Christmas Thank You Card

Hello and Happy New Year! We have turned the chapter to the beginning of 2023, the pages are unwritten and waiting to be filled. I hope this year writes something wonderful!

I like to start the new year by making a Christmas Thank You Card. This year a dear friend surprised me with flowers, cupcakes and deli treats right before Christmas. So, I made this card for her. The tree was made using a very retired stamp by Stampin' Up!, it's from the Scentsational Season stamp set. The colors include: Shaded Spruce, Poppy Parade and Merry Merlot. A little star sequin was added to the top of the tree and the nesting circle die cuts are from Unity Stamps. The Thank You sentiment is from the Abstract Impressions stamp set by Stampin' Up! and everything was adhered flat. That's it! So glad you stopped by and enjoy the rest of your day.🎄

Challenges entered:

• A Place To Start: Anything Goes
• Alphabet Challenge: Thank You
• Peace On Earth: Anything Christmas Themed

Christmas surprise from my friend:

Christmas Treeline Card

Hello! Today I'm sharing this simple Christmas Treeline Card I made using the Merry Christmas Treeline stamp from Unity Stamps. It was free with purchase sometime last year and this is the first time I've inked it up. It was paired with Christmas papers from the Christmas Magic paper pad by Echo Park (2021). The image is super easy to color, so this card came together fairly quickly. Three punched snowflakes were added for detail and everything was adhered flat for easy shipping. That's it! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day. 🎄

Challenges entered: ABC Christmas (N is for New, O if for Old) stamp and papers used are New., Crafty Gals Corner (Christmas in July), Craftyhazelnut's Christmas (Anything Goes/Use Some Red) and Sweet Stampers (Christmas in July). 🎅

Gnome Christmas Card

Good day! At the beginning of the year I intended to make a couple of Christmas cards each month. Well, that hasn't happened. So, I plan to make several Christmas Cards in July. This Gnome Christmas Card is my first design. The image is called Gnome Tree by Stampendous! and it was colored with Copic markers. The patterned papers are from the Happy Christmas paper pad by Carta Bella (2021). Everything was adhered flat with a few snowflakes and sentiment for detail. Thanks for stopping by! I hope you are staying cool where you live and enjoy the rest of your day.🎄

Challenges entered:

• Christmas Craft Creations: Trees
• Crafty Catz: Anything Goes
• Little Red Wagon: Christmas in July
• Unicorn: Christmas in July
• Winter Wonderland: From Our Gnome to Yours

Thank You Card with Tree

Well... after all those presents are unwrapped, sending a thank you card is always a good idea. So, I made this card for my parents using some of my older stash. At the rate I buy patterned paper I will never use it all and I know several of my stamps sets haven't been used enough. It felt good to use these neglected supplies. Most everything is retired by Stampin' Up! except for the Tim Holtz tumbled glass distress ink by Ranger. It's nothing fancy, just a simple Thank You Card with Tree. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!🌲

This card is entered into the anything goes challenge at Krafty Chicks.

Forest Christmas Cards

Hello! Now that Halloween is almost behind us I've been working on Christmas cards. These Forest Christmas Cards feature a darling stamp by Stampendous. I adore the critters peeking out of the tree. To color the image I used Copic markers and then Stickles was added to the snow for a little shimmer. Both patterned papers are from Echo Park. I only had one piece of the holly paper, so I picked red polka dot papers to coordinate. The Merry Christmas sentiment is from Hero Arts and was punched with an oval punch and matted to a scalloped oval both by Stampin' Up!. To finish the cards three small punched snowflakes were added and that's it. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!🎄

Challenges entered: Addicted to Stamps and More (Christmas), Aud Sentiments (Christmas Sentiment), Crafty Catz (Anything Goes), Jingle Belles (Not a Creature was Stirring) and The Holly and Ivy Christmas (Anything Christmas Goes).

Peaceful Christmas Cards

Good day! This month I purchased the Paper Pumpkin kit by Stampin' Up! called Peaceful Christmas. I always procrastinate on my Christmas cards and I knew this kit would save me some time. Here are two Peaceful Christmas Cards I made using the kit. I've layered the papers and changed the orientation of the Noel card.  I'm pretty happy with how they turned out and they came together quickly. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the rest of your day!🎄🎄🎄

Small Stuff Christmas Cards

Hello! As we inch closer to Christmas I'm trying to make several Christmas cards each week. Here are two cards I made using the Small Stuff Christmas stamp set from Unity Stamps. I love changing the patterned papers when I make duplicates. It's a simple design and there isn't much coloring which helps speed things along. I'm entering these cards into The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day! 🎄🎄🎄

Angie's Tree Sympathy Card

Happy Friday! I have a quick post to share this Angie's Tree Sympathy Card using the Angie's Tree stamp by Unity Stamps. It seems the frequency that I need sympathy cards increases every year. I usually make sympathy cards as I need them and don't keep many in my stash. I like to make them for the specific recipient. This one is going to a friend from high school who lost her father. 🌳🌳🌳

The image was colored with Copic markers and then adhered to a piece of green cardstock. Then it was attached to the polka dot background paper. The heartfelt sympathy sentiment is from the No Better Words sentiment kit by Unity Stamps and was adhered flat to the card. That's it! A simple handmade sympathy card. 

Using different background paper:

Sympathy Card with Trees

Good day! Today I'm sharing a Sympathy Card with Trees that I made using the No Better Words sentiment kit by Unity Stamps. The card is for a friend who lost her father, so I wanted to make a more masculine sympathy card. First I inked up a piece of white cardstock using Peeled Paint, Tumbled Glass and Broken China distress inks. Then I stamped the sentiment, trees and birds with Memento black ink. For the clouds I used Smokey Slate ink by Stampin' Up!. The inked panel was adhered to a retired piece of patterned paper by Stampin' Up! and then adhered to the plaid paper from the retired Plaid Tidings dsp by Stampin' Up!. Everything was adhered flat for easy shipping and that's it. So glad you dropped by and I hope you enjoy the rest of your day. 

Challenges entered:

• Make My Monday: Checks or Plaids
• Watercooler Wednesday: All Things Masculine
• Word Art Wednesday: Anything Goes

The Poisoned Apple Blog Hop

Happy Halloween! Today I'm taking part in a blog hop called the Poisoned Apple Exhibit. There are 13 creative projects for you to view. The majority are mixed media in nature and many of them are dimensional. We would love for you to hop along and enjoy these spine-tingling creations. The hop list is below along with a photo of the prize donated by Gecko Galz.🍎 Have fun!

My creation is more cute than spine-tingling, it's as spooky as I get. I made this Happy Halloween wall hanging using distress oxide inks for the background adorned with several stamps that were colored with Copic markers and then fussy cut. The black embossed trees are made using a stamp by Whimsy Stamps called Tree Silhouette used with Zing! black glitter embossing powder. To add a little spooky the Tree Menace and Count Catula stamps by Stampendous! were used along with some cute Hello Bluebird stamps from the Frightful Little Bits and Halloween Party stamp sets. Once I had everything assembled I decided I needed to add a little toad from the Springtime stamp set by Hello Bluebird. The Happy Halloween die cut is from Impression Obsession and that's it. 👻🎃 I'm glad you stopped by and I hope you have a hauntingly fun Halloween!🦇

Hop List:

It's Oddly Appealing

Creatif Edges

Ink Stained Roni

Helen Angel-Cullum

Chaitali Dekhtawala

Louise Thompson

Monique's Pretty Dark Art

Lyne's Laboratory

ZoeB

Rituparna

Angela B

Savvy Handmade - (That's me)

Monica Longard

Hop Prize:

We have a wonderful digital prize package up for grabs, courtesy of Gecko Galz (https://www.etsy.com/shop/geckogalz)! You'll receive: Face To Face Jewel It Collage Set, Steam Punk Collage Set, Picture Perfect ATC Set, Clockwork Christmas ATC Set, and Spellbound Digital Stamp Set (which has 25 images!).

To have a chance of winning, leave a comment on this post, along with your email address or social media contact (IG, FB, etc) from now through Monday, 2 Nov. One lucky winner will be picked randomly from all comments left from all of the artist's participating! The winner will be contacted via email or social media so it's important you leave your address/social media contact info! Good luck and enjoy the hop!

Autumn Newton Thankful Card

Hello and happy Wednesday! Last month Newton's Nook released a new stamp set called Autumn Newton and I decided it was purrfect for my Thanksgiving cards for family this year. The Newton's Nook design team did an amazing job with their inspirational designs, click HERE. I was inspired by all the inky backgrounds and really loved Maria Russell's design that you can check out HERE. Then Jennifer Jackson created two awesome cards for the Simon Says Stamp Blog that you can check out HERE.

With all this wonderful inspiration I was excited to make my own inky background with distress oxide inks. Colors include: Seedless Preserves, Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, Wild Honey, Fossilized Amber and Vintage Photo. The colors were sponged onto mixed media paper, blended well and then sprayed with water. The heat gun was used to dry the water and set the ink. I let the panel dry overnight before cutting it to the right size. A Birch Tree die cut by Taylored Expressions was added and trimmed and then the panel was matted to Rich Razzleberry cardstock by Stampin' Up!. Next, the Newton image was colored with Copic markers and die cut with the coordinating die. Everything was adhered flat to the card for easy mailing. A few sequins were added for sparkle and that's it!

This Autumn Newton Thankful Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Simon Says Stamp: Stamp It!
• Little Red Wagon: Give Us Your Background
• Tuesday Throwdown: Punches and/or Dies
• Crafty Gals Corner: Favorite Colors (used favorite Fall colors)

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Raccoon Rascals Kindness Card

Sometimes a project keeps getting pushed because of other priorities and this Raccoon Rascals Kindness Card is one of them. There is wildlife rescue and rehabilitation here in Oklahoma called Wild Heart Ranch and I follow them on Facebook. They do a wonderful job sharing their animal experiences and videos with their followers. Their work is inspiring and at times heart breaking! They recently rescued a raccoon from the side of the road and it had a broken jaw. The pictures were painful to look at and my heart hurt for the little raccoon. That's when I knew I needed to send them a card using the Raccoon Rascals stamp set from Newton's Nook.

To create this card I started with a piece of watercolor paper and sprayed some Mister Huey's color mists along with Tattered Angels glimmer mist. The sky was darkened with Broken China distress ink. Once dry the tree from the Stampin' Up! Lovely as a Tree stamp set was stamped using Memento black ink. Then the sentiment from the Thoughtful Branches stamp set by Stampin' Up! was heat embossed with white embossing powder. The image was colored with copic markers, fussy cut and adhered with dimensionals. A scalloped frame by Taylored Expressions was added along with a few punched stars. That's it!

This Raccoon Rascals Kindness Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Color Inspiration: Hand Colored Image
• Cards in Envy: Thank You
• Sunny Day Crafting: Anything Goes
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends: Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

Embossed Tree Christmas Card

Hello and Happy Tuesday! It's time for another challenge at Tuesday Throwdown and this week... It's All About the Words. Our sponsor is Craft Classes Online, they offer an array of different crafty classes. I can't wait to see how you interpret this theme. You have until mid-day on Monday, November 14th to link your creation. Click here for all the challenge details and design team inspiration. I sure hope you will play along!

This tree stamp by Inkadinkado was the first thing that came to mind when I read the challenge theme. Then I found the Merry Christmas word paper by Pebbles and thought it would work too, so I used both. The tree was heat embossed with Emerald PEARLustre and silver glitter powder on the star both by Stampendous. A simple layout and three silver sequins finished the card. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This Embossed Tree Christmas Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Craftyhazelnut's Christmas: Anything Goes
• Fashionable Stamping: Trees
• Cupcake Inspirations: Trees

Penguin Christmas Cards

There are still several Christmas in July challenges going on right now, so I've made another Christmas card. This time I've used one of my favorite penguin images by Bugaboo called Little Penguin Winter - Decorate Tree. The image was colored with Copic markers and then die cut using a stitched rectangle die by Lil' Inkers. To play along with day 4 of Bugaboo's Christmas in July Bingo Challenge I selected the middle row across, which includes: Sparkly, Bugaboo image and Lime Green. The layout for this Penguin Christmas Card is from this weeks sketch #360 at Tuesday Morning Sketches designed by Jessi Fogan. I love using tilted panels and this one worked perfectly with the image. For the patterned papers I used a stripe by Doodlebug Designs and Shiny Trees by Recollections from their Jingle Bells paper pad. Instead of using buttons as the sketch suggested I made three circle embellishments with little round die cuts and lime green sparkly stickers by Jolee's. The last addition was the Merry Christmas sentiment from the retired Good Greetings stamp set by Stampin' Up!. That's it!

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

This card is entered into the following challenges:

• Catch The Bug: Bingo
• Tuesday Morning Sketches: Sketch #360
• Cardz 4 Guyz: Christmas in July

Strong Tree Sympathy Card

This Strong Tree Sympathy Card is being sent to a relative who is a teenage boy. His mother, my aunt, passed away this week and I wanted to make both of her children their own cards. I have to admit this card was a challenge for me because I have no idea what teenage boys like, so to play it safe I went with the Strong Tree image from the Lovely as a Tree stamp set and the sentiment is from the Teeny Tiny Wishes stamp set both by Stampin' Up!. The layout is from a sketch by Freshly Made Sketches (FMS108) that I saved from 2013. All patterned papers are by The Paper Loft. It's simple, it's masculine and it came from the heart.  

Celebrating 700 Posts!

Hello! This post brings my published post total at Savvy Handmade Cards to 700!!! It's really exciting to see how quickly they add up. I started this blog on March 13, 2012 and HERE is my first post. At the time I had NO idea there were card challenges and I had never heard of Stampin' Up!, my how things have changed. I'm happy to be supported by 147 followers and over 217,000 page views. To share my creativity helps fill a big space in my life and I appreciate all the support. In celebration of 700 posts I am giving away some blog candy with a selection of Stampin' Up! supplies (see below photo). To win you need to comment on this post, the winner will be picked at random and announced at the end of June 2015.

The Thanks Card I'm sharing today was made using the sketch at Tuesday Morning Sketches. All supplies for this card are by Stampin' Up! and here is the list:

• Paper: Whisper White, Crushed Curry, Wild Wasabi, Garden Green, Soft Suede and Soft Sky cardstock. Patterned paper from the Cherry on Top paper stack and retired Subtles paper stack.
• Stamps: Sprinkles of Life, Petite Petals and Another Thank You.
• Inks: Classic stampin' pads in Soft Suede, Garden Green, Watermelon Wonder, Crushed Curry, Wild Wasabi and Lost Lagoon.
• Other Stuff: Tree Builder punch, Bird Builder punch, Petite Petals punch, basic pearls and stampin' dimensionals. 

Here is the blog candy:

12 sheets cardstock (2 each color), Cherry on Top paper stack and Watermelon Wonder dotted lace trim.

I'm entering this Thanks Card into the following challenges:

• Tuesday Morning Sketches: Sketch
• Cute Card Thursday: Summer Colours!
• Aud Sentiments: Bingo + Sentiment (middle row across)
• Sister Act: Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!!!

Merry Little Wish Card

Christmas??? Well, there are several Christmas challenges right now and I do tend to procrastinate, so I made a Christmas card in May. Why not! This Merry Little Wish Card was made using this weeks sketch at Tuesday Morning Sketches. I love the simplicity!  I'm also entering this card in the following challenges: ABC Christmas (K is for Keep it Simple) and Crafting By Designs (Get Ready for Christmas).

Most of the supplies for this card are by Stampin' Up! Here is the list:

• Paper: Whisper White, Crisp Cantaloupe and Cherry Cobbler cardstock. Patterned paper from the retired Trim The Tree paper stack. 
• Stamps: Festival of Trees stamp set.
• Inks: Classic Stampin' pads in Garden Green and Crisp Cantaloupe. Cherry Cobbler Stampin' Write marker.
• Other Stuff: Spellbinders scalloped oval die, Tree punch, small rhinestones, Crisp Cantaloupe thick twine, Blushing Bride rosette from Artisan embellishment kit and dimensionals.

Blue Christmas Card

What's your favorite Christmas color scheme? Do you like the traditional red and green or do you prefer something non-traditional? This week the challenge at Cardz 4 Guyz is to create a masculine Christmas card using your favorite Christmas colors.

When I started thinking about my favorite Christmas colors, well I found it hard to pick. Through the years it's changed many times. To decorate our Christmas tree I've used: Gold/Silver/White, Purple/Silver/White and our tree now has ornaments of all colors. Since the card is for a guy, I decided to ask the hubby for his input and Blue/Silver/White was the winner.

The layout for this card is simple and one I use a lot. To fit the tree image by Inkadinkado, I made a larger card. The finished size is 6" x 4.5". The blue snowflake patterned paper is by The Paper Studio and the glitter polka dot paper is by Best Creation Inc. The tree image was heat embossed using VersaMark and silver embossing powder. I used an EK Success snowflake edge punch and used some blue rhinestones for detail. It didn't turn out ruggedly manly but the hubby said it would work for a guy, so I believe him.

We would love for you to join us this week at Cardz 4 Guyz! Click here to check out the inspiration from the rest of the design team. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

My Blue Christmas Card is entered into the following challenges:

• Robyn's Fetish: Anything Goes
• Paper Creator's Crafts: All About Christmas
• My Perfect Life: Any Christmas Card

Holiday Home Card for The Paper Players

Happy Sunday! I'm getting close to the end of my guest designer spot at The Paper Players. It's been an honor to be featured alongside these super talented ladies! There is a definite feeling of sadness that it's coming to an end. So, I hope you will celebrate the last couple of weeks with me and share one of your creations at The Paper Players. This week the wonderful Jaydee has a Tic-Tac-Toe challenge for us. I always enjoy a good Tic-Tac-Toe challenge and I'm sure you will too. To play along choose any three items across, down or diagonally.

Here are your choices:

My design started with the idea of a starry night Christmas card. When I read the choices the star was the first thing I gravitated to, but I ended up choosing the Tree going diagonally with Embossing and Glitter. I could have also used the bottom across with Star, Die Cut and Glitter but I just fussy-cut the house instead of using the coordinating framelits. To create the stars I used the decorative mask and applied VersaMark ink and then heat embossed using clear embossing powder. Then I sponged on Soft Sky, Lost Lagoon and Night of Navy inks. To add the glitter I used a VersaMark pen and went over the stars, applied the glitter and then heat set. I did the same with the trees, first I stamped them then used the VersaMark pen and dipped them in the glitter and then heat set. The card really has a lot of shimmer that the picture doesn't show. The Peace & Joy sentiment from the Good Greeting set was stamped in black Memento ink. From the Holiday Home stamp set Santa and his reindeer and the house were stamped with black Memento ink. Then I colored the house with my Copic markers, fussy-cut and adhered with dimensionals. That pretty much sums it up!

Now, you should definitely check out the inspiration from the rest of the design team at The Paper Players. Then, play along! You have until NOON (PST) on Friday, December 5th to link your creation in the gallery. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!                 

Masculine Give Thanks Card

Fall colors are wonderful to create masculine cards. So, take advantage of the season and join us this week at Cardz 4 Guyz for our theme Thanksgiving/Thankful. For my card I chose to use the Lovely as a Tree stamp set by Stampin' Up! It truly is a classic and perfect for masculine cards. I used the rock-n-roll technique for the leaves of the tree using More Mustard and Cajun Craze inks. The patterned papers are from the Sweater Weather collection by DCWV. I dug through my punches and found the leaf punch from Creative Memories. I added a touch of Frayed Burlap distress ink onto the leaves to darken the edges. The final details were adding the three Candy Dots and the Give Thanks sentiment from the Stampin' Up! hostess/freebie set called Good Greetings. The sentiment was punched using the word window punch and layered onto the modern label punch both by Stampin' Up! I kept the layout simple and let the paper and colors do all the work.

To check out the inspiration from my fellow designers at Cardz 4 Guyz, just CLICK HERE. I hope to see your card in the gallery. Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day!

I'm entering my card in the fall photo challenge at {PIN}spirational.