Holly Wreaths and Mistletoe…

This post was sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. Thanks, Simon!

Hi there! I am back today with my first holiday card for 2023! (My first card that I’m sharing on my blog, anyway-been working on holiday cards for upcoming releases since April!) I am planning to share a holiday card on the 25th of my blog each month, hopefully giving me the opportunity to use some of the beautiful holiday products that I always seem to run out of time to use before Christmas each year. This month, a mere six months before Christmas, I have pulled out the absolutely stunning Center Cut Holiday Poinsettia stamp from Simon Say Stamp. I’ve used this stamp set only once before, to make one of my Christmas Cards in 20 Minutes Or Less series on YouTube from a few years ago (you can check out the video HERE), but I couldn’t resist pairing it with my colored pencils to create this festive monochromatic holiday card! Let’s get started with the details.

I started with a panel of cherry red cardstock cut down to A2 size. I then stamped the Center Cut Holiday Poinsettia in the center of the panel using white pigment ink. I prefer to use white pigment ink with colored pencils on colored cardstock, because it seems to blend more seamlessly into the colored pencil, while no-line coloring ink or coordinating colored ink might simply become intensified depending on the type of colored pencils you use. I used Caran D’Ache colored pencils to add tons of color and dimension to these poinsettias, foliage, and berries, judiciously using my white pencil to add a base layer of white on some areas, which helps the colors blend seamlessly together while also allowing them to pop from the vibrant background. Coloring this beautiful and intricate image took a few hours, but I think the results were totally worth it!

Once I had finished coloring, I die cut the gorgeous Peace on Earth Scripty Die once from red foil cardstock and twice from white cardstock, adhering the three layers of cardstock together to create a dimensional die cut greeting. I used red foil cardstock to help differentiate the sentiment from the somewhat monochromatic background. The textural difference between the red background cardstock and the foil cardstock, as well as the extra layers of height, helps make the sentiment pop from the vivid background.

I adhered the greeting in the center of the penciled panel using liquid adhesive. To add a little more interest and to create the look of a vignette, I blended some Redwood Fresh Dye Ink around the edges, helping to keep even the corners of my card front interesting. Finally, I added some gems for sparkle!

I love how elegant the vibrant cherry red looks in each of the different elements of the card. So festive! Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a marvelous day!