In the spirit of keeping Christ in Christmas, last week, I shared a cathedral card for Christmas. This week, I made this card using the new nativity scene by Honey Bee Stamps. I am using the following sets from the latest Merry Moments release:
Lovely Layers: Nativity Scene Honey Cuts dies
Silent Night, Holy Night stamp set
Christmas Blessings stamps and Honey Cuts dies
For the basics... my Honey Bee Stamps featured project below is made from Neenah 80lb Solar White cardstock for the card base and card front panel. All of the black ink stamping was done using Honey Bee’s Bee Creative Intense Black Ink. I use Honey Bee Stamps Bee Creative Precision Glue and for when I want more dimension, Bee Creative Foam Dots With Tab for adhering my elements together. My blender brushes (large and small) are a must for ink blending color on the background, too. For white highlights, I use my white Gelly Roll pen. My card is 5" X 7" in size.
To create this 5" X 7" card, I started with a 5" X 7" dark blue card front panel. I stamped and embossed the Silent Night, Holy Night stamp using my VersaMark Watermark Ink Pad and gold embossing powder. I used Distress Oxide Ink in Black Soot and my blender brushes (large and small) to darken the edges all around the panel. I set it aside to dry.
Using the Lovely Layers: Nativity Scene Honey Cuts dies, I die cut all the elements to create Joseph, Mary, Jesus, the sheep, donkey, manger, and the three kings. I recommend downloading, printing off and following the Layering Guide to ensure success in assembling these elements! This handy guide really helped me make sure to add the layers in the proper order.
Here's a few extra steps I did to make this more dimensional:
- For the manger, I used my white Gelly Roll pen. and Copic brown makers E55, E43, E42 and W2 to "weather" the wood of the frame. I also added lines on the back layer to look like planks. I feel like these extra touches add more dimension to the wood shed.
- I also added some extra shadowing on the animals.
- Lastly, I hand cut a warm gray cardstock to look like the ground for these nativity scene elements "rest" on. I splattered white ink over the gray to make it look more interesting. While many written stories, poems and songs mention snow that night, it is very unlikely that Bethlehem had snow. This is my "snow" without being too obvious or distracting to the intimate scene.
- I also splattered a little white ink on the top half of the blue background. It adds interest without being so strong of an element in the scene.
I assembled all the pieces and attached them to the background panel. The manger was attached right over the sheet music. Mary, Joseph and Jesus, the donkey and the kings were all attached using Bee Creative Foam Dots With Tabs to make them stand out from the background.
For the sentiments, I used sentiments from the Christmas Blessings stamps and Honey Cuts dies. I embossed the biblical sentiment using the same gold embossing powder and white embossing powder for the "peace on earth" sentiment.
You can shop the entire Honey Bee Stamps, Merry Moments release. If you decide to place an order, please use the links in this post so that Honey Bee knows which ideas inspired you! When you spend $100 or more, you are eligible for a FREE BEE, too! (While supplies last!)
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