Mass Producing a Merry Christmas

We have all been there.  You need a bunch of cards and in a hurry!  That usually happens to me every Christmas season.  You would think someone who blogs about card making...  has cards!  Wrong!  I am always procrastinating until you guessed it...  I have 10 days til the day and zero cards!  :-(  I am totally a bad card influence!  #cardloser

And just in case you think I have it together for 2019 I must confess I created these cards before last Christmas.  I never mailed them.  Sigh...  #doublecardloser  

So if you do not want to be like me...  you can start early and pick a pattern that is fast, easy and can be changed up easily.  Here's a design I did in three different versions that literally took a few hours.  

 Gray and White

 Black and White

Red and Black

 

You can see I mixed up the design colors using red and black, gray and black along with black and white.  I also chose to mask the sentiment and use different colors on occasion.  You can really take a simple design and make it your own.  I made 5 of these in no time and I used a new toy for me...  the Stamparatus.  I'm not a Stampin' Up demonstrator so I can tell you that gizmo is super handy!  LOVE!  

Here's the details for the cards you see!  Thanks as always and have a great day!

Stampin' Up - Buffalo Check Stamp, Farmhouse Christmas Stamp

Stampin' Up - Real Red, Always Artichoke, Gray Granite Card Stocks

Memento Tuxedo Black, Stampin' Up Real Red Ink

Spellbinders - Jolly Holly Die

Our Daily Bread Designs - Circles Die, Stitched Circles Die 

PP434 - Together is a Wonderful Place to Be

You know that feeling when you and your best friend get together after several week or months?  It seems like you never really left off.  They finish your sentences, laugh at your zany jokes and just make you smile!  Togetherness really does make the world go round.  How many civic organizations build their culture around weekly or monthly meetings?  Churches (and the Bible) encourage believers to come together.  Family reunions, block parties and holiday events provide that sense of completeness.  It is just plain fun to be with other like minded people.  We relate on a personal level and being with a special person or group just makes everything seem better!  And this card celebrates just that!

Items you see -

Stampin' Up - Wonderful Floral Framelits Die

Stampin' Up - Wonderful Romance Stamp Set

Stampin' Up - Country Floral Dynamic Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

Stampin' Up - Rectangle Stitched Framelits 

Memento Tuxedo Black Ink 

Stampin' Up - Peek A Boo Peach Card Stock and Ink

Stickles - Crystal

Copics - G21,YG03, YG11, YG61, YR000, YR00, Y04 

I'm playing along with Paper Players PP434

Thanks for looking!

When Life Gives You Lemons

I have taken some much needed time away from crafting to focus on the important things in life like my health and family.  I finally feel like I am enjoying the process again.  :-)  For those who stop by, I would encourage you to follow me on Instagram.  You can search for saintsrule71 to locate me there.  I also would suggest you look me up on Pinterest.  I post almost all of my cards on Pinterest because it is SO MUCH easier!  You can find my cards on my board entitled Saintsrule!.  I will do my best to bring my cards here.  But honestly, I find the whole art of blogging is a time drainer and I simply hashtag the items I use on both Pinterest and Instagram.  So that makes it easier for me and you!  As a result...  I can enjoy the process.  

Here is today's card featuring a Stampin' Up set from the 2015 Sale-A-Bration.  I found mine via Etsy...  I believe they are still around on Ebay and the like...

The lemon is a single image so it was necessary to mask the first stamping before doing the second.  I love the black and white check along with a crisp yellow.  I'm seeing this trend so much in home decor and I have even incorporated a few snippets of this into my home.  Don't you love it when inspiration strikes in an unexpected way?  

Thanks so much and as always have a wonderful day!

Stampin' Up - Daffodil Delight CS, A Happy Thing Stamp, Buffalo Check Stamp, Rectangle Stitched Framelits 

Our Daily Bread Designs - Circle Die, Pierced Circles Die

Dew Drops - Harvest

Memento Tuxedo Black

Copics - Y000, Y13, Y15, YG03, YG63, YG67

Recollections - Black and Yellow Card Stock