November's Christmas Card Challenge - Winner!

This was the final challenge for 2012's Christmas Card Challenge.  So many wonderful cards submitted!  I'd like to thank the participants who took part in the challenges - and made some really beautiful cards!

November's winner is:

JPScraps!

Congrats, Jamie!  I'm so thrilled you took part in so many challenges. 

Now a break for the cards to get out in the mail.

The Christmas Card Challenge will begin again January 5, 2013!

Thank you so much for your comments!

Gently Falling - Thank You's

Just before Thanksgiving, we are providing all of our support staff a token of our gratitude for all they do for us, and how much they help us accomplish what needs to be done.  This is one of  a set of 4 duplicate cards.

I made this card with the Gently Falling stamp set from Stampin' Up.  I'm not generally a fan of Autumn things, but this set is so versatile, I just had to make the purchase.  I ordered it in wood since it's a two-step stamping layered set.  This way I can make a permanent Stamp-a-ma-jig template which makes the stamping and projects go SO MUCH faster!

I used Cajun Craze cardstock with the leaves stamped in Versamark (watermark) ink, Debbie Mumm Harvest and Holiday stack for the patterned cardstock,  the Thank  You is cut from the Beyond Birthdays cart in Cajun Craze cardstock, and Cherry Cobbler ribbon.   The leaf uses Old Olive and Cajun Craze ink for the base and is stamped with Versamark and embossed with gold embossing powder for the top overlay.

Your comments are treasured!

Notecard Set CASE

 

I saw a beautiful note-card set from one of the Stampin' Up Demonstrators using one of my very favorite stamp sets!  I just had to CASE it.  What is a CASE you ask?  It means Copy And Share Everything.  Many of the demo's are very generous with their wonderful projects which allows others to copy them, and share the amazing ideas they've had.

The set includes 6 note-cards in varying color sets with matching envelopes.

 This is the finished piece with all the note-cards and matching envelopes inside.  I stamped and used another flower embellishment to finish the decoration on the outside as well as covering up some of the ribbon used to close the card set.

 This is the inside view - it's two regularly sized envelopes trimmed and put together, with some decoration on the inside.

Notes on the colors I used - all the leaves are stamped Certainly Celery with Wild Wasabi as the top layer.  The small yellow flowers use Daffodil Delight and Summer Starfruit, the pink flowers use Pretty in Pink, and Primrose Petals.  The rest of the colors for each card below are for the large center flowers.

 The first flower is stamped with Primrose Petals and Raspberry Ripple as the top layer of color.

 The yellow flower is Daffodil Delight and More Mustard as the top layer.

 These two are retired colors, but SO SO pretty.... Always Amethyst as the base color, and Lovely Lilac to add details on the top layer.

 This darker red flower is a Raspberry Ripple and Bravo Burgundy combination.

 Here for the blue is Pacific Point for the base, and Midnight Muse as the top layer.

 The coral flower uses retired colors as well - they are Cameo Coral base with Calypso Coral as the top layer.

 Here you can see all the cards laid out with their matching envelopes below them.

 Here are two more close-ups of all the cards.

Other materials I used:
126745 Stippled Blossoms - wood
123052 Blessings from Heaven - clear
126151 Friendly Phrases
107311 Note Cards and Envelopes - 3 sets
107301 Medium Envelopes, Whisper White 1 pkg.
Assorted Inks listed above.

**I started purchasing the Two-Step Stamping sets in wood again - instead of purchasing all the stamps in clear - that way I could make a permanent Stamp-A-Ma-Jig template.  It's worked GREAT so far!!  It really speeds things up when stamping.


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2012 Christmas Card Challenge - November and Final Challenge

 

Here it is - November - the last Christmas Card Challenge for 2012.   I'm sitting here writing this post with my favorite Christmas music going on the background, thinking about how this Christmas Card Challenge worked out this year.

I'm SO grateful for all the submissions, and truly hope there will be more next year.  I've already planned out the 2013 challenges, made a new logo/header, and am thinking about some (very small) changes.  I stayed pretty close to the plan I had with some changes as the months went along.  

BIG Congrats to JPScraps who participated in so many of the challenges!  She now has a fantastic collection of Stickles and many different sets of stamps.  Each month, I sent out a set of Christmas themed Stickles and a stamp set (hopefully I didn't duplicate any of them).

SO, here is the very last challenge:  

The theme for November is:  RIBBON!  

Use ribbon in any/all creative ways you can think of for your Christmas cards!  Remember, Christmas is coming!

 I saw these cards on a Stampin' Up website, and just LOVED them!  I used the same stamp set a few challenges go for the Christmas Tree Shape cards, and just had to give this a try!

 The cards use the Scentsational Season Framelits Dies, actually named "Holiday Collection".  The ribbon is:  Chocolate Chip Scallop Dots 1/2" ribbon, Lucky Limeade Ruffled Ribbon 3/8" ribbon, and Real Red White trimmed Taffeta 1/8" ribbon.  I used Terrifically Tacky Tape to secure the ribbon on the back of the card, and on the side edges so the card wouldn't lift off the base.  The star above the tree is the Champagne glitter paper punched with the star from the Merry Minis Punch Pack.

SO, at the very end of this year of challenges, you should have had 66 cards finished at 6 per month of the 11 month.  I counted tonight as I prepared the post, as as you've seen throughout the year, I actually made more!  12 miscellaneous cards for me from various challenges and some requests including 4 for Mom you saw earlier on the blog with the red/green ornaments she requested, and the 50 card order I completed for my friend.  That makes:  132 cards in all!!!!  72 of which are available for me to send out.

The next dilemma I had was who was getting which card!!??  How was I ever to pick!?  Well, my friend Dee solved that one for me on our most recent weekend card making/crafting day.  She said, "Write them all out, put them in envelopes, THEN address them.  Then you don't know who gets what, but they all have a handmade card from you."  BRILLIANT!  It makes the choosing so much easier!

Alright - I'm done rambling on now, so here goes for the last time this year:  Make your 6 (or more) cards based on the theme, and enter them into the linky below BEFORE midnight CST on November 20th.  The prize winner will be announced and awarded on the 25th of the month, just one month before Christmas, and just in time to get your cards out in the mail for a Christmas Card delivery!

THANKS so much for hanging in with me all year, and PLEASE join us next year!

Don't forget to vote from November 21 - 24th for your favorite!

 Your comments are treasured!