Polkadoodles Digi Choosday |15 Days Until Christmas | A Soft Winter Sky with Polkadoodles' Oh Deer! Collection's Snowy Friends

Hi everyone!

Can you believe we're only 15 days away from Christmas? The countdown is getting real, and I'm back with another festive project for this week's Digi Choosday challenge!

Today I'm sharing a sweet little Christmas cheer card featuring Snowy Friends from Polkadoodles' adorable new Oh Deer! collection.

If you've been following my recent projects, you'll know I've been on a little Distress Oxide adventure lately. This is actually my third week creating my own ink-blended backgrounds instead of reaching for patterned paper, and I'm really enjoying it! The more I play with my Distress Oxides, the more confident I'm becoming with blending colors together and creating soft, dreamy sky background. Practice really does make perfect! But in my case, practice really does make progress!

Materials Used

• Digi Stamp - DLPD10265 Snowy Friends

• Pattern Paper - Oh Deer Paper Set 3

• Sentiment - Oh Deer Sentiment Pack

• White Cardstock

• Brown Cardstock

• Tim Holtz Guillotine Paper Trimmer

• CutterPillar Crease Score Board

• Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue

• Aleene's Glitter Snow

• Foam Tape

• Ohuhu Alcohol Markers

• White Acrylic Paint

• Paint Brush

• Distress Oxide – Speckled Egg

• Distress Oxide – Milled Lavender

• Distress Oxide – Kitsch Flamingo

• Distress Oxide – Scattered Straw

• Distress Oxide – Tea Dye

• Polkadot/Snow Stencil (I used Vicki Boutin's Warm Wishes)

• Blending Brushes

• Wendy Vecchi Make Art Stay-tion

• Jute String

• Snowflake Die Cut

Instructions

1. Prepare your card base by trimming white cardstock to 5½" x 8½".

2. Score the long side at 4¼" and fold.

3. Trim brown cardstock to 4¼" x 5½" and another piece measuring 4 13/16" x 3½".

4. Trim your patterned paper to 5¼" x 4".

5. Trim a piece of white cardstock to 4 11/16" x 3½".

6. Blend Speckled Egg across the top of the white panel.

7. Blend Milled Lavender beneath it.

8. Add Kitsch Flamingo through the middle.

9. Blend Scattered Straw below for a warm glow.

10. Finish the bottom with Tea Dye.

11. Using your snow stencil, apply Aleene's Glitter Snow to create falling snow.

12. Print and color the Snowy Friends digi stamp using Ohuhu Alcohol Markers.

13. Add Aleene's Glitter Snow to the snowy areas of the image.

14. Adhere the image using foam tape.

15. Add more glitter snow along the bottom of the panel to create snowy ground.

16. Adhere the scene panel to the smaller brown cardstock layer.

17. Mount this onto the patterned paper.

18. Adhere everything to the larger brown cardstock panel.

19. Attach the completed panel to the card base.

20. Finish with a die-cut snowflake tied with a piece of jute string for a little bling.

21. Choose a sentiment from the Oh Deer Sentiment Pack, mat it onto a strip of brown cardstock, and adhere to the card.

I hope this card inspires you to pull out your inks and create your own custom backgrounds! It's such a fun way to make every project unique, and I've absolutely loved experimenting with different color combinations these past few weeks.

If you're loving this adorable collection as much as I am, be sure to check out the Oh Deer! collection over at Polkadoodles. Don't forget, you can save 10% on your order with my discount code ANA-10!

And while you're there, why not join this week's Digi Choosday Challenge? We'd love to see what you create, and you might even win some prizes! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Wishing you lots of crafty time, plenty of Christmas cheer, and happy creating!

Don't forget to follow me on my socials for more cardmaking inspiration, tutorials, and behind-the-scenes crafty fun. I can't wait to see you there!

Instagram: @my.cat.and.crafts

Facebook: My Cat and Crafts

Happy crafting! 

Polkadoodles Digi Coosday | 65 Days Until Christmas | 6 Clean & Simple Christmas Cards with Christmas at the Cottage

Hi Everyone! Only 65 days until Christmas! Can you believe how quickly the holiday season is approaching? This week's Digi Choosday project is all about creating beautiful Christmas cards without spending hours at your craft table. I made not one, not two, but six Clean & Simple (CAS) Christmas cards using the gorgeous Christmas at the Cottage collection from Polkadoodles, and I can't wait to share them with you!

As Christmas gets closer, our calendars quickly fill up with holiday parties, family gatherings, gift shopping, decorating, baking, and everything else that comes with the most wonderful time of the year. That's why I wanted to create a set of cards that are quick to make but still look elegant and handmade. Whether you're sending cards to loved ones, adding them to your gift packaging, stocking up for the season, or creating cards to sell at craft fairs and markets, these designs come together in no time while still making a beautiful impression.

One of my favorite parts of this project was finally pulling out some of my Christmas embossing folders! I always look forward to using these seasonal designs, and this was the perfect opportunity to give six different embossing folders their moment to shine. Pairing crisp white embossed backgrounds with the colorful clipart and ephemera from Christmas at the Cottage creates a timeless look that's festive without being overly complicated.

The best part? The clipart and ephemera do most of the work for you! With a simple embossed background, dimensional foam tape, and a sentiment strip, you can create professional-looking Christmas cards in just a few easy steps.

Materials Used

• White cardstock
• Embossing folders (I used six different Christmas designs)
• Polkadoodles Christmas Message Sheets (sentiments)
• Polkadoodles Christmas at the Cottage Clipart & Ephemera
• Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue
• Sizzix Big Shot
• Foam Tape
• Tim Holtz Guillotine Paper Trimmer
• Scissors

Here are the embossing folders I used for these cards.

Instructions

1. Cut a piece of white cardstock to 5.5" x 8.5" for your card base.

2. Score at 4.25" on the long side and fold.

3. Cut another piece of white cardstock to 4" x 5.25".

4. Emboss the smaller cardstock using your favorite embossing folder by running it through your Sizzix Big Shot (or any die-cutting/embossing machine).

5. Adhere the embossed panel to the card base using Bearly Art Precision Craft Glue.
Prepare your embellishments. I used the Christmas at the Cottage Clipart and Ephemera. 

6. Attach the die-cut embellishments using foam tape for added dimension.

7. Finish your card by adhering one of the Christmas Message Sheets sentiments.

And that's it, you now have a beautiful Clean & Simple Christmas card that's ready to brighten someone's holiday!

I hope these cards inspire you to start your Christmas card-making early. Sometimes the simplest designs are the most impactful, especially when paired with gorgeous illustrations and lots of texture from embossed backgrounds.

If you'd like to join in the fun, don't forget to participate in this week's Digi Choosday Challenge! We'd love to see what you create.

If you're as obsessed with Christmas crafting as I am, then the Christmas at the Cottage collection is definitely one to add to your stash. It includes beautiful clipart, ephemera, papers, sentiments, and so much more for all your festive makes.

And don't forget, you can use my code ANA-10 before checkout to enjoy 10% off your Polkadoodles purchase.

Happy crafting, and I'll see you again next time!

Instagram: @my.cat.and.crafts

Facebook: My Cat and Crafts