Christmas in July. Stamped Cards with Vintage and Antique Embellishments

I had a bit of time during the July 4 weekend to play in my studio, and inspired by the "With One Stamp" feature that Stampington publishes in Somerset Studio magazine, I decided to use one stamp and many different vintage embellishments from Bumbershoot Supplies and my personal collection to make a series of Christmas cards.

Each one is unique, but for every card, the stamp, colors, and and basic layout are the same. That made it easier for me - I felt my time was limited and I wanted results and I wanted them quickly!

I like this approach, since each card is as unique as each recipient, and I very much enjoy using the vintage supplies for purposes other than jewelry.

The stamp is Thicket Birds by Memory Box. I love this stamp, it looks just like my favorite place to walk, Discovery Park, Seattle, in the winter.  I purchased the beautiful thick creamy watercolor paper sheets years ago from Impress. For each card I used brown and red markers to ink the stamp, foil highlighting in red, gold or silver, brown striped fabric tape purchased from Stampington, and stitched in red thread with my sewing machine. These components formed the foundation of each card.

And then I added lots of different vintage embellishments.

Because life always seems so full, to make these cards I had to break the process down into very small steps.  Ink and stamp. Pick some orders. Stick on fabric tape. Answer emails. Pull out and audition embellishments. Do some data entry. Stitch each card. Talk with suppliers. Glue embellishments. Wrap up designs for shipping. Add foil highlights.... You get the picture!

There are lots of different vintage embellishments used in these cards, some you may recognize from Bumbershoot Supplies and some are perhaps less familiar. I love to use the original packaging materials whenever possible, so there are paper and strings that are from the 1940's and 1950's and were used to wrap buttons and rhinestones and cabochons.

We like to make as many Christmas gifts as possible, and now I feel great because I have made a good start on my Christmas crafting and I am emergized to continue!