Happy Sunday.
It’s the fabulous Stef’s turn to host our Paper Players challenge this week and she has a really fun, and timely, theme for us. I was inspired to bring out my favorite Waffle Flower dies – Open Book – and pair it with the Poinsettia stencil.
Here’s a sneak peek:
Oh, I just love this Open Book die! It really is one of my favorite all-time dies. Paired with the Poinsettia stencil it’s fabulous!
Here’s Stef’s theme:
I have always loved poinsettias. Up until recently I’ve always hosted Christmas Eve parties and poinsettia’s were always front and center. They were my flower of choice for every Christmas party. They are the image that always reminds me of Christmas. So, using my favorite Open Book die and this stencil was a no brainer.
I began my clean and simple card with the background. I really wanted something to ground the image, but it had to be something without color. I used the Waffle Flower Woodgrain Texture die for the base. I then die-cut the Open Book image twice. Once with white card stock, and the other with silver metallic.
I used my stencil on the white die-cut piece and added a sentiment from the Open Book Holiday Sentiments set. Once my stenciling was done, I fussy cut the inside pages of the book from the white cardstock and adhered them over the die-cut metallic version. I popped up the pages with foam tape and the card was complete.
Here’s my full card:
I hope you will join us and play along with Stef’s challenge. As always, the design team have some fabulous inspiration for you:
On a personal note:
OK… So, it’s the middle of November in Minnesota and it was 70 degrees yesterday. It has been so warm the last couple of days that we had to go out and water the new plants in the middle of November! Can’t ever remember doing that before!
This week gave us another milestone. We’ve lived in Minnesota since 1997 and prior to 2024 had never seen the Northern Lights. We saw them in October last year and again this week! We missed the announcement about the major storm on Tuesday, but did manage to see them on Wednesday. Wednesday’s show was nowhere near as spectacular as Tuesday, but, trust me, I will take seeing the Northern Lights regardless of how bright – or not – they are! I managed to get out and see them on two different occasions on Wednesday. It might have been pretty cold, but it was worth sitting outside with a blanket to see them!
As we don’t have a horizon line from our deck, we get to see them through the trees. The lights were green and pink and you can see both colors behind the trees. I love this photo because you can also see the blue sky. How amazing this sight is – it always makes me feel emotional!
After about 10 minutes, the colors faded to the palest pink, before everything went back to being dark!
I am hoping to get into my craft room to make some cards this week. In the meantime, warm hugs and prayers for those of you who need a little lift tonight.
Card recipe:
- Dies: Open Book – Waffle Flower
- Stencils: Poinsettia – Waffle Flower
- Background: Woodgrain Texture Die – Waffle Flower
Hugs
10 Responses
Jaydee, I love your Christmas ‘story book’ card! I just love Poinsettias, too! What a great way you’ve used this book die to create the pages – love it!
We say the Aurora’s as well – but we didn’t make it to 70 degrees… but I’ll take 60 in November any year!
=]
Your stenciling is amazingly beautiful, Jaydee, and I love the book die cut (let’s be honest, I love books no matter what!). I love the colors you chose for your poinsettias too. I totally forgot about the Northern Lights this week and didn’t even try to see them, so I’m glad I get to see your pictures. I think the trees in the foreground make the lights look even brighter in contrast, beautiful!
Jaydee, your book is delightful with the beautiful poinsettia stenciled on the pages. What a lovely image and pairing it with a metallic always makes a card a bit more festive and “fancy” imo! I love your Northern Lights photo; the colors are beautiful even if not as vibrant as the previous night. It’s a wonderous view you have through the trees, no matter what. We didn’t make it to a “dark” place to see them and there are too many lights around us for seeing them from the house, so I appreciate you sharing what you saw!
A beautiful card, Jaydee! I love the poinsettia stenciling. The image and your coloring of it are lovely. The woodgrain background was a perfect choice. Beautiful Northern Lights photo! I missed Tuesday night’s display, which were glorious here in Iowa. However, I didn’t have much luck seeing them Wednesday. I saw them once when I was growing up on the farm over 60 years ago, and it has been on my bucket list to see them again. Have a wonderful week!
Oh my! I can see why this book die is a favourite. I’ve admired it whenever you’ve used it and this is no exception. Layered up so the book has a cover and the texture of the background give the book substance. Another lovely card!
Your stenciling, image and background are all just perfect and beautiful! Poinsettias are just one of those flowers, much like roses, that are so universally loved.
Love that you saw the Northern Lights, and that the time was beautiful for the event (by that I mean, the sight not the cold). I lived to SD for awhile, so the cold is something that I remember well even though it was years ago.
Jaydee… how absolutely wonderful that you can see the Northern Lights!!! Just beautiful. As is this fabulous use of the book die!! Love it all.
Poinsettias are so synonymous with Christmas for sure Jaydee – and your stencilled book is just delightful and a lovely way of showcasing them. Fab aurora photos too – you are so lucky!
What a pretty “book” you’ve created! Love this stencil!
Jaydee, I am just trying to get over the gorgeous photos of the Northern Lights. AMAZING! I would LOVE to see this. Thank you for sharing!
This card is perfect! The stenciled book is lovely! Poinsettias are a favorite of mine! Love how it pops off the white background! Have a great weekend!