Autumn Thanksgiving Cards

Happy Thanksgiving.  I'm here to share some Thanksgiving wishes.  

My cards are adorned with fabulous chipboard designs from Creative Embellishments.  

The two cards presented today feature a few of the unique and fabulous autumn chipboard shapes designed by Creative Embellishments.  So many options in design - such a fun decision to make.  I selected the following chipboard to showcase:

Acorn Clusters

Cornucopia Set 2

I treated the chipboard Acorn Clusters quite simply.  The Acorn Clusters have  been heat embossed by dabbing  Clear Embossing Ink onto the chipboard and then coating with  Stampendous - Frantage Aged Gold Embossing Enamel  or  Fine Antique Gold Embossing Powder .  A quick blast with a heat gun to heat set and you have gorgeous aged acorns and leaves.

The aged gold also looks great with my paper choice, The Story of Fall from Echo Park.    

Top the card with some robust flowers and raffia, and it's all wrapped up.  I love raffia for fall/Autumn pieces.  It feels so earthy and warm to me. 

My second card showcases one of Creative Embellishments coolest Thanksgiving designs - Cornucopia Set 2. And the little veggies/fruits....well they are so darling.  

The cornucopia is a strong symbol of abundance - and at Thanksgiving time, it symbolizes the abundance of goodness, thankfulness and blessings.  

My chipboard has been painted with acrylics and then enhanced with dabbs of Stickles Glitter Glue - Sprinkled Sugar.  

Where to shop? 

Shop for chipboard, wood and flair buttons from Creative Embellishments here.  

Products:

Creative Embellishments - Cornucopia Set 2

Creative Embellishments Acorn Clusters

Stickles Glitter Glue - Sprinkled Sugar

Stampendous - Frantage Aged Gold Embossing Enamel  

Fine Antique Gold Embossing Powder 

Clear Embossing Ink 

Pop-Up Christmas Ornament Swag Card - DIY Instructions

DIY - Unexpected Card using Unexpected Colors for Christmas

I love making cards that have a surprise inside - cards that are not JUST cards, but cards that deliver a smile and a little piece of me to those who open it. 

And Christmas is all about smiles, love and joy.  

So that's exactly what this card is all about.  It features

 some spectacular Spellbinders dies and stamps:

Spellbinders Happy Holiday Ornaments Holiday 2017 by Stephanie Low Stamp & Die Set  

 and

Spellbinders Tallulah Frill Layering Frame- Chantilly Paper Lace Collection by Becca Feeken

Nothing beats a quick video to show the true impact of a pop-up card - the "cuteness factor".   

I used watercolor paper to create the ornaments. I wanted a thick heavy paper and had planned on coloring the dies with watercolor paints.  

When selecting paper for your project, keep in mind the mediums you will use for coloring.  Thin paper may not produce the best results. 

DIY Instructions for making the ornament swag

Step 1.  Create your ornaments by stamping, die cutting, then coloring your piece.  I find the process easier if I stamp first, then die cut.  

Step 2.  Make a small slit on each side of the ornament to help in the stringing process.  

Step 3.  Time to string the ornaments together.  I used gold jewelry thread and wrapped the thread around the top of each ornament.  A bit of tape also helps secure the tape and hold in place for the finishing step.  

Step 4.  Finishing touches - cut 3 dies from cardstock.  Glue the die to the backside of the ornaments.   This helps to secure the threads and cover up the messy backs. 

I glued the cardstock die cut off center a bit leaving a beveled edge look (notice the white edges peeking out from the pink cardstock.)

When you flip the swag over, it adds a nice accent of color.  

Step 5.  Time to glue the swag to the card.  I used the mini tree border stamp and die from the Spellbinders Happy Holiday Ornaments Holiday 2017 by Stephanie Low Stamp & Die Set   to help anchor the swag and hold the strings in place.  

Besides being adorable, they are totally functional in hiding the string.   

Make sure you allow enough thread so that when the card is opened it can hang nicely without being pulled too tight.   I used about 18 inches of jewelry thread for this swag. 

Front of the Card
I am going to transition to the front of the card. 
I backed the ornament with foam tape to add dimension.  From there, I was able to build my embellishment cluster under and around the ornament using more gold jewelry thread, 
floral berries, sequins, AND some Spellbinders leaf dies. 

The main embellishments in my cluster are diecut leaf vines from Spellbinders,  Spellbinders Shapeabilities Layered Leaf Vines - Timeless Heart Collection by Marissa Job .   

Spellbinders Shapeabilities Layered Leaf Vines - Timeless Heart Collection by Marissa Job 

Some of the leaves were cut from watercolor paper and some from green cardstock.  Those leaves from watercolor paper have a bit of accenting added to the tips of the leaves using distress inks (Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Festive Berries and  Crushed Olive  applied with  Finger Tip Sponge Daubers

Thanks for stopping here.  I value your time.  

You can shop for all your Spellbinders dies here.   They have amazing sales and frequently have BOGO (buy one -get one) sales too!  

Products Used:
Shapeabilities Tallulah Frill Layering Frame - Chantilly Paper Lace Collection by Becca Feeken -S5-328
Spellbinders Happy Holiday Ornaments Holiday 2017 by Stephanie Low Stamp & Die Set  SDS-090
Spellbinders Shapeabilities Layered Leaf Vines - Timeless Heart Collection by Marissa Job -S4-795
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Festive Berries
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink - Crushed Olive
Sponge Daubers - Finger Tip

Merry Christmas Wood House Home Decor- with Simple Stories and Blitsy

Create some holiday home decor 

I created some simple festive and bright home decor for the walls to celebrate the joys of the season.  Blitsy and Simple Stories Clause & Co collection helped too ( of course). 

I'm up on the Blitsy Blog today showing all the details and step by step instructions on how I assembled this wood house.  

Get Started Shopping at Blitsy today right here

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