to each side of the paper clip.
• Yowza! I love this! If I have to bring home papers to grade, what better way to clip them up! Plus, I created a few extra to use as bookmarks!

• Cut a piece of card board 4 inches wide x 8-1/2 inches long. (I used the card board from a package of Designer Paper and doubled it for extra strength.)
• Cover the back with a selection of Designer Series Paper.
• Adhere your photo to the front of the frame.
• Zip a contrasting pattern through the Big Shot with the Scallop Oval Frame. Adhere to a selection of Designer Paper that has been sized to fit the front of the frame, and trim out the center using Paper Snips. Adhere to the front of the frame over the picture, so that the picture shows through the center of the Scallop Oval.
• Score 2-1/2″ from the bottom of the frame, and bend back to form the base of the frame. The frame will look like a backward “L”.
• Add snippets of Real Red 5/8″ Grosgrain Ribbon at the top and bottom of the frame.

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Stamp Set: Friends 24-7 (113218)
Ink: Basic Black (101179)
Designer Series Paper: Night & Day (116768—Available September 1)
Card Stock: Basic Grey textured (108693—Neutrals assorted)
Tools: Big Shot (113439), Extended Cutting Pads (113478), Matchbox Bigz XL Die (114890), Scallop Oval Frame (114521), 1-3/8” Circle Punch (104401)
Embellishments: Real Red 5/8” Grosgrain Ribbon (109034), Circle Fire Brads (109110)
Adhesives: Sticky Strip (104294), Mini Glue Dots (103683)