Sweet Stampin' Challenge ~ Christmas in April

Hey crafty friends, we have a fun challenge at Sweet Stampin' this time and it's with the aim to help us get ahead with our Christmas crafting! So come share your 'Christmas in April' cards with us! I have pulled out a set I made back at Christmas time but didn't get around to sharing. There are a few makes yet to post to be fair, I craft faster than I can post. Even though this set is very similar to a set I shared previously, I think they're different enough to warrant their own post! 

I've used three different VersaFine Clair Ink Colours to ink up the stamps on these lovelies. I painted water along the edges of the image panels to get a nice clean tearing down the sides. This is a clever trick which softens the paper fibres and gives you a little control over where the paper tears. It dries quickly and looks really rustic and cool. I've edged the designs with Distress Ink to distress them a little further. I also added glossy accents to the noses and eyes of the deer. It's a tiny touch that really adds that little extra detail. 

I used the fabulous papers from the Simon Says Stamp December 2025 Card Kit, which the stamp set is also from to create these cards. I love the plaids and patterns in this paper pack by Tim Holtz. I paired this version which was stamped with VersaFine Clair Pinecone ink, with the Noel word diecut from Satin Scarlet Organza Cardstock by Tonic Studios. 

This version was made in a very similar way to the one above, I just used a different plaid and diecut the same Noel Word Die from the Tim Holtz Vault Holiday Classic Christmas Sizzix Thinlits Die Set from Neenah Desert Storm Cardstock which I then inked with Walnut Stain Distress Ink around the edges. I decided to add a hessian twine wrap on this one too and added the sentiment to the left of the design. The twine is May Arts Ivory Twine. Love this stuff! My 'go to' twine, which I'm happy I can pick up from Simon Says Stamp now. My original roll I picked up from Amazon, but it's much handier to add to my SSS order and actually was cheaper too.

I did add a little sparkle to this deer's nose before adding glossy accents over it. If you look closely it has a goldy sparkle. I was just playing and trying different things, I didn't repeat it, as the Nuvo Midas Gold was not the perfect fit for these stamps. I hadn't intended to add the glossy accents over it, but it frankly looked weird on it's own. I was happily surprised by how much better it looked with the glossy accents over it and kinda liked it in the end!

I think this version is a little quirky but fun. Yes the bricks are sideways, but just go with me here, creative license and all that! They didn't 'fit' the other way, so I decided to just roll with it. This sweet deer was inked with VersaFine Acorn Ink. This is a lovely warm brown a little lighter than the Pinecone ink I love how it looks with this fabulous woodblock style stamp design. I used Walnut Stain to ink the sentiment again on this one. Just ran it over the edges once it was diecut with a big ink dauber, works a treat. All the paper edges on these cards were distressed with a Tim Holtz Paper Distressing Tool, but when I can't put my hands on it (because it's tiny and hides!), I just use my scissors, they work great too for distressing paper edges.

This final card, I chose a red striped paper, which I think looks so striking. I used VersaFine Clair Portabello Ink to stamp this version. I love this deep green tinged ink, it's very much the hue of Portobello Mushrooms! The Walnut Stain Distress Ink wasn't a good match for the Portobello Ink, so I switched to the cooler toned Scorched Timber Ink to distress the sentiment. Pretty good tone match there. All the sweet bows on the deer, were cut from red specialty cardstocks, I think I used two different ones, one is a little shinier and the other is the lovely Satin finish Scarlet Organza cardstock from Tonic Studios. The shinier one was from an old scrap, also Tonic Studios, but I can't locate the name. Tonic Studios have a great selection of Mirror Cardstocks. I'll link the one I know below. All the panels were mounted onto top folding card bases, I think I made them all with Neenah Desert Storm, but I may have used a couple of white bases too. 

Thanks for popping in today friends, I'll be back with another crafty adventures soon, until then, do check out the rest of the amazing creations my teamies at Sweet Stampin' have made for this challenge. You can click through on the banner above to this challenge. We do hope you'll join us for some early Christmas crafting! If you'd like to see my original post using this lovely card kit from Simon Says Stamp,  you can find that here. Hugs and happy crafting, Wends xoxo

(I share thumbnails to the elements I design with in order to make your search for them easier, in case you like something I've used. I do use affiliate links where possible, and so appreciate if you use these when shopping. They cost you no extra whatsoever but really help me cover the high postal costs to New Zealand. I am proud to design for the companies I do and always feel happy to share where my inspiration and where my crafty stash comes from. I am occasionally gifted products to use, but I only design for companies whose products I absolutely love and buy for myself. My opinions are always my own.)

Challenge Entries: