Life’s Natural Rhythm

A couple of days ago, I got sad news that a good friend and fellow stamper had lost her mother-in-law.  On that very same day, I received the joyous news that another friend and stamper had given birth to her very first child–a little girl.  I'm reminded again of the rhythm of life – one life gone, a new life begins.

Today I'm honoring a life well lived by Kathleen “Peg” Christensen, who had a remarkable 93 years with her friends and family.  Here's a special card for her son Alan and daughter-in-law Judy.

Because it was Alan's mom, I wanted a decidedly masculine card and Splitcoast's color challenge offered just the right pallette.  I used Bravo Burgundy, Basic Gray and Whisper White, with just a touch of Crushed Curry.  Lovely as a Tree stamp set seems my "go-to" stamp set for masculine cards.  I never get tired of it!  The sentiment is from Thoughts and Prayers stamp set; it's stamped in Basic Gray Classic Ink, as are the trees, and punched out with the Large Oval Punch, layered with Bravo Burgundy card stock punched with a Scallop Oval Punch.  A piece of Bravo Burgundy 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon knotted and wrapped around the Basic Gray card stock completes this simple card.

I'll get to work on a special card for that darling baby girl and share it with you soon!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:

Item No. 115026 Lovely as a Tree   $27.95
Item No. 113252 Thoughts & Prayers   $25.95
Item No. 114889 Scallop Oval Punch   $15.95
Item No. 107305 Large Oval Punch   $15.95
Item No. 109053 Bravo Burgundy 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon   $7.95

And the Christmas Card Ideas Keep Coming!

Here we go with some more terrific Christmas Card ideas!  This post will wrap up all the great Christmas card ideas from The Heartfelt Stampers team of Stampin' Up! demonstrators.  I feel l like I should say "and let's give these ladies a hand"!  Didn't they do a great job?

The first is from Debbie Rought of Middlesex, NY.  Debbie paired the Level 1 hostess stamp set Holiday Best with the trio of snowflakes from Serene Snowflakes stamp set for a great look.  The Big Shot and the Top Note Die made short work of creating this card, and Debbie did a wonderful job adding interest with the different layers, sponging, cotton ribbon and beads from the Red Bead Duo.

This card comes from Jacki Wrubel and uses the Sweet Treat Cups to make a "wow" statement!  Jacki stamped the Christmas image from the Level 1 hostess stamp set Holiday Best behind the cup, then filled it with artificial snow!  How fun is that?  Jacki's tree image is from Lovely as a Tree, still a fabulous stamp set after being in the Stampin' Up! catalog for years.  She stamped the tree with VersaMark added Iridescent Ice embossing powder and heat set it with the Heat Tool.

Next up is a card with a lot of interest!  Melissa created this fabulous card using Cold & Cuddly stamp set from the Holiday Mini Catalog.  I love her unusual color scheme; this card wouldn't be strictly for Christmas, but would work for any winter occasion.  Melissa took lots of time stamping then cutting out each individual component.  One of the "coolest" (no pun intended) ideas with this card is stamping the pieces of ice onto glossy card stock — what a great look!