Wednesday 22 November 2017

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge 146 - Kath's "All About Christmas" Challenge


Christmas is nearly here.  Just another month (and a couple of days) and it will be here.  I really do have to get my Christmas cards written.  Thank goodness, with the help of challenges like this, I've managed to make enough to send out.  Yay!  This week Kath is hosting our "All About Christmas" challenge.  And wouldn't you know it--I had a little "whoopsy" with this card.


It all began when I decided to use the gorgeous Father Christmas stamp set.  I had a scene in my mind and hoped I could recreate it in a card.  Father Christmas is such a wonderful image.  He's nothing like the modern Santa Claus.  This image is more European--older--wiser--probably less jolly.  I wanted him out in the snow, among trees.  Now I have quite a number of tree images available among my shelves of Stampin' Up! stamps but what I had in mind was more along the line of those trees for which we only have framelits--the ones from the Carols of Christmas bundle.

Well, rather than mope around wishing, I decided I would use those trees and proceeded to cut them out from a rectangle of Whisper White.  That piece became my mask (stencil).  After I had stamped Father Christmas, I used the stencil to place the trees and used my Aqua Painter and some Old Olive ink to get the shapes in place.  After that it was easy enough to layer my greens to create the trees.  I used my Aqua Painter and a variety of my inks to colour in Father Christmas and also to give a wash to the sky as well as shadows on the snow.  The only areas not Watercoloured were the pocket watch and the trumpet.  Those two were coloured with the retired Silver Stampin' Dazzle and the retired Gold Wink of Stella respectively.


Yes, Father Christmas is wearing a Fresh Fig coloured fur-lined robe.  The European Father Christmas is not your jolly red and white Santa Claus.


For the inside I decided to add a piece of Fresh Fig to the base Heavy Whisper White and then added two rectangles of Whisper White to that.  One has the images while the other bears the greeting.

I hope you'll check out the wonderful creations by the other Watercooler Artists at our Watercooler Wednesday Challenge.

I'm also entering my card into the CAS Watercolour Challenge which is all about Holidays.



And finally I'm adding my card to the Addicted to Stamps and More Clean & Simple Challenge.

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I said earlier in this post that I had a little "whoopsy" with this card.  Well there is a bit of a story which goes with that.  Some years back when we were still living in British Columbia and my parents were alive, my daughter and I created a special Christmas present for them.  The face and hands are porcelain while the rest is wire structure and clothing which I designed and sewed.  It took us a while but my parents loved it.  When they passed on, the piece came to me.  And in time it will go on to my daughter.  It means a lot to both of us.


So one of the first things I had done when designing this card was to stamp and fussy-cut a reindeer from the Nature Sings stamp set.  After that I had water-coloured the image and set it aside.  Well, if you look at the card front, you'll be struck by the absence of that very reindeer.  Did I lose it?  No, I did not.  It is safely lying precisely where I put it.  The thing is that when I finished the card up to the point where you see it posted above, I loved the way it looked and totally forgot all about the reindeer.  It wasn't until I told my daughter about the post I had scheduled and about the card which I designed because of the piece we had created, that I remembered that poor missing reindeer.  And so here is the alternate version of the card.  The reindeer is only barely holding on--I didn't properly adhere him.  I can't decide which way I want the card to look now.  What do you think?


I'm entering the reindeer version into the Cardz 4 Guyz Challenge which is all about Reindeer.

And finally I'm adding this card to the Retro Rubber Anything Goes Challenge.  The Father Christmas stamp set was released in the 2016 Holiday Catalogue, over a year ago.



16 comments:

  1. I think the version with the reindeer looks much more balanced - and of course is perfect for our Reindeer challenge at Cardz 4 Guyz. Thanks for joining in
    Jane

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  2. Both versions of your card are beautiful, Heidi!! Great job with creating a stencil with your tree framelits. Your Father Christmas image is amazing. Everything is beautifully watercoloured. I like both versions, but being a CAS girl at heart, I like the first one where Father Christmas is the star and he's not sharing the spotlight.:) Thanks for sharing with us at CAS Watercolour!

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  3. I prefer Father Christmas to Santa as well, and yours is gorgeous. I love the use of Fresh Fig for his robe - much more stately than red. Your watercolouring through stencils is superb. While I really liked the first version of the card, I think the reindeer steps it up a further notch. They're both wonderful, Heidi. Thanks for joining us at Retro Rubber.

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  4. I love the Santa image, such a pretty vintage look. Both cards are so pretty but I must admit I love the Reindeer :) thanks for joining us at CAS Watercolour

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  5. I love both cards, but for our CAS Watercolour challenge, the one without the reindeer is more CAS (though personally outside of the challenge, I think I have a preference for the one with it!). Fabulous watercolouring and great colours - love the vintage Santa, and the way you did the shadows for the snow. Thanks for joining us at CAS Watercolour!

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  6. Such a wonderful card! I love your choices to color these images! The reindeer adds just the right touch for me with my imagination of what ole St. Nick would be like. Thank you for playing with us at Retro Rubber and hope you will join us again soon.

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  7. While I love both versions of this lovely scene, Heidi, I do love that reindeer! He seems to complete the scene! What a special card! Thanks so much for sharing with us at CAS Watercolour!

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  8. Loved reading your blog post and what fabulous memories. Keep the reindeer...you mustn't have favourites of course.... but love him on the card x

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  9. The vintage look of your Father Christmas is perfect, Heidi, and your creativeness in stenciling the trees worked very well. I love him with the wonderful reindeer but our challenge this time is CAS and so your first entry fits better. Thanks for sharing this fabulous card with us at Addicted to Stamps and More.

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  10. WOW! Two gorgeous works of art, Heidi! Your Father Christmas in both versions is amazing and I do have a soft spot for the one with the reindeer, even though the first one fits the CAS challenge better! Thank you for sharing your creativity in the Addicted to Stamps and More gallery!
    ~carol

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  11. It's funny, I don't think most people know the difference between Father Christmas and Santa! I love your Father Christmas, he looks so jolly, perhaps it is because he has been so beautifully coloured? Thanks for joining us this time at Retro Rubber. Claire DT

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  12. Lovely water coloring! I prefer the card with out the reindeer, but both versions are wonderful! Thanks for playing along with Retro Rubber!

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  13. You are ever so talented, Heidi... your Father Christmas is definitely an heirloom to be cherished. Love the stenciling and coloring of both card versions. Both are my favorites, LOL. Thank you so much for sharing with Retro Rubber this week. Love seeing your creativity in our gallery!

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  14. Great cards - love them both.

    Thanks for joining us Cardz 4 Guyz.

    Helen x

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  15. Absolutely love your cards, but the reindeer makes it breathtaking! Thanks for the inspiration!

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