Vintage Christmas Card and Tags

Hello! It's Gloria Stengel back again with another project. I made a card and two tags for you this week. (If you missed my Christmas composition box from last week, click HERE to see it.)

My favorite type of Christmas decor is vintage with traditional colors and a bit of rust and whitewash tossed in for good measure! I like to use chipboard elements on cards and tags because it adds a lot of detail and interest without a lot of bulk or weight.

The card is 6" x 5" and made with dark brown cardstock. I used just a bit of designer paper because I wanted the chipboard elements and the sentiment to be the stars of the show. {Stars...get it?!} I covered the oval element from the Stars and Flourishes Borders and Corners Set with gold pigment ink and then embossed with Aged Bronze Embossing Enamel. I made sure to allow the enamel to look pitted and aged, with a few bits of the original chipboard showing through. 

I decorated the star oval with snowflakes from the Winter Shape Set and the  Snowflake Shape Set. I sprayed the snowflakes with white shimmer mist, and then embossed them with sparkly white embossing powder. The buttons are tied with kraft twine and then glued to each snowflake.

I covered one of the keyholes from the Keys and Plates Shape Set with gold pigment ink. I added tiny gold brads to the keyhole. Each flower was dipped in gold ink before I glued them to the card.

I decorated the inside of the card with some leftover bits of paper and a stamped greeting.

I always need extra tags around the holidays, so I made two tags to match the card. 

I added a bit of paper to the front of the tag before adding the chipboard elements. I sprayed the star flourishes from the Stars and Flourishes Borders and Corners Set with white mist and then dabbed them with watermark ink. I then embossed the flourishes with embossing enamel. I mixed white embossing enamel with gold embossing powder to make a custom enamel! I love how "clumpy" and thick the enamel is, but the areas with the gold embossing powder are thinner, sort of like rust. It makes the chipboard look amazingly vintage!

I sprayed the word from the Words and Phrases 1 set with Fire Baseboard Mistable Paint and Pearl Glimmer Mist. I added some "gilded" flowers and some bits of paper the I curled around a stylus. I also tucked a few faux postage stamps into the flowers.

I decorated the small tag with one corner from the Art Deco Corners Set, which I sponged with gold pigment ink. I sponged the miniature bookplate from the Miniature Bookplates Shape set with silver pigment ink. I added tiny silver brads to the bookplate. I used a Shabby Blue Embossing Enamel for the stars.

I hope you use up some of your paper scraps and bits of chipboard to make a few cards and tags this holiday season! Come back next week to see more...fun with chipboard!

~ Gloria Stengel: Scraps of Life 

Supplies:

Gina's Designs Laser Cut Chipboard:

Stars and Flourishes Borders and Corners Set 

Snowflake Shape Set

Winter Shape Set

Keys and Plates Shape Set

Words and Phrases I Set 

Art Deco Corners Set

Miniature Bookplates Shape Set

Other Products:

Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa and Rhubarb Stalk dye ink, Delicata Silvery Shimmer and Golden Glitz pigment ink, Top Boss Watermark ink 

Mist: Tattered Angels Fire Blackboard Mistable Paint and Pearl Glimmer Mist, Deco Art White Shimmer Mister

Embossing powder and enamel: Stampendous Shabby Blue and Aged Bronze EE, Hampton Art glitter white EP, custom mix white and gold EE

Paper: Graphic 45 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, The Paper Studio Old World Winter

Cardstock: WorldWin Papers Cocoa and Natural

Stamps: Verve Stamps Holiday Treats, Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps Christmas Innies

Tags: Graphic 45

Ribbon and twine: Really Reasonable Ribbon Light Silver and Old Gold Diagonal Stripe Satin ribbon, Iridescent White Metallic String

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts

Brads: Creative Impressions

Buttons: craft supply

Tools: corner rounder, Spellbinders Framed Tags One die

Adhesive: Ranger Glossy Accents, Scotch 3M ATG tape, hot glue

Sparkly Christmas cards by Lynne

Hi there! The grass here is still green (although the weather people are saying we might see some of the "white stuff" over the next couple days), but I had a glimpse of a white winter wonderland the last day I was in BC last week and was inspired to create snowy-looking elements on my cards...

Since the fussy-cut ornaments on the blue card had silver details on them, I decided to heat-emboss the open heart pieces in silver. The plain heart I primed with gesso then coated with white glue before covering with clear glass glitter top create a snowy heart.

On the grey card I chose a softer look by priming the pieces with gesso then heat-embossing them with white glitter embossing powder (it took two coats to get an evenly sparkly effect).

Both cards look much more snowy and sparkly in real life of course-have some fun playing with glittery products on your chipboard goodies when you create Christmas projects this year-even if you live somewhere tropical you can have a white Christmas! Thanks a bunch for stopping by and have a wonderfully crafty and creative week!

Gina's Items Used

Build a Layout-lovebirds (small solid heart)

mini flourishes Bella

winter shape set (snowflakes)

cupid's shape set (open heart circle-cut in half)

Other Items Used

Kaisercraft Silver Bells paper pad

Stampendous Aged Silver embossing powder

ColorBox chunky glitter

Ranger embossing powder-Bridal Tinsel

"Let it Snow" - a Layout by Debbie

Hi everyone!  Debbie with you today sharing a snowy layout using Gina's Designs Winter Shape set. We have been experiencing a little winter here where I live and while I was enjoying fall and some beautiful warm days, winter was bound to show up.  Gina's Winter Shape Set has the perfect embellishments for this snowy layout!

When I started working on this I wanted it to feel frosty and frozen so I added some Glimmer Mist in an appropriate color called Glacier.  I also used a color called Amethyst for this layout.  To alter the snowflakes, tree and title, I gave them a quick coat of gesso and then simply embossed them with a silvery-glittered white embossing powder.  While I was heating the embossing powder, I sprayed glimmer mist on the pieces so that they mica would embed into the embossing powder. 

Thanks for stopping by Gina's blog today! Debbie 

Gina's Products used:

 Gina's Winter Shape Set 

Gift Tag Ornaments by Barb

First of all, can I just say how much I love the Winter Shape Set? I've been having so much fun with this set and I have so many ideas that I should probably order three more sets! This week I was thinking about holiday baking, which I love to do. Filling the house with all that glorious sugary, buttery scent and then handing someone a fresh tray of tasty treats? To me, that's what makes the holidays.

As I was contemplating my vast array of cookie cutters, I realized that I had a lot of the same shapes in Gina's Winter Shape Set. Ding, ding, ding! Idea time! Why not make a little gift tag ornaments to adorn my baskets, boxes and plates of goodies? So, that's exactly what I did.

I took this project as an opportunity to play with all kinds of paint, ink and glitter mediums and combinations.

If some of the pieces felt a little plain after I inked or painted them, I added a little freehand design to them to give them a little more depth.

I used the snowman from this set in my Winter Gazebo piece last week (here), but I didn't use all the pieces intended for the snowman. So, I gave the hat, scarf and gloves to the penguin to wear.

The sled brought back fond memories of playing in the Michigan snow of my childhood, as did the ice skate.

These will make such fun additions to little holiday packages, and if people want to, they're sturdy enough to hang on a Christmas tree.

Gina's Designs Product Used:

Winter Shape Set

Other Products Used:

Acrylic Paint

Craft Ink

Sharpies

Imagine Crafts irRESISTibles

StazOn Studio Glaze

Stickles

Liquid Pearls

Winter Lantern with Guest Designer Betsy Skagen

For those of you who don't know me, I live up north. Waaaaaay up North. I live in Minnesota where the winters get bitter cold and dark winter nights come early. 

I'm Betsy Skagen of Paper Calliope and while my fingers may be cold, my heart is warm from the opportunity to be Gina's Designs' November 2015 Guest Designer. I created this week's project to light up some of those approaching long winter nights. 

Tutorial--How to Make the Rustic Winter Tealight Lantern

Step 1: Assemble the bottom and sides of Gina's Dimensional Diorama. Leave out the interior sections and the metal revolving piece as you will not be needing them. Adhere with a strong glue, such as Beacon Fabri-Tac.

Step 2: Using the Christmas Shape Set, Snowflake Shape Set and Winter Shape Set, pre-determine the scenes you want to create for each side panel. Make sure to design one of the scenes so that you will be able to push open the vellum panel to slide in a tealight. In the picture below, I left the vellum slightly bent so you could see how I access my tealight. Notice that the sled is actually attached to the vellum and not the lantern. This enables me to open the panel to operate the tealight. 

Step 3: Paint both sides of the chipboard pieces you selected with two coats of Tuscan Red acrylic (gloss) paint, letting dry between coats. 

Step 4: Paint the interior and exterior of the Diorama, the remaining lid piece and the Let it Snow Chipboard element, with two coats of gloss red paint, letting dry between coats. 

Step 5: Remove the handle from an old pail and paint the wooden part with two coats of gloss red paint, letting dry between coats. 

Step 6: Adhere the chipboard scenes to the exterior edges of the diorama's open panels. Adhere the Let it Snow element to the lantern lid.

Step 7: Use stiff dry brushes to stipple burnt umber, cocoa bean and Tuscan red paints in random places along the edges and corners of the lantern, chipboard elements and handle. Repeat this process numerous times to build up a texture that mimics corrosion and rust. 

Step 8: Cut the vellum to fit the panels. For three of the panels, place a strong adhesive on the interior edges of the diorama's panels and adhere the vellum. For the fourth panel, only attach the upper half of the vellum so you can access your tealight.

Step 9: If you wish, you may punch a hole in the top sides of your lantern to insert the pail handle. I chose to keep mine merely decorative and did not actually attach the handle. 

Step 10: Install and glue in the lid to the lantern. 

Step 11: Repeat Step 7 of creating rust along where the lid meets the rest of the lantern. 

Once it is dry, your lantern is complete. It would look great on a mantle or make a festive centerpiece for a holiday meal. I would love to see the lanterns you make--please email me pictures of how you use them to light up your holidays! 

In the meantime, don't forget that Gina's Designs is soon changing their name to Gypsy Laser Soul Cuts!

Until next time, Betsy

  

Great stuff you will need

• Dimensional Diorama
• Christmas Shape Set
• Snowflake Shape Set
• Winter Shape Set
• DecoArt Americana Acrylic Paint, 2-Ounce, Tuscan Red 
• Americana Multi-Surface Satin Acrylic Paint 2oz-Cocoa Bean
• Deco Art Media Fluid Acrylic Paint, 1-Ounce, Burnt Umber
• Beacon Fabri-Tac Permanent Adhesive, 4-Ounce
• Instapark® LCL Series Battery-powered Flameless LED Tealight Candles (2-Dozen Pack)
• Silhouette Vellum Paper for Scrapbooking

Winter at the Gazebo by Barb

Yes, I'm one of those. Halloween is done, so bring on the twinkly lights and snow and sparkly stuff! And no skimping on the hot cocoa and cookies! I'm ready. So ready that, with the help of Gina's Designs, I conjured up a magical little snowy park I can go to. 

I wanted to give my piece the feeling of a chilly evening after a good snowfall. So I began by using ModPodge to adhere mulberry paper to my canvas board. I slathered on some iridized purple paint to give it that late evening shimmer. To mimic snow that had been trampled while building Mr. Snowman, I spread gesso over the lower portion of the mulberry paper and added clear glitter while it was wet.

I set all that aside to work on the gazebo. To this, I sponged on plenty of gesso. I didn't worry about making it smooth and pretty because I wanted it to have that "just snowed" look. While the gesso was wet, I sprinkled clear glitter on it as well.

I wanted the lights to really shine against all that glittery, shimmery snowy stuff. I coated the strand and sockets first with green irRESISTibles. I let it dry for a few minutes and then coated the bulbs with various colors of irRESISTibles. 

Finally, it was time to turn my attention to Mr. Snowman. I coated everything but the hat with gesso and this time, instead of sprinkling on glitter, I smashed glitter into the wet paint. I painted his hat with black acrylic paint - I accidentally got some of the wet white gesso on it, but I kind of like the mottled effect.

Once the paint had dried, I tied a red ribbon around the hat. I also dabbed on Liquid Pearls for the eyes and mouth and added rhinestones for buttons. As for the carrot? Here's why you never ever ever throw away scraps from Gina's. You guessed it - that nose is a punch out scrap from a different project. I don't even remember what set it might have been from - I have a baggie full of little scrap bits that I've saved and find all kinds of uses for.

I made the arms from branches that I snipped off of the tree that came in the Winter Shape Set. I gave them a light coat of brown craft ink.

All I had to do was glue everything where I wanted it. Now I have a sweet little Winter Wonderland all my own!

Gina's Designs Products Used

Winter Shape Set

Gazebo

Light String Border

Other Products Used

Gesso

Mulberry paper

Clear glitter

Acrylic Paint

ModPodge

ColourArte Silk Acrylics

Liquid Pearl

Craft Ink

Imagine Crafts irRESISTibles

Imagine Crafts Creative Medium (Silver)

Gingerbread people banner by Lynne

Hi there! I had so much fun creating my little gingerbread house album a few weeks back  that I decided to create a coordinating banner using the same papers with the adorable little gingerbread people from Gina's. When I set up my Christmas decorations in a couple weeks I'll display them together.

I painted the figures with light brown acrylic paint then sponged them with a reddish brown for a lightly mottled "baked cookie" effect. The clothes were cut from paper and attached to the chipboard clothing bases then I added little embellishments and details. I used a pearl pen for the icing lines here and there.The snowflakes are from the Winter shape set and were primed with gesso then painted with pearl acrylic paint. The candies are from the gingerbread house mini album package. I painted them deep red then mounted them onto cardstock which was painted with the same pearl paint as the snowflakes.

I just attached everything to a piece of green jute for a simple homespun feel. Check out the crazy red feather hair on the little girl in the lower photo - I had some fun with the details!!

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderfully creative week!

Gina's Items Used

Gingerbread family shape set

Gingerbread house mini album set-pinwheel candies

Winter shape set-snowflakes

Winter Shrine Tutorial

Nichola here with a tutorial for a glittery magical something. I know that some people don't want to think about it just yet, but Jack Frost and the holiday season is on the way. Yes, there is still time before the holiday madness hits with full force, but I wanted to give you loads of time to get your supplies for this super cute project.

This snowy winter wonderland shrine was created using Gina's House Shrine Box. I really and truly love that little shrine house. It's such a great piece to apply your own style to.

Below you can just peek at the roof texture. This is achieved by layering pieces from the Cardstock Doily Set Intricates. The result is really cool and I show exactly how to do it in the video tutorial that goes along with this project.

The shrine is embellished with pieces from the Snowflake Shape Set. They've been painted and glitterfied and look oh, so sweet. Alternatively, you could use the Winter Shape Set which also includes snowmen, icicles and other wintry icons.

Inside my wee shrine I've added some bottle brush trees and a carpet of moss. Fill that space with whatever you like! A little Santa figure or snow capped house would be adorable.

Being a total glitter fiend, I used a lot of the sparkly stuff on this project. Feel free to leave it out if you like, but I think that it adds and special icy touch. You might think that white glitter would be ideal for a winter landscape, but I recommend using clear glitter for a snowy look.

What do you say? Want to make your own? You can find the full video tutorial HERE.

And here are all the supplies you'll need:

House Shrine Box*

Cardstock Doily Set Intricates

Snowflake Shape Set (or Winter Shape Set)

Wallflower 12x12 Paper Stash (or paper of choice)

Clear glitter

Light blue ultra fine glitter

Sky blue paint

Moss

A piece of foam

White acrylic paint

Glue

Bottle brush trees

*Note: the shrine box used in the tutorial is slightly larger than the one listed on the Gina's site. If you really, really, really, truly, must have the bigger version, please contact Gina's for pricing.