Hi there! Today I’m sharing the steps I followed to mass-produce my 2023 Christmas cards that I will be sending out to my friends and family.
Cut as many pieces as necessary of black cardstock to measure 6” x 5” to create the card base front for all my cards.
Using the Honey Bee Stamps “Snowflakes Background” stencil and Tim Holtz’s Distress Sparkle Texture Paste, I applied a thin coat of the paste through the stencil over each of the pieces of black cardstock and set aside to dry.
Cut all the black card panels to measure 4-1/4” x 5-1/2” using the Trinity Stamps “Modern Embossed Rectangle Stack”.
Using Dr. Ph. Martin’s Bleed Proof White Ink, I splattered little white specks over all my pieces of black cardstock and set them aside to dry.
For the reindeer, I used the Rubbernecker “Flying Reindeer” die and cut the pieces from cardstock colors represented on the packaging. I used Altenew Crisp Dye Inks in Dark Chocolate for the antlers and Raw Umber for blending on the bodies. I glued all the pieces together, added a tiny drop of Nuvo Crystal Drops in Red Berry to the reindeer noses, a dot of Gelly Roll Black Glaze pen to the eyes, and set them aside to dry while I moved onto the next element.
The sleigh was created using the Rubbernecker “Santa’s Sleigh” die set – I cut the rails and top trim from Simon Says Stamp Matte Gold cardstock and the body of the sleigh itself was cut from American Crafts red textured cardstock (it’s from the Christmas 12x12 pack). I glued the three pieces together and set aside to dry.
The Santa and gifts were die cut using the Rubbernecker “Santa with Presents” die set -– I cut the mustache, beard, cuffs, and hat trimmings from Simon Says Stamp Snow White Pawsitively Velvet Luxury Cardstock and the rest of the elements were cut from color appropriate cardstocks from my stash. I used Sakura Gelly Roll Moonlight #438 for Santa’s eyes followed by the clear Sakura Gelly Roll Glaze to make them shine. The Santas were a bit time consuming, but I absolutely love piecing die cuts together… it’s like a puzzle!
The greeting sign was created using the Rubbernecker “Winter Sign” and the Whimsy Stamps “Slimline ATC Windows” die sets. I cut the red, brown, and white pieces from a textured cardstock pad I bought at Hobby Lobby and the snowy pieces were cut from Cardstock Warehouse’s White Diamond Glitter cardstock. For the rectangular sentiment sign, I used Tim Holtz/Ranger’s Distress Specialty Stamping Paper. I die cut all the sign shapes. For the sentiment, I chose the Season’s Greetings stamp from Simon Says Stamp’s “Cozy Christmas” stamp set and used Simon Says Stamp’s Pawsitively Saturated ink in the Cherry color.
The snowy hills were cut using the Rubbernecker “Deckle Hills” dies. For each card’s hills, I cut a 1-1/2” piece of Cardstock Warehouse’s White Diamond Glitter cardstock and used the deckle die to cut the strip of sparkly cardstock in half which gave me perfect hills and valleys for my greenery.
For the trees on the hills, I used the Sizzix/Tim Holtz die set called “Tall Pines” (665583) and cut it into pieces to place the trees in a couple of spots.
Now for the assembly! I put the toy bag, Santa and the two gift packages in the sleigh and glued them in place. I glued the reindeer (except his antlers/head) onto the card front. Before gluing the reindeer’s head, I placed an 8” strand of golden string around the neck of the reindeer and placed the two ends underneath the assembled Santa’s sleigh, held it in place with a piece of tape, trimmed the excess string, then glued the sleigh to the card front.
For the sign, I took two very small strips of brown cardstock and glued one end of the strips to the signpost and the other end to the actual sign.
I glued one half of the snowy hill just off the bottom edge of the card front and glued my trees into place. I popped up the second half of the snowy hill onto Simon Says Stamp’s Big Momma Foam tape strips and made sure to leave a slot clear of tape for the signpost and adhered it to the card front.
I added the assembled sign to the card using Simon Says Stamp’s thin 3D foam squares to give it some dimension. Used liquid glue to adhere the reindeer and a combination of 3D foam squares and liquid glue to adhere Santa and his sleigh since there were variations in depth depending on how much cardstock ended up in any give spot.
Once the card fronts were all completed, I adhered them to an A2 top folding card base. Finished!
This card was probably not the most ideal for bulk producing because all the paper piecing and assembly was quite time consuming, but I'm glad I created them and love how they turned out.
Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you doing so! :)