One Final Happy Holly-Days Project

Ooh it’s cold outside and the snow we had on Wednesday is still on the ground. Heavy rain is on the way though so it will probably all be gone by the weekend. It’s still not clear whether we’ll have a white Christmas but that doesn’t change the fact that two weeks today will be Christmas Eve. Between now and then I’ll enjoy getting a few final projects made with products that are retiring but currently still in stock. Today I decided to grab the Happy Holly-Days Stamp Set to make this pretty card.

Create this card with "Christmas blessings to you and yours" sentiment using the Happy Holly-Days Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! #papercraftwithme

HOLLY ACCENTS

My regular readers will know that I love creating with holly images, they seem to be infinitely more interesting than pine leaves. So that was where I started today.

Using Soft Suede ink I stamped the holly image from Happy Holly-Days onto a scrap of Thick Very Vanilla Card. Then I stamped it in the centre at the top of a 4″ x 5-1/4″ layer of Very Vanilla Card. Finally I stamped it in the centre of the flap on a Very Vanilla Medium Envelope.

To colour the three images I chose Real Red and Granny Apple Green Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers. Rather than stressing over the light and dark markers I took my cue from the images themselves. So where the stamp had shading I coloured those parts with the dark marker. Then I went over the whole of that area with the lighter one to blend. With this strategy the colouring was quick and stress-free.

Once I was finished I used Paper Snips to cut out the holly from the scrap of Thick Very Vanilla Card and set everything aside.

LATTICE BACKGROUND

Now I needed to create my card base and I used my Paper Trimmer to cut and score some Misty Moonlight Card. After folding it along the scored line I sharpened the crease with a Bone Folder. Then I used Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow) to fix the holly decorated Very Vanilla layer on the inside.

For the front of the card I decided to use some of the ‘sky’ pattern from the Beauty of the Earth 12″ x 12″ Designer Series Paper (DSP) pack and I cut a piece 4-1/4″ x 4-1/2″. For some extra interest I fixed some Very Vanilla 3/8″ Lace Trim along one of the 4-1/4″ sides using Tear & Tape Adhesive on the back of the DSP. Then I glued the DSP to the card front with the top of the DSP level with the top of the card base and the lace at the bottom.

All I needed now was a sentiment and for that I went back to the Happy Holly-Days Stamp Set.

Using Soft Suede ink again I stamped “Christmas blessings to you and yours” onto some Thick Very Vanilla Card. Then I chose the long label shape from the Seasonal Labels Dies and cut out the sentiment using the Mini Cut & Emboss Machine.

Finally I was ready to finish the front of the card and I started with some Paper Lattice. Using Paper Snips I trimmed about an inch off the bottom edge. Then I used tiny dots of liquid glue to fix the lattice onto the DSP lining up the bottom edges.

To hide the cut edge on the Paper Lattice I attached the sentiment over the top using Stampin’ Dimensionals. Then with the fussy-cut holly added to the sentiment with liquid glue, and bits of Stampin’ Dimensionals under the top two leaves I was finally done.

Once again the Happy Holly-Days Stamp Set has created a card that I love. For more projects using this stamp set see these earlier blog posts:

PRODUCT LIST

BUNDLE BONUS – I bought the Seasonal Labels Dies with the coordinating Christmas Season Stamp Set (not used today). Buying the two items together using a single “bundle” item number meant I saved 10% off the cost of buying the same two items separately. I’ve included a link to the bundle in case you want to explore that option.

RETIRING PRODUCT – I’m so sad that the Happy Holly-Days Stamp Set is retiring. When I checked earlier this morning it was still in stock but once they’ve sold out there will be no more available. So if you haven’t yet got this set and want it, don’t delay placing your order.

While you can still buy the Happy Holly-Days Stamp Set in a discounted bundle with the Holly Border Punch I’ve not included that link. This is because the punch is retiring and available at 20% off, so it’s cheaper to buy the two items separately.