Christmas Card Day 1 and Mix It Up Challenge Blog Time!

Yay! It’s the first of November, and if you have followed my blog for any length of time, you know that I post Christmas cards all through November and December. Today is Day 1!

Today we also have a new challenge up on the Mix It Up Challenge Blog!

Our theme this month is: Anything Goes + optional Open Technique (any technique you want – just specify which technique you used)

I spent a lot of time ink blending for my card, and here it is:

Supplies: Stamps: Avery Elle; Dies: Avery Elle, MFT, Lawn Fawn; Stencil: MFT; Inks: Tim Holtz Distress Ink and Distress Oxide; Markers: Spectrum Noir

I love this Avery Elle shark set so much. The sharks are so happy-and Christmas ready!

In fact, I liked this set SO much, I actually created six cards which you will see more of over the next few days.

To create all of the cards, I worked assembly-style.

I started with my background. I covered it with three different ink colors (lightest at the top, down to darkest at the bottom.) My go-to combination is Distress Oxide Speckled Egg, Distress Oxide Broken China, and Distress Ink Chipped Sapphire.

Once I was happy with the ink blending, I used a stencil and Distress Oxide Speckled Egg to create rays on top.

Then, I spent some time die-cutting and ink blending sand, rocks, and plants. For the sand I used Distress Oxide Antique Linen and Distress Ink Gathered Twigs. I used Distress Ink Pumice Stone for the rocks, and Distress Oxide Peeled Paint, Distress Oxide Rustic Wilderness, and Distress Ink Mowed Lawn for the plants. For the coral, I used Distress Ink Worn Lipstick, and Distress Oxide Abandoned Coral.

Then, I stamped and colored a bunch of sharks and accessories with my markers (Spectrum Noir CT4, EB5, BG2, BG6, DR5, and JG7.)

Finally, I stamped my sentiment, and assembled my cards.

I really love how this card (and all of them, really) turned out-pretty much just how I had it in my head, which is always nice!

Well, that’s it for today, but tune in Thursday for my next Christmas cards (there will be two!), and feel free to join us for this month’s challenge at the Mix It Up Challenge Blog!

Have a great day and Merry Christmas Card Time!