Saturday, September 20, 2025

12 days of Christmas cards 2025

 Last year, Justine Hovey shared wonderful card making ideas in her 12 Days of Christmas cards.  I tried most of them and you can check out my post HERE.  She did it again this year, and here are the cards I made this time.  

I will share her inspiration card then my take on it. 

Day 1 - Justine's inspiration 

My card...  This one is a shaker card. 

  • Hobby Lobby paper
  • Poppystamps Joy die
  • Kraftin' Kimmie Nativity Sentiments "to the world"
  • Echo Park O Holy Night star die
  • Spellbinders sequins
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 2 - Justine's inspiration




My card...  This is so cool!  The card base is vellum!  The front is dry embossed.  It is given strength and stability by adding die cut shapes to all 4 surfaces of the card.  

  • Sizzix 3D Snowflakes embossing folder
  • Kat Scrappiness Wavy Wonky Stitched Rectangles
  • Echo Park O Holy Night
  • Echo Park Snowflake Ornament Trio
  • Snowflake punch
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 3 - Justine's inspiration



My card...  This is a fun hexagon card that stands up.  

  • Cuttlebug Heritage embossing folder
  • Poppystamps Adelaide Snowflakes
  • Spellbinders Snowflakes
  • Pink & Main Merry Christmas 
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 4 - Justine's inspiration


My cards... (matching the above cards from lower left going clockwise)
     #1 - I don't have ink sprays, so I put distress oxide ink on my glass mat, sprayed it with water, and smooshed the cardstock into it to make the backgrounds.  

  • Poppystamps Circling Frame cover plate (since the holes are large, I popped out several pieces then adhered it to another background.  
  • Poppystamps Adelaide Snowflakes
  • Cut Noel mini die (this doesn't have a frame die, so I traced the die with a pencil and cut a frame. Rather than do that with vellum, too, as Justine did, I added a couple of black layers to make the white sentiment stand out against the white. 
  • AND... I realized as I was glueing the front to the card that this sentiment, etc., was supposed to go on the embossed front.  Oops!  LOL 
     #2 - 
  • Cuttlebug Teresa Collins Timeless embossing folder
  • Alphabet from Cheapo Dies
  • Adhesive pearls
#3 - I love, love, love this one!!! 
  • Spellbinders Scenic Poinsettia 3D embossing folder
  • Hero Arts  Merry Stamp & Cut 
#4 - 
  • Darice LG snowflake. (It is silver though it looks brown in the pic.)
  • Pink & Main Merry Christmas 
  • Vellum
  • Adhesive pearls

~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 5 - Justine's inspiration


My card...  This card showed me that I need new inks or some re-inkers!  I could not get the color any darker even though I tried 5 different greens! :P 


  • Various green inks blended using mint tape
  • Spellbinders Postage Squares
  • Poppystamps Grosgrain Ribbon
  • Colorado Craft Merry Everything sentiment
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 6 - Justine's inspiration



My card...  I do not like how this one turned out, and I debated about sharing it, but here it is.
 


  • Darice Snow Globe
  • These are from one of the very first sets I bought about 15 yrs ago when I started paper crafting, and I have no idea where I got them... probably a Joann clearance bin. LOL
  • TH Snowfall Grit Paste 
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 7 - Justine's inspiration


My card...  after multiple failed attempts to create a card like this one, I gave up. 

~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 8 - Justine's inspiration


My card... same issue as last card.  All attempts at using a border die have failed. 

~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~


Day 9 - Justine's inspiration


My card ...



  • Snowflakes from Gina K Tiny Wreath Builder Bundle
  • Echo Park Merry Christmas 
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 10 - Justine's inspiration


My card...

  • MFT O Christmas Tree stamps and dies
  • Concord & 9th Yuletide Ornaments sentiment
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 11 - Justine's inspiration


My card...

  • DCWV Hippie Chic glitter paper
  • Echo Park Christmas Lights 
  • Concerned & 9th Yuletide Ornaments sentiment
  • Poppystamps Little Bow and String
~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~. ~

Day 12 - Justine's inspiration


My card... I do not have any quad stencils, so no card based on this.  
I do like her cards and may attempt something like this by making my own stencils on my Circuit or by using stamps and/or dies with masking sheets. 

If you like what you see, check out "Justine Hovey's Crafty Card Corner" group on Facebook.  It's a great community of talented and encouraging crafters! 

Thanks for stopping by and have a blessed day!! 


Thursday, September 18, 2025

Have a fabulous birthday - C4G #259

Hi!  It is time for another challenge at Cardz 4 Galz!  Our theme is dies or punches.  That's very easy for me... I make very few cards that don't have a die cut on them! :). 

Here is my card...

I created my background by cutting Poppystamps Circling Frame in vellum and using it as a stencil.  I ink blended TH Oxide speckled egg, tumbled glass, and stormy sky.  I then stamped the tree from Fiskars Build a Tree.  (I have had this set for over 10 years, and this is only the 2nd time I've used it!)  I added some leaves with Poppystamps Orchard Leaves.  My van is Honey Bee Stamps Beach Bound.  The sentiment is Poppystamps Art Deco birthday Greetings.  It's such a fun card! 

Challenges:
A Cut Above Sept (2nd entry) - AG with a die cut
613 Avenue Create Sept - AG with opt twist: leaves
Die Cut Divas Sept - AG with a die cut
Sweet Stampin' - use die cuts

We'd love to have you come play along at Cardz 4 Galz!

 Thanks for stopping by and have a blessed day! 

Saturday, September 6, 2025

Warmest wishes

 I have made a lot of design team cards lately, but haven't just played in awhile, so this morning, I perused Paper Playful's list of challenges and found lots of inspiration for a card...

I created the background by smooshing ink on my glass plate, adding water, and dragging the white cardstock through it.  Once it was dry, I randomly rubbed VersaMark and heat embossed with clear EP.  I like the texture and shine it added! (see closeup below) My sentiment is from Simon Says Stamp Build Me a Snowman.  My cup of cocoa is Honey Bee Stamps Love You S'More.  Branches from a MS punch and green cardstock and a PaperTrey Button (cut from extra background) finished it off.  


Here are the challenges I'm entering...

A Cut Above Sept - AG with a die cut
Addicted to Stamps and More #500 - die cuts and/or stencils (I used die cuts)
As You Like It - layered or flat **I chose layers because I just love layers!  I also love CAS/one layer cards, but I am never satisfied with how mine turn out.  I always end up adding layers. :) 
Caffeinated Christmas Card Challenge #45 - coffee, tea, or cocoa
Creative Knockouts #554 - lots of layers 
jingle belles
- cardstock Christmas (no patterned paper) 
Just Us Girls #791 - die week
Merry Little Christmas #64 - AG Christmas and family friendly 
Simon Says Stamp Monday - Stamp It
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday - Stamp It
Word Art Wednesday #714-715 - AG family friendly

 Thanks so much for stopping by and have a blessed day! 

Thursday, September 4, 2025

Sweet friend - C4G #258

 We are ready for another challenge at Cardz 4 Galz!  Our theme is stitching - faux or real.  I attempted to machine stitch on cardstock once and it did not go well.  I'm too impatient to stitch by hand on a card, so I have faux stitching on my card. :)  (With stitched dies, it's so easy!)

I cut out a panel with KatScrappiness Wonky Wavy Stitched Rectangles.  I then ran that through Sizzix Impresslits Sweet Friend embossing folder.  (Unfortunately, it somewhat flattened the stitching from the first die, so it's harder to see, but it's still there.) The sentiment and bees - yes, I know bees aren't brown - are from the same Impresslits set.  I dry embossed the piece peeking through with Sizzix Cloudy Day.  My hexagons are Echo Park Stitched Hexagons. All this stitching and I didn't poke my finger once! ;) 

We'd love to have you come play along with us at Cardz 4 Galz

Thanks for stopping by and have a blessed day! 

Wednesday, September 3, 2025

To the one I love - HQCOLCB #9

Hello!  I'm excited that I was asked to be a guest designer at Heart's Quest Celebrations of Love challenge #9.  Their main theme is BEWAS - Birthdays, Engagements, Weddings, Anniversaries, and/or Sympathies, but there is always an optional theme, and this month's is Halloween or Harvest.  

My husband and I are celebrating 37 wonderful years of marriage, so I'm sharing the card I made for him... 

My paper is DCWV Love & Wedding.  The stamped and heat embossed "Happy Anniversary" is from Raisin Boat Formal Phrases.  The die cut sentiment is tonic Studios Partner Sentiments.  I heat embossed the "I LOVE" with Ranger Ultra Thick EP, so it really shines!  


I've enjoyed playing along at HQCOLCB and had fun being guest DT, so I hope you come play along, too! 

Thanks for stopping by and have a blessed day! 

Monday, September 1, 2025

A happy, holly Christmas - SCC #176

Time is flying by!  It will soon be fall!  But there's still lot of time to get your Christmas cards created, and we are trying to help at Sparkles Christmas Challenge!  Our new challenge theme is "Let's see some holly!"  

Here is my holly card...


I could not find any cute holly paper in my stash, nor do I have a holly die, so I pulled out some scraps.  I dry embossed the green polka dot panel with Cuttlebug Holly Ribbons EF, and inked it with white pigment ink.  It's amazing how just a little ink makes it pop!!  My ornament is Echo Park Snowflake Ornament Trio, and the bow is Poppystamps Little Bow and String.  My sentiment is MME Holly Jolly and cut with SSS Tiny Tags. 

Please come and play along at Sparkles Christmas Challenge!  

Thanks for stopping by and have a blessed day!