handmade holiday cards Archives - Page 2 of 3

Frosted Gingerbread

Posted on December 10, 2021December 10, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

I’m back with another couple of projects featuring some retiring products from the July-December Mini catalogue! This time I’m sharing one of my favourite stamp sets… Frosted Gingerbread. I also love the suite that it’s a part of; Gingerbread & Peppermint. Making gingerbread cookies at this time of year is something I’ve done since I was a little kid. And now my munchkins help me with the baking and love it just as much. This stamp set is super cute and it reminds me of baking gingerbread cookies… how could it not?!

This first card shows of the Frosted Gingerbread stamp set on it’s own. I used a combination of Real Red and Old Olive ink. And used some of the returning, now retiring, Real Red Sheer Ribbon. I simply stamped different images from the stamp set randomly on some Basic White cardstock to create a background. And then I did it again with a smaller piece of Basic White that I popped up with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

If you want to step this card up a bit you can use the Stitched Rectangles dies for the smaller pieces of Basic White. Or even add a few rhinestones or gems. I liked keeping this one nice and simple!

For my other card I wanted to show off some of the great Designer Series Paper from this suite. The colours and designs are perfect for the Christmas holidays. And some of the images on the DSP can be cut out with the Gingerbread dies. Although for this card I decided to fussy cut some of the gingerbread oven mitts.

I used Old Olive and Real Red again which goes with the DSP. Then I popped up the oven mitts and phrase using Stampin’ Dimensionals. I also added a little bit of White Crinkled Seam binding ribbon behind the phrase. And I wanted to add a bit of bling on this one so I added a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels.

These cards were fun and easy to make. I’m definitely going to miss the Frosted Gingerbread stamp set… and the rest of this suite!

Check out last week’s projects featuring the Time of Giving bundle here. And you can check out all the retiring products in my online shop. These are only available until January 3rd, or while supplies last. So don’t wait too long!

Retiring List

Posted on December 7, 2021December 7, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

It’s that time of year! Everyone is rushing around trying to get their holiday shopping done. Or in my case my holiday cards crafted and sent. It’s also the time of year when Stampin’ Up! releases their retiring list of products. A new catalogue is on the way and so a bunch of products from the July-December Mini catalogue are in their final days. Some products will make a comeback in next year’s holiday mini and some will still be available after January 3rd. But everything else is only here for a limited time and while supplies last.

There are 2 important things to remember. The first, I’ve already said, is that these products are only available until January 3rd if supplies last that long. And the other is the discounts! Some of the retiring products are up to 50% off!! Some embellishments are 10-15% off and it’s mostly dies that are 50% off. And of course there’s lots in between.

Check out two projects I created using the retiring Time of Giving bundle here. If you want to know if one of your favourites is on the retiring list of products send me an email (inkspirationwithteresa@gmail.com). I’d be happy to email it to you! Then you can fill up your cart in my online shop. Plus if you wait til tomorrow, December 8th, you’ll get FREE shipping on orders of $65 or more. And when you do that you’ll also receive a free pack of Elegant Faceted Gems from me as a thank you! Just make sure to use this code…

Time of Giving

Posted on December 3, 2021December 3, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

December is here and there’s only 3 more weeks until Christmas! It’s also the time of year when Stampin’ Up! releases their list of retiring products from the mini catalogue. So over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing projects featuring some of the products that won’t be available after January 3rd. First off I’m sharing 2 projects using the Time of Giving bundle. This is such a fun bundle! And I love that it can be used for more than one holiday/occasion.

I got this idea for one of these projects from another demonstrator. Unfortunately I don’t remember who. And this project sparked the idea for the other. The first project uses a couple of the Giving Gifts dies. I also used some of the White Glittered Organdy ribbon and one of the Mini Jam Jars from the Annual catalogue. To start I used the Santa with his reindeer die twice on a piece of Basic White cardstock. And I attached this piece, as well as the snowflake on top, using Multi-Purpose Liquid Glue. To adhere the ribbon I used a combination of Multi-Purpose Glue and Mini Glue Dots.

I can’t wait to add a tealight to this!

To go with this tealight holder I created a card using the Santa and reindeer die as the focal point. I used Night of Navy to help this die cut stand out, as well as for the card base. Then I used a combination of Night of Navy and Pool Party ink to stamp a snowflake background. I popped up both the framed Santa die cut piece and phrase using some Stampin’ Dimensionals. (The phrase is cut out using the Stitched Rectangles dies)

I’ve had a lot of fun crafting with the Time of Giving bundle and I’m a little sad that it’s retiring! Not that long ago I posted a Fall themed Sampler that I created using Time of Giving as one of the stamp set. Check that out here! And if you want to get this bundle for yourself then head over to my online shop.

Sparkly Christmas Cards

Posted on November 30, 2021November 30, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

Tomorrow is the first day of December! And we are less than a month away from Christmas! I’m doing pretty well with my holiday shopping, but as usual I’m behind on my holiday cards. The first batch is almost ready to go out, but I still need to start prepping for my second batch. If you’re like me and still need some inkspiration for your holiday cards, then I’ve got you covered! Here are a few more cards from a team card swap. These ones are sparkly Christmas cards and use some different stamps, etc.

This first card was made by Stephanie Nash, my upline. She used the Whimsy & Wonder Designer Series Paper and the Whimsical Trees bundle. I love the silver foil and other colours in the DSP. And I love how she silver heat embossed on some vellum. And it’s hard to see, but she also used some Wink of Stella Glitterbrush on the stamped trees. So pretty!

I often like using snowflakes for my holiday cards. So that’s probably one of the reasons why I love this card Linda Warrington made. Plus she used Blackberry Bliss, which is one of my favourite colours. Although I never would have thought to use it for a Christmas card. She used the Merry Snowflakes bundle for this card. There are some Blackberry Bliss snowflakes stamped behind the die cut ones. I love the rhinestones in the centre of the snowflakes. And how she embossed more snowflakes on some of the foil from the Silver Foil Specialty pack.

The last card is from Pam Struwing. She also used the Stitched Snowflakes dies to cut out her silver foil snowflake. And I love the pieces she used from the Peaceful Place Designer Series Paper pack! It’s a nice simple card with a neutral colour.

I just love these sparkly Christmas cards! I’m just about always adding some bling to my designs so I enjoy seeing it on other people’s cards. Especially when it’s using products I don’t have. Which is one of the many reasons why I love doing card swaps. Check out some of the other swaps cards I received here.

If you want to join my team and join in on the fun, you can do that here. Or if you want to grab a few things for your holiday cards while there’s still time, head over to my online shop.

Non-Traditional Christmas Colours

Posted on November 26, 2021November 26, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

I usually used lots of reds and greens for my Christmas cards. Sometimes I even use blues and silvers. But once in a while I like to use non-traditional Christmas colours. This card design came from a colour challenge. The colours we were given were Basic Black, Bermuda Bay, Blackberry Bliss and Basic White.

I don’t know why I went with a Christmas card design, but that’s where my inkspiration took me. Something told me that the Poinsettia Petals stamp set would look nice with this colour combination. So I used Basic Back for my card base. I figured that would be the best option. Then Basic White was pretty obvious… I used it to stamp on. And the Bermuda Bay and Blackberry Bliss I used for the poinsettias, berries and leaves.

On the inside of the card I stamped a simple “Merry Christmas” with Blackberry Bliss and a few berries with Bermuda Bay. For the outside of the card I created a kind of background using the stamped images. Then I added a Basic Black framed piece of stamped cardstock on top with a few Stampin’ Dimensionals.

I still wanted something more the for the card, but decided not to add a phrase on the outside like I ususally do. Instead I added a large Blackberry Bliss poinsettia and a medium sized one in Bermuda Bay using the coordinating dies. For each one I used two layers to make them look more full. Then I added a few Pearl Basic Jewels to the centres.

To finish it off I decided to add some of the Glittery Organza ribbon. This is where I would have usually put the phrase and I think it adds a nice touch.

I really like this pairing of non-traditional Christmas colours. And I’m going to have to remember it for future projects.

Check out one of my other card designs using the Poinsettia Petals stamp set here. And if you’d like to try this card design for yourself, you can get everything you need in my online shop. Be sure to post your finished card here if you do!

Pinwheel Tower Card

Posted on November 19, 2021November 20, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

The Fancy Folds Design Team is back with another blog hop! And this month we’re making a Pinwheel Tower card. I love the look of this card! And I love that it fits in one of my usual invitation envelopes! LeeAnn Greff has a good video with measurements that you can check out here.

For my design I decided to make a holiday card. I’m definitely getting into the holiday season. And for this card I decided to use some returning products. I started with the Heartwarming Hugs Designer Series Paper and used it to pull my colour combination; Pear Pizzazz and Real Red. Pear Pizzazz is such a nice shade of green. Plus I love just about all the designs in this paper pack so it didn’t take much to coordinate the different designs. I even made sure to match up the designs when the card is flat. Check it out…

To go with the Heartwarming Hugs DSP I decided to use the Poinsettia Petals stamp set and coordinating dies. I’m so glad that these are still in the Annual Catalogue! These were a go to for me last year when they first came out. And I love going back to it every once in a while. To add a little something more to my card I layered two of the small poinsettias to create a fuller one. Then I added a Pearl Basic Jewels to the centre of them as well as a few to one of the larger stamped poinsettias.

The phrase and blank piece of cardstock were cut out using the Stitched So Sweetly dies. These dies are a new favourite of mine and I love the different designs.

I had a lot of fun designing my Pinwheel Tower card. And as usual it turned out to be easier to make than I initially thought! Make sure to keep going on this month’s blog hop and check out Gina Connor’s design here.

And if you want to check out last month’s blog hop where we made a Triangle Gatefold card you can start that here.

It’s On!

Posted on November 17, 2021November 17, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

Instead of an Online Extravagaza, this year Stampin’ Up! is having a Seasonal Sale. And it’s on right now! For only 2 more days you can get some great products from the Annual Catalogue for up to 20% off. I haven’t heard much about any Black Friday deals yet so I wanted to make sure I got this info out there. This is the perfect opportunity to stock up on supplies for you holiday crafting! You can get whatever you need and still have time to get them in the mail before the mailing deadlines.

Until November 18th (that’s tomorrow night) you can get 10% off all cardstock. You’ll get 15% off all individual Stampin’ Up! inkpads. And 20% dies from the Annual Catalogue. If I hadn’t just stocked up recently on a few of these things I would totally be taking advantage of this sale. The full list of what’s included in the Seasonal Sale is at the end of this post, so make sure to keep reading.

If you’ve had some things on your wishlist for a while there won’t be a better time to add them to your craft stash. Plus when you place an order of $49 or more and use this month’s host code, you’ll get a FREE pack of Wonderful Snowflakes from me as a thank you! Here’s this month’s code…

So while it’s on make sure to take advantage of Stampin’ Up!s Seasonal Sale. Here’s the full flyer as promised. And here’s the link to my online shop.

11.16.21_FLYER_SEASONALSALE_CA Download

Make Handmade Holidays Easy

Posted on November 2, 2021November 2, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

November is here! And there are only 53 more days until Christmas! Have you started getting ready yet? I’m almost there. I’ve got a couple of birthdays first before I really start thinking about the upcoming holidays. In the meantime I’ve got a couple of ideas floating around in my head. I make a lot of cards for the holidays and so I tend to keep my designs for these cards fairly simple. Making beautiful cards doesn’t have to be hard or involve all kinds of layers. I’d love to help you make handmade holidays easy!

Just a few weeks ago I launched my 12 Weeks of Christmas newsletters for 2021. Not sure what that is… Each week I send out an exclusive holiday themed PDF tutuorial, complete with a list of supplies and step by step instructions. You won’t find these projects anywhere else! Right now I’m sharing card ideas. I always like to start with these so you have lots of time to make your cards and get them in the mail, especially given current shipping/mailing delays. Coming up soon will be tags, gift bags and favours.

This is ONLY for my email newsletter subscribers. But there’s still lots of time to sign up. So if you, or someone you know, would like to make handmade holidays easy make sure to sign up for my mailing list. You can do that here. And then once you’ve got your inkspiration and are ready to go you can head over to my online shop.

Triangle Gatefold Card

Posted on October 15, 2021October 15, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

This month the Fancy Folds Design Team is making a triangle gatefold card for our blog hop. I love gatefold cards and so I’m excited to share this one with you. Recently I made a gatefold card with a belly band. You can check that out here. I used the gorgeous Beauty of the Earth Designer Series Paper for that one and thought that it would be great for this card too. Especially since the card base for this card is the DSP.

When I was choosing a sheet of DSP I had to make sure that I liked both sides. This can be a bit tricky sometimes, but with this pack of DSP it wasn’t. So once I figured that out I could pull out my cardstock and ink colours. For this card I just used Misty Moonlight.

For the images and phrase I used the Time of Giving stamp set. This is a new one for me and I love how this one set covers a few different holidays. In the end I decided to go with a Christmas card. I just love the snowflake and swirl image! It makes a really nice background for the phrase which also comes from this stamp set.

Once I had my DSP all folded I added my framed snowflakes and swirls with a few Stampin’ Dimensionals. You definitely want to make sure you only put them on one side of the cardstock. And since I’d popped that up I just used Stampin’ SEAL (tape runner) to add the phrase. But before I did that I cut out the phrase using one of the smaller Stitched Rectangles dies. Then of course, last but not least, I added some bling. And for this card that ended up being some Rhinestone Basic Jewels.

The triangle gatefold card was super easy to make and it looks great! Make sure to keep going on this month’s blog hop and check out Aude Barbara’s card here.

And if you’d like to try this out for yourself you can check out LeeAnn Greff’s video!

#SimpleStamping for Christmas

Posted on October 12, 2021October 12, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

Now that Thanksgiving is done I can start planning for the upcoming holidays! Not to mention all the birthdays in between. This time of year is pretty busy for me. So I’m loving this month’s #SimpleStamping for Christmas challenge from Stampin’ Up! because it’s a great way to spark some inkspiration. I’ve got a lot of holiday cards to make and so I like to keep my designs fairly simple. For this month’s challenge we’ve been asked to create a Christmas or New Year’s card using just stamps, ink and paper. Plus this month we can add an embellishment.

I was so excited when I found out that the Poinsettia Petals stamp set and dies were being carried over into the Annual Catalogue. This is one of my go-to stamp sets for the holidays. And so when I saw this challenge I immediately thought of using this stamp set. There’s a lot of images in this set that work so well together. And I love the phrases! Then since I was using the poinsettia as my main image I went with a traditional colour combination; red and green. For the red I used Real Red, not just because it’s a good colour for the poinsettia but because I had a couple of embellishment options that would work really well. As for the green, I went dark and used Evening Evergreen. There’s also a little splash of Crumb Cake.

Most of the images I stamped with full strength ink. But to fill in the leaves I wanted to be able to still see the lines, so I stamped off on a scrap piece of paper first and then on to the cardstock. I love the effect it gives when I do this!

For my embellishment I added some of the Real Red Sheer ribbon that is back in the July-December Mini catalogue. I just wrapped a bit around the cardstock and then added a bow on top with a Mini Glue Dot. Then I popped up the phrase using some Stampin’ Dimensionals.

To step this up a level or two, you can use the Stitched Rectangles dies to cut out the phrase. The Stitched So Sweetly dies are a new favourite of mine that would also look really nice. You can also add some Wink of Stella to the images. I love adding bling to my cards and this is a great way to do it.

I hope you like my #SimpleStamping for Christmas card! You can check out one of my past #SimpleStamping challenge cards here. And you can stock up for your holiday card making in my online shop. Now to get to planning out my holiday cards!

Christmas Cards using Evening Evergreen

Posted on October 5, 2021October 5, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

I’m back to share some more cards from a recent team card swap featuring products from the July-December Mini catalogue. With October here and Thanksgiving this coming weekend it’s hard not to think about the holidays that come after. So this time I’m sharing some Christmas cards using Evening Evergreen. Evening Evergreen is one of Stampin’ Up!s newest In Colours. It’s a very dark green and I have to admit, I’m still not sure about it. I think that’s because I don’t know how much I would use it other than for Christmas cards.

With this first card Evening Evergreen isn’t the main colour, but it does add a nice touch. This one was made by our large team leader Jenn Tinline. She used the Christmas Season bundle (stamp set and coordinating dies). I love how the images circle around the phrase in the centre. And I love how all the colour coordinates with each other. The Evening Evergreen ribbon is a nice touch. And so is the Wink of Stella Glitterbrush, although it’s hard to see in the picture.

Evening Evergreen is definitely a featured colour in this next card which was made by Diane Kent. She used the Happy Holly-Days bundle (stamp set and coordinating punch). Diane also used the Tidings of Christmas Designer Series Paper from the Annual catalogue. I really like the strip of DSP and the Gold Shimmer Ribbon! And I love that the holly border along the bottom was made using a punch. Punches are a great way to step up your cards without having to invest in a new machine.

I love these Christmas cards using Evening Evergreen! I think I’m going to have to make some of my own!

There are still more swap cards that I’ll share over the next few weeks so stay tuned. And in the meantime you can check out the first swap cards I shared here. You can also check out all the great products from the July-December Mini catalogue in my online shop.

Easel Card for the Holidays

Posted on September 3, 2021September 3, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

Stampin’ Up!s holiday catalogue is here! Or as they’re calling it now… the July-December Mini catalogue. And as always my team organized a card swap. Over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing some of my favourites from the card swap. So make sure to keep checking back here. In the meantime I’m sharing my card for the swap. For this card swap I wanted to do something other than a standard card. So I made an easel card for the holidays.

Once I figured that out I had to choose a stamp set. I decided to use the new Sweet Treats stamp set. One of the rules of the card swap is that we need to use a stamp set from the new mini catalogue. This is such a fun set! And I love that it’s not just for Christmas, even though that’s what I used it for. Then for my colour combination I went with non-traditional colours. I started with Crumb Cake for the colour of my fruit cake and paired it with Petal Pink. I also threw in some Old Olive for the bits of fruit. And Smoky Slate for the cake platter and dome.

I stamped the holly from the top of the cake in the bottom corners of the “inside” of the card. The trick here was having a tissue handy to wipe off any extra ink. I coloured the holly and the cake using Stampin’ Blends. Even without too much blending I still love the colours.

I cut out the phrase using one of the smallest Stitched Rectangles dies. And to hold up my easel I popped it up with some Stampin’ Dimensionals. And behind that I added some of the new White Glittered Organdy ribbon. Adding an embellishment of some kind was one of the other rules of the card swap. So it could be Designer Series Paper, ribbon, jewels. Just a little something more to add to your card design. Then to add even a little something more to my card, I added a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels. I’m also tempted to pull out my retired Frost White Shimmer paint for the frosting. I may just have to go back and do that.

A little more to it than I’ve done for some of my swaps cards, but this was a fun card to make. A cute easel card for the holidays! You can check out the July-December mini catalogue here. And if you’d like to see some of the cards from our teams’ Annual Catalogue card swap you can do that here.

Pattern Party

Posted on August 13, 2021August 13, 2021 by inkspirationwithteresa

I’m always needing thank you cards. Mainly for my customers, but it’s nice to have a stash for those unexpected thank you’s too. Somehow I’ve gone through my stash and needed some more. So I had to figure out what kind of a thank you cards I wanted to make this time around. It’s funny how the design came to be. Usually I’ll start with the Designer Series Paper, but the Pattern Party DSP was almost the last thing I choose. I actually started with the Just Jade Gingham ribbon from the Flowers for Every Season ribbon combo pack. That sparked my colour combination of Just Jade, of course, and Basic Black. Sometimes I forget how using Basic Black can really help the other colours pop!

Once I figured that out I picked my stamp sets. If you haven’t noticed already I’m a big butterfly fan! So I liked the idea of using the Butterfly Brilliance stamps. Then of course I needed my “thank you” which came from the Sweet Ice Cream stamp set.

I always use my Stamparatus when I use the Butterfly Brilliance stamp set. And this time I angled the stamp to maximize the number of butterflies at the top of the piece of Basic White cardstock. I stamped the butterflies in Just Jade and the “thank you” in Tuxedo Black Memento ink.

From there I wrapped some of the Just Jade Gingham ribbon around the piece of stamped cardstock and DSP. Then I cut out the “thank you” with one of the smaller Stitched Rectangles dies and popped it up with some Stampin’ Dimensionals. To finish off the card I added a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels. (gotta have some bling!)

I love this card using the Pattern Party DSP! I definitely need to use this pack of paper more often. Unfortunately this pack is only available for those who host a stamping workshop. If you live in Canada and would like to be a host send me an email (inkspirationwithteresa@gmail.com) or go to my website for more info. You can also check out all my upcoming classes and events here.

Joy to the World

Posted on December 29, 2020December 29, 2020 by inkspirationwithteresa

Back in October Stampin’ Up!s Paper Pumpkin kit was all about connecting with people around the world. The Joy to the World kit had a holiday theme and came with die cuts in 3 different languages; English, French and German. I loved this idea because I have family in Germany and this would be a good opportunity for me to reconnect with them. I also loved this idea because Stampin’ Up! created a Facebook group to give people a chance to find pen pals from around the world. I connected with 4 other demonstrators; one from Australia, one from New Zealand, one from Germany and one from Japan.

Along with the gold die cuts, the kit also came with enough supplies to make 8 cards including envelopes. I love the Cherry Cobbler and Just Jade colour combination. Cherry Cobbler is such a great colour for the holidays and Just Jade is one of my favourites from the new In Colours. Plus the Crumb Cake card bases with gold design really helped these colours pop. Here’s a picture of the two original designs from the October kit along with two alternative designs that I created…

As much as I enjoy following the instructions, especially when I’m not sure what I want to make, I love coming up with different designs. Usually I make alternative card designs. Lately though I’ve also been making some home decor pieces like this 9 x 9 sampler. With this piece I also used the Poinsettia Petals bundle and a few of the Wonderful Gems. Both from the August-December Mini catalogue.

I also made a hand sanitizer container. You could probably also tuck a gift card in there too. For the ribbon I used the Cherry Cobbler Twine from the kit along with the Just Jade Gingham ribbon from the Flowers for Every Season combo pack.

I really enjoyed crafting with the Joy to the World kit. My cards to my family and pen pals are on their way. I hope they like them and hopefully my German is understandable. It’s been a while!

If you’d like to jump on the Paper Pumpkin band wagon and live in Canada, you can sign up here. Plus each month I offer a Paper Pumpkin online class featuring that month’s kit.

Poinsettia Petals and Heartwarming Hugs

Posted on December 5, 2020December 5, 2020 by inkspirationwithteresa

December is here and we’ve got about 3 weeks til Christmas! I’m almost ready, how about you? I’m hoping to start crafting with some goodies from the new catalogues soon. So this week I thought I’d share one more holiday themed card. For this card I combined Poinsettia Petals and Heartwarming Hugs Designer Series Paper. This design is another from a recent team crafting playdate. You can check out the other design I created for this playdate here.

For the card base I used Mossy Meadow cardstock. I kept this simple, although the Subtle 3D Embossing folder would look nice with this card design too. Then I layered on some different designs from the Heartwarming Hugs DSP pack.

To add a little something more I stamped a phrase from the Poinsettia Petals stamp set and cut it out with the Stitched Shapes dies. I stamped the phrase with Pear Pizzazz ink. For the poinsettia and leaves I used Real Red, Pear Pizzazz and Mossy Meadow. I also stamped a poinsettia on the inside of the card using Real Red ink.

Then I put a small Real Red poinsettia on top and added a small Pearl Basic Jewel in the centre. I love the Poinsettia dies! I’ve been using them for a lot of different projects. Here’s the full card…

Next time around I would probably emboss the front part of the card base. Even with that though I really like this card. It’s nice and simple and looks great! The Poinsettia Petals and Heartwarming Hugs DSP really work nicely together.