Quick & Easy Hanukkah Cards

I found this Spellbinders menorah die way back in August, a lonely die sitting in a sale pile! But yay for me … it’s the perfect tool for some fast and easy Hanukkah cards. (Since Hanukkah starts at sundown Sunday, I need these NOW! Lucky for me it’s an eight day celebration!)

I cut menorahs from various white and silver scraps then built some fast card bases. For the blue card, I wanted a fast background, so I grabbed this old triple star stamp from Stampin’ Up! and stamped it a few times using a silver ink pad. A little Ranger Stickles for the lights on the candle and we’re good to go!

The background here is the envelope liner stamp from Hero Arts. The sentiment is also an old one from Stampendous.

For this card (above), I used the leftover scrap with the negative space! I wanted a sparkle, so I brushed on Plaid Extreme Glitter turquoise. I love this glitter — nice sparkle without the mess of applying glitter!) Here’s a close-up:

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Hanukkah to those to celebrate (the festival starts at sundown Sunday, Dec. 6. Get those latkes fryin’!)

 

Fabulous Finds Friday — Fiskars Tag Maker

I love, love, love making tags. There is something so appealing about decorating tiny little surfaces. Having a creative slump? Try making a few tags as a way to prime those creative juices.

The new *Tag Maker Punch from Fiskars is right up my alley. I love that the punch has three functions: it punches the tag shape, punches the hole, and sets an eyelet. Cool, huh? No annoying hammering.

Look what I made in about 10 minutes (it took me longer to find paper scraps than it did to punch these!):

I used mostly scraps to make these tags — and we all know how much I adore using my scraps! These tags are fairly simple and quick to make. But you could easily stamp and embellish to make tags with more flair.

There are currently four tag shapes: the rounded top one I show above, a traditional tag cut (like a shipping tag, on my wish list!), and two curvy label-tags with holes on two sides. The tags measure about 2″ x 3″ and the punch handles cardstock up to 80 lbs.

The Tag Maker accommodates two sizes of eyelets: 3/16 and 5/32. According to the company, these are among the brands tested that work: Recollections (Michael’s store brand) 3/16, ColorBok 3/16, Dritz 5/32 and Sewology 5/32. I have not tried any others (because I have to dig them out! I got so tired of having to hammer them in, I stopped using them! This will solve that problem.)

I also love that the Tag Maker perfectly centers the hole.

Here are some closer looks:

These were stamped using whatever was handy on my desk, including scraps from other projects (like the bright neon tag!)

These have some chipboard embellishments (an old K&Company set).

Love these tags made using leftover watercolor paper that had been colored with Ranger’s Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stains (another must have product).

And finally, look how I used up old greeting cards:

For more info, check out the Fiskars video here.

*Disclaimer: This product was provided to me to test by Fiskars.

Merry Christmas Tags

To those who celebrate Christmas, here’s my hope that your holidays are warm and wonderful!

I realize I’m a little late to inspire any Christmas tag making, but I’d still like to share some tags I made last week. These tags all used Formica chips left over from a years-ago remodeling project.

The tags above use paper from an old Hot Off The Press book; the fancy stickers are from K&Company. The “joy” is a stamp from Hero Arts and the glitter is from Martha Stewart.

The paper on these are also from HOTP. The snowman tag is also edged with  Vintage Glass Glitter from Art Glitter (901 Krystallos Shards) and the snowman rub-ons are old ones from PSX.

These, I think, are my faves:

Papers (including sentiments) from that same HOTP pack, the fancy stickers are from K&Company. The glitter on the Believe tag is Victorian Christmas by Sparkle & Sprinkle. It doesn’t show up well here, but it is sparkly and festive!

A fast Haunkkah tag. Stickers from K&Company, glitter from Martha Stewart.

May your holidays be merry and bright!

Last Batch for Hanukkah!

Here’s one more set of Hanukkah cards … this time using the dreidel motif! The dreidel is a four-sided spinning top with a Hebrew letter on each side, used to play a game. You spin the dreidel and “bet” (usually with candy or pennies) on which letter will come up when the dreidel stops spinning.

This simple tag uses a sticker from K&Company, glitter from Martha Stewart, adhered with Scor-tape, and a stamp (old-school spelling from Limited Edition.) My handy Tonic tag-and-ticket punch made the top shape.

This card came about by accident. I found this cardstock that I had cut using a Spellbinders die. It seemed the perfect spot to highlight this dreidel sticker (K&Company). I added some Martha Stewart fine glitter around the outside edge (using Art Institute Glitter Glue). Not crazy about the Happy Chanukah stamp, but oh, well….

Thanks for sharing this Hanukkah medley with me … and have a bright holiday if that’s your celebration!

Hanukkah Cards, Day 3

Hanukkah, as you may know, is not a Jewish religious holiday, but is a festival celebrating freedom. There are several symbols, including the menorah, or candelabra. There are nine candles on the menorah — eight smaller and one that sits taller than the others. The tall one is used to light the other eight. One candle is successively lit each night for the eight days of the celebration, until all the candles are beautifully aglow!

For more on the history of Hanukkah, try Wikipedia or My Jewish Learning.

Above is a card that highlights the menorah. The background Star of David (old Stampendous! stamp) was stamped in VersaMark Dazzle; the strip of glitter paper is from Paper Source; the sentiment (Stampendous!) was stamped in ColorBox midnight blue and embossed with a glittery Stardust powder. The crowning touch — the menorah — is a sticker from K&Company.

The next card didn’t come out the way my brain envisioned it (as so often happens!) but I decided to share it anyway.

I used a Mavy blue marker to color in the stamp (American Art Stamp) so I could show the eight-night progression! The final, fully-lit menorah, was stamped and embossed in Zing silver glitter powder. The white card seemed so … white… so I edged it with Distress ink Chipped China. I might add some Stickles Diamond to the candle flames.

Next up … deidels!

More Hanukkah cards!

Only a few more days until Hanukkah. And since the festival lasts eight days, you have plenty of time to get those cards made!

So here are some fast and easy Hanukkah greetings:

Cut a piece of Core’dinations purple to size, run it through a Cuttlebug embossing folder. (You can slightly sand the raised portion if you like to let the core color come through. I merely distressed the edges here. The paper is from the Tim Holtz Kraft Core collection.) I beliefe the cardstock base is from Stampin’ Up! The Happy Hanukkah stamp is a very old one from Stampendous!, embossed with Zing silver glitter from American Crafts. The other embellishments are stickers from K&Company.

Here’s another card using products from the same companies:

Thanks for joining me! More Hanukkah cards to come!

Hanukkah, the Fesitval of Lights

Hanukkah is so early this year (the first candle is lit Friday night, Dec. 8), it almost took me by surprise!

I made some fun cards to send (more on those later in the week), but I was sidetracked by the Keen-on-Neon challenge on the Moxie Fab blog. The challenge is to make neon holiday cards. What could be brighter for Hanukkah?!

Here’s a quick card I made using neon ink pads from Hero Arts:

(Hmmm…. looks a tad dark in this photo. But trust me, it’s bright!) The deidel is from American Art Stamp. I stamped it repeatedly on the white cardstock using those yummy neons. The sentiment (an OLD stamp from Stampendous!) was heat embossed using grapefruit pink Zing powder from American Crafts. The corners of the green scrap were cut using my Tonic tag-and-ticket punch (LOVE this punch!) The eye-popping green paper is from the Smooth and Silky collection from Die Cuts With a View.

I had to trim the deidel panel and had a perfectly good scrap left over. So I made a tag from a piece of yellow paper from the same DCWV pack:

I edged the piece in black to make it pop a bit more. The sentiment is an old one from Hero Arts.

Come back during the week for more Hanukkah cards — and stop by the Moxie Fab blog for great neon ideas! Thanks for stopping by.