Aspen Trees in Blue & White

Happy Saturday, friends!  Hope you're doing well today and enjoying your weekend.  Today's post continues with another card featuring the Aspen Trees Dies.  When the July-December Mini Catalog came out, I fell in love with the Aspen Trees Dies on page 46.  But for some reason I wasn't crazy about the bird in the set.  In fact, my sister and I had a discussion about it.  I didn't think it looked right and she thought it was a perfect representation of a bird in winter.  Oh well, we can disagree on that, but we both thought the Aspen Trees Dies were awesome.  I still feel that way after using them on multiple cards!

Here's my first version of a wintry night.  I love the crisp blue and white colors together with a hint of sparkle.  And when you're holding this card in your hands, it's even better because I used Snowy White Velvet Sheets to cut the aspen trees.  So. you've got that extra dimension of 'touch' added into the design.  Lovely.  You can find this lovely paper in the July-December Mini Catalog on page 37.  It's easy to miss, but well worth looking for.

My design starts with a Snowy White Velvet Sheet that's cut to 5 1/4" x 4".  Then the aspen trees design is die-cut from the center.  I wanted a dark blue print to go behind it that would give the impression of a snowy night.  I found this print in the Sun Prints DSP.  It really looks like ferns and weeds in white on the dark blue background, but behind the die-cut trees it works.  It's cut just a bit smaller than the Snowy White Velvet and measures 5 1/8" x 3 7/8".  I used Tombow Multi Purpose Liquid Glue on the back of the white paper and attached them together.

I was trying to decide whether I could use a ribbon or not, when I spied the silver 1 1/2" Metallic Mesh Ribbon in my stash.  It's so delicate and fine, but with a silver sheen that looked great with this design.  I cut a length about 6-7" long and attached it on the back of the layers with adhesive.  Then the layers were attached to a Night of Navy card base which measured 11" x 4 1/4".  It's scored at 5 1/2" and folded in half to make a top-fold card.  The layers were attached with adhesive to keep them flat.    

For the sentiment on the card, I chose to use the Hope & Peace stamp set found on page 40 of the July-December Mini Catalog.  The sentiments in this set are turning out to be my go-to choice lately for Christmas.  This time the sentiment was stamped with Night of Navy ink onto a Basic White scrap of cardstock.  It's then die-cut with the Deckled Rectangles Die set.  This gives it a little extra interest and I thought it paired nicely with the tree trunks.  It wasn't too large and didn't cover up too much of the design either.  For the layer behind it, I die-cut the next larger size from Night of Navy cardstock.  But it was too large, so I repositioned the die-cut piece and trimmed it again taking off about an 1/8" inch from the top and side.  This still gives it the layer, but it's a snugger fit.   This was attached to the card front using Dimensionals.  It's placed right over the wispy silver mesh ribbon, but it doesn't hide it completely.

The last addition to this card is the bling.  I tried so many options - Festive Pearls in silver, Iridescent Pearls, Sparkle & Shine Sequins, Opal Rounds, Iridescent Rhinestones, Seasonal Sequins in white, and Elegant Faceted Gems.  There were some good choices in there.  But I kept coming back to the plain old standby of the Rhinestone Basic Jewels.  The plain rhinestones gave it an "icy" touch of bling that seemed to fit the card perfectly.

That's it for this latest installment of the Aspen Trees Dies and what to do with them.  There are still more ideas to share concerning these dies.  Every time I have them sitting on my table I start to envision even more ideas.  Did I mention I really love these dies?  Definitely worth every penny!  Hope you give them a try too.  And if you get them in a bundle with the Perched in a Tree set, let me see what you've made with the stamps.  Maybe you can convince me I need those too.  I've got to admit, the set does have fabulous sentiments in it that I wish I owned.  Hmmm.  Maybe I need to put that back on my wish list.  (And don't forget to order more of the Snowy White Sheets so I can make more of these cards!)  😄😄😄 

Thanks for stopping in again to see what's going on here in my little world.  It's quiet for the moment, but my sister is coming for a visit in another week if all goes well.  I'm so looking forward to stamping and creating with her again.  We just have such a great time bouncing ideas around and feeding on each other's enthusiasm and creativity.  Look out, you're going to be seeing some more comparison cards too, where we start with the same basic pieces and each work it our own way.  That's always fun.

If you're placing an order soon, please consider using the Host Code shown at the top of the blog post.  It is so appreciated!  Of course, with any order placed, you receive "punch card points" from me that you can redeem later.  Any questions, please get in touch.  Please post a comment too so I know you've been here.  I'd love to hear from you.

Happy stamping and creating,

Sharon