Friday 4 September 2015

Sunflowers and Holly

Hello!

It has been so chilly and grey here that I have been more and more inclined to make Christmas cards....I am wishing the year away!  I should be enjoying the last days of summer with the boys as they don't go back to school until Tuesday. 

Anyway I was inspired by the challenge at Merry Mondays to feature holly and made two cards using beautiful stamps from Waltzingmouse Stamps:

 
I gold embossed the sentiment and gold embossed the leaves on to patterned paper before cutting them out.  The leaves are a good size so the variation of greens in the paper is a good alternative to colouring in! 

 
They are as simple as that but I love the trad festive colour combo of red, green and gold with lots of white space.
 
 
 
 
I will also link up to the spectacular embossing challenge at AAA Cards as the gold embossed sentiment and leaves give the cards a touch of luxury :)  Thank you LesLee - I will also link up at the Christmas Challenge over at Happy Little Stampers where the theme is holly too!
 
However, back to summer and here is a picture of my youngest with the sunflowers he has grown in our back garden...they have been blown down by storms twice but we have propped them back up.  They are a cheerful reminder that it is still (kind of) summer :)
 
  
 
Thanks as always for stopping by - I hope you are enjoying some blue skies and later summer sunshine!
 
Sarah x

20 comments:

  1. Beautiful card.. Love the CAS look... awesome sunflowers... you might want to link up at Happy Little Stampers Christmas Challenge.. their code word is HOLLY :)

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  2. This is just so gorgeous. Love the gold on that corner holly, with those dimensional red berries. Goes so lovely with the beautiful gold calligraphy on the bold sentiment. Also enjoyed the sunflower photos! Thanks for playing in the HLS September Christmas Challenge. TFS

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  3. Really gorgeous cards Sarah. LOVE those large holly leaves ... and like you said, perfect for paper piecing with the larger size to show off the pretty papers. Great CAS, elegant designs. Thanks for playing along at Happy Little Stampers. xx

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  4. Gorgeous Christmas card! thanks for linking it up to our embossing challenge at AAA Cards!

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  5. I do love to see a traditional Christmas card in traditional colours, love it! And how tall are those sunflowers, always a lingering reminder of the summer. Thanks for linking up at AAA Cards.

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  6. Awesome Christmas cards Sarah, I love the gold embossing and the DSP used as leaves. Thanks for joining us at Merry Monday.

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  7. Sheer elegance here Sarah, gorgeous embossing, great CAS designs and simply awesome.
    thanks for playing along at AAA Cards. Sarah x

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  8. Beautiful Christmas cards, Sarah ... the scripty sentiments are so elegant with the gorgeous traditional holly! Lovely to see those happy looking sunflowers ... they're huge! Hugs, Anita :)

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  9. So glad to see you here at Happy Little Stampers... great job on the card.. again I love the CAS look :)

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  10. Such a dazzling card! Absolutely love it's elegance! Wow! Your boy and that sunflower are precious! Love that clear blue sky above him too! Picture perfect! Xx

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  11. What a crisp card!
    And the sunflowers are like a last farewellwave of summer; great pics!
    Hope that it stays a little bit warm here so we can have a smooth roetsj into autumn... But can understand that you started making those cards... I start after the summerhollidays, but can't set me to them jet... I just want to enjoy all the seasons I think... Higs, Gerrina

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  12. This is beautiful, Sarah. Love your design and all the gold, so festive.

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  13. Your holly is FABULOUS! Thanks for playing Merry Monday with us!

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  14. Absolutely beautiful cards...CAS perfection!! Love your cheery sunflower pictures too...they definitely make you smile!! :0)

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  15. Wow - those sentiments are gorgeous! More for my list.... I just love the simplicity of both cards - the little pop of color and great embellishments. Thanks so much for playing along with our Christmas challenge at Happy Little Stampers! :)

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  16. Gorgeous cards ..... I love the CAS designs. xx

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  17. Your cards are so elegant with their gold embossed leaves and swirly sentiments, Sarah. Love the sunflowers, too.

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  18. Gorgeous cards. Love those holly leaves and how you stamped them on patterned paper.

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  19. Love the large holly leaves embossed on gold on the patterned paper. Both of your layouts are fabulous! Thanks so much for joining our Happy Little Stampers challenge!

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  20. Great photos, Sarah! They are resilient flowers! Your Christmas card is stunning! It is flat and easy to mail, but it packs a ton of elegance and Christmas spirit!! Congratulations on the well-deserved HM from Merry Monday!! Hugs, Darnell

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