Saturday, October 16, 2010

Non-traditional Christmas Colours!! (oh, and how about a sneak peek??!!)

Good morning stampers! I've got my post for today scheduled as I'm currently at Scrapfest with Kimmie, her hubby Al, her daughter Emileigh and some of the other Krafty Girls (Krista, Vicki and Tara)!! If you're attending, make sure to stop by the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps booth to say hello and to do some Krafty shopping!

We've got a great challenge today at the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog... "Non-traditional Christmas Colours"! So, resist the urge to reach for your red and green supplies, and let's get creative using something unexpected!

As an extra treat, the Krafty Girls have all used stamps from the upcoming October release!! We all fell in love with these stamps as soon as Kimmie showed them to us, and we've had a great time creating with them! The official release day is set for this Tuesday, October 19th, and we'll of course be having a Blog Hop that day to celebrate! In the meantime, you will be able to see sneak peeks each day by the Krafty Girls and Krafty Guests leading up to the release...just make sure to check out the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog for a list of all the participants in the previews each day!

For my card today, I used the adorable "Christmas Clara" by artist Annie Rodrigue. I was thrilled to see this stamp, as The Nutcracker Ballet holds a special spot in my heart. For two years, my daughter Ainsleigh performed in a local production of the ballet. Both those years, intense rehearsals began in August. It was such a high quality production...we even had two professional dancers from the National Ballet of Canada come to dance the roles of the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Cavalier. What a fantastic opportunity for our girls to meet and dance with professionals. Actually, I got to play the role of the maid during Ainsleigh's second year. It was so much fun! Now, Ainsleigh did not actually play the role of Clara, but one of the roles she played both years was a "party girl"...all dolled up in a Victorian gown, with lots of ringlets in her hair (well, that was really courtesy of a hair piece worn over her bun, lol) and beautiful bows. So, my heart melts just a little when I look at this stamp!
Ok, back to the card! Christmas Clara was stamped with Memento Ink on Neenah smooth cardstock and then coloured with Copic markers. These gorgeous papers are from Bo Bunny...definitely not "traditional" Christmas colours. Ok, well, there is green on them, but not the same dark shade of green that we usually think of at Christmas. I love these papers...think I'm going to buy a few more sheets! I used a Martha Stewart border punch on the white layer, just to add a little visual interest. The bow was tied with my Bow-Easy and I of course had to add some Stardust Stickles to the Nutcracker's attire. The sentiment I used comes with Christmas Clara, and I think it's just perfect for her.




Copics: Skin: E0000, E000, E00, E11, R20 Hair: E31, E33, E35, E37, E50, E59 Dress: BG000, BG10, BG11, BG72, BG75, BG99 Nutcracker: YG00, YG11, YG67, YG99, RV000, V01, V12, V09, E50, E41, E42, E43 (the colours for the Nutcracker are from memory as I forgot to record them, so chances are I left a few out...sorry about that)

We'd love to have you join in with our Non-Traditional Christmas Colours Challenge this week...just make sure to use a Kraftin' Kimmie Stamp on your project (find them HERE) and you just may be the lucky winner of one of the fabulous brand new October stamps! For some great inspiration, head on over to the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog to check out the fabulous projects by the Krafty Girls and Krafty Guests...you can also link up your entry there.

Don't forget to visit the Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps Blog over the next few days to see more sneak peeks...and the official release day is Tuesday!! You know what that means, right?? Blog hop time!

Have a wonderful day stampers!

Blessings,

Melanie
Stamps: Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps "Christmas Clara"
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Bo Bunny
Ink: Memento, Copic markers
Embellishments: Martha Stewart Punch, Stardust Stickles, ribbon

7 comments:

Tracey said...

Seriously!?!? Your colouring just blows me away each and every time Melanie. This is incredible!! Absolutely gorgeous card!!

gobeagirl said...

Hi Melanie. WOW, you can actually feel her hair. You have done a spectacular job with your coloring. OMWord I love this card. Have a great day. Hugs, Lisa G

Kim said...

Melanie this is absolutely GORGEOUS hun! WOW what a beauty!!! Seriously I really do want to color like you when I grow up! hee hee!!! Love it and LOVE the new stamp...can't wait to see the rest of the release! Hope you are having a wonderful time at Scrapfest...so wish I lived closer so I could come and meet you!!!
Hugs~ Kim

Shannon Erskine aka e3stamper said...

Love the colors and dp you used for this card Melanie! Beautiful card!

Kirsty said...

My but your work is spectacular! I love it!

Jenn Joncas said...

She is absolutely gorgeous Melanie!! I love the colour combo (it looks like a few other people do too (: ) I hope you had a good time at Scrapfest!!

Michele Boyer said...

Gorgeous! Her hair is amazing! I LOVE how you add all the lines! I don't know how you do it... :)