Christmas at Sweet Stampin' ~ A Sad Farewell

Crafty friends, I have some news to share tonight. As many of you will know, CASS is an offshoot of the Sweet Stampin' challenge. Over the years with changes on the team the connection between the challenges has loosened. Life can have a tendency to get in the way of things we love and Chris and I, the last remaining members of the Sweet Stampin' crew serving on both teams have had to step back, so it is with sadness, that we have decided to close Christmas at Sweet Stampin'.

But Charlotte and the remaining team will be starting a new challenge - Christmas Craft Creations! It will have many of the same team members, inspiration and format that you've enjoyed at Christmas at Sweet Stampin' and with a brand new look! We hope you'll join the team there for their first challenge starting in April. I know I will be and wish them every success with this new venture.

I want to take this opportunity to thank our awesome team for all their wonderful contributions over the years. Christmas at Sweet Stampin' started way back in early December 2012 and it's been a fabulous journey with lots of friends made along the way. It is sad to say goodbye but as one door closes, another opens and we are delighted that Charlotte and the rest of the team are going to create a new Christmas challenge and I hope you will lend them your support, by following and joining their wonderful new challenge just as you did Christmas at Sweet Stampin'.

The theme for our final challenge is Clean and Simple, which is always a popular theme, so we hope you'll come and play along for our final Christmas at Sweet Stampin' challenge. I created a few cards, all a variation on a theme. 

These cards have been created with a wonderful Simon Says Stamp Corbel Heart Die, that I've had a while but never had occasion to use before now. But as we say goodbye to Sweet Stampin' and the team, it felt fitting to use this beautiful die for these creations. I loved working with this gorgeous die for these Christmas cards and think it worked really well for sending love at Christmas. I used a Kaisercraft sentiment on the card above.

This was the 'most CAS' of my designs, white on white with just the pop of red from the heart and a beautiful sentiment I've had for so long, I don't recall where it's from. It's a red rubber one which I think may have been from CC Designs.

For this design, I added Washi tape with Swedish and German Christmas greetings. I scored either side of the tape to really draw it into the design. The greeting on this one is from Unity Stamps and I really loved the plaid paper with this design. I believe this is an Echo Park paper. I'll have to hunt those details down. 

I decided to use a little bling on this design, by adding a glitter cardstock behind the card front, that showed behind the heart, but also around the edge of the design. This photo doesn't do it justice, it's really sparkly and pretty in reality. The sentiment is another from the same older CC Designs Amy R Christmas set. 

As a special thank you and fond farewell from our Sweet Stampin' team, we've got the band back together! Chris and I have been joined by former Christmas at Sweet Stampin' teamies, Susan and Tracy and by our founder Abi for this special Swan Song and farewell. Thank you to my lovely teamies for joining us to give this challenge the farewell it deserves. There are special friends we make in our crafty journeys and these ladies I have shared many years designing with and count as very dear friends, so we thank you for all your support of Christmas at Sweet Stampin' over the years and look forward to seeing your entries for our final challenge. I wish Charlotte and the rest of the design team remaining, the best of luck with their new venture, I have a feeling they're gonna do great things!

Now the Swan Song Sweeties with arms linked and cocktails in hand are walking off into the sunset together. I raise my glass to you all! Love and hugs, Wends xoxo