{nerdspecs gets crafty}

~ adventures in rubber stamping & scrapbooking ~

Saturday, December 25

Happy Holidays!

This is the card our family sent out this year. Aren't we the cutest little snow family ever? :)

(The inside says "from all of us")

Have a wonderful Christmas, everyone!

Friday, December 24

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 12

On the 12th Day of Christmas ...

Santa Fox!
Eek! I just love love love this card. Isn't mister fox just so handsome in his santa hat? And look at his little bird friend riding along on his back. Too cute! Now, I don't know if anyone else has put the santa hat on the fox, so I can't take credit. I do know that I hadn't seen it done and litterally squealed out loud when I realized the hat was a perfect fit for him. :) I was wishing I had a stamp that said Ho Ho Ho, and remembered I had the Yo Ho Ho stamp ... so I made it work! I also used the shadow trick with my Warm Grey No. 2 - just traced around the fox to make him stand out in the snow a bit. And an Onyx pearl on his nose ... hee hee! :)
That wraps up my 12 Days of Christmas blog event. I hope you enjoyed the creations I've shared! Happy Holidays to you and yours ... from me and mine. :)

Thursday, December 23

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 11

On the 11th Day of Christmas ...

Elegant Ornaments!
This stamp is just so versatile. It looks great in traditional Christmas colors of red and green, but I dare you to try some other colors as well! I've made some cards just like this one but in different color schemes - two shades of pink, purple, or blue. Or just red and white! The possibilities are endless. This is definitely a stamp you need in your holiday collection. :)
Can you believe it's almost Christmas?
See you tomorrow for one of my favorite little cards of the season. :)

Wednesday, December 22

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 10

On the 10th Day of Christmas ...

Rocket Elf!
I've seen a few similar creations from fellow A Muse creative team members. Isn't it just too fun? A little tip with the Cityscape stamp ... simply outline the buildings with Warm Grey No. 2, and fill in a few random windows with Buttercup Yellow. Ta-dah! Love this look.
See you tomorrow!

Tuesday, December 21

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 9

On the 9th Day of Christmas ...


2011 Desktop Calendar!
The downloadable calendars from A Muse are so much fun to design, and they make a great gift! There are a few people on my list who will be receiving one of these treasures. :)
(For information about the calendars, see this post on the A Muse blog.)
(the size used in my sample is A2 ... fits perfectly in a CD calendar case!)
See you back here tomorrow with a fun card design!

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 8

On the 8th Day of Christmas ...

Girl with Sled!
I think she's just the cutest with her sled of pretty gifts. I especially love the color combo of red, pink, and grey. And that fat gingham ribbon! Love.
Don't forget ... all holiday stamps are 50% off on the A Muse website!
Sale ends today, so get shopping!
See you tomorrow with a great project idea!

Sunday, December 19

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 7

On the 7th Day of Christmas ...

Let Heaven and Nature Sing!
I'm in love with the colors and glitter on this card. I wasn't sure about the snow bunny until I used him ... isn't he just adorable? I was inspired to cut out the sentiment like that after seeing a card by another A Muse Creative Team member, but I can't remember who it was. Thanks for the inspiration! :)
Bonus! All of the stamps used on today's card are ON SALE NOW at the A Muse website!
Have fun shopping!

Saturday, December 18

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 6

On the 6th Day of Christmas ...


A Sparkly Berry Wreath!
I just love the wreath & berries stamp. The berries are mounted on the end of the stamp so you can use them or not! For this card, I chose not to use them. Instead, I used a bunch of red Twinkle Stickers to make clusters of berries! Gotta love all that bling!
Bonus! All stamps used on today's card are ON SALE NOW on the A Muse website!
Have fun shopping!
Happy Saturday! See you back here tomorrow!

Friday, December 17

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 5

On the 5th Day of Christmas ...
Mini Matchbook Treats!
Aren't they just the cutest little treats you ever did see? I've been making these little treat holders ever since I saw them on the A Muse blog sometime last year (I think). I forgot to snap a photo of the inside of one of these cuties, but there's an individually wrapped Life Saver candy hiding out in there! It's fastened in by a brad. You could also use a tiny stapler, if you have one. I personally have a TON of random brads in my stash, so this is a perfect way to use them.
The measurements on this are 1.75" x 5". Here is the template. You can get exactly 4 mini matchbook treats from one A Muse 4-Bar Notecard! How great is that?
You can change these up any way you like, but here's what I used on these three.

Thursday, December 16

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 4

On the 4th Day of Christmas ...
Snowfakes!
I love a good blue and grey color combo for wintery cards, don't you?
But I have to be honest ... I'm just about done with snow for the year! Last weekend, a blizzard hit and left 20+ inches of snow in some areas. I've never seen anything like it! We were literally "snowed in". Although, the silver lining is that it gave me a chance to sit down and make a bunch of holiday cards that might not have gotten made otherwise. ;)
See you back here tomorrow for a little Day 5 project!

Wednesday, December 15

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 3

On the 3rd Day of Christmas ...
Ice Skates!
COPIC Begonia Pink, COPIC Tender Pink
I designed this quick card for a craft sale a few weeks ago. My friend and I have a little place called Happy Place Greetings. You can find this card (and many other fabulous creations) at our Facebook page. If you're on Facebook, we hope you will Like us!
Hope you enjoy this simple and sweet card! See you tomorrow!

Tuesday, December 14

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 2

On the 2nd Day of Christmas ...

Snow Baby & Birdie!

Isn't he just the cutest little snowman? I love how his little birdie friend is wearing earmuffs.

Supplies: Snow Baby & Birdie, Chill of Winter, Navy Solid 4-Bar Notecard, Petite Gingham Blue Paper, White Shimmer Couture Solid Paper, Swiss Red Sheer Ribbon, COPIC Lipstick Red, COPIC Apricot

Monday, December 13

12 Days of Christmas ... Day 1

On the 1st Day of Christmas ...
An Advent Calendar Project!


Jen posted about a fun Advent Calendar project she put together, and included a couple of links to similar projects. I chose this free one offered at Ormolu. It was so much fun to make!

I printed the tags on some A Muse Green Vintage paper. After trimming them out, I decorated the backs using the Birthday Builder Set, Floral Snowflake, and the snowflakes from the Peace & Cheer Set. You can't forget about the sparkle ... Clear Twinkle Stickers to accent the snowflakes, and Martha Stewart Onyx Glitter to accent the numbers. I also made a few matching tags for the gifts.

Half of the tags say "surprise - open a gift!", and half the tags have an activity on it - "bake Christmas cookies" or "snuggle up and watch Elf". :) The gifts are nothing major ... a book, a small craft project, a $1 bin item, some fun stickers and a cool pen. I think this is a great alternative to a store bought chocolate advent calendar! It was fun to make, and Lily has been anxiously awaiting today to start with Day 1. I'm really looking forward to the activities because each year we have really good intentions, but plans seem to fall by the wayside in all of the holiday hustle and bustle.

Hope you like this project! There's still time to put one together if you want. Have fun!

(As a side note, I'm thankful that I took these photos yesterday. I woke up this morning and our sneaky kitten had ripped open one of the presents. He smelled the pen and had to have it! He's a silly cat who loves pens. *sigh* Guess I have some re-wrapping to do today!)

Sunday, December 12

12 Days of Christmas ... Coming Soon!


Our kitty Hooligan is ready for Christmas ... are you?

Stop back tomorrow for the 1st day of a little 12 Days of Christmas event here at Nerdspecs Gets Crafty.

There will be 12 days full of cards and projects for the holidays - sure to get you in the spirit!