I kept my focal piece larger on the card than the sketch shows…because, frankly, I just hated to cut up the Designer Paper too much!

The base of the card is Always Artichoke and I layered on Cherry Cobbler cardstock.  I did wrap some Early Espresso 5/8 Satin Ribbon around to the back of the Cherry Cobbler cardstock and adhered…unfortunately you can't really see it!  I matted the Deck the Halls Designer Paper with Very Vanilla to make it pop on the Cherry Cobbler.  I took my Tombow Monoadhesive Glue and drew a fine line the outside edge and then used the Champagne Glass Glitter over it.  I LOVE this glitter…so sparkly and very non-messy!  It packs a lot of WOW, though!

I stamped the greeting from Gifts of Christmas in Cherry Cobbler Classic Ink on Very Vanila, then punched with the Wide Oval.  I layered it on a larger oval from the Ovals Die in Cherry Cobbler cardstock.  I popped this element up on the front with Stampin' Dimensionals.  I inked up the Poinsettia flower in Gifts of Christmas with my Cherry Cobbler, Always Artichoke and More Mustard Stampin' Write Markers, then stamped it on scrap Very Vanilla.  I cut it out and placed it in the corner of the ovals on Stampin' Dimensionals, too!  I added a TON of tiny pearls…in the centers of each Poinsettia and underneath the greeting for a little extra bling on the card!

I really like how this turned out.  Probably not a card I would make a lot of…but it is nice for a special person! 

Make sure to check out the rest of the Stamping 411 Operators to see what they did this week! 

For Christmas cards, I like them to be easier to mail without a lot of bumpiness to them.  This one fits the bill!  The base card is Real Red.  Across the top I used the Jolly Holiday Designer Paper Stripe and added the Eyelet Border Punch across the bottom in Very Vanilla.  To hide that seam I used the 5/8 Old Olive Satin Ribbon and wrapped it around the back of the DSP to secure.  (BTW – my Ribbon Shares are still going on!)  Next I ran a 2" x 5 1/2" of Medium thickness Window Sheet thru the Big Shot with the Petals A Plenty Impressions Folder.  Then I took my Sanding Block and sanded off the top of the impressions…it really gives it a frosted look!

In the center of the flowers, I used a White Gel Pen to highlight them.  This panel is adhered under the Eyelet Border and at the bottom corners with Mini Glue Dots to hold it on the base Real Red cardstock.  I tried to put the glue dot under a flower so it was less noticeable.

To finish the card, I used my Stampin' Write Markers in Old Olive, Real Red and Daffodil Delight to ink up the flower from Stampin' Up!'s Gifts of Christmas Stamp Set on Very Vanilla.  I punched it out with the Wide Oval Punch, then layered it on the Lots of Tags Die cut from Real Red cardstock.  I love the elegant look of that tag!  The piece is popped up with Stampin' Dimensionals!

Note:  I haven't forgotten the directions for the Halloween Flip Card I made last week…my Stamp Clubs are doing the card on Thursday night and I'll get them posted soon after that!

The Holiday Edition of Create with Connie and Mary has started, but it is not too late to join!  It is an 8 week subscription featuring stamps and products from the new Stampin' Up! Holiday Mini.  There is a new project posted every day and an average of two fabulous tutorials a week.  NEW this year is a Project Sheet for every post!  Our site stays up long after the session is done, so you will have access to the site and the tutorials to refer back to the projects.  For more information, please visit at Create with Connie and Mary! 

This week's Stamping 411 Sketch Challenge was really fun to do.  I had this card done in about 10 minutes!  Now…that is my kind of card!

My friend, Annette, who was here for a week, noticed that I didn't have a lot of Night of Navy or Bravo Burgundy cardstock scraps in my basket!  I set out to make a card using those colors in her honor!  So…here you go, Annette!

I purchased Stampin' Up!'s Gifts of Christmas stamp set because of all the beautiful cards I've seen made with it.  Even all alone, the image is striking.

I started with a base of Bravo Burgundy cardstock and stamped the floral image from Stampin' Up!'s Gifts of Christmas stamp set randomly along the left side in Bravo Burgundy Classic Ink.   The main image I stamped with Night of Navy Classic Ink on Whisper White cardstock and layered it onto Night of Navy cardstock.  I added a strip of Bravo Burgundy that was trimmed with the Scallop Edge Punch, then wrapped the White Taffeta Ribbon around and tied.  That's it!  Less than 10 minutes from thought to completion!  

It would be EASY to make this YOUR Christmas card and you could complete a stack of them in just a short time!  This image also looks beautiful with Silver or Gold Embossing!

Enjoy!  Check out the rest of the Stamping 411 Operators to see their creations this week!  And…take a minute to make the sketch challenge yourself and upload to Mister Linky!

Have a wonderful weekend…Happy Halloween, too!