Spring Has Sprung, Merry Christmas

I know it is early spring, so I can’t even say I’m doing Christmas in July, but I do have a Christmas card for you today. I was playing with my Stamparatus, and wanted to use a stamp in a non-traditional way, and following my nose (or my stamps, ink and paper), I ended up at Christmas!

The Global Design Project has a sketch challenge, and this seemed to fit the bill, so I threw Christmas caution to the wind, and here we are. This is the sketch for the challenge.

The stamps are from the Wonderful Romance stamp set, so you wouldn’t immediately think of them for Christmas, but Stampin’ Up! stamps are very versatile, so thinking outside the box can help you create lots of fun cards, and really give you flexibiltiy with your supplies. This leaf sprig makes a wonderful wreath, and it was easy to create with the Stamparatus.

This is a template I made for making circles with my Stamparatus. To make your own, simply cut a window sheet the size of your Stamparatus platform. Then cut a piece of cardstock for your biggest square (it can be any size you like, I started with one that was 4 1/4 inches square. Use the grid paper underneath to line up the points of your square and trace around it. Turn your square 90 ° and repeat. Then trim your square to be 1/4 inch smaller, and repeat. I alternated colours for my outline so it is easier to see which square you are using. Continue this pattern until you have as many squares as you like. Then watch how it all comes together when you use your template.

To make a card with a circle, place a square of card stock on your template. Position your chosen stamp on the cardstock, cover with the Stamparatus plate and you are ready to start. Ink and stamp your first image. Turn your paper 90° and line it up with the square on the template. Ink and stamp again. Continue this until you have completed a full circle (or less if you like!).
Use your second plate to add the Real Red berries in the same way, stamping the leaves and the berries each time before you turn your card stock.
And there you have it, once you have a template it is really easy to create all sorts of beautiful cards.
I store my template with my Stamparatus in the beautiful Craft & Carry Stamparatus Bag.

To finish my card, I stamped a Merry Christmas greeting and cut it out with the Rectangle Stitched Framelits Dies. My background is Garden Green card stock, embossed with the Tufted TIEF - one of my favourites.
And there you have it. Why not think outside the box and give this card a try!