Christmas Craft Creations | Christmas Cards | Anything Goes

We’re half way through this month’s challenge at Christmas Craft Creations. If you haven’t encountered our challenge before, it’s a month challenge all about Christmas creations (as the name suggests!) with different themes each month. This month, as it is Christmas in July, we decided to go with an anything goes theme, so any projects are welcome as long as they are Christmassy. For my DT project I decided I wanted to have another go at Kendra’s Card Challenge. If you don’t know what that is, basically you use 6 patterned papers to make a whole bunch of cards following particular guidelines. Details can be found here. I already played along with this once this month, using up elements from an old Simon Says Stamp kit to make bee cards. This time I used a Love From Lizi kit and made Christmas cards. The kit is the one from November 2019, which is of course out of stock but I have linked to it in case you’d like a better idea of what it included.

Card 1 –

My first card is very faithful to the sketch Kendra provided. Some of my later interpretations were a bit looser, which I’ll talk about when I get to them. This one only uses one piece of patterned paper, which is a muted pink with a soft snowflake panel. I matted it on some white shimmery card stock, using strips of the same for the strips across the card. I added one of the punched out die cut pieces (or whatever they’re called!) as my sentiment, and finished off by adding a trio of sequins from the selection that came with the kit,

Challenges:

Craftyhazelnut’s Christmas Challenge – Anything Christmas

Dare 2B Artzy Challenge – Christmas in July

Card 2 –

The second card uses much less patterned paper – a strip from the same pink snowflake, and a square from a black and white snowflake pattern. The kit had included a couple of silver glitter card bases, which are in metric A6 sizing rather than the US A2 sizing that Kendra’s sketches are intended for. I decided that this sketch would work, sizewise, on one of the glitter card bases. I matted my panels on white, and added a panel of vellum between them and the card base to mute the intensity a little. I finished off with another punch out/ephemera (I’m going to call them all ephemera from now on I think) with a sentiment. Kendra’s sketch also has a bow on the square panel, but I left that off.

Challenges:

ABC Christmas Challenge – Christmas and O for Off To One Side

Lil Patch of Crafty Friends – Anything Goes

Card 3 –

Sketch 3 uses two equally sized strips of the patterned papers seen on the previous card, set at an angle. I turned the sketch from landscape to portrait. I embossed a panel of white card with the Snowflake embossing folder that came in the kit, then added my strips onto it, trimming away the excess. I edged the strips with Clear Iridescent Glitter Pinstripe Peel-Offs (not from the kit), changing up from my norm by setting them in slightly rather than putting them along the edges. I adhered the panel to a dark blue card base, then finished off with a focal shaker element. This is one of two ready made shaker tags that came in the kit. I trimmed off the top hanging portion of the tag, and adhered it to the card.

Challenges:

Moving Along With The Times – Cool It Down

Try It On Tuesday – Feathered Friends

Card 4 –

The fourth card uses two pieces of patterned paper that almost make a full panel together. I matted them on white, then added them to a grey card base. For the square focal element of the card I used a cut apart from one of the other sheets in the patterned papers. Kendra’s challenge only needs six patterned papers, and the kit had more than that, so it’s from one of the spare. For a bit of extra interest I added an ephemera sentiment banner across the matted wreath panel, and finished with a little wooden swan.

Challenges:

HLS Christmas Challenge – Anything Christmas

Through The Craft Room Door – Anything Goes

Card 5 –

Card five is the first with our third sheet of patterned paper, in my case a grey snowflake pattern. As with card two I used a panel of vellum for my background. I decided not to mat my elements this time, but I did change the sketch a tiny bit by rounding the corners of my panel. I also swapped the large focal panel that is suggested in the sketch and instead used an ephemera panel with an image an sentiment. I also used one of the silver mirror snowflakes that came in the kit. Initially I pushed out the negative pieces, but I preferred the look with them so I took a different one that hadn’t had them taken out and used that.

Challenges:

Christmas Crafts All Year ‘Round – Something That Starts with M and/or N (M for Merry)

Polkadoodles Craft Challenge – Anything Goes

Card 6 –

Card number six only uses two small pieces of the patterned papers. I decided to bring in one of my extra papers to make the background panel, adhering it to the other silver glitter card base. I used another of the cut apart patterned paper pieces as my focal element, masking it and my grey snowflake pieces onto white card. I finished off with a silver glittered wooden snowflake from the embellishment bag that came in the kit.

Challenges:

Allsorts Challenge – Feminine/For A Lady

Merry Little Christmas Challenge – Anything Christmas Goes

Card 7 –

Something I’ve not talked about yet, is that before cutting everything out I took great care to work out which patterned paper would be used for which paper on the template. This card is one of the reasons for that. The middle column is actually two small pieces leftover from paper A and paper D. I wanted it to appear like a consistent column, so I made sure that paper A and D would seem to match. If you look closely you can tell they don’t – A (the one at the top) is the snowflake pattern, whilst D (at the bottom) is a feathered bauble design.

I adhered the three columns (four rectangles) onto a mat of the white shimmer card I’d used previously. I then added one of the ephemera sentiment pieces in the middle, covering the gap between the pink pieces.

Challenges:

Digi Choosday Craft Challenge – Anything Goes

Dragonfly Dreams Challenge – Christmas In July

Card 8 –

Card eight is another that only uses on of the template patterned papers, this time the grey snowflakes again. I decided for something a bit different to mat it onto one of my extra patterned paper pieces, using the same as the middle of my banners. The other two banners are cut from the same coloured card as the card base, and I finished off with a small ephemera piece for my sentiment.

Challenges:

Craftyhazelnut’s Patterned Paper Challenge – Use Patterned Paper

The Paper Shelter Challenge – Anything Goes

Card 9 –

Card nine is another one of the sketches that had influenced my paper choice. I wanted the design to feel balanced, so I intentionally selected papers that resulted in both of the outer columns being grey. In Kendra’s sketch the strips of card have banner ends added to them, but I decided I would rather keep them as rectangles. I adhered them to a mat of the white shimmer card, which I matted onto some vellum for a little extra interest. The focal point is another shaker tag, again with the tag part trimmed off, and the design is finished with an ephemera sentiment.

Challenges:

Crafter’s Castle – Anything Goes

Card 10 –

The tenth card caused me a bit of consternation as I went back and forth trying to work out what to do with it. I eventually chose to add a white panel embossed with the Snowflake embossing folder for my background, over which went the feathery patterned paper. For the strip I ended up using the embossing folder again, this time on black. I swiped white ink over it to make the embossing stand out more. (And then thought it looked a bit like the coronavirus, and can’t unsee it!) I added an ephemera wreath as the focal element, and an ephemera tag for the sentiment.

Challenges:

Dream Factory Challenge – Black Swan

Card 11 –

For card 11 I again pulled in another piece of extra patterned paper to make the background panel. I edged it, and my other patterned pieces, with Ice Blue/Silver Finish Pin Stripe Peel-Offs. I finished off with an ephemera piece to be the sentiment and focal point, plus a trio of ephemera stars on the top right. Actually when I took the pictures I felt like this card was missing something but I’m not sure what… Or perhaps not missing something, but I’m not happy with it. Any suggestions?

Challenges:

The House That Stamps Built – Anything Goes

Card 12 –

This card is another that I changed up a bit. It only uses one piece of the patterned paper – the large circle in the centre. The sketch has an addition of a banner and pennants, but I didn’t want to do that. Instead I just added an ephemera piece to the centre of the circle. I also embossed a panel of vellum with the Snowflake embossing folder to be my background panel.

Challenges:

Sparkle Christmas Challenge – Snowflakes

Card 13 –

Card 13 again is supposed to have pennants but I didn’t want to do them. It only uses one of the patterned papers from the template, the one at the top, but I bought in some of my extra patterned paper for the bottom panel, and covered the join between them with an Ice Blue Peel-Off. For the focal element I used a large swan ephemera, and a sentiment ephemera in the same colour.

Challenges:

Crafty Gals Corner – Christmas In July

Card 14 –

I struggled with card 14, but I think it was worth it. The sketch calls for the background pattern paper and the strip, both being matted, as would be the focal panel. Instead of matting the elements I added White/Gold Finish Peel-Offs. I used a Christmas tree ephemera for my focal point, and added a gold glittered wooden star to the top. I really like how this (unintentionally!) matches my watermark!

Challenges:

Crafty Catz – Anything Goes

Card 15 –

I think card 15 is probably my favourite. It definitely appeals to my CAS side. I layered up some snippets of white behind each of my patterned panels to create some dimension, then added an ephemera sentiment piece in coordinating colours overlapping the patterned paper.

Challenges:

Krafty Chicks Challenge – All Occasions

Card 16 –

And finally, card 16! I like how this looks kind of like a stack of presents. I used a background panel of the white shimmer card, matted on vellum. For my sentiment I chose one that matched the colour on the longest patterned paper strip. I also added several of the wooden pieces from the embellishment pack to finish off the card.

Challenges:

Classic Design Challenge – Anything Goes

Double Trouble Challenge – Christmas Stash

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Whew, that was a lot of cards! I actually made these almost two weeks ago. And then forget to do the photos or the blog post, so whilst I’m using them as my DT project for the Christmas Craft Creations reminder post it’s actually rather late. (I try to be understanding if DT members are delayed, and really, I’m hardly going to kick myself off the team.) The photos were actually quite a pain to sort. Probably would have gone much better if I’d photographed them any day between making them and today, but of course I left it until the last minute and then the weather was rainy, and the colours came out a bit eh. I edited the photos, but if you scroll through and look at the background you can see there’s some variation – they’re all on the same background, so it ought to be the same colour.

Anyway, I’m blathering. I hope you enjoyed the cards. I’d love to know which is your favourite. And maybe I’ve inspired you to come and join in with our Christmas challenge, or with Kendra’s challenge, or just generally to make cards!

Love,

Charlotte E (Lady Joyful) Email thejoyfulsoulcreates@gmail.com

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Challenges included (for the group of cards):

Build Your Stash Holiday Cardmakers Hop – Christmas In July

Christmas Craft Creations – Anything Christmas Goes

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Check out what the rest of the DT made:

A. Rose

Alie

Arwen

Boryana

Charlotte (Lady Joyful) – that’s me!

Cindy

Francesca

Helen

Lynne

Tammy