Christmas Cards to Inspire :)

Hello again dear friends!

This week I've got some super cute (if I may say so myself! *teehee*) Christmas cards for you!

These all took me only a few minutes each to make with a few simple techniques that can create a lovely effect.

Each day this week I'll be sharing with you some ways to use products like Distress Inks and stamps --that you might not have thought to try.

The first two (today's and tomorrow's cards) I used water coloring techniques but Distress Inks instead of Watercolour Paint.  The difference between painting on watercolor paper versus 'normal' paper is pretty surprising.  Watercolor paper has so much more texture and can allow much darker colors to be 'reached' (because you can put more ink/paint down due to the absorbent nature of the paper.)

Using water with distress inks is an excellent way to achieve a great look with your favourite Distress Ink colors.  Because Distress Inks are alcohol based, they don't 'lose' their color (or intensity) when mixed with water. 

Onto the card: today's card features my favorite little reindeer:

 This card is SO simple to make it's almost criminal :) Perfect for making multiples.

Here's what I did:

Using Black Stayz On ink, I stamped the Hero Arts Small Fancy Reindeer.

Next I 'stamped' some Frayed Burlap Distress Ink on my Ranger Craft Mat and spritzed with water using my Ranger Mini-Mister.

Taking a fine 'tipped' paint brush, I dipped the brush into the ink (swirled it around to make sure it blended with the water on the mat) and began painting my Reindeer image.

No special technique for the painting is required. 

Repeated steps 2 and 3 with Fired Brick Distress ink to color his nose and scarf --choose whichever ink colors appeal to you. (REMEMBER TO WASH YOUR BRUSH OUT BETWEEN COLORS!)

Using my 3" scalloped circle punch, I cut out the painted image. (The Scalloped Circle Nestabilities Die would work just as well)

I gently inked the edges with Antique Linen Distress Ink and a Ranger Inkssentials Blending Tool.

I put a TINY dab of Glossy Accents on his eyes and Ranger Diamond Stickles on his nose for extra sparkle and interest :) 

(I nearly painted his hooves, but then remembered Rudolf is a boy *wink*--my next Reindeer project will have to be a girl :) Pink or Red Hooves would be too cute! Teehee)
Using a 3 1/4" circle punch (Martha Stewart Circle cutter or Nestabilities Die would work perfectly too), cut out red cardstock.

Adhere the reindeer scalloped circle die-cut to the red circular die cut cardstock, using dimensional adhesive.

Take white cardstock, cut to size (mine is 4 1/8" wide x 4 1/8" high) round the corners with a Corner Chomper and stamp the "Merry Christmas" sentiment from 'Hero Arts Wishes Come True' Clear stamp set in red (I used Worn Lipstick as it worked better with my red cardstock and didn't blend in too much with the scarf-which I wanted to be the focus) and then again in Forest Moss Distress Ink.

 ** Try doing this last step with a smaller acrylic block if you can and have fun with it. Twist and turn your stamp around in all different directions. Leave spaces for the second color. Don't forget to stamp half off the page too, as this really makes a fun and easy (not to mention HAND MADE) background paper! The less neat and linear you make this part, the better the end result.**

I also edged my paper just lightly with Forest Moss Distress Ink using my Ranger Inkssentials Foam Blender tool, just to help make it stand out against the backing card.

Finally, cut some red cardstock to your desired size, score in the centre.

Adhere the circular cardstock onto your 'background paper', adhere that onto the front of your card! Round your edges with a We are Memory Keepers Corner Chomper and you're done!

**Note, if you are going to cut out the image you're painting, then feel free to paint like a toddler-- messy and quickly.  *wink* Don't worry about getting paint outside the lines, you'll be cutting the image out anyway, so you wont see the 'mess'.  If you are going to use the image and some/all of the white space around it (like I did here), you need to be a bit more neat.  

One option is to heat emboss the image first (use clear embossing powder if you've stamped in black already, or black embossing powder if you're only using Versamark ink) The heat embossing will give you a 'border' as such. Because heat embossing creates a raised area where the embossing powder has set, the 'paint' will stay in the lines more--especially if you only use a little at a time.

Hope you enjoyed this cute little reindeer card and try something like this for your Christmas cards! It's fast and easy, perfect for making enough cards for everyone!

See you tomorrow!

Linda x