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)

• Prepare a standard card base from textured Very Vanilla. Distress the edges with Chocolate Chip ink and a Sponge Dauber.
• Select the “Leaf Montage” and “Wood” patterns from the Autumn Meadows Designer Series Paper and ink distress the edges. Layer onto Really Rust textured card stock. Add a snippet of Tempting Turquoise 1/4″ Grosgrain Ribbon layered over Dusty Durango Polka-Dot Grosgrain Ribbon at the interface of the two papers. (Tip: Because the ribbon was in stark contrast to the distressed paper, I “muddied” them with a Sponge Dauber and Chocolate Chip ink.)
• Ink the “Oak Leaf” image from Autumn Splendor with Basic Brown and stamp onto Very Vanilla. Color with Blender Pens and Dusty Durango, Creamy Caramel, Really Rust, and More Mustard inks. Snip out with Paper Snips and distress the edges with Chocolate Chip. Pop onto the “Grid” pattern from Autumn Meadows, which has been layered onto Wood Cuts. Once again, the edges have been ink distressed.
• Punch a Taken with Teal scalloped circle using Nestabilities and the Big Shot. Pierce the center of each scallop with the Paper Piercing Tool and distress with Chocolate Chip. Layer the image mat on top, and add four Vintage Brads in each corner of the image.
• Thread Linen Thread through the holes in two of the bottom scallops and adhere to the card base.
• Ink the “Acorns” with Basic Brown and stamp onto Very Vanilla. Color with Blender Pens, along with Creamy Caramel and Close to Cocoa inks. Punch out with the 1-1/4″ Circle Punch. Ink distress the edges with Chocolate Chip and pop onto a Nestabilities scalloped circle using a Stampin’ Dimensional. Position and adhere on top of the linen threads and ribbons. Add four Vintage Brads to each corner, and add to the card base.

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Stamp Set: Autumn Splendor (116503—Available September 1)
Inks: Basic Brown (104315), Chocolate Chip (100908), More Mustard (103162), Really Rust (102549), Close to Cocoa (103139), Creamy Caramel (103220), Dusty Durango (115654)
Designer Series Paper: Autumn Meadows (116769—Available September 1)
Card Stock: Very Vanilla (101650), Wood Sheets Texture Cuts (116309), Taken with Teal (101584), Really Rust textured (108697—Earth Elements assorted), Very Vanilla textured (108693—Neutrals assorted)
Tools: Paper Piercing Tool (116631), Mat Pack (105826), 1-1/4” Circle Punch (104403), Big Shot (113439), Blender Pens (102845), Nestabilities
Embellishments: Vintage Brads (109109), Dusty Durango Polka-Dot Grosgrain Ribbon (115609), Tempting Turquoise ¼” Grosgrain Ribbon (109038)