Birthday celebration at Crafter's Companion

Crafter's Companion have been celebrating their birthday this month, which is why this month's challenge is all about making birthday cards.

This seemed like a good moment to create a few quick birthday cards using the Humprey's Corner CD. Both the image and the papers for this card are from the CD and were printed on Neenah Classic Crest card.

The mat and card base (Coredinations) were cut with Lifestyle Crafts dies. The sentiment is computer generated and cut out by hand. The pearls were made with a Viva pearl pen.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

Crafter's Companion - October Birthday challenge

Simon Says Stamp - Get in shape (no square cards)
Charisma Cardz - #42 Don't be square
Fussy and Fancy - #74 Anything goes

World Card Making Day

I created this Christmas card today, after being inpired by a card I saw at a new website called Card Annex. I had recently bought some paper tape, but this turned out to be a bit small to serve as a background for a card. So I had a look at my paper scraps instead and found a collection of Marianne Design strips and worked from there. What you see in front of the card are the mini scraps that were left after finishing the card.

I adhered the paper strips to a square 13.5 x 13.5 cm cream card blanc from my stash, concealing part of the top and bottom strips behind the next strip because they were a bit too wide. I figured that layering them was safer than trying to cut them LOL. After stamping the label (MD) with Memento Rich Cocoa on another piece of the same cardstock, I stamped the Christmas sentiment (from the same MD set). The poinsetta (also MD) was die cut from red felt. The pearlescent buttons are some old pillow buttons from my friend's big button box (I sorted out the buttons when I was visiting and brought a large selection home with me!). The twine came from some blog candy I won. I have just remembered that I had actually intended to add some pearls to the left corner of the top strip but I forgot, because I was in a hurry to link the card up to some WCMD challenges and events. I may still add them later LOL.

I'm entering this card into the following challenges:

WCMD challenge at the Simon Says blog

Marianne's Design Divas - Stamp something

Alphabet Challenge - #74 R for recycle, upcycle

Papertake Weekly - #79 Anything goes (celebrate)

Crafts and Me - #104 My sentiments exactly

Delightful Challenges - Winter holiday

Sparkles Christmas Challenge - #21 Traditional
Sentimental Sundays - #123 Anything goes

Snowflake ornament

 When I found this snowflake ornament in a local shop last year, I knew I wanted to use it on a card. This week's Jingle Belles prompt of Dashing through the snow was exactly the incentive that I needed.

The layout was inspired by this week's sketch over at Tuesday Morning Sketches:

I've created the card in such away that the recipient can take off the ornament and really use it as an ornament. After adhering the embossed paper and the gold-print paper (both from a specialty paper pack that I have had for years) I cut out the shape with a Lifestyle Crafts die. I adhered the PP with the Christmas texts (from an old paper pad of an unknown brand) on the inside of the card. To strengthen the front side of the card, I adhered a thin mica sheet behind the aperture and I must say that I'm very pleased with the result.
Below are a few more pictures. The first one shows the closed card with the ornament removed and the second one shows the card in a slightly opened position.

I'd like to enter this card into the following challenges:

Tuesday Morning Sketches - Sketch #166

Jingle Belles - Dashing through the snow

Simon Says Stamp - Glimmer and sparkle

Papertake Weekly - Anything goes (optional theme: celebrate/ PTW turned 5)
Holly Jolly Christmas - Glitter and bling
Christmas Card Challenges - #44 Chipboard (theme always optional)

I'm also linking my card up at 52 Card Pickup week 40.