Cozy Christmas Fireplace Scene Card - Collab with Delaney Jane Cards - Christmas Series Video #3

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Hey Procraftinators! 
Today, I have a fun Christmas collaboration with my friend, Renee, over at Delaney Jane Cards. If you aren't subscribed to her YouTube channel, you are missing out! She is a very talented card maker and has a fantastic Christmas card to share with you today here. Make sure that you check it out, after you get done here! I'm serious, you don't want to miss it! If you got here from her channel,  then welcome to my channel and I hope you enjoy what you see! I am so excited to have you here.

So, today, I made a scene card with the Stamptember Heffy Doodle Filled with Love Stamp Set. You guys, this stamp set is just so incredibly cute that I couldn't resist getting it! In my head, I envisioned those stockings hanging in front of a fireplace. I don't have any stamps or dies of a fireplace. So, my first thought was to use my Cricut. I hopped on Design Space to look there, but I don't pay for Access anymore. They had a couple fireplaces, but honestly, nothing really struck my fancy enough to pay a couple bucks for an image. I looked on google and didn't really see anything with a creative commons license that I felt would be worth the time to try to trace using Sure Cuts Alot either. So, I decided I was going to try to draw my own. Now, you have to understand that this is a BIG deal for me. I don't draw. Not even a little bit. I may be crafty, but I am not an artist in that sense. However, I figured most of the lines would be straight and I had a brick stamp from Tonic Craft Kit #14 that would at least save me from doing the brick work. So, I used some of those google images of fireplaces as inspiration, grabbed my T-square ruler and got to work! 

Now, when it came to the part of the fireplace where the fire goes, I needed something round to start the shape. So, I just used a mini pot of gilding flakes. However, anything round and the size you need will do. Then, for the actual fire part of the fireplace. That was a complete hot mess! I couldn't draw a fire to save my life. So, I went into Design Space, found a fire image and cut it out of some scrap paper to use a stencil. This image, happened to be Free in Design Space. It's from the 3 Birds - Life's a Party Cartridge. They rotate their free cartridges often, so depending on when you are watching this video, the file may or may not still be free. 

After I had everything drawn out in pencil to my liking, I traced over it with a black pen. I used an old Creative Memories fine tip pen that I had in my stash. I can't believe it still worked and wasn't dried out, considering there thing is ancient! Any pen that will work with the medium you plan to color with is fine. I had originally planned on coloring with Alcohol Markers and had tested the alcohol markers with this pen and they didn't smear or bleed, so I was set to go. I used a ruler to make sure I was keeping my lines nice and straight. However, I couldn't see through the metal ruler and got careless with tracing my lines. I put pen where I had erased a line, but obviously didn't erase it will enough! I decided I was too far in to start over now. No way was I drawing this thing over again. So, once I was done tracing everything else with the pen. I used my sand eraser to get as much of that pen mark off as I could. Most of it came off, surprisingly. However, there was one dot at the top of my mark where my pen first hit the paper that was still noticeable. Plus, my paper was a bit marred up from so much sanding. So, I decided to change gears and instead of using Alcohol Markers, which we all know are transparent. I decided to ink blend Oxides over my mistake. Oxides have that pigment property in them, making them opaque. Which lend themselves better to hiding boo boos like mine. Sometimes, as a crafter, you gotta roll with the mistakes and get creative. Unless you enjoy throwing cards in the trash and starting over.... And I do not. Not to say that never happens, because that would be a lie, but I do try to avoid it if I can.

Because I decided to do ink blending instead of Alcohol Marker coloring, this card became kind of a masking nightmare, but that's ok. I rolled with it. I started by masking off the fireplace and ink blending the "walls" of my scene. I used 2in strips of post it note tape to mask off the main portions of the fireplace as well as the back of my card base and then I cut up the post it note tape to mask off the mantle and the hearth of the fireplace.  I ink blended the walls in Old Paper Distress Oxide and then I decided I wanted a subtle pattern to simulate wallpaper. So, I got out my Tim Holtz Polkadot stencil and blended Antique Linen Distress Oxide through it. Since the stencil is not as big as my card front, I had to move and line it up a couple times to fill the whole card front with it. Once I was done, I carefully removed the masks. I thought the Old Paper and the subtle polka dots in Antique Linen looked like an antique wallpaper, you might see at Grandma's house. It's kind of comforting.

Next, I needed to mask off the walls and work on the fireplace. Since this was a custom drawn image, I needed a custom mask. So, I cut out a piece of Avery Removable Label that was slightly larger than my card base. Then, I got out my Cricut Bright Pad. I placed the card base on the Bright Pad and the Label Paper over the card base. I left the backing sheet on the label paper for this step. I traced the fireplace onto the label paper. I carefully cut the center of the fireplace out of the label paper, leaving me with the negative to mask over my walls. I saved the domed part where the fire goes inside, so I could mask off that portion as well. I probably should've thought about this when I did my previous masking, but honestly, I just didn't. I carefully adhered the masks to my card front. To mask off mantle and hearth of my fireplace I just used post it note tape again. I didn't leave those parts of my mask in tact, because I didn't want to have to remove the mask to cut them out and then have to replace the mask again.  Once the masking was complete, I started inking up my brick stamp from Tonic Craft Kit #14, but any brick stamp you may have would work here. I inked it in Fired Brick and then I tapped the edges of the stamp with my mini ink blending tool with Aged Mahogany to give it a little variation in color. I repeated this until I filled up the entire fireplace with brick work. Sometimes, I would just take the stamp and dab on some of the Aged Mahogany and stamp over a previous stamping with that to add in a bit more of that variation in color. As I have said in previously, I really don't like having to double stamp with an acrylic block though. So, I didn't do a whole lot of that for fear I would mis-align my stamp and ruin the whole thing.

Once done with the brick work, I removed the center domed mask and traced it onto some more of that Avery Removable Label paper. I cut the dome out and placed that negative piece on my card front to protect my brick work. Then, I carefully cut the fire out of the dome mask and placed it on the card front.  It was time to ink blend the glow from the fire. I used Distress Oxides in Scattered Straw, Squeezed Lemonade, & Dried Marigold. Looking back on it now, I wish I would've used less Squeezed Lemonade or none at all. I did not get the contrast I was looking for between my fire and the glow around it. I wish I had realized that I wasn't happy with the lack of contrast between my fire and the glow sooner, but I didn't really notice until the piece fully dried.

Next, I placed the mask around the glow, before removing the fire mask. This helps make proper alignment easier. I used Distress Oxides in Squeezed Lemonade, & Spiced Marmalade on my fire. I maybe could've used more Spiced Marmalade to help with the contrast. Every card is a learning experience, in my opinion. 

After I was done ink blending the fire, it was time to ink blend the wood parts of my fireplace. I moved the masks that were protecting those areas so that they now protected the brick work on the fireplace. I did flip the masks around just in case the ink was still wet on them, as I didn't want to contaminate colors at this point in my project. To color these portions of the fireplace, I used Walnut Stain & Vintage Photo Distress Oxides. I did not worry myself with getting a perfect blend here. Wood is not perfect, so I didn't really want perfect. I wanted variations of color. I started off with Vintage Photo and laid down most of my color with that. Then I went in with Walnut Stain and added a bit of variation here and there. Once done with that, I could remove all the masks and reveal the majority of my scene for this card.

Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about those adorable critters in the stockings! We are going to stamp those out now! I used Gina K Amalgam Ink to stamp out the Snowman and Reindeer from this adorable set. I used the residual ink to stamp on a scrap piece of the Avery Removable Labels so I could mask off the critters and stamp the stockings for them to hang out of. I think part of the reason I was so drawn to this stamp set is that I have a stocking kinda like this. Mine is a panda bear though, as a play on my first name, because of course, when I was little I was Amanda Panda. I only needed to fussy cut the bottom portion of the masks, so that's all I did. Why subject myself to more fussy cutting than I absolutely have to, right? When I stamped out the Snowman's stocking, I was lazy and didn't want to clean the stamp. Usually, I have a dedicated piece of acetate that is cut to fit my stamping platform, but I couldn't find it. So, I just used the back of the stamp packaging. Works in a pinch. I ended up stamping the stocking  too low and I did not like it. So, I just stamped him out again, while I had all the stamping supplies out. No biggie, I had enough room on the piece of cardstock. I was much happier with my second try. I colored both of the images off camera with my Master's Touch alcohol markers from Hobby Lobby. I'm not really a pro at alcohol marker coloring and didn't do anything fancy. Once I was done coloring, I fussy cut both images out right on the outside of the black line. I was unable to purchase the images with the dies. I glued them flat to the card base with Ranger Multi Matte Medium.

To finish the card off, I stamped the sentiment "May all your stockings be filled with love this Christmas" from the same stamp set. I love this sentiment! I think it is adorable and certainly a unique Christmas sentiment to add to my collection.

I hope you enjoyed this Christmas video and don't forget to check out Renee's video over at Delany Jane Cards. If you enjoyed my card, please give me some love down in the comments. I would loved to hear from you! As always, have a great day!

Supplies
Creative Memories Fine Tip Pen Black
Heffy Doodle Filled with Love Stamp Set
Tonic Craft Kit#14 (just the brick stamp - you can use any brick stamp you have)
Fire Image from Design Space from 3 Birds - Life's a Party Cartridge
 

***I buy all of my supplies myself and am not affiliated with any company. The links I provide are not affiliate links. I do not make a commission when you buy using these links. They are merely for your convenience or clarification of which supplies I have used. I do not guarantee they are the cheapest prices. I suggest you do your own research and shop around.***
Music Credits for YouTube Video Above:

Music from https://filmmusic.io
"Christmas Rap" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com)
License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Music from https://filmmusic.io
"Christmas Theme 1" by Alexander Nakarada (https://www.serpentsoundstudios.com/)
License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Music from https://filmmusic.io
"Christmas Theme 1" by Alexander Nakarada (https://www.serpentsoundstudios.com/)
License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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