Christmas in July - May Your Heart Be Warm, Merry Christmas

Hello!!!  I hope you've been enjoying Christmas in July this week!!!  Beautiful projects have been shared and I love Suzanne's video.  Don't miss it.

I'm sharing 3 cards, all with different looks, but all done with the same stamps (May Your Heart Be Warm and Merry Christmas Background) and die (Merry Christmas 2).  All the details are below.

To celebrate Christmas in July we’re having a giveaway!  One randomly chosen follower will win a $25 gift certificate for the Quietfire website.  All you have to do to be eligible is comment on the blog posts and follow us on YouTube!  https://www.youtube.com/user/QuietfireDesign.  Entries close Sunday July 29, 2018 at midnight.  

This first card came about when our daughter was here for a visit and I was showing her the Distress Resist Spray.  I built layers onto a piece of cardstock starting with Resist Spray, inking, spraying again with Resist, adding more ink, and then repeating a third time.  Each layer of Resist is a different tone from light to dark since I worked from light to dark with my colors.  Once I was done and I had this beautiful background of reds I thought, "Oh, this would be great for a Christmas card and I need one this month for QF", so it became one.

I stamped the quote in the center of the paper and then die cut two Stitched Ovals (Elizabeth Craft Designs).  I added gold embossing (Queen's Gold - Ranger Ink) around the main oval and a hint of gold paint around both the inside and outside of the other oval.

On my folded green card I stamped the Merry Christmas Background down the center using Versamark Ink for that watermark look and then added white paint splatters.

Merry Christmas was die cut from Gold Metallic Cardstock.  Red Stickles dots were added to the branches and on the dot above the letter "i" of the diecut.  Everything is attached flat except the main oval and that is attached with foam tape.

This next card has a much more vintage feel.  (and I think it's my favorite of the three cards)

The quote was stamped onto white cardstock.  I used a stamping platform so I could ink the quote with black and stamp, then ink the branches with green and stamp.  After stamping I covered the paper with embossing ink and embossed it with Baked Texture Vintage Beeswax (Emerald Creek - Seth Apter).  I added a second layer of embossing ink and powder and heated it again.  Isn't it gorgeous!!!  

My background was created on Transparent Yupo Paper.  I used alcohol inks and alcohol blending solution on felt to dab onto the Yupo adding layers until I liked it.

Once it was dry I stamped the Merry Christmas Background with the Alcohol Lift-Ink.  This pulls alcohol ink off the yupo paper.  (You can only remove alcohol ink with the Lift-Off ink if you have the alcohol ink on a non-porous surface such as Yupo).  So now you have alcohol ink mixed with the lift-ink on your stamp.  You can then stamp onto a porous surface, such as regular cardstock, to transfer the ink.  I did this twice to get all the way down the Yupo paper.  On my regular cardstock I left an open area when I stamped the second time.  I used this card of stamped transferred ink to create another Christmas card that I shared early this week on my blog HERE.

The Lift-Off ink on the Yupo will still be wet.  Now you dab over that ink with a paper towel until most of the ink is removed and then you can lightly rub to get the last of it making what you stamped really pop.  If you rub too soon, you will smear your stamping instead of it staying crisp and clear.

Merry Christmas was die cut from white cardstock and my folded base card is white cardstock.  I gave the die cuts and edges of the base card a creamy, shimmery look by brushing it with Nuvo Mousse (Mother of Pearl).  A perfect look for a vintage card.

Again I used Red Stickles for berries on the branches and over the letter "i".

My final card has a much brighter look.

I stamped and embossed the Merry Christmas Background in clear onto white cardstock.

Next I sprayed over the cardstock with Distress Spray Stains, blotted it, dried it, and, once I knew what size I needed, trimmed it down.

I attached double sided tape to the top of silver cardstock, die cut Merry Christmas, removed the liner from the top and added Silver Silk Microfine Glitter.  After dumping off the excess glitter and putting it back into the jar, you then use the pad of your finger to rub over the glitter to burnish it down well and really bring out the shine.  It's fun to watch it sparkle more as you rub over it!!

I stamped the quote onto white cardstock, embossed it with Carnation Red embossing Powder and die cut it with a Stitched Oval die.

I added Silver Glitter Paste around the edges of the oval.  If you don't have glitter paste but you do have glitter, you can make your own paste by mixing glitter with gloss gel medium.  Silver Stickles were used over the berries on the branches. 

White cardstock was folded for the base of the card.  

There ya go.  Three completely different looks using the same stamps and dies.  Isn't it great!!!  Which one is your favorite?

Thanks for following along!!

Hugs, Wanda