An Ornamental Christmas and a PP123 Sketch Challenge

I had a real “stress out” moment yesterday – not from my overactive schedule for the past few weeks and not from having so many things still left to do. I realized yesterday afternoon that we only have a month before Christmas. Why would that stress me out? Because I have so many gifts to buy? No. Because I have to make travel plans for the holidays? Not really. I got all stressed out because I only have a month to use up a boatload of Designer Series Paper. I’d better get busy.

Today’s card is inspired by Jaydee’s sketch at the Paper Players. Here’s my card:

And, here’s Jaydee’s sketch:

Tips, Tricks and Reminders:

There are two “stars” on this card: the beautiful, striped Designer Series Paper in the background and the paper-pierced ornament in the foreground. Here are some pointers for how I achieved these looks:

• Striped DSP. If I had used a solid piece of DSP as the background of this card, the stripes would have angled in the same direction. I wanted your eye to be drawn to the ornament and sentiment in the center of the card, so I cut two pieces of DSP (one along the horizontal side of the paper and another along the vertical side of the paper) so that the lines would create a chevron effect in the background.
• Hang the Ornament.  I originally completed this card without the string but added it to really ground the image (it’s odd to ground the image by hanging it, right?).  But where did I get that string?  I have a pack of Cherry Cobbler Baker’s Twine, which comes with a twist of white and Cherry Cobbler strings.  I didn’t want to add white to this vanilla-based card, so I pulled the strings apart, leaving only the Cherry Cobbler string.  Easy!
• Paper-pierced Ornament. I love my paper-piercing packs, but I don’t use them enough. Please remind me to use them more. Thanks. Here’s a quick step-by-step tutorial, followed by a fun tip:
• • Place the paper-piercing template over a piece of card stock. Carefully punch the piercing tool into each of the template holes – this isn’t a test of strength – you only want to puncture the paper:
  • If there’s a matching framelit, you can then run the image through the Big Shot to crop the image
  • Here’s the finished image
  • It’s difficult to see here, but here’s the flip side of the pierced paper. I quite like the texture of this side of the paper, so I decided to use it in this project. Adds a little texture.

If you don’t have these paper-piercing packs already, then what are you waiting for? After you buy them from my online store (open 24 hours a day), check out the other entries in the PP123 Challenge.

Stamp sets: More Merry Messages Inks: Cherry Cobbler Papers: Cherry Cobbler, Basic Gray, Old Olive, Merry Moments Simply Scrappin’ Kit Accessories: Paper-Piercing Tool, Stampin’ Pierce Mat, Festive Paper-Piercing Pack

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Brian

Update on the One-for-One Swaps. The swaps were delivered to the post office this afternoon. Be on the lookout! I’ll start posting these beauties later this week so that they can all be shared with one another. I know you’ll love them.

Gift certificates. Don’t forget to subtly request Stampin’ Up! gift certificates for Christmas – or buy them for your crafty friends (or yourself). These are redeemable only by me, and I’ve included a little bonus cash. Click here for more information.