Category: cardmaking

Day 7 Tag from 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist

I’m sharing a tag inspired by the tag that Paula Cheney created as part of the 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist series in the CLASSroom at Ellen Hutson’s.

Day 7 Tag - 2013 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist

At first glance, you might think “Huh?, This isn’t like Paula’s!” And it isn’t in terms of dies or stamps. My take-aways from Paula’s tag were  the colors and use of patterned paper. I have loads of patterned paper pads, and I had a fun time die cutting the curtains, window scene, cat  and tag background from various patterns, finally finding a mix that I liked. The Memory Box tree was first cut and then dry embossed. I tried several tree die cuts before settling on this one.

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Tim Holtz Skates Tag

There’s just something about a pair of ice skates that says winter! Since I first saw the Tim Holtz skate die cuts from summer’s CHA, I’ve wanted to try them on a project.

Tim Holtz Skates Tag

I cut the skates from grunge board and applied gesso to them. I tried the gesso method after trying to paint the grunge board raw. I just wasn’t able to adequately cover the raw grunge board with the paints. The grunge board acted like a sponge with paint. After the gesso application, I painted the skates with Distress Paints – Picket Fence on the skate bodies, Black Soot on the heels and Brushed Pewter on the blades – and got good coverage. After the paints dried, I lightly sanded the skates for a distressed look. For a bit of sparkle, I added Clear Rock Candy Distress Glitter with Glossy Accents as the glue.

Tim Holtz Skates Tag

For the background, I cut a tag from grunge board with the Tim Holtz tag die and covered it with a piece of patterned paper from the Merriment stash to which I’d applied the Frosted Film. The Frosted Film in easy to apply and gives a nice finish to the paper. Something to note, the tag size just exceeds 6″ in height. I was using a 6″ x 6″ pattern from the paper pad, so rather than cut the tag down in height, I used a strip of paper at the bottom that is rotated 90 degrees to the other paper. The Word Band covers up the paper seam.

I laced the skates with the Natural Hemp Cord. I considered baker’s twine, but the Hemp Cord texture seemed more appropriate. I used a needle to thread the cord through the holes in the skate die cuts.

I applied the Picket Fence paint to the Word Band, let it dry a bit, and then rubbed it off leaving paint on the recessed words.

This isn’t “whip up a tag in a few minutes” project. This tag took a couple of days of trying things out and letting the die cut skates dry between the various applications of gesso, paints, and Glossy Accents! That being said, I really like how the skates turned out. I think it would be fun to make some as Christmas ornaments.

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Poppystamps Merry Little Christmas

How’s your December going? Have you bought your Christmas tree? I’m sharing a card created with Poppystamps dies and stamp set which was inspired by the cut-your-own tree farms and the Christmas tree lots that many of us visit at this time of year.

Poppystamps Merry Little Christmas

The tree decorated with sparkling lights is the card’s focal point, which I placed against a snowy treeline. I added a smaller pine tree next to the decorated tree for some balance. I used a patterned paper background to provide additional color and to echo the color of the tree lights and heat-embossed sentiment.

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Another Day 4 Tag from 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist

Today, I’m sharing another tag as part of the 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist series in the CLASSroom at Ellen Hutson’s. This is a “Take 2” of Day Four’s tag by Kittie Caracciolo combined with the deer card by Julie Ebersole in this post.

Another Day 4 Tag - 2013 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist

I really like the red, gray and white together. At first I tried making this same tag with gray, but decided to throw in the red deer to mix it up! I also cut the snowbanks in the woodgrain cardstock, as well as the trees, to provide more texture.

12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist – Day 4

Today, I’m sharing another tag as part of the 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist series in the CLASSroom at Ellen Hutson’s. My tag is inspired by Kittie Caracciolo’s. Her work with die cuts is amazing. She’s now a regular contributor in the CLASSroom.

2013 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist – Day 4

For my tag, I tried to replicate some of the texture and depth of Kittie’s tag. She had more elements on her tag that really added to its overall depth.

I used embossing paste on a stencil to replicate snow, and I cut the birch trees from woodgrain for some texture. Kittie uses a crimper to add texture to her snowbanks; I’ve got a crimper on my list of “tools to buy” as I can totally see its value! When I laid the die cut sled on the tag, it seemed a little blah, so I stamped the die cut with the Versamark, shook on the sticky embossing powder, heated the powder and sprinkled with the Stickles Dry Glitter for a little sparkle.