Merry Christmas Everyone! 🎄🎄

Hi everyone, I’m just popping by with a scheduled post to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. I hope you have a happy, joyful and peaceful time with loved ones, and find time to relax and have fun.

I know that Christmas can be a difficult time for some people, particularly if you or your loved ones are ill, if you have lost loved ones during the year, or if you do not have family and friends to spend the festive season with. If you are having difficult times I wish you all the best, and I hope you will be able to enjoy the season as much as possible for your circumstances, and that you will have better times ahead.

I will be spending Christmas quietly - just me and my husband  - but I hope to have an enjoyable time eating, drinking and relaxing while watching some festive TV! Here is the card I made for him - I always wait to publish it until he has opened it on Christmas morning!

I decided to make a variation on my Lavinia mega-project which I made a month ago during my DT stint on the Simon Says (Monday) challenge (here). I just had to use the adorable Pipspell and the fairy post box, though this time, in the interests of making a more masculine card, I didn’t include a fairy!

I cut a 7” square of white stamping card, stamped the focal Wishing Post post box, and then masked it. I added masks for the landscape and moon, then created the sky by blending Elements inks. With the masks still in place I stamped a variety of pine trees in 1st/2nd generation, then added snow drifts by blending ink using my hill masks. I stamped Pipspell, and opposite I stamped Basil holding the orb on a branch. I also stamped Tilly (or Tango?) dangling joyfully from the postbox - this is one of my favourite stamps as he/she always looks so joyfully abandoned when hanging upside down! 

I stamped some Starpine and Sugar Pine Cones in the top right corner, then coloured the Wishing Post, Pipspell, Pinecones and orbs with Zig pens. I added Wink of Stella to the orbs for sparkle, and also added it in flicking motions to the Starpine leaves. I added white Posca snow lines to the scene and topped them with Spectrum Noir sparkle pen for a more silvery sparkle. I cut out a teeny rectangle of card and drew on it with fineliner to represent a stamp and loving message on the front of an envelope, then popped it into Tilly’s paw.

 I matted the panel onto two shades of blue card stock and an 8” square card blank, then stamped the sentiments onto separate card,  coloured with Sakura Stardust pen, then edged with dark blue and attached. Finally I added Posca snowfall.

This is another very sparkly card which doesn’t show up on the photos! 

Stamps: Lavinia Wishing Post, Mailbox Names, Pipspell, Tilly and Tango, Basil and Bibi, Everlight 2, Small Pine Trees, Small Fairy Fir Tree 2, Christmas Tree Group, Starpine, Sugar Pine Cones, Winter Foliage, Christmas Greetings, Seasonal Words; Uniko Christmas Greetings (inside);

Media: Lavinia Elements inks (Pink Elephant, Della Blue, Dark Denim); Versafine Clair (Nocturne, Pinecone, Rainforest, Shady Lane, Avocado, Medieval Blue); Kuretake Zig Clean Color watercolour pens; Wink of Stella (clear, gold); Spectrum Noir sparkle pen (clear); Sakura Stardust pen (clear); Posca pen (white);

Tools: Lavinia acetate circle mask and Mini Hill Masks.

Challenges I would like to enter:

12 Months of Christmas #129 - Anything Goes Christmas (5th entry)

52 Christmas Card Throwdown - Pick a Previous Theme Challenge (3rd entry) - HONOURABLE MENTION

(I picked December - Winter Scene)

613 Avenue Create (December) - Anything Goes with option Sparkle and Shine (4th entry)

Ally’s Angels #101 - Anything Goes

Cardz 4 Guyz #381 - Christmas Critters

Country View FB Challenge (December) - Christmas (4th entry)

Craftlandia #25 - Snowflakes (3rd entry)

Crafts Galore Encore #142 - Anything Goes (3rd entry)

Creatalicious #296 - Anything Goes with option Winter Animals (2nd entry)

Creative Crafters #95 - Anything Goes - TOP 3

Everybody Art #591 - Christmas/New Year (2nd entry)

FarmQuest Country Christmas #27 - Anything Country Christmas Goes (2nd entry)

FarmQuest General Store #35 - Anything Farm and/or Country Goes (2nd entry) - TOP 3

Girlz Makes Guyz #34 - Anything Goes Male

Girlz Rebel #47 - Anything Goes (2nd entry)

Inkspirational #357 - Cold (3rd entry)

Krafty Chicks #800 - Masculine

Lavinia Creative Challenge (December) - Story Time

Passion for Markers #818 - Mega Christmas Challenge: Add a Sentiment (3rd entry)

Peace On Earth #102 - Anything Christmas Goes (3rd entry)

Rudolph Days (December) - Christmas

Simon Says (Monday) - Sparkle and Shine (2nd entry)

Simon Says (Wednesday) - Add a Sentiment

We Love 2 Create #11 2025 - Anything Papercrafting/Mixed Media Goes (2nd entry)

Word Art Wednesday #730/733 - Anything Goes (4th entry)

This is my last post of a new card for 2025 as I am now taking a seasonal break from crafting, though I’m hoping to find time next week to do a ‘year in review’ post. So I’d like to finish by once again  thanking all my visitors and blogging friends  for all your visits, kind comments and support during the year, and to wish you all a

🎄🎄🎄 Very Merry Christmas 🎄🎄🎄

and a

🥳🎉🥳 Happy New Year 🥳🎉🥳

Take care, and thanks for visiting.

Hugs,