Pretty Poinsettias

I think poinsettias are such a classy and beautiful flower. Last year I bought the "Boxwood & Poinsettias" stamp set from Flourishes and I have to say I'm getting my money's worth! I love making my own custom poinsettia paper and here are a couple different cards I've made this week.

For this card, I took medium pink cardstock and stamped large poinsettias and petals on the smooth side. I cut out one to use as an embellishment and then cut a piece to fit a 5x7 card. After I cut it, I used IOD Prima tape (it's old from my stash) to add the layer of text. I used Stampin' Up Real Red ink because it can be smeared a bit with moisture. I put some Diamond Stickles on the single poinsettia and smeared it with my finger to get the effect in the center. I finished the card off with a Hero Arts "Holiday Sayings" sentiment and Martha Stewart Crafts "Deco Fan" border punch.

This card was much more simple. I just took a plain white card base and stamped it with the large poinsettias. I glittered the centers and added the sentiment square that I die cut with Spellbinders Eyelet Squares. The ornament is a Spellbinders die from the Poinsettia Frameabilities set. The sentiment is by Papertrey Ink - Mega Mixed Messages.

On this last card, I did the same first couple steps as on the first. Then instead of adding the tape, I stamped text over it with Papertrey Ink's "Fresh Snow" ink and a Hot Off the Press text stamp. I smeared the centers with stickles and added the matted paper to the card base. I die cut a Spellbinders Labels Seventeen die in white and stamped with the Papertrey sentiment. The cute little gold tree is by Paper Dreams Factory - they are an AMAZING source of vintage embellishments!

In other news, we got a new cat! Our Humane Society was having a big adoption day on Saturday and the animals which had been there for a long time were really reduced. We picked up a 4-5 year old neutered male named Max. Our other cat is a 5 year old neutered male of the exact same size. We brought him home and he is just a lover! Such a cuddly guy and a big softie to boot. He so badly wants to be Ace's friend, but Ace is a little anxious.

Neither are aggressive though, so mostly they just follow each other around and stare. Ace had a moment of panic this morning and popped Max on top of the head with his dangerously furry paw and ran away. Max was unimpressed. Most of the time, they can be found standing on opposite sides of a door frame, peering at each other while Max does his purr-meow.

Other times, Max simply gives up and stalks Ace. When Ace gets near the stairs, he chases him up and I can hear him running into the wall at the top. Evidently his previous indoor experiences did not include wood floors.