A stylish comtemporary Christmas card with a glossy white raised embossed design.

Items needed to make this card:

1. 125 x 125mm square white card blank
2. Plain card in any Christmas colour i.e. red, green or even blue.
3. Dreamweaver Stencil – Line of Christmas Trees
4. Dreamweaver Stencil – Merry Christmas #3
5. Dreamweaver Stencils Embossing Paste – Glossy White
6. Palette Knife
7. Stencil Tape
8. Double sided sticky tape
9. Paper Trimmer OR Cutting mat, craft knife, ruler & pencil

Directions to make this card:

Using a straight edge blade on your paper trimmer cut out a 11.5cm x 11.5cm square from the plain card. You can of course use a decorative edge blade for a different finish if you would like to. (Alternatively you can cut the square out using a cutting mat, craft knife and ruler).

Put paper down to protect a hard flat surface and then place the card square you’ve just cut out onto the flat surface. Use stencil tape to tape down the edges of both stencils into position over the card so that the wording design is top centre. You only use the last 6 Christmas trees on the line of Christmas trees stencil so centre those 6 trees over the bottom half of the card and apply more tape over the first two trees so that the paste does not get into those. The stencils need to be completely flat against the surface of the card because if they are bent, the paste will seep under the bridges and smear.

Remember when using embossing paste on brass/metal stencils, you need to work quickly, because the paste sets in 20-40 minutes and you don’t want it to dry into the fine bridgework of the stencils.

Pick up some of the glossy white embossing paste on the end of the metal palette knife and smooth over the stencil’s cut out areas as if icing a cake. When the paste is thick over all of the cut out areas of the stencil, scrape off the excess paste until all the holes are filled evenly and the stencil surface is smooth.

Immediately take the tape off of one of the stencils and pick up the stencil from the card, lifting it straight up, keeping it as straight as possible. It is important to clean the stencil off immediately, so drop it into a bowl of soapy water until you have time to scrub it clean with a vegetable or nail brush. Immediately repeat for removing the other stencil. Leave the card with the paste images on it where it is until it is completely dry (20 to 40 minutes).

If there is a film or residue of paste left on the stencils you can use a rubber stamp cleaner that removes permanent inks such as StazOn Stamp Cleaner. Apply it generously and scrub with a dry paper towel.

Use double sided sticky tape to mount the card square with the embossing paste stencilled images on it centrally onto the card blank.

Card Idea by Janine

This is a surprisingly easy to make but intricate looking Christmas card. This card shows that peel off stickers can be used in so many different ways to brighten up any card making project.

What you will need to make this card:

1. White DL card blank
2. Dovecraft Metallic Foil A4 Paper – Red
3. Plain white card
4. Super Lever Craft Punch – Circle
5. Christmas Baubles Modern Peel Off Sheet – Pearl Glitter Gold
6. Christmas Baubles Modern Peel Off Sheet – Pearl Glitter Silver
7. Vertical Season’s Greetings Peel Off Sheet – Silver
8. Flower Corners & Simple Borders Peel Off Sheet – Silver
9. Needle & white cotton
10. Double sided sticky tape & plain sticky tape
11. Scissors
12. Fingerguard paper trimmer OR cutting mat, craft knife, ruler & pencil

Directions to make:

Trim 1cm off of the right hand edge of the front flap only on the card blank.

Use the Super lever circle craft punch to punch three evenly spaced apertures in the right hand edge of the front of the card blank.

Measure and cut out a 21cm x 3.5cm rectangle and a 17cm x 1cm rectangle from the red metallic foil paper and a 19.5cm x 2.5 cm rectangle from the plain white card. Use double sided sticky tape to stick these rectangles onto the left hand side of the front of the card blank in layers starting with the largest red foil rectangle, then the white card rectangle and then finally the smallest red foil rectangle.

Stick a set of Season’s Greetings wording stickers from the silver vertical season’s greetings peel off sheet down the centre of the inner red foil rectangle.

Measure and cut another rectangle from the red metallic foil paper that measures 9.5cm x 21cm and using double sided sticky tape stick this on the inside of the card blank on the side that you normally write your message but near to the centre fold line so that the foil shows through the circle apertures but does not show on the right where the strip has been cut away from the front flap.

Apply plain straight silver border strips on all four edges of the red foil rectangle inside the card and also on the very right hand edges of both the front flap and the inside flap of the card blank.

Stick some stars from the pearl gold and pearl silver Christmas baubles peel off sheets to the right hand edge of the inside of the card blank and also some more stars to the right hand edge of the front flap of the card blank.

Choose two bauble stickers from the pearl silver peel off sheet and one bauble sticker from the pearl gold peel off sheet. Stick all three baubles onto plain white card and cut round them with scissors, decoupage scissors work well for this.

Make a hole with the needle and thread the cotton through the top of one of the silver baubles, next thread through the top of the gold bauble and then finally through the last silver bauble. Stick several peel off stars to the back of the top bauble ensuring that some of them trap the cotton centrally on the bauble. Stick the very top of the cotton above the top circle aperture with some sticky tape positioning the bauble so it is central in the aperture then secure the cotton below the aperture, position and secure the second and third baubles in the same way in the other two apertures.

To finish your card off write your personal greeting on the back of the front flap to the right of the bauble apertures or use a metallic marker pen to write your greeting on the red foil paper inside the card.

Card Idea by Jill