Hi everyone! I just thought I'd pop in and brighten up Monday a little with a few Christmas cards I made over the weekend.
Anyone that follows me knows that I don't use patterned paper very often in my cardmaking. I generally stick with creating my own hand stamped and colored patterns as I need them. It's not that I don't love a good patterned paper stack. I actually have a beautiful collection of them that I hoard in my craft room and simply can't bring myself to take the scissors to. I know, I know.....it's just paper. But I admit, once I start cutting, I'm committing myself to using it and then I start to sweat. Knowing how to mix patterns and accessorize them can be challenging and a little intimidating.
Well, this weekend I committed myself and challenged myself to using up as much patterned paper as I could from Catherine Pooler's new Christmas paper stack:
For my first card I used the Christmas tree pattern as a backdrop. What I like about this pattern is that it's all in shades of green. That makes accessorizing on top of it much easier than if it were full of different colors. I used a sharp, contrasting Samba red for the sentiment, border and embellishment to give this card front a unified look. All of these things work together to balance out that busy pattern. Also, a crisp white backdrop helped to keep this thin diecut sentiment from looking lost against the patterned paper.
Stamps: Holiday Charms, Yay Stripes (Catherine Pooler Designs). Ink: Samba, Midnight (Catheirne Pooler Designs), Copic markers. Paper: Love, Doves & Poinsettias, Premium White Cardstock (Catherine Pooler Designs). Accessories: Holiday Charms dies, Silver Cord (Catherine Pooler Designs), Merry Christmas Layered Word Dies (Stamp of Approval Home for the Holidays Collection/CPD), star sequins, dimensional tape.
For my next card I pulled out the large circle patterned paper. This pattern contains a couple different shades of green and two different shades of red. I cut this pattern panel down to allow for a crisp, white, diecut border. Even with the layers of white and vellum Nested Label dies in the center, there is still plenty of pattern showing through. Adding the labels also creates a nice focal point for the sentiment and landing point for the embellishments. I chose the snowman from the Holiday Charms stamp set because he seemed to coordinate well with the circle theme of the paper.
Stamps: Holiday Charms, Yay! Stripes (Catherine Pooler Designs), Festive Trimmings (Stamp of Approval Home for the Holidays Collection/CPD). Ink: Samba, Midnight (Catherine Pooler Designs), Copic Markers. Paper: Love, Doves & Poinsettias, Premium White Cardstock (Catherine Pooler Designs), vellum cardstock (My Favorite Things). Accessories: Nested Label Dies, Postage Stamp Dies (Catherine Pooler Designs), silver thread, dimensional tape.
I completely covered my next card with patterns. Pairing this beautiful green holly patterned paper with some stamped stripe borders created a festive backdrop. The red berries in this paper coordinates beautifully with Catherine Pooler's new Samba ink. The sentiment becomes the focal point once again on a bright white tag.
Stamps: Holiday Charms, Yay! Stripes (Catherine Pooler Designs), Holiday Mix (Stamp of Approval Home for the Holidays Collection/CPD). Ink: Samba, Midnight (Catherine Pooler Designs), Copic markers. Paper: Love, Doves & Poinsettias, Premium White Cardstock (Catherine Pooler Designs). Accessories: Nested Label Dies, Gold Cord (Catherine Pooler Designs), gold sequins, dimensional tape.
For my final card today, I cut the actual Nested Labels die out of patterned paper and added it to a stamped Woodgrain Background. The dark patterned paper pops off of the lighter background for a dramatic look. A small white circle in the center holds the embossed and diecut sentiment without taking the focus away from that beautiful poinsettia paper.
Stamps: Woodgrain Background, Yay!Stripes (Catherine Pooler Designs), Holiday Mix (Stamp of Approval Home for the Holidays Collection). Ink: Twilight, Samba (Catherine Pooler Designs), clear emboss (Versamark). Paper: Love, Doves & Poinsettias, Premium White Cardstock (Catherine Pooler Designs). Accessories: Nested Label dies, Circles dies, Gold Cord (Catherine Pooler Designs), Joy Wreath dies (Stamp of Approval Winterhaven Collection/CPD), gold embossing powder (WOW!), gold sequins, dimensional tape.
All of the paper, ink, stamps and dies that I used today can be found in Catherine Pooler Design's online store (as listed under each photo). Some of the items are from the
that is still available for a limited time.
Thanks so much for stopping by. I hope I have encouraged you all to give some love to your patterned paper. It can really be an asset to your cardmaking and the results can be beautiful!
Have a great day!
These are so pretty!
ReplyDeleteAwesome cards
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