Christmas Collage

Today's post is one I stamped just for fun!!  Today is the first day in a VERY long time that I've been able to just create for the sake of creating and not with a particular class or event in mind.  This card isn't one I would do in a class...a wee bit too fussy for that...but I sure do like it! 

Vintage-y Christmas Card using Christmas Collage background stamp, Winter Post and sentiment from Bells and Boughs sets.

Inside of view using sentiment from Many Merry Messages and image from Bells and Boughs.

So, whaddya think of the colour scheme?  Not exactly your traditional red and green Christmas card...but I have to say I really like it!  I was inspired by a card by Linda Creech that I saw on our demonstrator forum.  Linda's card also used soft colours and pewter embossing powder...such a great combination!  The colours I used were blushing bride, baja breeze, crumb cake and sahara sand (card base).  The background image was embossed using the pewter embossing powder (sure hope THAT stuff carries over when this mini is done!), as was the deer image from the Winter Post set.  The rest of the images on the inside and the sentiment on the front were stamped in crumb cake.  I finished it off with yet another package-tied ribbon treatment (I seem to be on a roll with that lately!) using very vanilla seam binding ribbon and an antique brad.  I am really pleased with the way this turned out...who would have thought such non-traditional colours would combine to create such a beautiful holiday card?!?

Too Late...

...that's me!  I created today's card for the monochromatic challenge over at Handstamped Sentiments but was a couple of hours too late to enter!  That'll teach me to read the fine print next time!  Ah well, I still like this card and thought you might like to see it too!  It a holiday card without a  stitch of red or green!  See what you think...

 

Monochromatic holiday card using the Winter Post stamp set and Mocha Morning DSP.

Inside of card with sentiment from the Christmas Lodge set from the Holiday Mini.

So, not your typical holiday colour scheme but I actually like this look.  I used several different shades of brown:  crumb cake, soft suede and early espresso as well as very vanilla for my neutral.  I drew my colour palette from the Mocha Morning DSP...loving that stuff more everytime I use it!  The stamped images are all from the Winter Post set in the main catalogue with the exception of the music notes.  Those are courtesy of the wheel of the same name.  This card features lots of sponging and shading with the various shades of brown for depth and texture as well as some watercolouring of the skaters using the same ink colours and my aquapainter.  The antique brad and crumb cake seam binding ribbon are the perfect finishing touch for this vintage-looking Christmas card.   Now if only I'd gotten it in in time for the challenge! 
Speaking of challenges, I just received word that my card was an Artist's Pick over at Pals Paper Arts this week.  Its kind of ironic that a challenge I found really difficult earned me this honour!  I guess the difficulty of it forced me to step it up a notch!  Thanks so much to the ladies for Pals Paper Arts for choosing my card...I am humbled!