Ingenious Inkling

Bringing Sexy Sweaters Back

I knew I had to break out the don we now our ugly sweater stamps from Simon Says Stamp for this week's Baby It's Cold Outside Jingle Belles card.

 

I did an oops when I scored my card base and scored the front too short ... I decided to work with it and trimmed it even shorter, so I could attach several rows of washi tape to the inside of the card (like I did last weekend on one of my Christmas tags) ... and I loved the effect.

I colored my sweater with markers and then added some gems for embellishments.  Such a fun card to make.

Technique Junkies November Stamp Release

Lots of fun new stamps at Technique Junkies this month ... remember they are 15% off through November 8th and you can stack my discount TJ10Stephanie for another 10% off your entire order (and all Christmas stamps are 20% off - and another 10% with my discount code) ... it's time to go shopping.

 

One of my favorite stamps of the release is called Decaf Coffee ... it reminds me of my amazing sister.  I paper pieced her hat with purple paper since it's my sister's favorite color ... it also reminded me of my awesome hat my sister knitted for me.

I wove some ribbon through some book-punched designer paper and then added a bit of pink pastel for blush on her cheek.

And of course, it's perfect for the Fall/Winter Coffee Loving Cardmakers Blog Hop.

When I showed the new Brickwork Background Stamp to my husband, he said it looked like the brick roads in our neighborhood ... after that, I could get the brick road idea out of my head .. but instead of the roads in our neighborhood, I immediately started singing ... Follow the Yellow Brick Road.

For the first one I used three colors of Gold Ink on Gold Paper ... the lighter ink at the bottom sort of faded into the paper, but I decided I liked the effect, so that's where I placed my sentiment from Technique Junkies Wisdom of Oz.  I added Glenda's Silver Crown Sticker ... and fun Witch Leg Brads from Eyelet Outlet.

 

For the next one, I inked the Brickwork Background with shades of darker orange on yellow cardstock ... I found a few hoarded Wizard of Oz stickers in my stash and paired it with my favorite sentiment from the Wisdom of Oz Set (it has 7 sentiments).  I finished with a row of black pearls because even the bad witch needs a little bling.

 

And I couldn't resist doing one more ... this time for Glenda ... and her cardbase and bling are pink ... of course.

 

 

And one more Brickwork card in more traditional Brick hues.

 

The center image is the gorgeous new stamp Winter Bouquet stamped in brown ink on mint green cardstock ... and then I used colored pencils to add some highlights.

 

I used foam tape on the center of my image, so I could curl-up the edges for a bit of dimension ... I love the cozy texture of the felt ribbon.

Next up is the the wonderful Framed Deer for some masculine cards.

 

I kept this one clean and simple with just some washi tape and the wonderful big Happy Birthday sentiment from Technique Junkies Floral Framed Sentiments (set of 6 stamps).

 

And this pudgy little Snowman stamp just makes me smile.  Sentiment is Technique Junkies All Is Calm.

 

I stamped him in navy on white cardstock and then detail cut him out (remember the days when we did that all the time ... I find it to be a bit therapeutic). 

 

I colored his buttons and hat and attached him to some snowy designer paper on some snowy hills cut from white textured cardstock.

Hope you've enjoyed my tour through my favorite stamps from the November release ... make sure you hop along with the other designers to see the whole collection.

 

• Technique Junkies Blog https://techniquejunkies.blogspot.com/2019/11/technique-junkies-november-release-and.html
• Beth Norman-Roberts https://www.sunflowers-dragonflies.ca/blog/62828/technique-junkie…ase-and-discount/
• Ceal Pritchett https://simplybeautifulcreations.blogspot.com/2019/11/technique-junkies-november-release-hop.html
• Giovana Smith https://giovana-believe.blogspot.com/2019/11/technique-junkies-november-release.html
• Holly Brown https://glitterstampsandink.blogspot.com/2019/11/technique-junkies-november-release.html
• Janine Tinklenberg - http://www.jantink.com/2019/11/mss-tj-nov-2019-release.html ‎
• Jeanne Streiff https://inkypaws.splitcoaststampers.com/2019/11/01/big-sale-at-technique-junkies/
• Judy Jackson -https://judysstampart.blogspot.com/2019/11/nice-news-for-november.html
• Kia Gibson-Clapper https://kia-splace.ca/cards/2019/11/technique-junkies-november-release/
• Pat Huntoon https://patstamps.blogspot.com/2019/11/final-stamp-release-of-year.html
• Ro Donner https://rodonner.blogspot.com/2019/11/tj-november-release.html
• Stephanie Severin https://ingeniousinkling.typepad.com/ingenious_inkling/2019/11/technique-junkies-november-stamp-release.html
• Lynda Pleckan https://paperartscafe.blogspot.com/2019/11/technique-junkies-november-2019-release.html

 

Hanukkah Song

Something that's pretty important to us ♥JINGLE BELLES♥ is to make sure our card-making festivities include EVERYONE who is special to us, whatever occasion or holiday in which they partake!

So this week we're making cards for our friends who don't necessarily celebrate Christmas. Hanukkah is the most famous of the other winter holidays, and it (plus our favorite Adam Sandler song!) inspired our title, but you could choose Kwanzaa, New Year, Hogmanay or Solstice; or you could go totally non-denominational with a general winter-themed card.

I started with this peaceful Penny Black Starry Night Stickeroo and built my Hanukkah card around it with a few more sticker sentiments and sticker letters too.  

 

Those Stickeroos have been in my stash for a very long time (and have been a titch neglected), so I'm linking-up at the Penny Black Anything Goes Challenge with an option of Old or Neglected.

I die cut some metallic silver into an oblong octagon and then die cut some Swirling Stars.  I finished with a wrap of ribbon and a few sprinkled gems."

Snow Much Fun!

What better way to celebrate the beginning of Summer (in the US) than by making cards that feature SNOW at Jingle Belles this week … it might mean snowflakes, snowmen, or a snowy scene … just make sure your card features some of that wonderful white stuff.

I love non-traditional color combinations for my holiday cards, so I started with these fun colors from the MFT Color Challenge.

 

I started by using my MISTI to stamp the entire MFT Snowflakes Splendor stamp set in Be Mine Berry-colored ink all at once.  Then I did a second stamping to fill in the rest of my paper.

 

Next I used the Coordinating Dies to cut out more of the snowflakes for my focal image.

 

I layered them and topped them with an Eyelet Outlet gem before adding a sentiment from MFT Snow Globe Sentiments.

I heart SNOW

Yes, we're back for our NINTH year of Jingle Belles.  I still remember when we dreamed-up this idea to keep us connected through out the year ... and to take back our December one holiday card at a time.  Thankfully it has worked so well on both counts, that we're going to keep on going.

Prompt number one is No Time Like the Presents ... before you put that wrapping paper away, pull out a scrap or two and use them to create a card for next year's holiday (or maybe you still have some scraps that were just too pretty to recycle ... well, now's the time to use them).

On the scale of present-wrapping skills, Lauren would be a 10 ... seriously, her presents come wrapped so beautifully I often wait several hours to open them because I just want to look at them a while longer.  I, on the other hand, would be down in the 1-2 range on that spectrum.  Pretty much, I'm a gift-bag or go home type of wrapper (to my credit, they are usually very cute gift bags and often involve yetis ... but hey, they're still bags).

So even though I help determine our prompts for the year, I was ill-prepared to make a gift wrap card this year ... because I bought none (I actually had all my gifts mailed by the first of December and never ventured out into the Christmas shopping mayhem ... yes, I'm that person).  So as I searched through the stash in my gift wrapping closet, I found a couple of pieces of vintage gift wrap from the Veterans of Foreign Wars that my mother-in-law must have gifted to me at some point.

How cute are those patriotic little tumbling snowmen in their stars & stripes.   We're a bit scarce on snow in Iowa this year ... but I'm sure it will come eventually.

 

I covered my card front with the paper, added a few leftover snowflake stickers (one of my goals this year ... use-up those leftovers) and finished with three sentiment stickers from three different sticker sets.  Perfectly adorable ... and mailable.

I hope you'll join us this year ... making one holiday card a week ... to take back your December one holiday card at a time.

Burst of Flakes

The mail carrier brought me lots of Unity Stamp Company goodness today (I bought gifts for myself from their recent sale).

I combined stamps from three different sets for the current Black-On-Kraft Challenge.

 

The main part of the card is the Burst of Flakes border background.  Next I added the Let It Snow Sentiment from Snow, Snow Cute ... and then because there was a little space between the sentiments and the border, I added a single snowflake from Warm & Cozy Season.  Then I went a little bling-crazy on the centers of the snowflakes.

Snow and Cocoa

I picked-up a goodie package of Crate Paper's Snow and Cocoa Collection (it's also available Digital) and it included these adorable mason jars with an acetate pocket on the front for tucking in all sorts of scene elements.

I tucked some elements inside and attached others on the outside for fun dimension.  This collection was so fun, I even used the packaging in my design (the blue stripes and collection name).

I added a wrap of gold twine to the jar and more to the sentiment tag.  This creation was inspired by the It's beginning to look at lot like Christmas Challenge at The Paper Players.  I'm also linking-up at the Anything Goes Challenge at Simon Says Stamp.

 

The next card (and this entire collection) are for the New To You Challenge at Paper Crew Craft.

Love the little brrrr sticker.

The final card is inspired by the W is for Winter Challenge at the Sisterhood of the Snarky Stampers ... I'm sure his hello snow is said with a tiny bit of snark.

 

What a fun and relaxing evening of papercrafting ... love playing with new goodies.

My Sweet Petunia (MISTI) and Reverse Confetti

Today the Design Team at My Sweet Petunia is hopping with the Team from Reverse Confetti ... so much fun.

I started with the the adorable Happy Winter set, which has been on my wish list for a long time.  Before the MISTI, I might not have even ordered it because getting it lined-up correctly would have been quite a challenge.  

Now with my MISTI, it's a piece of cake ... I absolutely love that big pom pom.

 

I love those colors too ... which I had a hat like this for myself.

I finished with a sentiment from Sentimental Christmas (love that font).

Next I used the cool new Rounded Strip Panel Confetti Cut with some marbled kraft cardstock.

I left a few of the pieces in the die and decided to pair it with Circle Wishes stamped on a pale green paper.

 

I stamped a few stars in black ink on the remaining marbled paper, but decided they were too dark.  Then I decided I wanted six stars on the light green paper ... before my MISTI, I would have abandoned that idea because I likely would have had to stamp 10 or 15 stars to end-up with six that looked identical.  Not so with my MISTI ... six stars ... all six perfect.

For my final card, I wanted to join in the monthly Sketch For You to Try Challenge at Reverse Confetti.

With that big circle for the focal point, I knew I wanted to curve a sentiment to fit inside the circle.  I used sentiment stamps from the new Kindness Cards.

The MISTI makes it easy to adjust the curve until I get it just right.

I also like using the grid of the MISTI to help lay out my card design to see if I like everything before I attach it to my card base.

I curved a second sentiment from Reverse Confetti Clink along the bottom and added the Clink Confetti Cuts for the three smaller elements in the sketch.

I just love that color combination ... and it came together by accident by using scraps and inks I had on my craft table ... that's why I keep most of my art supplies within my line of sight ... because you never know when inspiration will strike.

 

So now it's time to keep on hopping ... we will choose two lucky commenters from the hop to win one of two prizes: a $60 shopping spree at My Sweet Petunia or a $60 shopping spree at Reverse Confetti.  Comments must be made no later than Sunday, March 25th, at 11:59 PM CST and winners will be announced on Tuesday March 27th, on the Reverse Confetti and My Sweet Petunia blogs.

 

Amy Tsuruta

Ilina Crouse

Lisa Henke

Jeanne Streiff

Susan Liles

My Sweet Petunia

Tricia Barber

Kia Gibson-Clapper

Deanne Kuntz

Ceal Pritchett

Melissa Phillips

Giovana Smith

Audrey Tokach

Chris Dayton

Kathy Schweinfurth

Stephanie Severin <<<----- YOU ARE HERE

Laurie Schmidlin

Janine Tinklenberg

Amy Rohl

Dina Kowal

Heather Hoffman

Jana Millen

Reverse Confetti

Jennifer Timko

Kelly Lunceford

Joan Bardee

Olga Moss

Judy Rozema

Jeanne Jachna

Susan Wymer

 Lydia Fiedler

MISTI Joy

My schedule & my mojo have not been cooperating this week to finish up the 12 Tags of Christmas with a Feminine Twist.  I was struggling a bit with an idea for the Color Challenge for Tag number eleven.

They even provided a lovely picture for inspiration.

I ultimately took my somewhat literal inspiration from Carolyn Peeler's tag on the front of her card.

I started by picking my four ink colors (I only used one shade of mint).

I started with the Mint, followed by Mauve, Taupe and Grey inking portions of the My Favorite Things Typewriter Text Background stamp.  I also sprayed some water after inking to add a bit more blending to the colors.  I didn't want to overlap too much and end-up with mud. (And yes, you close observers, I did stamp my image upside down ... thankfully in this case it didn't matter since I was going to die cut from the ivory cardstock).

I die cut Ellen Hutson's Concertina Tag from my stamped background and then again from Taupe (aka light kraft) cardstock.  I die cut a third time from Mint cardstock to cap the top of my tag.

I finished with Grey Sequins, Mauve Gems and Mint Holly leaves together with my die cut sentiment.

I'm also joining the Christmas Time Challenge at My Time to Craft   It's also Let's Play Tag at Shopping Our Stash.

Christmas Card Trio

Eyelet Outlet Brads make any Christmas card a little extra-special.

I started with simple holiday stickers and added brads to each one to *kick-it-up-a-notch*.  This one uses this week's Sunday Stamps Sketch. 

I added some of my favorite glitter enamel dots (that work perfectly with my glitter paper) and a sentiment sticker.

I loved how the tree brad fit right over the tree riding on top of the car ... oh the memories wandering through the tree farm to find that perfect tree (and then it seldom fitting when we got home).

 

For my next one I added a Santa Hat Brad to make my Christmas Cardinal just a little more festive.

 

 

And my final one this week is a variation on the Sunday Stamps Sketch all decked in gold with a lovely ornament and warm woolen mittens.

 

 

Make sure you add some extra brads and bling to your holiday cards this year.

 

Eyelet Outlet Products used: 

• Ornament Brads
• Pine Tree Brads
• Bell Brads
• Santa Hat Brads
• Holiday Mitten Brads
• Gold Glitter Enamel Dots
• Enamel Dots Vacation (black)