A Heavy Hitter with Some Glitter

Rules were meant to be broken, right? Well, something overcame me yesterday as I sat down to make a “clean and simple” card for Mary Fish’s Stampin’ Pretty Pals online challenge (she hosted a gallery of cards on our Stampin’ Pretty Pals private chat group). Brace yourself because you are not going to believe what I have to tell you. You are going to argue with me about whether my design fits inside the rules of the challenge. Then I’m going to get really upset and might whimper a little bit, shedding a few tears. Then you are going to be embarrassed because you made me cry, but the embarrassment will soon lead to resentment (and then anger) because you think I’m playing with your emotions (I’m not). Then we are going to hug. Why do we always get so emotional with each other when we talk about stamping?

OK, so Mary challenged us this weekend to create a Clean and Simple card to showcase in our private chat group. Here’s my card: Remembering Christmas, Festive Flurry Framelits, Stampin' Up!, Brian King

Tips, Tricks and Reminders:

  • Clean and Simple? Here’s the bitter irony of this card: it’s as CAS as a card could be, but even I would argue that it is not properly classified as “clean” if it has glitter or uses glimmer paper. If you have read my blog for a while, then you know I am no fan of this stuff and fear that I might have to torch the Fungeon (that’s my stamping basement) each time it comes out of quarantine. If you missed my tirade on glitter, check it out here. Regardless, I like how the card turned out. Would I mail it to my worst enemy? I’m not that mean!
  • Color. Although I think of myself as an expert on the contents of the Annual Catalog, I was proven a non-expert while at Convention. As I casually mentioned to Nicole Watt that I have a pack of unopened Champagne Glimmer Paper in my airtight glitter and glimmer paper chamber and was sad that I didn’t use it before it retired, she informed me that it is current and included in the book. I guess I have been skimming over that section of the page that has glimmer paper on it. Anyway, I love the Champagne color, and it pairs beautifully with Baked Brown Sugar, no? I decided to keep the card in Baked Brown Sugar, silver and white tones. This color scheme really appeals to me (I’m a sucker for non-traditional colors at Christmas time), and I think it would stand out on anyone’s mantel.
  • Festive Flurry Dies. While these framelit dies coordinate with a stamp set, I simply used them to crop out the snowflakes here. Using a medium and small snowflake framelit, I cropped the outside shape and inside shape in the Champagne Glimmer Paper. I then cropped a piece of Silver Glimmer paper with the small snowflake. That allowed me to nestle the small snowflake inside the large one – kinda’ like a puzzle. I popped those up with Stampin’ Dimensionals and was done!

Stamp Sets: Remembering Christmas Inks: Baked Brown Sugar Papers: Baked Brown Sugar, Whisper White, Silver Glimmer Paper, Champagne Glimmer Paper Accessories: Festive Flurry Framelits, Stampin’ Dimensionals

It’s generally difficult to capture the shine of glimmer paper or rhinestones in a picture, but they really shown well here – still not as vibrant as in person, but this gives you are really good idea of how it looks.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Brian

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42 Comments

  1. I’m not going to argue with you Brian. I think it fits the challenge. It is clean and simple! Job done! I can’t believe you have used glitter though. Although the glimmer paper gives you the glittery touch without the sparkle of the glitter throughout your fungeon, on your cat, on your face, upstairs, in your car, at work. See it does spread!!!

    Love the card and Job well done 🙂

  2. Very pretty and very Christmas in design . Christmas is the time for glitter. I really like the Champagne Glitter paper . It isn`t the gaudy glitter look but, quite elegant . What a giant step for you to use it !! ???? Did you hit your head recently ?

  3. Stunning and I love SU’s glitter paper….it is stunning! NICE JOB!

  4. Stunning card Brian! I think it is still clean & simple despite the glimmer since your snowflakes are so neat and bold. Great job! I’m a big fan of yours and didn’t realise until your recent posts that you haven’t been a demo for that long. Congratulations on all that you have achieved so far!! 🙂

  5. Looks great Brian. I think it would look spectacular on anyone’s mantel!

  6. I just Love this layout! The sentiment, the concept. It’s taken 3.5 seconds however to enjoy the Baked Brown Sugar & Champagne colors..my fav would have been Pool Party But! You’ve won me over. Since there’s no Pool Party Glimmer Paper (Hello SU!) I see your reasoning behind the color scheme. I’m on board now and I believe I’ll Pin it! Beautiful!!

  7. Brian, it is glimmer PAPER, so it really doesn’t count as glitter. It’s just another paper. (As if glimmer paper were “…just another paper.”) So, I think it still qualifies as CAS! Just sayin’.
    GREAT card.

  8. Brian I love your CAS holiday card, and the glimmer paper works so well with Baked Brown Sugar. Haha I didn’t know you were a glitter phobe like me! I checked out the link to your other post and it made me laugh!

    • My entire room is filled with glitter this morning, Sandy. I should have never “gone there”. A lint roller comes in handy for getting the glitter pieces off my big shot and framelits and table and work space – but it does nothing for the floor and ceiling and walls and light fixtures and cabinets (all covered with glitter). Maybe my phobia causes me to exaggerate a bit, but…

  9. Simply beautiful, Brian!

  10. I also think it’s beautiful. Never would have thought of these colors for Christmas, but I really like them.

  11. not a glitter person either, but this is elegant…been through the Holiday caty several times and cannot find the sentiment help!!!

    • Thank you, Patti. The sentiment is a part of Remembering Christmas (aka the deer head stamp on page 28 of the Holiday Catalog). 🙂

  12. I’m stunned! I don’t know what to say! Brian with glittery bling (not glitter, but glittery bling). He must have contracted something weird at convention! Don’t worry Brian – take two aspirin, take a nap and you’ll wake up the anti-glitter Brian we all know and love.

  13. Glad you are working with some GLITTER again today Brian, even if it’s not the kind that comes in little containers and can go everywhere if you are not careful. I went to check out that post where you let us know for the first time about your total aversion for GLITTER and I was laughing just picturing you, with one of those small plastic containers that GLITTER comes in, tripping over Bandit and, like in slow motion, the little, shinny particles of this stuff are flying all over the place, covering you, the cat, the furniture, the floor, etc. and you are desperately trying to dust it off of you and poor Bandit looking very sparkly, watching you run out of your house, screaming and…..ok, enough of this torture, even if it’s imaginary, please erase this disturbing images from your mind, ok? (LOL!! I had to write this, you opened the door).
    This is a very pretty card, totally CAS, thanks for sharing it. This little die cuts can be really beautiful Christmas Ornaments for your Tree!!

  14. This is another stunner! I LOVE the nestle, puzzle, whatever you call it, technique — that just knocked my socks off!! VERY clean and simple in my book and so gorgeous! Now I gotta go find my socks…

  15. Clean, simple, and gorgeous! What an elegant card, Brian. Glitter makes the world sparklier!!

  16. I like your card, glitter and all. 🙂 A friend once referred to glitter as the “herpes” of the craft world. I totally agree. It just won’t go away. Is this a new technique you have come up with? The Puzzle technique.

  17. Frankly, I still cannot believe it! I would like to think that I can pick out a Brian King card in a crowd of cards, but I NEVER would have guessed this beauty was a BK creation. Absolutely beautiful! Thank you for always inspring and surprising us!

  18. OMG it is stunning. I don’t like working with glitter either. My Christmas stocking punch still carries remnants of the red glitter paper from two years ago…… I just can’t get it clean. BUT love your card. The simple design and two colors are absolutely stunning – I said it twice. I’m sure many of us would be your “worst enemy” and be happy to get such a card in the mail!

  19. I’m with you Brian, I absolutely hate glitter! It’s the herpes of crafting! LOL! But I do like our Glimmer Paper and the mess is minimal! I love the card, so sparkly and regal! Awesome job! 🙂

  20. But I love glitter!!! I’m totally going to have to get some glittery paper! It looks fantastic! You can send that to me for Christmas and I’ll display it proudly! And we’d never be enemies!

    And it’s totally CAS

    Hugs!
    Taylor

  21. I think your card is great, and VERY CAS. Very creative, too – what a great idea for the framelits. By the way, check your mirror, I bet you have a piece of glitter somewhere on your face! 😉

  22. Brian- you absolutely cracked me up this morning! I couldn’t stop laughing. I have a love-hate relationship with glitter-at times it can be messy and overpowering- other times it adds just the right pop! Your card is gorgeous, love the way the snowflakes fit together and the colors are beautiful. Clean and simple but elegant- it totally works!

  23. I see your Evil Twin took over the Fungeon…that is a lot of glimmer paper! And do you really have enemies? I cannot believe that. Mail that person this card and that will all change. Very elegant card.

  24. Wow Brian, Yes baked brown sugar is a new favorite of mine NOW, I was afraid of it before today. Thanks. be well -Vanessa

  25. Absolutely *LOVE* your design, Brian! While it could be said that it’s simple, it is stunning and elegant. The champagne color really picks up the gold tone in the baked brown sugar card stock. Standing on its own, I would never have thought to pair the baked brown sugar with the champagne glimmer paper. Thanks for that tip! You really have an eye for color coordination. The nestled small silver glimmer snowflake was a touch of genius! Beautiful . . . just beautiful. I *so* enjoy your creativity.

  26. Very proud of you Brian!!! Gorgeous card….need those framelits and stamps…and lots more…lol! TFS!

  27. See, you can rock glitter! Your card is beautiful.

  28. You always get the proportion and sentiment font to blend well and look like it was planned that way. haha

  29. Brian, first off your card is gorgeous. I just love the champagne glitter paper and hope to use it with the Brown Sugar paper soon. Second, I’ve been unable to open your 5th day of Swaps for some reason. I just get a blank screen or a note saying that the site isn’t up. Has anyone else had this problem? I’d really like to see the 5th set of swaps. My cards were on earlier, but I’d like to see the rest if possible. Thanks a Bunch.

    • I made an error on the date (it would have been buried in June posts), and I noticed it right after posting the 5th day of swaps, so the link from email doesn’t work. If you click on “previous” in the top, right corner of today’s post, you will arrive at the 5th day of swaps.

      Sorry for any confusion this caused.

  30. Oh No! You made me want the Snowflake framelits!

  31. Please don’t make me buy the deer head set…. But I sure love the sentiment.

  32. Oh my goodness! This is a really Beautiful card and I will totally agree with you that is definitely qualifies for CAS! 😉 Since I am a new follower, I had no idea about the “glitter issue” so I went and checked out your previous post…Thanks for making me spit my drink out from laughter! Now I have to clean coffee from my keyboard!!!! I really needed it!
    I LOVE glitter and think that all those lose shiny particles really accentuate my “sparkling personality!” I LOVE it when someone points it out to me….”UGH mam, did you know you have glitter on your face?” “Oh no dear, it’s just my Sparking Personality shining though!” with a wink and a huge smile!
    I do however, share you HATRED for sand! Give me a chlorinated swimming pool over a beach any day! UGH…I can’t stand it! I can’t even stand for my kids to play in a sandbox! Oh the humanity!
    I have 3 daughters…so I was destined for sparkly glitter all over. Did you know that girls clothes, shoes, belts, hair bows, backpacks, lip gloss, nail polish, eye shadow, EVERYTHING has glitter on it….Cheap, chunky, easy to rub off glitter? YES they do! My oldest daughter is a drummer in the HS Marching Band and she even has Glittery DRUM STICKS! WHO KNEW??? (The bright side is that ALL the boys that she marches with aren’t as likely to steal her drum sticks.
    My poor husband and my dogs too…they have sparkling personalities as well! 😉
    Thanks Brian,
    Valerie

  33. Laurie Burns Gachewicz

    Once you go glitter, you never go back!! You have crossed over & I love it!!! You are a survivor, so march forth and conquer more in the world of glitter, one card at a time!! 😉 I agree with it all, & especially the color combo… I never would have thought to pair these, but now I will!!! TFS Brian!!!!

  34. Really very beautifully done, Brian! TFS, my friend! BTW, did I order your new swatch books? I don’t remember!

  35. I’ll be your 2nd worst enemy if you mail that card to me…..I love it!!!!

  36. So, Brian, my theory about “Glitter results in LITTER, but Glimmer paper doesn’t!” is a fallacy?
    Or is your tolerance for the shiny stuff just SO LOW 😉

  37. Pingback: A Few of My Favorite Things…and Why I Think You Should Like Them Too | stampwithbrian.com

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