Criminal Grace

The fabulous A-Muse-a-Palooza stamps, this month’s A Muse Lounge challenge, and a few publication calls really put me in a holiday state of mine. And the miserably hot weather had me wishing it were more than a state of mind. I just hummed a few Christmas carols and stood closer to the air vents in my craft room.

I ended up making quite a few holiday cards this month, but this tag is probably my favorite. It was hard to photograph, but the windows are a shimmery gold that makes them seem to glow with warmth.

Stamps: winter houses, Elegant Winter clear set from A Muse; Paper: Irish green cardstock from A Muse; kraft cardstock from Bazzill; Ink: rich cocoa and ladybug Memento; Other: slot punch by Stampin’ Up; threading water border punch from Fiskars; twinkle stickers from A Muse; white Prismacolor pencil; Copic markers; gold Gelly Roll pen; red twill tape; hemp twine

This card and the tag above are a testament to my love of A Muse’s winter houses stamp. I’ve made a bunch of cards with it, but can you believe this is the first that I’ve really colored in? And I still haven’t colored the entire row. The skinny house I highlighted with color found it’s counterpart in the Irish proverb “may your house always be too small to hold all your friends.”

Stamps: winter houses, Irish Proverb, Elegant Holidays clear set from A Muse; Paper: vintage green, swiss red cardstock from A Muse; kraft cardstock from Bazzill; Ink: rich cocoa and ladybug Memento; Other: white Prismacolor pencil; Copic markers; gold Gelly Roll pen; ribbon; hemp twine; heart pin

This clear set has been pretty neglected since I won it last year. It has all kinds of subtle texture courtesy of Versamark and an awful lot of clear embossing powder. I even inked the edges of main panel for a little extra character.

Stamps: Elegant Winter clear set from A Muse; Paper: Irish green from A Muse; kraft cardstock from Bazzill; Ink: Versamark, Cottage Ivy Memento; Other: clear embossing powder; hemp twine; Spellbinders Nestabilities Labels 1

Finally, something with the new A-Muse-a-palooza stamps! I am all kinds of happy that many of the new sets, including the ones I used on this card, are cling rubber. Instead of a wood block, the rubber and foam is backed with a smooth cling surface so that it will stick to a clear block. They’re not see through like clear stamps, but they are more visible than a wood-mounted. And they take up a lot less space in the studio and budget.

Stamps: Holly and Berries, Holiday Labels cling stamps from A Muse; Paper: fern, currant, natural cardstock from A Muse; Ink: always artichoke from Stampin’ Up!; rhubarb stalk Memento; Other: Marvy giga scalloped oval punch; Copic markers; plaid ribbon from Basic Grey

• totally psyched to ink up my new A Muse stamps now that Tom's in bed. #
• watching Tom stand on the lever for the gate, whining and wishing to be on the other side. #
• Hooray! Time for sausagefest! #
• Long day for Tom at Sausagefest. He passed out in the car at 5 and is still asleep. Wake him now or risk him waking up starving at midnight? #
• just realized that I used an old stamp on a card I created for the PaperCrafts call. Hope I have time to redo it before the deadline. #
• trying to remember that the toddler who upended the trash can this morning is the same one giving me sweet little kisses when I pick him up. #
• really, really need to get a handle on managing the people using my resource. I fear they've gone rogue. #
• Pottery Barn is taunting me with 10% coupons *after* we bought a bed from them. Maybe they want me to buy new bedding… #

I’ve been trying some new tricks in my cards lately in an effort to broaden my paper crafting horizons. Last week, Paper Crafts started showing off their new special issue, Card Style, and had me itching to branch out. The issue breaks down into four general styles: Fun and Cute, Clean and Graphic, Shabby and Vintage, and Classy and Elegant.

I would call my style Fun and Clean because it’s not often cutesy (at least in papercrafting terms) or graphic, but it is fun and simple. I think I can swing Elegant, but am a bit too reserved with the shine and shimmer that would make them Classy. And while I love vintage images and touches,  I struggle with layers and distressing that make it shabby.

When Cath encouraged readers to try each of the styles for the next Moxie Fab World challenges, I thought it was a perfect excuse to try something different. Here are my forays into each style:

Let’s Do Fun and Cute

stamps: pumpkin mouse and pick of the patch from A Muse; paper: blue petite gingham, black kitchen dot, natural, and sage cardstock from A Muse; ink: Memento Tuxedo Black; other: Pigma Micron pen; Copic Markers; grass punch from Martha Stewart Crafts

Look at that adorable mouse! Polka dots! Gingham! Border punches! Fun and cute is totally in my wheelhouse. It’s almost second nature, although I struggle a bit with adding embellishments, ribbons, and patterned paper. I want everything I add to a card to be either the most important thing or a subtle background element. I just can’t stand to take attention away from an awesome image/sentiment and give it to window dressing.

Let’s Do Clean and Graphic

stamps: elegant winter clear set from A Muse; paper: white cardstock from American Crafts; navy notecard from A Muse; ink: whisper white craft from Stampin’ Up!; other: white detail embossing powder from Stampendous; alpine trail edge punch from EK Success; frosted lace Stickles

That’s design philosophy is probably why Clean and Graphic is so easy for me.  I’ve been holding onto this card idea for years. It’s based on the shadowbox displays Hallmark created for their ornaments using navy backgrounds and a few layers of white hills with trees. I’m kind of smitten with the concept and the execution in this card.

Let’s Do Shabby and Vintage

stamps: miss you from A Muse; Pure Innocence 016 digital stamp by Heather Ellis; script stamp; paper: yellow petite gingham, red kitchen dot, and natural cardstock from A Muse; white cardstock; ink: bahama blue Memento; basic gray dye ink from Stampin’ Up!; old paper Distress Ink from Ranger; other: yellow ruffled trim from Maya Road; Copic Markers

Yeah. That philosphy is also why Shabby and Vintage is so difficult for me. This card took a lot longer than most and I still feel like it’s missing a little something. Maybe another ribbon with a charm? And now that I see it in a photograph, putting the sentiment on a little tag would’ve kept things more in the shabby and vintage style. This was also my first experience with a digital stamp, which is a lot like clip art, just designed with stampers in mind.

Let’s Do Classy and Elegant

stamps: baroque from Stampin’ Up!; holiday labels cling set from A Muse; everyday sayings clear set from Hero Arts; paper: basic gray from Stampin’ Up!; unknown white and red cardstock; ink: basic black and basic gray dye ink from Stampin’ Up!; ladybug Memento; other: ribbon from Michael’s; ruby slipper Stickles; silver Gelly Roll pen; apple punch from Martha Stewart Crafts

I’m comfortable with the bold ornamentation common in this style. And I like using it with big, graphic stamps. It’s just not my first choice. It’s a natural choice for Twilight-inspired cards though. Take a classy black and red card, add some shimmer, an apple or heart, and you’re in sparkling vampire territory.

So, what do you think about the different styles? What is your favorite to make? Is it different than what you like to look at? If you want more style examples, check out the other entries in the Moxie Fab World challenges. And for even more inspiration, check out the Dare to Get Dirty challenges on SplitcoastStampers that really drove the content of the cards above.

• Making good progress. Should be home by 2am. #
• woke up with a monster headache, got sick, took Tom to school, and made my way to work. Times like these, I really miss unlimited sick days. #
• still wants to go to Newport Folk. Not sure how to swing a two-day folk festival with a toddler and a hip-hop-loving husband. #
• Measure of a good husband: Jon didn't wait in line for his iPhone 4, but waited in line to get me a Droid X. #

1. Darn it. I missed a Tuesday.
2. Sort of. Last Tuesday I spent a little time sorting through photos I took over the long weekend and chose 10 to post here instead of my usual list. But the router at my Mom’s was on the fritz, so I never uploaded or posted them. D’oh. They’re super cute, so I’ll have to post them soon.
3. We had a nice vacation in Michigan last week. It involved ridiculous amounts of driving, but it was worth it to see my family. We didn’t make rounds to visit everyone, but we tried to spend a few days with each of my parents and grandparents. Not to mention my sister’s little family.
4. Tom’s new favorite word is Daddy. He doesn’t say Mommy much, but shrieks and whines an awful lot, so I’m assuming that’s his interpretation of my name.
5. Those swimsuits from Lands’ End were absolutely fabulous. For the first time in a long time I was able to choose the most flattering instead of only one that fit because they all fit so well. I went with the Beach Living V-neck Tankini in deep sea mini dots and Swim Mini in deep sea. And if the back-ordered swim shorts are a good price by the end of the season, I may pick those up too.
6. It’s been eight months, but I’m finally willing to admit that I’m glad we got the GPS in Jon’s car. In fact, I would kinda like one too.
7. I took a bag of crafty things with me to Michigan but only made one card (which I forgot to photograph and left on Mom’s mantel). I’m itching to get back at it, but can’t seem to build enough inertia to make it into the craft room when I finally have time.
8. I also have a couple months worth of photos to upload to my Walmart albums and Facebook. Sometimes it’s hard to narrow it down to just a few, but I don’t want to overwhelm anyone with the vast numbers of photos I take. Especially the duplicates. How many tiny variations in one photo does a person really need?
9. We won’t talk about how behind I am on my monthly letters/photos/milestones for Tom. *sigh*
10. We had family portraits taken while we were in Michigan. Some turned out better than others. Who knew getting three babies to look in the same direction at the same time could be so tricky? This is one of my favorite outtakes from the day: Tom running away, and sweet Cady petting little Elizabeth.