Stampin' Up Nests of Winter Christmas Cards

 

Hi everyone,

First up, I wanted to share some awesome news!  A couple of months ago, I was approached by the team at Splitcoaststampers to see if I would like to be a part of their Dirty Dozen Design Team.  I have been a part of Splitcoaststampers since 2008 and My Gallery on there has 511 cards which I started uploading before I even started blogging.  Everyone there has always been so encouraging and helpful and I just love being a part of their community - plus they introduced me to Stampin' Up.  I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would be offered a spot on their Design Team! 

Once we discussed how it would all work and the commitment needed, I said a resounding "YES".  The tenure is for six months.  How it works, is that if you are a PAID Fan Club member of Splitcoaststampers, you get certain privileges like your uploaded cards show up straight away in your Gallery instead of being delayed until Admin approves your card - and you can take part in the Monthly Fan Club Challenges.  Being a paid member means you are contributing towards the cost of running their website and I've been a member for many years.  If you are not a paid member, the Fan Club Forum, Fan Club Challenges and Fan Club Galleries are hidden from view.  The main proviso for being on the Design Team is that you do not use any counterfeit products - which I never do anyway - but other than that, I can use whatever I have - old products, new products, retired products etc.

The Monthly Fan Club Challenges go live on the 15th of each month - and I and the rest of the Design Team get a month prior to the 15th to create our projects with the theme for that particular month - and have to upload them by the 15th so that Fan Club Members have a Fan Club Gallery full of projects and ideas to inspire them when the Challenge goes live.  The monthly themes are set by the Dirty Dozen Admins and I already have all the themes for my six months.  I started in December and will finish up in May 2026.  

One proviso is that I am not allowed to share my projects anywhere online until my six months is up so I will have LOTS to share after May 2026.  I feel so excited to be a part of the team and I just love that I am learning new techniques and styles of cardmaking that are taking me out of my comfort-zone.  I have felt so inspired by my other Team Members too as we all have different ways of creating, interpretations of the monthly themes and our own unique flair.  

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So, onto sharing one of the Christmas Cards that I made this season:

I made multiples of this card to give to family and friends and did them production-line style.  I saw a similar card on Pinterest a while ago but there was no link or name so no idea who made it.  In any case, I did add my own spin to the design to change things up a little.

First up, I diecut the birds on the branches from the Stampin' Up Nests of Winter Designer Series Paper using my Big Shot.  I love how Stampin' Up has brought out papers that you can diecut images from because it is a great timesaver when you want to make multiples.  

To do the background, I used a Blending Brush on Bristol Smooth White Cardstock to add Stampin' Up Pool Party gradually fading to white.  I made the ink a little darker on the RHS.  I used my Pool Party Reinker with a little water added to splatter the background using a Fan Brush.  I did the same with Kuretake Pale Gold Watercolour Paint.  I really like how the splatter just lifted the background from being a little plain.  I was in a bit of a hurry so dried my panels with a Heat-Gun.

Here is a different angle so you can see the splatter better:

I stamped branches from the Stampin' Up Golden Greenery Stamp Set - sadly retired - using Versafine Olympia Green Ink.  I stamped off first to make the lighter branches and full strength for the darker ones.

Next, I glued on the diecut image using Tombow Mono Multi Glue.  This panel was matted onto Pool Party Cardstock then Cherry Cobbler Cardstock.  I added some Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush to the berries for some sparkle.

The sentiment is from the Stampin' Up Greetings of the Season Stamp Set - another retired set - but a fabulous one if you can pick it up second-hand.  Here is a photo of it:

I stamped both the MERRY and Christmas using Versafine Onyx Black Ink - but separately so I could cut out the MERRY which is popped up on a little scrap of white cardstock.

On a couple of the cards that I was hand-delivering, I added 3 x small Gold Pearls but didn't think to take a photo beforehand.  I didn't want to post cards that had pearls on them because I wanted a flat card.

Lastly, I glued my card front to a Kaisercraft White Card Base.

Thanks for visiting my blog today!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Stampin' Up Greetings of the Season #164325 (retired) + Golden Greenery #164331 (retired)

Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black + Olympia Green, Stampin' Up Pool Party

Designer Paper:  Stampin' Up Nests of Winter #164183

Accessories:  Big Shot, Stamping Platform, Kuretake Starry Watercolours - Pale Gold, Fan Brush, Blending Brush (Amazon), Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Canson Bristol 250gsm/110lb White Cardstock, Stampin' Up Cardstock - Pool Party + Cherry Cobbler, Kaisercraft White Card Base, Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush, Heat-gun

Dies:  Stampin' Up Winterly Tree Tops #164065 (retired)

Stampin' Up Perennial Lavender Pocket Cards

 

Hi blogging friends 😀

Today I am sharing some Pocket Cards using Stampin' Up's Perennial Lavender Designer Series Paper.  I followed a tutorial by Patti Dolan from You-Tube which you can see here:

I changed the measurements to suit Australian-sized cards.

I made a bunch of cards for my stash but gave one to my sister-in-law as a Get Well Card.  It is always good to have some cards on hand with a neutral sentiment that can be used for a variety of occasions which is why I just used the "Hello" sentiment on all my cards.

The first card uses Pretty Peacock Cardstock which I think looks gorgeous with the Perennial Lavender Designer Series Paper:

The sentiment is from the Stampin' Up Simply Said Mix and Match set which is still current in the catalogue.  This is a great little set to add to your stash as it has a variety of sentiments and styles of fonts.

I stamped it onto white cardstock using Versamagic Ocean Depth Ink as it was the only ink that I had that matched.  Ideally, I would have liked to use Stampin' Up Pretty Peacock Ink but I haven't added that ink to my stash yet.  I diecut the circle using my Big Shot and a Lifestyle Nesting Circle Die.  I then layered that onto Pretty Peacock Cardstock that I diecut using a Spotlight on Nature Circle Die, then popped it up on dimensionals.  These Spotlight on Nature Dies are a great set to get because it has a 12 different decorative circle dies.

The floral insert is removable and here is a photo of the card with the insert removed:

And here is a photo of the insert:

The diecut butterflies are from a recently retired Stampin' Up Set called Sketched Butterflies.  I used some Metallic Teal Thick Paper which I bought from KMart (Australia) but I can't see it on their website anymore.  It came in a pad that has lots of different colours and is really good quality.  I glued just the body of the butterflies down so I could bend the wings up.

When you open up the floral designer paper, you can see that I added some white cardstock so I could write my message:

Now, here is another colourway:

I used the same Perennial Lavender Designer Paper.  The sentiment was stamped using Versacolor Violet Pigment Ink and I used a different Stampin' Up Spotlight on Nature Circle Die to diecut the Purple Cardstock.  The butterflies were diecut from White Glitter Cardstock.

Here are 2 photos of the insert:

And here is another colourway:

I, again, used the Perennial Lavender Designer Paper.  The sentiment was stamped using Versacolor Violet Pigment Ink.  The butterflies were diecut using Mauve Glitter Cardstock.  They look a bit more pink in the photo for some reason.

It was really fun to sit down and make a bunch of these cards so I could get to understand how this different fun-fold works.  I do struggle with cards that are different to the norm so if I make a few of them, it makes it easier for me to understand them - especially if I want to make them again in the future.  I ended up making 6 cards so it will good to have them on hand for all the family birthdays that happen just after Christmas when I find it harder to be creative 'cos I am soooooo tired from all the festivities.

Thanks for visiting my blog today.

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:  

Card No. 1 -

Stamps:  Stampin' Up Simply Said #163756

Ink:  Versamagic Ocean Depth

Designer Paper:  Stampin' Up Perennial Lavender 12" x 12" #162593

Accessories:  Kaisercraft Trimmer, Dimensionals, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Big Shot, Cardstock - SU Pretty Peacock + White, Metallic Teal Paper (KMart)

Dies:  Lifestyle Nesting Circles (retired), SU Spotlight on Nature #163580 + Sketched Butterflies #163491 (retired)

Card No. 2 - 

Stamps:   Stampin' Up Simply Said #163756

Ink:  Versacolor Violet Pigment

Designer Paper:  Stampin' Up Perennial Lavender 12" x 12" #162593

Accessories:  Kaisercraft Trimmer, Dimensionals, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Big Shot, Cardstock - White + Purple, White Glitter Cardstock

Dies:  Lifestyle Nesting Circles (retired), SU Spotlight on Nature #163580 + Sketched Butterflies #163491 (retired)

Card No. 3 -

Stamps:   Stampin' Up Simply Said #163756

Ink:  Versacolor Violet Pigment

Designer Paper:  Stampin' Up Perennial Lavender 12" x 12" #162593

Accessories:  Kaisercraft Trimmer, Dimensionals, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Big Shot, Cardstock - White + Purple, Mauve Glitter Cardstock

Dies:  Lifestyle Nesting Circles (retired), SU Spotlight on Nature #163580 + Sketched Butterflies #163491 (retired)

Stampin' Up Sketched Butterflies Thank You Card

 

Hi blogging friends,

Today I am sharing a Thank You Card for a nurse who works at my local GP clinic:

This is also my card for the following Challenges - click on the underlined link to take you to the Challenge:

• Allsorts Challenge Blog - #830 - I Spy Something Beginning with B or Anything Goes if you find the former too complicated

• Can You Handle the Pressure (Dry/Heat Embossing) Challenge - Anything Goes with Optional Twist of Balloons

I pulled out a recent purchase from Stampin' Up:  Sketched Butterflies - but just used the accompanying Sketched Butterflies Dies on my card.  This bundle was on the Last Chance List but is no longer available.  My Stampin' Up Demonstrator - Rachel - did a class back in March using this bundle and I just loved them and couldn't add them to my cart quick enough when I got home after class 😀  Just as well that I did because they disappeared a week or so later!

To make my card:  I watered down some Ranger Distress Inks in the colours Picked Raspberry, Squeezed Lemonade and Evergreen Bough then added some white paint from a White Posca Pen to the colours to make pastel shades - then used a paintbrush to paint them onto 300gsm/140lb Watercolour Paper.  I made sure I had plenty of variation in the tones.  I then diecut the butterflies using the 2 different butterflies - one is the base and the top is the detailed die.

I wanted to add a bit more life to the butterflies so splattered on the same ink colours but in full strength as well as some White Posca Pen, then some watered down JoSonja Pale Gold Acrylic Gouache Paint.  To add some subtle sparkle, I coloured the top butterflies with a Uniquely Creative Clear Glitter Brush - alas not picked up by the camera.  I only glued down the centre of the top detailed butterfly so I could bend up the wings for dimension.  I added some tiny matching Self-Adhesive Rhinestones to the butterfly centres.  Even though the rhinestones are self-adhesive, I added a tiny dot of Designer Dries Clear Art Glitter Glue fitted with a fine tip to make sure they didn't fall off or move.  I have learned from past experience that they just don't stay put - the glue dot just isn't strong enough especially when alot of my rhinestones are quite old and seem to have lost a bit of their stickiness over that time.

 

The dry embossing is a Stampin' Up embossing folder called Eyelet.  It is a 3D folder so I sprayed the white cardstock with water using my Ranger Mister so it wouldn't crack when I put it through my Big Shot.  Isn't this embossing folder gorgeous?!  It is still current so go grab one!

I used a 3/8" WRMK Corner Chomper to punch the two bottom corners of the embossed panel then glue the panel to a Uniquely Creative White Card Base using Tombow Mono Multi Glue.  I punched the two bottom corners of the card base using a 1/2" Corner Chomper.

I had so much trouble with the sentiment.  I seemed to spend hours messing it up.  First, the scrap of white cardstock that I stamped it on was lousy quality and when I heat-embossed it, it turned out really flat.  So I tried better quality and it turned out fine - but because I was originally using a two part sentiment, I kept stamping the 2nd one crooked despite using a Stamping Platform.  When I finally got it right, I used an oval die to diecut it and messed up the diecutting several times.  In the end, I figured I should just use a different sentiment.  I don't know why I didn't just do that before I messed up countless times - but sometimes you just don't know till you are at the point of giving up - however, I find it hard to give up on something because I am always so determined, sometimes to a fault 😏

So, I used a sentiment which is from a free stamp set that came with a UK Cardmaking and Papercraft Magazine ages ago and it worked out perfectly first time around.  I stamped it using Versamark Watermark Ink and heat-embossed it with Ranger Superfine Detail Gold Embossing Powder.  I used a Powder Tool before stamping to take care of any stray embossing powder.

I diecut the sentiment using a Lifestyle Nesting Rectangle Die then cut an angle on the RHS.  I layered the sentiment onto diecut Kaisercraft Gold Foil Paper and adjusted it to the right and down which added a tiny border.  I popped the sentiment up on Kaisercraft Double-sided Foam Pads but added a little bit of Tombow Mono Multi Glue to add a bit of extra adhesion to the dry embossing.

Lastly, I bent up the wings which you can see in this photo:

I decorated the card inside later on but it was too late to photograph it as the sun was setting and it was dreary.  It's always hard to photograph cards in Winter let alone later in the day - plus I wanted to write in the card and have it sitting on my handbag for giving to the nurse first thing tomorrow so I didn't forget to take it to my appointment with her.  They have forecast a ton of rain here tomorrow so I figured that I was unlikely to be able to photograph it in the morning and was also worried that I might forget it altogether!

The great thing about the card is that you could use it for many different occasions just by changing the sentiment.

Finished size is 105mm x 148mm which is a standard A6 card in Australia - or 4-1/8" x 5-13/16" if you go by imperial measurements.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Sincere Sentiments - SC Design by Simmone Clay (free with magazine)

Ink:  Ranger Distress Picked Raspberry + Squeezed Lemonade + Evergreen Bough, Versamark Watermark

Designer Paper:  Kaisercraft Foil Paper Pad FC220

Accessories:  Big Shot, Stampin' Up Eyelet Embossing Folder #163414, Ranger Mister, 300gsm/140lb Hot Pressed Watercolour Paper, Uniquely Creative Clear Glitter Brush UCE1811, Molossi Pink + Blue Rhinestones, Franceville Gold Assorted Rhinestones, White Posca Paint Pen, JoSonja Pale Gold Acrylic Gouache, Paint Brush, Powder Tool, Heat-Gun, Ranger Superfine Detail Gold Embossing Powder SFJ06961, Stamping Platform, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Designer Dries Clear Art Clear Adhesive, Uniquely Creative White Cardstock + Card Base

Punches:  We R Memory Keepers 1/2" + 3/8" Corner Chompers

Dies:  Stamping' Up! Sketched Butterflies #163491 (retired), Lifestyle Nesting Rectangles L-CC-006 (retired)

Stampin' Up Rock Star Birthday Card

 

Hi blogging friends 😀

I made another Masculine Birthday Card - this time for my husband's birthday.  My husband plays guitar in two bands so it was a no-brainer to use the very cool Stampin' Up Rock Star Stamp Set for his card:

ETA:  I just learned that I was top 3 over at Make my Monday!  Woo hoo!

This is also my card for the following Challenges - click on the underlined link to take you to the Challenge:

• Make My Monday - #257 - Masculine Card

• A Perfect Time to Craft - #8 August - Anything Goes

It's such a shame that Stampin' Up retired this Rock and Roll Bundle so quickly.  It only appeared in the January - April Mini Catalogue in 2024 and I thought it might carry over into the new catalogue in May - but it didn't.   I think it is so unique and I will no doubt keep it forever like The Open Sea.

I stamped one guitar onto a sheet of Stampin' Up Bright and Beautiful Designer Series Paper then fussy cut it out.   I thought the stars on the paper looked really cool for the body of the guitar.  I stamped the guitar again onto Smoky Slate Cardstock and fussy-cut the pick guard, neck and head.  I stamped another guitar onto Lost Lagoon Cardstock and fussy-cut it as well.  I went around all the cut edges using an Anko Black Brush Pen to hide any imperfections in my trimming.

Once I had all my pieces stamped out, I then layered all the various pieces together and I am so pleased with how they turned out.  I often forget that I can stamp images onto designer paper to paper-piece my projects.  I should put a reminder note on the wall in front of my craft desk.

Here is a close-up of the guitars:

The designer paper on the card base is also by Stampin' Up - Rock and Roll.  I roughed up the edges using a Uniquely Creative Edge Distressing Tool then screwed up the paper a couple of times to add some creases then ink-blended around the edges with Stampin' Up Basic Gray Ink as well as a few other places to make it all grungy.  I added a few rips to the paper and I just love how it turned out.

I glued the designer paper to Lost Lagoon Cardstock then onto Basic Black Cardstock leaving about an 1/8" border of each.  I also ink-blended around the cardstock using the same Basic Gray Ink.

I stamped the sentiment using Versamark Watermark Ink and heat-embossed it using Stampendous Detail White Embossing Powder.  I used a Powder Tool first so I could get a cleaner image.  I then diecut the sentiment using the giant pick from the Rock Star Dies.  Doesn't it look amazing!!

The LHS guitar is popped up on a scrap of white cardstock and the RHS guitar is popped up on 3 layers of scraps of white cardstock - then glued to the designer paper using Tombow Mono Multi Glue.

The stars were diecut using Stampin' Up Summer Splash Glitter Cardstock which I thought matched the Lost Lagoon Cardstock really well.  The lightning bolts coming out of the bottom of the guitars were diecut from Kaisercraft Silver Glitter Cardstock.

I was so pleased with how my card turned out.  It took a while to get there because originally I had three guitars and I had paper-pieced a number of them before I was happy with what I ended up using.  Sometimes a card comes together really quickly and other times, you try various things and you are just not quite happy - then you pivot, and bam, it works out and you love what you have ended up with.  But you learn along the way and that's a good thing especially if you want to make another card with the same stamp and die set.

Thanks for visiting my blog today!

Jocelyn

Card Recipe:

Stamps:  Stampin' Up Rock Star #162696 (retired)

Ink:  Stampin' Up Basic Gray, Versamark Watermark

Designer Paper:  Stampin' Up Rock and Roll 12" x 12" #162695 (retired) + Bright and Beautiful 6" x 6" #161449 (retired)

Accessories:  Stampin' Up Summer Splash Glitter Cardstock #163771 (retired), Kaisercraft Silver Glitter Cardstock, Kaisercraft Trimmer, Ink Blending Tool + Domed Pad, Heat-gun, Powder Tool, Stampendous Detail White Opaque Embossing Powder DP100, Uniquely Creative Edge Distressing Tool, Tombow Mono Multi Glue, Fussy-cutting Scissors, Cardstock - Stampin' Up Lost Lagoon + Smoky Slate + Basic Black, Scraps of White Cardstock

Dies:  Stampin' Up Rock Star #162705