One stamp, 2 cards

This little cottage scene  is one of my favourite Christmas stamps from Elusive images, I used it for lots of cards last year and I've always fancied trying a brayered scene with it. When I saw this weeks challenge from the lovely ladies at Bah Humbug had challenged us to create a Christmas Scene I had to have a go. I ended up making 2 cards as I also wanted to try some of the inky techniques I saw Sheena Douglass demoing on C&C

To make the  easel card I embossed some dots on silk card using sparkle EP for snowflakes, masked the moon and brayered the sky using royal blue dye in and then memento tuxedo black ink very lightly over the top. I stamped the image and masked it with some eclipse tape and then added hills ink the background using memento London Fog ink applied with some cut'n'dry foam. I coloured the image with promarkers and added some glittery ep to the scene and to highlight the hills. I had a bit of a 'happy accident' doing this as I'd removed the post it moon mask but the EP stuck to the card where the sticky had been and left a lovely shimmery side of the moon. I matted the scene on some silver mirri card and attached it to a white pearlescent easel card base. I made the sentiment using the same techniques and a sentiment stamp from Elusive Images. I'm also entering this card in the following challenges:

Aud Sentiments: Christmas sentiments

Delightful Challenges: No DPs or Embellishments

Stamptacular: Christmas in July

I've made the second card using this weeks recipe from Crafts 4 Eternity which is a sketch, make your own marbled paper and your own embellishment. I used the good old shaving foam technique to make the two pieces of marbled bp for this card, its ages since I've used this technique and I really loved it - such messy fun lol.

The marbled paper is made using tinkabella inks in orange and black using the shaving foam technique, once it was dry it wasn't quite dark enough so I added some spiced marmalade DI and then distressed the edges with brilliance copper ink and finally black soot DI. The main image is made by applying lots of distress inks to a piece of card using cut'n'dry foam - I used Spiced marmalade, antique linen, vintage photo and a little black soot. I blended them really well together and then  stamped the same cottage scene stamp and embossed with aniquities EP. I masked the image and stamped the Tim Holtz trees and embossed them with the same EP. I then used my water brush to wet the card inside the stamped cottage and dabbed it to remove some of the ink. I also splashed water on the background to look like falling snow and smoke coming from the chimney. I was struggling to remove enough ink so I ended up using some diluted bleach and that did the trick

To make my own embellishment I made a band of ruffled ribbon and beads - I had a bit of a job getting this right and found that by stitching a running stitch through the ribbon using beading thread, then passing the end of the ribbon through the bead, then passing the needle through the bead and pulling the thread to ruffle the ribbon worked the best. I also found it was best to start from the middle and work out from each side. I fnished off with a Christmas sentiment again from Elusive image stamped on the top corner of the image. I'm quite pleased with my spooky Christmas scene even though it is in halloween colours lol. I think it would be just the job for one of my male friends who is jokingly known as Bah Humbug as he hates Christmas, he'd moan if I didn't make him a card though

 I'm also entering this one in the following challenges:

Burtonesque Dolls: The Nightmare before Christmas in July

Polka Doodles:  Christmas in July

Alphabet: M is for men

Thanks for looking, I've really enjoyed making both these cards, I hope you like them

Claire xx