Christmas candle

Time to play along at the cheerfulsketcheschallenge again. The current sketch shows a kind of multi-layer card, which is not my style normally, but it's a really nice sketch this time and this is what I made with it:

Last time I visited the crafting store, I just had to have those beige/light green papers with the writing and the snowflakes that you see in the background. It's probably not that visible in the photo, but they do shimmer a little bit.

I combined them with a beige embossed paper and some dark green paper in the background for the border. For the centerpiece, I've printed a motif with candle and holly and coloured it with coloured pencils. In the end I added beads, roses and a sentiment saying "Happy holidays".

Unfortunately, while making the card I didn't have the sketch by my side all the time. Turns out I glued the background paper to the card too early, only to realize that now I can't fix the lace (which would be the horizontal bar) properly. That must have distracted me in a way that made me alter the original sketch a little bit, because I added the horizontal bar in the very background of the card. Not enough, it's almost not visible because the background paper almost shines through it. Oh my...

After all, it turns out to be a pretty Christmas card, and in the end that's all that counts. The mix of green and yellow is probably not really typical for Christmas (at least not to me), but I thought these colours would fit best to the light green design papers. Turns out I like this unusual combination. How about you?

callenges:

- cheerfulsketcheschallenge
- papertakeweekly: anything goes
- cardz4guyz: favourite Christmas colour combo (beige/green)
- basteltantenchallengeblog: anything goes
- thepinkelephantchallenge: photo inspiration
- fussyandfancychallenge: happy holidays
- fan-tastictuesday: anything goes + embossing
- ladybugcrafts: winter and/or Christmas
- allwayssomethingcreative: Christmas
- jellyparkchallenges: ribbons/bows
- Meljen's design: holiday
- C.R.A.F.T. challenge: Christmas
- crafts4eternity: winter
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge: bright colours
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2: anything goes as long as it's Christmas
- suzysmarty1: anything goes + holly
- acreativeromance: anything goes
- clear it out: our favourites from 2014

True blue

A quick last-minute entry for the sketchsaturday.
A few days ago I was searching through my papers looking for a match in one of the Christmas cards, and suddenly this combination of blue designer paper with dark blue paper caught my eyes. I knew I want to use them as soon as possible, but for days, I couldn't figure out how. The paper with blue roses is so dominant that I found it hard to find a match. Somehow, it even seems that it doesn't need a match as it makes a nice simple card on its own. But why keep it smple if you have the chance to complicate it?

I decided to follow sketchsaturday's sketch #290, so I needed an image that would fit the roses. In the end, I made a small pickpoint ornament and decorated it with a few pearls.

Next, the sketch required a horizntal bar and I can only say, that really did cause me some headache. I tried sveral different ribbons, but none seemed to fit enough to stay. Punched borders - nah. Pearls - results in too many pearls. I needed something rather small as there is supposed to be a sentiment, too. Finally, I punched little butterflies and alligned them to a line. They were all white originally, but then I thought I'd make a bit more colourful, so I ended up scratching down every second butterfly and replacing it with a blue one.

Just a few silver pearls and I was done. Literally :)

I'll let it be as it is now, but still I'm not completely happy with the card. Is it too blue? Do the embellishments fit at all? Or maybe it's just me that is complicating again?

challenges:

- sketchsaturday: sketch #290
- creativecardcrew: birthday with sentiment
- dreamvalleychallenges: true blue
- robynsfetishchallengeblog: anything goes
- basteltantenchallengeblog: anything goes
- papertakeweekly: anything goes

Little bird

A quick card featuring a little bird in a winter scenery. The little fella is doing exactly what I do these days: trying to keep warm :)
The sketck is from sweetsketchwednesday, which I interpreted with snowflake and swirl paper and a few punched snowflakes with pearls. The bird is coloured with coloured pencils.
However, it was only after the card was finished that I saw the added twist, saying "buttons and/or bows". And I don't think it's written in red letters by coincidence. Oh well...
Anyway, this is the task

And this is what I've done

challenges:
- sweetsketchwednesday2
- allwayssomethingcreative: Christmas
- fussyandfancychallenge: happy holidays
- ladybugcrafts: winter and/or Christmas
- creativecuttingchallenge: Christmas cards
- suzysmarty1: something with "s" (snowflakes)

- 4craftychicks: die cuts (snowflakes)

- glitternsparklechallengeblog: use some snow
- justinspirationalchallenges: snowflakes
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2: anything goes as long as it's Christmas

Snowflake

Another snowflake, stitched with two shades of blue shimmering yarn and decorated with silver and blue pearls. In the background, I added blue shimmering paper, and as it seemed a little too dark to me (or was it just that the white paper was a little too small?), I added a silver sticker with snowflakes.

The two shades of blue are probably not visible on the photo: the swirls are light blue, the rhomboids are little bit darker.

challenges:

- fadengrafik-challenge: snowflakes
- trimmiescraftchallenge: Christmas present
- fussyandfancychallenge: happy holidays
- craftycatz: anything goes
- everybodyartchallenge: snowflake
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2: anything goes as long as it's Christmas
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge: getting ready for Christmas

Milky way

A while ago, I browsed through my colouring images and almost melted when I found this cutie. Isn't this a lovely little mouse? :) I'm not sure whether it's climbing to the moon or parachuting, but it was way too cute to ignore it.
I decided to use in on one of my future projects, and even before I thought about the details, I remembered this starry cardboard I bought ages ago. I think it was part of some paper package, I liked it but I never really knew how to use it. On the one hand, it's pretty dark to me, and on the other, those stars didn't seem to fit anywhere. Until I figured out they do fit the mouse :)

For the card, I used the sketch from tuesdaymorningsketches. The image is coloured with coloured pencils. To match the starry background I added golden glitter paper, a blue and golden ribbon, and a sentiment that says "Happy holidays". 

In the end, I used a couple of stars: a punched golden star and some star-shaped pearls. These were my sisters' actually, she must have used them back in primary school for her crafting. When she had no use for it she gave them to me. That was ages ago, but I somehow keep stuff like this, thinking I *might* need it some day. In the end, I forget about some of my treasures only to re-discover them later, while others are always in the back of my mind, waiting for their moment to come.

How about you, do you keep things for "maybe later"? Everything? Some of them? Dou you keep things for years or do you clean up your reserves every now and then? Did it ever happen to you that after sorting things out, within a couple of weeks you were working on a project, thinking "If only I kept these a little longer"?

challenges:

- tuesdaymorningsketches
- cutecardthursday: stars
- come and get it challenge: winter
- crafts4eternity: furry friends
- fairytale-challengeblog: Christmas with animals
- acreativeromance: something old (stars)
- chocolatecoffeecards: favourite holiday (Christmas)
- thatcraftplace: anything goes
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge: getting ready for Christmas
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2: anything goes as long as it's Christmas
- craftyhazelnutspatternedpaper: patterned paper
- ooh-la-lacreationschallenges: Christmas
- pennyschallenges: anything goes
- fabnfunkychallenges: anything with die cuts (star)
- justinspirationalchallenges: winter
- craftysentiments: use die cuts (star)
- wordartwednesday: anything goes
- milkcoffeechallenge: lots of embellishments
- basteltantenchallengeblog: bling bling

Let it snow

Is it this time of year already? The time of frosty mornings, gloves and caps?
Today was the first time I took out my winter jacket and it felt just right. As I'm usually cold pretty quickly, I've been wearing gloves for quite a while now, and it seems to me that the "real" winter is on the way. Sooner or later, that means snow. Loads of it, please!
Even though I don't love cold temperatures, I love snow. Snow adds something special to the winter atmosphere. Of course, I'm talking about the white fluffy version of it, not the brown mud in the streets.
Every year, the first snow is something special, and it always makes me smile to wake up and find out that nature has changed overnight. Growing up in Austria, I might even say that if something as essential as snow is missing for Christmas, it doesn't feel like "real" Christmas.
And still, I can't tell what makes it all so special. Is it the fact that - unlike rain - snow falls silently and slowly? Is it this wonderful snowy sound under your shoes? This special warm glow, even when it's foggy outside? That everything seems to be more quiet that usual?
No matter what it is, I can't wait to go home for Christmas, spend some time with my family and cuddle by the fireplace. No shopping, no gifts, no stress.

I finished another pickpoint card today. I sewed the same ornament that I used for the autumn pumpkin-soup-card, only with blue yarn this time.

I must say it really surprised me how the colour alone makes it look like a totally different pattern: what looked like a flower in orange, now looks like a snowflake.

I decorated it with pearls, and used a blue cardboard with snowflakes for the background. Actually, it might seem familiar to you as I used the same cardboard for my Christmas wreath. But that one was red, you might say. Well, it's red on one side and blue on the other ;) I really like the idea of a 2-in-1 paper that you can use on either side, depending on your needs. 

challenges:
- 4craftychicks: makeit sparkle
- pennyschallenges: anything goes
- craftycatz: winter theme
- delicious doodles: traditional Christmas (nothing is as traditional as Christmas with loads of snow)
- fadengrafik-challenge: snowflakes
- thepinkelephant: anything goes
- come and get it: winter
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge: getting ready for Christmas
- thatcraftplace: anything goes
- craftyhazelnutspatternedpaper: patterned paper
- ooh-la-la-creationschallenges: Christmas
- craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2: anything goes as long as it's Christmas

Chocolate fairy

Today, I'm going to introduce a very special lady: the Chocolate fairy.

I love this fairy image, but I haven't used it recently. I was however pleasantly surprised when I found that my sister still keeps a birthday card I made with this fairy in green years ago.
Yesterday, I  decided to use it again. For the arrangement, I took the sketch from sketchsaturday. The colours just happened. Ok, they are probably a *little* inspired by chocolate. And even though one might think brown is a boring colour for a card, there are many different shades of brown that make it look quite interesting. And the little bit of orange and yellow fits perfectly for making it a bit brighter alltogether. In the end, I added a little fairy dust - little blue dots to make the background a little bit more vivid.

The very last piece however, was the rose that is actually rather the result of my silliness. When I clean the remains of sharpening my coloured pencils, I use the vacuum cleaner on the floor, and a paintbrush on my papers. This time I thought I'd save a little time using the vacuum cleaner on m desk, too. Needless to say, it didn't work as planned. Instead of removing the coloured pencils stuff only, it tried to eat my newly painted fairy, leaving an ugly crinkle that I had to cover up.

After the initial shock, anger and a few bad words, I figured a rose would do. It might not fit perfctly, but it's better than colouring the image once again ;)

Guess I was lucky that the cronkle was in a peripheral part, but I sure learned my lesson: don't even think vacuum cleaner would work on paper. Ever. But of course I knew that. I knew that all the way, I just don't know why I tried it anyway.
Another thing I realized: evn though I always considered brown to be a colour for masculine cards, I now see that it can be a great for girlie ones, too.

challenges:

- abc-challenge: X for Xtra special
- 4craftychicks: fairies
- meljen's design: hot chocolate
- robynsfetishchallengeblog: things with wings
- craftysentiments: 2 or more papers
- sketchsaturday
- papertakeweekly: soooo girly
- dreamvalleychallenges: anything goes
- milkcoffeechallenge: hand color image