Christmas or not? In The Pines watercolour card

If you’re like me, you'll still be making Christmas cards like an elf on strong coffee, so this post is for you as it features a fun Christmas card idea.

But if you're one of The Other People, who has not only made their Christmas cards but – worse! – maybe even written or POSTED them, then this blog post is also for you as it shows you a fun tree-themed card idea using one of my favourite stamp sets, In The Pines. 

 

 

This is the first in a very short series of blog posts on the theme of “Christmas or not’... showing cards designs which can be used for a variety of occasions.

This beautiful card idea came from Julie Kettlewell of the Paper Haven, who told me that she got the idea from Artisan Design Team member Nina.

I loved it and sat down to make it immediately. You know how I love a messy watercolour technique. And trees. Put them together and we have a project which is so far up my street that you can see my front door.

It’s simply a case of stamping onto wet paper, in this case Shimmery White. This gives you a lovely washy look to the images, and you can then spread the ink around a little more using a paintbrush or water painter.  

 

Watch Nina's video here

When it’s dry, you can splash it with Whisper White Craft ink but be careful! I ended up with a Jackson Pollock-esque streaks on my project and lovely little snowflake dots all over everything else... the table, my phone, my clothes and my hands. 

In Nina’s video, she squeezes ink onto a clear block to use it for splashing. I prefer to use an old embellishment container so you can put the lid on and use any leftover ink again and again.

 

 

For the Christmas version, I added a tiny star to the top of the tree from the All The Trimmings Embellishments pack. Leaving this off keeps the card neutral, so you can use it for pretty much any other occasion. I’ve stamped “thank you” from Beautiful Autumn, because that’s the type of card I needed.

 

But it would also make a great masculine birthday card for a man who loves the outdoors. Or you could send it to me because I love trees, as may have already mentioned.

 

Both are finished off with some gorgeous Linen Thread, which never goes out of style. I hope this never retires as I use it all the time!

Now a warning: don’t delay!

In The Pines and Beautiful Autumn are both retiring soon so if you want to get either of them, please don’t delay. Shop the retiring list tomorrow (Tues 8th) as some items will be reduced (In The Pines is full price but Beautiful Autumn will be reduced, in the UK at least) and there are some mega bargains to be had. All products will only be available while supplies last and shipping may take longer due to Covid and Christmas, so I strongly urge you to do your shopping tomorrow to avoid disappointment.

If you're in the UK, please shop online using the December host code SX4NGWRH (unless you're spending over £150!). And as a thank you for using the code, I will send you a handmade card and a thank you gift.