Hi everyone! Welcome back to another Satur-YAY at The CLASSroom blog! We're celebrating the weekend by getting our craft on! I hope you're enjoying all of the wonderful things that this season brings. For a lot of us, it's a time of giving and receiving. And if you're like me, it's time to send out some thank you notes for all of those fabulous gifts you've received....and maybe even put some of those crafty goodies you received to good work. Today, I thought I'd get a jump on those notes and take you along as I create.
For thank you notes at this time of the year, I like to keep to a winter theme. I decided snowflakes were the perfect image for these cards. I also like to take a break from the red (since I've been using a whole lot of that lately) and bring in some fresh colors. I'm particularly digging the Pale Rose card stock from Bazzill. Truth be told, I was inspired by Julie's color scheme on THIS Hello, Monday post. I would recommend picking up some of this beautiful blushy pink card stock. It'll be perfect for Valentine projects.
I used a technique on this card called inlaid die cuts. This allows the surface of the card to remain flat. The die cuts nestle right in to the negative space created by the outer cut edge of the die. You can do this with any dies that you may have. And I'll walk you through all of the details of this technique in the video tutorial below.
I started by die cutting my card panel. I used the Stitched Snowflake Cutouts die from Poppystamps. I also used a stitched border from the My Favorite Things Homespun Stitch Lines die set. I love the interest and texture that the stitched details add to the card. I was careful to leave the snowflakes intact after I cut. I'll need all of those innards for the inlaid die cuts.
While I had my Big Shot out, I also cut a few more elements for my card. I cut the Stitched Snowflake Cutouts again from some metallic silver card stock. I also cut the Fancy Thanks sentiment from both the metallic silver card stock and my favorite vellum from the Essentials By Ellen line. I used the Memory Box Shimmering Snowflakes die set to cut a large vellum snowflake, which I'll layer up with the sentiment later on.
In order to inlay the die cuts, I need to have a landing place for them. I added some tape runner adhesive all over a scrap piece of white card stock. It's important that you have adhesive all over this backer piece, because that adhesive will hold the die cuts, as well as the inner parts in place. Once I was sure I had plenty of adhesive added to the the white card stock, I placed the die cut panel over the top.
I placed the silver die cuts into the negative space of the die cut panel. These fit right in to place. And I love this particular die because it's symmetrical, which means I didn't have to turn and turn and turn the die cut until I found the correct position (we've all seen my struggles with this in the past). ;)
Once the silver snowflakes were in place, I added the inner portions from the pink snowflakes. I laid the pink snowflakes right over the top of the silver snowflakes and then pushed them in to place with the side of my craft pick. Don't use the pointy part. You'll create divots in your paper. Once again, because the adhesive was all over the white backer piece, these pieces fall right in to place and are held securely in position.
I layered up my sentiment and vellum snowflake and added it to the bottom of my card front. To add a little more silvery sparkle, I created a messy nest of silver thread behind this grouping. I attached it to the card with a glue dot...quick and easy. I love layering elements like this to create interest and dimension.
I finished off the card by added some coordinating patterned paper and some sparkling clear sequins. The My Favorite Things Calm and Cozy Chevron patterned paper coordinates beautifully with the Pale Rose card stock. And you knew I couldn't finish this card without adding some beautiful sparkling clear sequins. They're the perfect finishing touch.
I also recreated this card and replaced the metallic silver card stock with some of the Deco Sheets from Tim Holtz. These self adhesive glittery sheets are a little more subtle than the usual glitter paper that I use. They're great for delicate die cuts because there's already adhesive on the back.
I'm loving this beautiful winter themed thank you note. It's feminine and sparkly. And while there's no gold, there's plenty of sparkle and shine to satisfy my need for all things shiny! I can't wait to send them to family and friends to thank them for the gifts I've received.
Don't forget to watch the video tutorial below. I'll walk you through the entire creation of this card.
It's your turn now! It's time for you to head to your crafty space, wherever that may be (your craft room, your kitchen table, your breakfast bar...), and get to craftin'. Remember you can do this inlaid die cut technique with whatever dies that you may have. I'd love to see your winter themed creations. Be sure to use the hashtag #EllenHutsonSaturYAY when you share your projects on social media so I can see what you all are creating.
Thanks for stopping by today! I hope you're inspired by this card project. Until next time...have a fabulous day and a very happy new year!
Watch The Video
You can watch the video in HD by visiting our YouTube channel HERE.
