A Tree for Christmas (by Linda)

Hello, how are we all? Finding a bit of "me" time for crafting I hope.

For this card I used the bare tree from The Tree of Knowledge stamp set showcased in the August shows on Create and Craft. I confess, I did not at first realise these trees are sprouting from books, what a beautiful design!

I stamped the tree onto kraft card as I like the contrast in the finished piece with the black and white tree, coloured baubles and beige colour of the card. You, of course can experiment with any colour tree, it would be great to see some of your ideas on the Chocolate Baroque Facebook Page! 

I decided where I wanted the tree to be dusted with snow and to help me keep the "snow" on the correct sides of the branches, I stand something like a pencil sharpener on the side the snow is falling to remind me. This also works for me when adding shadows.

I used a white gel pen to draw along the branches. This is easier if you emboss the tree with black embossing powder so the pen follows the raised edge.

I then added "baubles". These I created by drawing round the lid of my water spray which happened to be the right size. They are coloured in with metallic pens, a line is then drawn up to the branch above, and a simple bow drawn, like rabbit ears.

I extended the base of the tree stamp with a black pen to ground it.

The "Christmas" is from the Slim Word Strip 2 stamp set. That section being stamped on a separate piece of card, rubbing the ink off the words that I did not want. I cut the card into a rectangle and rounded the corners with a punch. I attached it to the card with foam tape. This is actually an easy, quick card to make that looks far more complicated than it is. Perfect.

I think this technique may well have been used by a Chocolate Baroqu'er some time ago. If this is you, please claim the well deserved praise!

I hope you have enjoyed my first three blog posts ever, and look forward to your feedback.

Linda x

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