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Monday, October 24, 2011

Christmas Blessings Card

Happy Monday, my sweet friends! I hope everyone had a sparkling weekend. :o)

Today I have a Christmas card to share with you! My first one that is actually red and green, which was fun. And the blurry factor in the photograph? Just pretend it's the snow blurring your vision. ;)

"Christmas blessings" (Interior sentiment... with no picture. Grr.)

If only the picture truly captured the inspiration and depth of this card. This is one of the stamps that pushed me to try Copics... I so badly wanted to color her! Our sweet Christmas fairy/angel is battling the winter storm to deliver a very special blessing. It may look a wee bit busy... but that is intentional. Hopefully it does not detract, which I somewhat question now that I'm finished. There is a layer of sheer glitter ribbon beneath the filigree border, which replicates the sparkling path of faith. The filigree border portrays the depth of the Lord's love for us... the sparkly intricacies represent the details of His plans, which we often do not know (if ever) until our blessing has come. The tiny bell attached to the angel's wing is sparkling with silver glitter, as are the tie thingies on her arm and legs. Her wings are trimmed in Stardust and her hair is topped with a bouquet made of Flower Soft. Why so extra lovely? She is delivering a Christmas miracle, so her inner light is sparkling bright with love. The card is softly encircled with red ribbon because we are always safe, guarded, protected, and preserved in the ultimate heavenly embrace of love. :o)

A few technical aspects... for some reason, I decided to try my hand at the beautiful (yet dreaded) hard-to-blend-well Copic reds and making folds in clothing. Why I did this in the same card is beyond me. Both were hard, particularly the folds. I studied pictures and watched videos beforehand, but proper execution clearly needs oodles of practice. But I am on my way (ish)! :o) Her wings are illuminated in red because she's just bursting with love and being propelled by that exquisite faithful love. I used several snowy elements in an attempt to depict a lot of snow in a few different ways. The dots on the sheer red ribbon, the embossing of the pearlescent base, the red and green snowflake paper, the sheer glitter ribbon on the scalloped piece, and of course the Cricut'ed snowflake and tiny smattering of rhinestones. (And of course a dusting of Sparkle Shimmer Spritz.) I wanted it to be a beautiful snowstorm since the purpose is our angel fighting to help us. Plus, even the storms of life behold beauty... we just need to train ourselves to search for it. :o) Our angel is pop-dotted not only for dimension, but also to encourage us to rise above our storms. :o)

Challenges entered:
 * Cooking With Cricut~ Purple and/or Green (with optional sketches)
 * Jingle Belles~ Softly Falling Snow (incorporate a 'soft' element)
 * Love To Crop~ Encircled and Hugged (loving circles)

Thank you for fluttering on over to visit me. :o) I wish you a sparkly beautiful day!

Key Recipe Components:
 * Cricut cartridges: Elegant Edges, Gypsy Wanderings, Storybook
 * Cuttlebug embossing folder: Swiss Dots
 * Paper: Core'dinations, DCWV, SEI
 * Stamp: Wee Stamps (Silver Fairy)
 * Copics: E25, E31, E50 (hair); E0000, E000, E00 (skin); YG11, YG13, YG17 (dress); R29, R27, R24, R22, R20 (wings)
 * Ribbon: Hobby Lobby, Casa Collection Special Occasion (Jo-Anns)
 * Twine: Trendy Twine
 * Miscellaneous: Flower Soft, iRock, Shimmer Spritz, Stickles

Photobucket

28 comments:

  1. Oh Karen, this is so beautiful. As always, your creative heart has me somewhat speechless. But not for long. HA! ;)

    I love, love, LOVE the thoughts behind every detail in this masterpiece. You always MEAN everything; every component has a purpose - the little bell, the sheer ribbon, the swirling snowstorm, even the pop-dots. THIS is what makes you so special, my friend.

    As for your colouring skills, "On your way"? Nope, my dear, YOU have ARRIVED! Your Copic skills make you my hero. :) Red and I fight all the time and I've been too afraid to attempt the clothing folds. And YOU just charge right in and NAIL it. You are amazing. :)

    You know what impresses me the most? You made a snowstorm BEAUTIFUL! You know how I feel about winter - I've been having snow anxiety for weeks now. I am DREADING winter's arrival. And yet, you've created a scene that makes me want to crawl right in and catch some snowflakes on my tongue. THAT is how good you are. :)

    Well done, my sweet friend. Thanks for making me smile today (and if I'm honest, tear up a little). :)
    Nita

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  2. OMJ! I need to squisher you sooooooooo tight!

    My sweetest Sunshine…I can’t even see to type right now because my eyes are so filled with happy happy tears. I am in love sis. This cardness is not only the most gorgeous gift of praise I have ever seen, it is so very much a sparkling mirror image of YOU. You see sis, you are in so many ways that blessed little angel in my life…you are forever guiding me and so many others through the storms and helping direct us back to God’s heart always. I love you something silly Sunshine…thank you for always being my guardian in all I do…as soon as I saw this blessed little one, all I could think of was you and your angelic, forever giving spirit.

    And OMJ! Just look at the craftsmanship that has gone into this creation. Sis…honestly…this is just surreal. Look at the gorgeous colouring you did on our sweet little angel friend. Her wings look so real…I feel like I can just reach out and touch their feathery softness. How did you make different shades of the colours on her wings like that? They are just stunning. And the ribbon detailing and sparkling accents…gosh sis…I am in awe. I love every single little tiny bit of it. And you know who else does too Sunshine? God. He is so in love with this card that I am positive that He is ordering duplicate copies for every single one of His trusted angel messengers right this very second!

    Only my Sunshine could create a card to tell such an inspirational story of faith. Your heart is a beautiful place, sis. I think I speak for everyone here today when I say how honoured we all are to get to share in your love today.

    I LOVE YOUUUUUUU!!!

    *endless Christmas blessings and hugglers for my Sparkling Sunshine*
    ~~~ Christina :)

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  3. Hi Karen,this is so beautiful.I admire the thought,love and attention to every tiny detail that you put into each of your pieces of art(for that is what they are).Your colouring is stunning.I need to look up some copic colouring tutorials!
    Have a fabulous week my friend.
    Hugs
    Jayne x

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  4. Wow such a stunning image your card is beautiful love the style and the colours just adorable:) Sandra H

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  5. So pretty! Love the fairy and all the beautiful details! Thanks for joining us over at Love to Crop! Guest Designer Carri
    Carri~abusybee
    www.doubleclickconnections.blogspot.com

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  6. Hi Karen, Thank you for the sweet comment about my CDAC #5 card. That was so nice of you. I am so glad you did because I found your blog and this beautiful card. So pretty.
    Hugs,
    Linda

    Scrapcat Cards by Linda

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  7. Your card is absolutely beautiful!!!! Great job and I appreciate all the sentiments behind the details. Thanks for joining us at Love to Crop!

    LTC Guest Designer Sarah
    www.sarahscraftsandstuff.blogspot.com

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  8. What an utterly lovely, intricate and beautiful card! This really is a holiday masterpiece! <3

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  9. Love that pretty wrap of ribbon ... and those rich holiday hues ... so glad you joined us at jingle belles.

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  10. Oh my gosh Karen, this is just stunning and filled with such amazing details! Your coloring is fabulous and I love your inpirational story! Your work is "amazing"....GORGEOUS my friend!
    Sherrie K
    http://sherriescraps.blogspot.com

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  11. Hi Karen,Oh my your card is BEAUTIFUL!AMAZING details,LOVE the shape and GORGEOUS image!SUPER SUPER job my friend!!:)

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  12. Stunning! I love shaped cards and yours definitly does not disappoint!!

    Jazzy - CWC DT Member
    www.JazzysCards.Blogspot.com

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  13. WOW, Karen! This is just gorgeous! You can tell that so much attention to detail and love went into this special card. Thanks so much for linking up at Cooking With Cricut this week.

    ~ Jen, CWC Design Team
    www.gator-4-life.blogspot.com

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  14. As always, my sweet and sparkly friend, you have managed to deeply move me with your amazing creation! The thought and detail behind this is just stunning! Wow, you did such an fabulous job coloring her...especially those amazing wings!! I need to take lessons from you. I have been trying to color a mermaid for a week and have thrown away two dozen attempts (and HA - I loved your comment after I said my coloring was first grade level, that you were sure it was second -- it so is not!! I'm pathetically bad!! It's sad, really!)

    I love that the fairy/angel is fighting through a snowstorm to deliver a Christmas miracle!! It gave me chills (that is the name of a novella I just had published!!) The shape is just fabulous!!

    You are so talented and creative and every time I visit, I am so happy and can't wait to see what you create next!! I hope you have a fabulous week my fabulous friend!! Hugs,

    Lisa :)
    indymermaid.blogspot.com

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  15. Oh Sweets, this card is truly full of Christmas blessings! I love the use of red and green without being overly beat over the head with "Christmas!" Not that I don't love all things Christmas, I just appreciate subtleties more :) The layers and interpretations of snow are wonderful, and I'm still amazed that you color these gorgeous stamps yourself. I definitely thought (continue to think) that they came that way and you just glued them on. Yup, you fooled me with your mastery. <3

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  16. Just so pretty:) You just inspired me to make a Christmas card. Your cards are always so awesome. Thanks for playing with us this week at Cooking With Cricut.
    ~Madison, CWC DT funkycards.blogspot.com

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  17. Beautiful detail to this card, I love the SOFT bow at the top! Thanks so much for playing my prompt at Jingle Belles! :)

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  18. What a beautiful, beautiful card. I love how you did the ribbon. :)
    Tracy M
    tracyscricutcorner.blogspot.com

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  19. WOW!! Karen, first thanks for explaining the interpretation of the card. I love the image...and you did a great job with coloring!! Even the dreaded red blends!! LOL Very detailed! Thanks for playing with us at Cooking With Cricut!

    Hugs,
    Michelle
    CWC DT
    http://michelles-crafty-creations.blogspot.com

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  20. Oh Karen I am just speechless... If only you knew what an inspiration you are. This is just breath taking and the way you describe all of the details is so uplifting. God has given you such an amazing talent... Thank you...

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  21. Karen, This is sop special and as beautiful as I would expect from you. Your projects are always gorgeous! Thanks for joining CWC.
    Charlotte

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  22. Wow, amazing my friend! Your card is stunning. Your copic coloring is perfect! Love it! I love the card shape too.
    I almost bought some copics at Scrapbook Expo, but I quickly got overwhelmed at what starter colors to begin with. Then the lady at the booth said I needed special paper for using with copics and then I thought, oh boy, too much to think about right now! LOL! Oh well, maybe next time!
    You really look like you are an expert at them! xx

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  23. Amazing... so pretty and elegant. Great job. Thanks for joining us at CWC. Smooches... Sous Chef Feli

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  24. Beautiful! I love love love the fairy - great job she is stunning! Thanks for joining us at CWC this week!

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  25. the fairy is lovely, I really like the shape of the card as well, wonderful job
    Thanks for sharing!
    -Kemma, CookingWithCricut Design Team
    mykemmacards.blogspot.com

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  26. New follower and what a great stop with Love To Crop! Your design on the card is beautiful and your description is not only heartfelt but descriptive in technique. LOVELY! Would love to see close up detail...
    Claire
    www.scrapmyway.blogspot.com

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  27. Karen my sweet friend this is just so lovely! Your coloring is amazing:)) The detail is wonderful, and I so appreciate the back-story behind each of your creations. Beautiful!!

    Now, you won my giveaway, yeah!! Please email me your snail mail address so I can get this out to you. I am so happy for you, I hope you will like the things I send you. Here is my email.
    craftycards4u2 at yahoo dot com. Hugs, Pam

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  28. Just beautifu;! Love all the detail! You're very talented! Jill♥

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Thank you for leaving some love! Have a beautifully blessed day. :o)

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