It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Well... actually... depends on how much I spent that day!

Here is a card to get you in the spirit. I was inspired by Michele Kovak's (chelemom) "Eskimo Christmas" over at splitcoaststampers.com. I love her interpretation of this stamp by Crafty Secrets and her layering of die cuts.

I designed die cuts for my card with my Gypsy. I believe most, if not all, the cuts are from Storybook. Love that cartridge! I stamped with Archival black ink and colored with the cheapest set of colored pencils you can find at Michael's. One of these days, I'll move on to Prismacolor. I topped the trim on the coat with white flocking and stickled the background like Michele did.

COLOR PENCIL TIP: Color in circles with light pressure to lay down color, gradually add pressure in shaded areas. I only recently tried the coloring in circles technique and I really like the effect. Looks smoother.

Don't care to stamp? Try a fun sticker. I got this sticker from Hobby Lobby. It is embossed and glittery.

My Favorite Basics

Welcome to my first blog post! Let me introduce my best friends: Cricut Expression/Gypsy, Fiskars Titanium Nitride Scissors, Basic Grey Magnetic Cutting Mat, Archival black ink, a piece of cushy packaging, and Scotch Quick Dry Glue.

I love designing my cuts with the Gypsy. I can design in layers, weld, flip, rotate, resize by .01 vertically and horizontally, hide contour (hiding parts of design I don't need), and save my favorite designs. I've been using the Gypsy for a year with no problems.

The Fiskars Titanium Nitride spring action scissors are so very sharp. I like the sharp point and the spring action is comfortable for my hand. I know some people like the soft touch but I don't think they're as sharp as the titanium nitride.

The magnetic cutting mat is great for holding pieces in place before committing to glue. I also like to use the little magnets to help me tie bows for my cards.

Archival ink has got to be one of the best inks on the market. I always get such a clean image with this ink. It's good for watercoloring, chalking, markers (but not Copics) and pencils. And that thin piece of foam packaging? Ah, yes. I used to roll my eyes at the folks that needed a mat for stamping. Well, lo and behold, I tried this little piece of foam and I am now a believer. LOVE IT. My stamped images look better than ever.

I know the ATG is wildly popular so I'm probably in my own little club with the Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive. It's cheap and a little goes a long way. In my experience, it does not warp photo paper or cardstock. Thin paper and cheap photo paper will warp but I don't use thin or cheap photo paper often.