Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas - December 2020 Edition

 

First of all...MERRY CHRISTMAS...to those that celebrate!  Second...welcome to the December 2020 Edition of the Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas that I do on the 25th of each month with some other Crafty Elves - 

Debra - Meticulosity 

and 

Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper.

I joined the other Crafty Elves in January and cannot believe it's been a year already.  And what a year it's been.  2021 better be a better year.    

For this Edition, we decided to just make one card and then pick our favorite cards from the other Crafty Elves.  

And my card is special...it's going to be our new logo for 2021.  I found these adorable elf digital stamps on Etsy from JustMEdigitalstamps.  I loved them because there is a girl elf and a boy elf.  So I turned it into 2 girl elves and a 1 boy elf (Debra, Lisa, and Me). 

It's a quick and easy card to make.  

Make a top folding A2 card and cover with a piece of decorative holiday paper or cardstock.

Print the elves to the size you want - two times.  One set I cut with a stitched rectangle die and adhered to the card front.  The other I colored and fussy cut and then adhered on top of the other elves using foam tape.  

Some stickles here and there and your card is done.

Now...on to picking my favorite card from each of the other elves.  Not an easy job at all.  But I went with these - 

For Debra, I decided on this card, which is from her September 2020 Crafty Elf post, just because this card represents everything I am feeling at the moment.  I know I am not alone with this thinking but I am sooooo over 2020, I miss going places, I miss being with people...and I really do wish we could have World Peace!  LOL

For Lisa, I couldn't decide between a dog, pig, or very colorful slimline card.  I love dogs, pigs, and colorful cards.  I decided on this colorful slimline card, which is from her October 2020 Crafty Elf post, because I love colorful cards and I am in love with these new slimline stamps from Rubbernecker, which I'll get one of these days.

And those are my picks for 2020.  I will be back in 2021 with the other Crafty Elves, as well as some possible guest designers joining us from time to time.  Would you like to join us one month?  Let me know by leaving a comment below.  

Don't forget to check out which of my cards the other Crafty Elves liked the most in 2020 and to see their final card this year.  Just click on their names, below.

Debra - Meticulosity 

Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper

I hope everyone has an amazing Christmas or Kwanzaa, if you celebrate one of them.  If you don't, I hope you had an amazing Hanukkah.  And, for everyone, I hope you have an amazing New Year.  Stay safe and I will see you again in 2021. 

Hugs from Brasil - 

Michael

Snowball Stand Holiday Card

 

Hello everyone and Happy Thanksgiving.  I am in a group on Facebook called "Build Your Stash Holiday Cardmakers Group" in which there is a sketch challenge taking place.  I decided to participate using the Snowball Stand image from Anthony's Paper Craft.  This stamp is not available to purchase yet but is free during his Black Friday sale and you can find the details at the end of this post.

The sketch we had to use when making our card is below. 

For my card base, I decided to make a 6" square card using red cardstock.  Then I cut a piece of decorative paper I had in my stash to 5.75" x 5.75".  I adhered the decorative paper to a piece of black fun foam and then to my card front.

Then I stamped the Snowball Stand image on to white cardstock and cut it out using the largest die in the Petite Ovals Large Nestabilities set (S4-138).  I also die cut a piece of red cardstock using the largest die in the Petite Scalloped Ovals Large set (S4-139).  Even though these oval dies are no longer available, there are so many other oval dies on the market that you can use to recreate this card if you wanted to. 

For my sentiment, I die cut the two largest of the Stitched Fishtail Banner dies from Elizabeth Craft Designs.  The largest out of red cardstock and the next size down out of white cardstock, for my sentiment. 

Using a stamp positioner, I stamped my sentiment, "Celebrate the Season", from the Christmas Sentiments 1 set from Anthony's Paper Craft.  Instead of stamping across, I stamped each word so they were on top of each other to fit the banner die.  I also colored in the image and adhered it to the red cardstock.

Next, I adhered the sentiment to the card front using wet glue and then I adhered the image using foam tape to raise it up a bit.

I wanted to adhere a snowflake to the bottom right of the oval to keep in line with the sketch so I went thru my stash of dies and found one from Memory Box called Snow Burst.  I die cut them from glittered fun foam and then adhered them to the card front.

The last things I did to finish off the card was to add Frosted Lace Stickles to the snowballs and snow bank and to add some Glossy Accents to the Tips jar to give a glass look.

Done.  I really like the card.  What do you guys think?

If you like this image, you can get it for FREE during the Black Friday Sale over on Anthony's Paper Craft.  All the stamps are 25% off and if you order $30 or more, this stamp set will automatically be added to your order for FREE.  And, if you spend $50 or more, you will get the stamp set for free AND you will get FREE shipping if you live in the USA.  Great deal.  

Enjoy your Thanksgiving everyone and the long weekend.  Until next time - 

Hugs from Brasil - 

~Michael

Card No. 4 - November 2020 Crafty Elves Countdown To Christmas - Christmas Note Cards

 

Hello everyone.  This is a more detailed step by step on how to make Card No. 4 (of 4) from the November 2020 Edition of the Crafty Elves Countdown to Christmas.  

Links to the other 3 cards as well as the links to the other Crafty Elves' blog post can be found at the end of this post.  

I decided to make some super easy note cards because sometimes you just want to add a note to a present.  I used the brand new digital image from Three Room Studio called Winter Wreath.  Only 1 is shown in the post but I was able to make 4. 

• I printed out the Winter Wreath image at 55% on to a piece of A4 cardstock - I am able to get 4 images per sheet.  
• I cut each of the images using a circle die from Spellbinders.  Then I cut a piece of red cardstock using the next size die up and adhered the image to the red cardstock.
• I made 4 top-folding note cards at 4" x 4" to which I adhered two different papers from the Christmas Market paper pad by Carta Bella. 

• I colored in the image using BIC Intensity Markers.

• I had some holiday stickers from Target that I picked up last year.  I adhered the sticker to a piece of red cardstock, cut with a circle die, and then I adhered this to center using foam tape. 

 

• Lastly, I adhered them to the center of each card using wet glue and then added some Stickles and small crystals in the center of the small snowflakes.

Done.  I have a feeling there will be some more projects coming out of my brain using this image.  I love it!! 

For a more detailed step by step of the other 3 cards, with photos, click below - 

Card No. 1

Card No. 2

Card No. 3

And for the other Crafty Elves's posts - 

Debra - Meticulosity
Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today.  I hope everyone that celebrates it has a great Thanksgiving.  There is a lot to give thanks for this year.  

Hugs from Brasil!

~Michael 

Card No. 3 - November 2020 Crafty Elves Countdown To Christmas - Happy Hanukkah

 

Hello everyone.  This is a more detailed step by step on how to make Card No. 3 (of 4) from the November 2020 Edition of the Crafty Elves Countdown to Christmas.  

Links to the other 3 cards as well as the links to the other Crafty Elves' blog post can be found at the end of this post.  

I wanted to make a super simple and fast card for Hanukkah and this idea was bouncing around in my head.  A few weeks ago I received the Happy Hanukkah Script Die from Pretty Pink Posh.  The week I got it, I also found a package of thin multi-colored washi tape here in the mall.  And I wanted the two to get married.

I started by making a 6" x 6" card base from white cardstock.  Using the Happy Hanukkah Collection from Photo Play Paper, I adhered one of the designs (Peace & Light) to the card front.  Then I cut a piece of silver cardstock, 5.5" x 5.5", and adhered that in the center.  

Then I cut another of the designs (Shine Bright), 5.25" x 5.25", adhered it to a piece of fun foam, and then to the card front.  

Using a piece of scrap cardstock about the size of the die, I adhered strips of the washi.  Each strip was a different color.  Then I die cut the Happy Hanukkah Script Die.

Next, I placed the card into my Misti and then stamped the menorah from the Festival of Lights set from Anthony's Paper Craft.  I know, I should have done this differently but I forgot to stamp the image before I adhered the paper down.  

Then I colored the menorah using BIC Intensity markers.  Each of the candles was made a nice bright color like typical menorah candles and I used a light gray on the menorah to make it look like aged silver. Then I adhered the Happy Hanukkah sentiment under the menorah. 

Lastly, I added some Yellow Stickles to each of the flames on the candles as well as some small dots on the card using the Blue Pearl Pen by Viva Decor.

For a more detailed step by step of the other 3 cards, with photos, click below - 

Card No. 1

Card No. 2

Card No. 4

And for the other Crafty Elves's posts - 

Debra - Meticulosity
Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today.  I hope everyone that celebrates it has a great Thanksgiving. There is a lot to give thanks for this year.  

Hugs from Brasil!

~Michael 

Card No. 2 - November 2020 Crafty Elves Countdown To Christmas - Christmas Lights Card

Hello everyone.  This is a more detailed step by step on how to make Card No. 2 from the November 2020 Edition of the Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas.  

Links to the other 3 cards as well as the links to the other Crafty Elves' blog posts are at the bottom of this post. 

I used this stamp back in January 2020, which you can see HERE.  But when slimline cards started to get hot this year, I wanted to do another card, vertically, using this same stamp.  

• I started by making a top folding slimline card, 4" x 9", to which I adhered a piece of decorative Christmas paper to the front.  I also cut a piece of white cardstock, 4" x 8.5", and then die cut it using one of the dies from the Edgers Confetti Cuts by Reverse Confetti. I also cut a piece of white fun foam to go under the white cardstock and used the same die on the bottom. 

• Using a stamp positioner, I stamped the string of lights from the Light Up The Holidays set from Your Next Stamp several times on the white cardstock.  I also stamped "Merry Christmas" from  the Santa Express stamp set by Your Next Stamp, which I completely messed up by stamping twice.  So I stamped the sentiment on a scrap piece of white cardstock, cut it out using a stitched banner die along with the next sime up from a piece of red cardstock.  

• Then I colored in the lights using BIC Intensity Ultra Fine Tip Markers.   

• I adhered this part to the piece of fun foam using both double sided tape and some wet glue.  Then I applied Glossy Accents on each of the lights and set it aside to dry.  This will give a more glass effect. 

• I adhered the sentiment to the card, wrapping it around the white cardstock and the fun foam.  Then I adhered this to the card front.  

Here is the final card again.  I love it both as a normal size card as well as a slimline card.  Which do you prefer? 

For a more detailed step by step, with photos, of the other 3 cards, click below - 

Card No. 1

Card No. 3

Card No. 4

And for the other Crafty Elves's posts - 

Debra - Meticulosity
Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today.  I hope everyone that celebrates it has a great Thanksgiving. There is a lot to give thanks for this year. 

Hugs from Brasil!

~Michael 

Card No. 1 - November 2020 Crafty Elves Countdown To Christmas - Tourist Snow {People}

Hello everyone.  This is a more detailed step by step on how to make Card No. 1 from the November 2020 Edition of the Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas. This adorable city scene with a Big Red Bus filled with tourist snow {people} is not a clean and simple card but worth it for someone special in your life.   

Links to the other 3 cards as well as links to the other Crafty Elves' cards are at the bottom of this post.

As I mentioned in my main post, the idea for this card has been floating around in my head for almost 2 years and it felt great to get it out.  And I love how it came out.   

• I started by making a 4.25" x 8.75" top folding slimline card from white cardstock.  Along the bottom of the front of the card, I adhered a strip of THIS dotted-line washi tape to act as the road along which the bus is driving.
• I die cut the Memory Box Cityscape Die 4 times. Twice from black cardstock and twice from a grayish/cement cardstock.  There are so many skyline/cityscape dies on the market and many would work to make this card.
• I die cut the Memory Box Double Decker die using red/black/and gray cardstock.

• On the back of each of the gray/cement colored cityscapes, I adhered yellow washi tape I had in my stash - to give the look of lights.  I am pretty sure there is a solid cityscape die to go with the one I am using but, as usual, I cannot find it and thought the washi did a good job.  If the washi tape is too sticky thru the windows, you can just brush on some cornstarch to remove the stickiness. Mine was fine.  

• Next, I applied some wet glue to the washi tape side and adhered them to the black cityscape pieces but offsetting them by about 1/16th of an inch to give a small shadow.  You can also use double sided tape if you want. 

Before I can start to put the card together, I stamped my sentiments.  I already know that the right side of the card front will be 3D with foam tape and I want to make sure I will not have a problem stamping the sentiments.  

• Without glueing anything down, I arranged the cityscape where I expect to adhere it and then, using a stamp positioner, I stamped my first sentiment "sending Christmas blessings" by Unity Stamp.

• Then I stamped the 2nd sentiment "to my cool friend" from Snow Way also by Unity Stamp.

Now...we can put together the card front!

• I adhered the two cityscapes to the front, above the washi tape.  The left side I glued down and the right side I adhered using foam tape so it was raised. 

 

Before I can add the Big Red Bus I need to insert the snow {people} coming out the windows.  So I stamped 7 of the snow people from the Snow Way set from Unity Stamp, fussy cut them, and then I colored them in.  

Next, I adhered the silver stairs to the bus with glue. Then I positioned each of the snow {people} coming out the windows of the bus adding a dab of glue where necessary to keep them secure.

Then I put some foam tape on the back of the bus and adhered it on the left side of the card front.  I also adhered the bus tires using wet glue.

The last things I did to finish off the card - stamp the snowflake using blue ink that is part of the Snow Way set and to add various Stickles to the snow {people} and their hats. 

Done!  It feels great to finally have this out of my brain.  I hope you guys enjoy this card as much as I had making it.  I love a good whimsical fun card.  I'd love to know what you think.

For a more detailed step by step, with photos, of the other 3 cards, click below - 

Card No. 2

Card No. 3

Card No. 4

And for the other Crafty Elves's posts - 

Debra - Meticulosity
Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today.  I hope everyone that celebrates it has a great Thanksgiving. There is a lot to give thanks for this year.  

Hugs from Brasil!

~Michael