Trees for Two Seasons

Hi everybody.  I've been trying to get some Christmas cards done but haven't got very far, but I made this one with CAS Christmas in mind as they are asking for Trees, and made a second different card using the same trees so I could enter the Twofer Challenge where we have to make two different cards for two different occasions using the same stamp, stencil or die, and have made it by a whisker for both challenges.  

Here are the two cards together for the Twofer Card Challenge entry using Tree Trio by Crafty Individuals.

 

For this first card I stamped on to a snippet of white card using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink and then added the blue sky using Stormy Sky Distress Ink smooshed for a watercolour look, and then with a waterbrush I added some well watered down Picked Raspberry DI to the horizon, not showing up too well in the photo.  I then embossed with a snowfall stencil and added some white liquid pearls over the top of the embossing, and a few more as well..I think I got a bit carried away so instead of gently falling snow it looks like a blizzard..lol.  

I then added some white acrylic paint to the foreground and stippled it a bit to give it a nice covering of snow, and also ink blended around the edges of the sky with Adirondack Stonewashed Ink before adding the sentiment again using the Nocturne Ink heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss Embossing Powder.  I decided to add it on to a snippet of silver mirri card before adding it to the slimline card.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

CAS Christmas Card September Challenge - Christmas Tree (this isn't as CAS as I first intended so hope this will be acceptable.  This is a very late entry so please ignore it if it doesn't fit into the CAS category)
Pixie's Crafty Workshop - No. 387 Where we use up our snippets of card and paper etc.
The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge - No. 79 Anything Christmas Goes.
ABC Christmas Challenge - 'S' for Snowy or 'T' for Tinsel.
Merry Little Christmas September Challenge - No. 26 Anything Christmas Goes.

 

This second card started with the background using some more autumn colours, and made with some Brushos - Lemon, Orange and Emerald Green, and Pixie Powders  - Gold and White Pearl which have given it a lovely shimmery finsh but it doesn't show up in the photo unfortunately.  I then die cut the square from the centre using a stitched square die and stencilled the Funky Fossil Leafy Mandala to the corners using Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink.   I added the CI trees to the stitched square, minus a little bit at the bottom, using Versamark and heat set with WOW Metallic Copper Embossing Powder and stamped the sentiment using Versafine Vintage Sepia Ink heat embossed with WOW Clear Gloss EP.  I put it all together on to a white 6" square card and inset the tree topper into the background.

I am entering this card into the following challenges:

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge - No. 290 All About Occasions.
The Card Concept Challenge - No. 140 Fanciful Fall.  (I have used the Mixed Media Style with stamping, stencilling, heat embossing, die cutting and watercolouring)
Stamping Sensations September Challenge - The Great Outdoors.
NBUS Challenge - No. 18 Using our Never Before Used Schtuff.  (My CI Tree Trio stamp and the Leafy Mandala stencil are both getting their first outing)

Thank you for visiting the blog today and I hope to see you again soon.