Mountain Plains Crafters Christmas in July Blog Hop

Happy Friday and welcome to the Mountain Plains Crafters Christmas in July Blog Hop! This is the first blog hop I've had the privilege of being a part of, so I'm really excited. :) 

The ever-rad Clearsnap gave us three awesome products to play with: Colorbox ink, Smooch Spritz and Smooch pearlized accent ink! I've never used Smooch accent ink, so I was excited to try it for the first time. Here's what I came up with for our fabulous Christmas in July hop!

This is my absolute favorite Christmas stamp, Small Stuff Christmas from Unity Stamp Co! I used the Smooch Spritz in Cashmere to give my background some shimmer and texture. Next, I used the Colorbox ink in Saddle for both my sentiment and my tree. Note: Saddle is great for wood/branches when stamped off first! Then, I used the awesome Smooch pearlized accent ink in Spruce for my little pine needles; I really loved this stuff! Finished off with some glitter ribbon and a single red rhinestone and just like that, my first official Christmas card of the year is done! :)

Super big shoutout to Clearsnap for these awesome products; I am definitely going to be investing in more of the Smooch pearlized accent inks! The color is so pretty and shimmery and it layers so well. Woohoo, new craft supply discovery! ;)

I am going my own giveaway seperate from this awesome blog hop! I will be giving away one random stamp grab bag from Unity Stamp Co! This is super easy to enter using Rafflecopter below; this giveaway starts on Saturday and will run for a week, so stay tuned for the winner!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now it's your chance to win these awesome products from Clearsnap! All you have to do is comment on all the blogs listed below for your chance to win. The blog hop runs through this weekend, so don't delay!

Your next, and last, stop on the hop is the wonderful and talented Paula! Happy hopping!

Mustang Creations - Pam

Waving my Wand - Terri

Sheryl's Creative Corner - Sheryl

Mississippi McGyver - MariLynn

Meticulosity - Debra

Caffeinated Papercuts - Jennifer

Christina's Creations - Christina (you are here!)

Scrap Addict's Attic - Paula

Growing in Unity: Day Five!

This week has flown by; I'm a little sad that my GIU week is up--tear! Since it's my last GIU day and I've been feeling extra crafty the past couple of days, I have two cards for you today!

This first card I just drummed up last night for my mom's birthday this weekend; my birthday is the 12th and my mom's is the day after mine on the 13th! She and I are both wine drinkers, so as I was scrambling around my stamp collection trying to find something to make her the perfect birthday card, I remembered this gem of a stamp, Age and Wine!

(PS--Mom, if you're reading this right now, look away and close the browser!)

 

I'm kind of seriously in love with this card. I used this rich, burgundy pearlescent cardstock that matched the Raspberry Ripple ink so perfectly and is reminiscent of merlot! The scrollwork is an Anna Griffin Cuttlebug die and the flowers are by Recollections. Look closely; the largest red flower is glittery and there's a sheer fabric layer above it! They are so gorgeous together and really make the card.

Warning: This second card has some profanity, so if you are offended by that, please skip it. I made this card for a friend who was recently diagnosed with lung cancer, so I'd appreciate everyone refraining from leaving any negative comments! This stamp, F*** Cancer, is pretty straight to the point. I hate glitter getting everywhere, so I used some really rad glitter washi here for the diagonal stripes (you can't tell, but it's very glittery). I matched that with some gold sequins and threw on a couple of orange Doodlebug jewels to coordinate with the orange base. It took me a while to be able to make this card without tearing up, but my friend is done with chemo and remission is on the horizon, so yay. :)

That's it for today's post and my GIU week! I've had such an awesome week sharing my creations with y'all. Don't forget that later this month I will be doing a post-birthday crafty giveaway of some stamps and another crafty surprise or two! If you haven't liked my Facebook page...you know the drill.  ;)

Last, don't forget that all your comments on my GIU posts this week put you into a drawing for two Unity Stamp Co itty bittys of your very own, so make sure you've commented on all five posts and cross your fingers! Thank you for stopping by this week and have a great weekend! <3