Stamping 411 - A Candy Cane Christmas

Hello stamping friends!
As you read this, I am in Baltimore, MD for the Stampin' Up! Regional Event!
One of the things I love about being a demonstrator is the fun events we get to attend - they include stamping so you know they HAVE to be fun!
I'm especially thrilled that 8 of my downline team members are attending with me - some have never been to a Regional event before and I know they are going to have a blast!

Now that you know what I'm up to this weekend, how about a little stamping?!
Here is the great Stamping 411 sketch for the week and this time it was designed by our own Gretchen Barron.

I love this layout, but I discovered rather quickly that the panels on the sketch are deceptively large, but I adjusted by cutting down my paper and it worked beautifully - at least I think so! LOL! Here is the card I created for you:

The first thing you may notice is that I moved the bow over to make room for the focal point, but remember, a sketch is just a guideline - your creativity should work from that!

Here are a few measurements for you:
Whisper White card base: 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" folded to make an A2 card sized at 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"

Real Red layer: 4 1/8" x 5 3/8"
Whisper White layer: 4" x 5 1/4" run through the Big Shot with the Perfect Polka Dots Embossing Folder
These two layers were adhered together with SNAIL adhesive and popped up on Stampin' Dimensionals on the card base after I added the ribbon across the front.

Panel layers: Real Red cardstock: 1 1/2" x 3 1/4"
Candy Cane Lane Designer Paper: 1 1/4" x 3"
For good positioning, I lined up my card layers on a piece of Grid Paper and added my center panel first, then the two side panels. It looks pretty straight to me! :)

Here is a close up shot of the focal image:

This adorable stamp is from the stamp set A Cute Christmas - now I confess that I wasn't diggin' this stamp set at first -I struggle with "cute" most of the time, but I have used it so much and we aren't even close to Christmas yet! I am close to saying it's a must have - the DSP definitely is a Must HAVE!! But I digress.....

I stamped the candy canes with Real Red on Whisper White and punched them out with my
1 3/8" Circle Punch. I layered this on a piece of Real Red that was punched out with the 1 3/4" Circle Punch. I edged this with the 2 Way Glue Pen and dragged it through some Dazzling Diamonds Glitter to make it sparkle! It was then popped up on more Stampin' Dimensionals over the Blushing Bride Poly Twill Ribbon. I added a Rhinestone Jewel for a little extra something special, plus it tied in nicely with the three Rhinestone Jewels above the far right panel.

I created the bow with 8" of the Blushing Bride Ribbon and adhered it next to the circles with Mini Glue Dots. The last step for the card front was actually done after I stamped the inside (shown below) - I added some Crystal Effects to the candy canes to make them shine. Can't you just taste the peppermint now?!!

Here is the inside of the card:

I kept it simple and just added the main greeting from Christmas Greetings and stamped a border of candy canes across the bottom.
Don't you just love Christmas?! I can't wait to buy my first package of candy canes this year. I'll hang most of them on the tree, but a few will find their way into my secret stash to be enjoyed!

Be sure to visit the Stamping 411 Blog and see what the other Operators created with this layout this week. They are an amazing bunch of stampers and I know you'll be inspired! We'd love you to play along with us too!
Have a wonderful weekend and hug the ones you love!
~~Robin