When the last of the New Year’s balloons have come down and our trees have either been packed up for another year, put out to the curb, or recycled, it can seem a touch strange to keep sharing holiday season projects well into January.
Perhaps, not strange so much, but a bit like said projects have arrived so late to a party that the whole event is already over.
And yet, as us paper crafters know, there are rarely hard and fast rules regarding when we can share the projects we make.
Easter cards in September? Have at ‘er! Halloween layouts in April? Why not! New Year’s cards in July? Go for it!
In some instances, we may not have time in the moment to share a given project. Or doing so may simply slip our mind – especially in the midst of the holiday season hustle and bustle.
At others, there may be pragmatic reasons why we refrain from posting a particular project at its most logical point on the calendar.
For me, a big one is that sometimes I do not want to share a project that’s being sent to someone that I know follows my blog and/or Instagram, until after I’m sure they’ve received that card (or tag, etc).
After all, unintentionally spoiling the surprise of a handmade greeting winging its way across the world to a dear friend or family member is not high up on my list of reasons to post a project. 😄
Thankfully, I usually have the option of holding on posting. And in the case of today’s project share, that was precisely why I waited until mid-January to blog about this festive make.
Elegant gold and black peace, love, and joy holiday season card
This particular card was made for a dear, sweet and special online friend of mine. We’ve grown close over the past couple of years and share many similar interests in common – from an undying love for fall time to a passion for fashion.
Indeed, my friend is one of the most stylish women I know and I the moment I set about creating a Christmas card for her, I knew that I wanted it to reflect the elegance, glamour, and sophistication that her sartorial choices exude.
Care of some of the photos she posts online, I’ve been treated to glimpses of what my friend’s seasonal décor looks like, too. It echoes the chicness of her wardrobe and is nothing short of gorgeous.
Indeed, some of the fall and winter décor snaps she’s shared a were big inspiration catalyst in terms of the design of this wintertime greeting.
(Plus, as touched on in my Festive Red, Black and Green Merry Christmas Card post last month, I leaned heavily on the use of black in my holiday season cards this year.)
While this project was created and sent out as a Christmas card, there is nothing so inherently Christmassy, IMO, to its design that one couldn’t give it as a New Year’s or general wintertime card.
Honestly, it could even work as a winter wedding, anniversary, birthday, or thinking of you card – to name but four other possible uses.
And, you know, come to think of it, if a hit or two of, say, red or pink were to be injected – such as a red bloom in place of the dark cream coloured and perhaps some hearts instead of, or along with, the snowflakes here – you could even use this card for Valentine’s Day.
Putting this chic handmade wintertime greeting card together
This elegant Christmas card began with a base of dark charcoal grey paper. One could easily have used black here instead, and I debated it, but ultimately went with dark charcoal, as I wanted a subtle tonal contrast in a design that centred around a limited colour palette.
Next came a layer of classic sheet music print paper (I feel like I say this often about various products, and I do, but I am a huge fan of music print paper and am always looking to up my stash of it). This was topped with a tall rectangular piece of gold glitter cardstock which I trimmed on all four sides with a pair of Fiskars decorative edge scissors.
I then backed a piece of the same sheet music print paper with cardstock and adhered it to the bottom half of the glittery gold cardstock. A cream and black print journaling card went above it, with a layer of white ruffle trim and a skinny band of gold sequins trim covering the join between those two sections.
Next, I die cut an ornate decorative frame from shinny black cardstock (another absolute favourite paper crafting supply of mine, which I’d happily buy stock in, if I could 😃). This was topped by the “Peace, Love, Joy” sentiment, which I popped a layer of charcoal grey cardstock and a layer of the same glittery gold cardstock behind for extra shimmer and pizzazz.
After that, I attached the lovely shabby chic dark cream coloured Prima Marketing tulle flower and two cream coloured velvet 7 Gypsies leaves to the lower left side of the design.
For additional embellishments, I die cut some snowflakes from both basic white and (again, the same) glittery gold card stock, which I paired with a gorgeous wire and plastic embellishment branch, which is also from Prima Marketing.
As this card was being mailed outside of the country, I had to keep Canada Post’s weight and (laughly small) height limits for letter mail in mind, but still wanted this card to have a deliver an impact to its recipient.
I hope that between the classy gold, cream and black colour palette and the embellishments that I used here, my intentions rang true for my friend when she opened this festive greeting. 🖤
Card making tips and ideas from this project
-Winter holiday time cards or other craft projects do not need to include traditional shades of red, green, or blue to abound with the spirit of the season.
You can go monochromic or create a palette of colours that sparkles with festive cheer, while not necessarily being the first ones that spring to mind when someone says “Christmas”, “Yule”, or “New Year’s”.
I’m more than a little bit enamoured with the colour scheme here and can easily see myself utilizing it again for future holiday season projects.
A few other holiday season card colour palette options you could reach for, if you want to shake things up a bit, include the following:
-Purple, silver (or grey) and white
-Pale pink, champaign, and chocolate brown
-Aqua, lilac, silver, and white
-Maroon, aged gold, and pine green
-Orange, peach, silver, and white
-Sage, puce, beige (or cream), and brown
-Magenta, silver, black and/or white
-Yellow, gold, and white
-Pumpkin orange, olive green, gold, and brown or burgundy
-Hot pink, lime green, and silver (I should mention that, objectively, splashes of red can look fab with this palette)
-White vellum, solid white, silver or grey
-Teal, cream, and brown
-Pastel pink, white, silver, and baby blue
-Gold, burgundy, and black
-Brick, navy blue, and dusty rose
-Use multiple versions of the same metallic colour throughout your project. In this instance, gold was the sole metallic colour used on this card and it appears in three different forms: the gold glitter cardstock, the gold sequins trim, and a wee bit also shows up in the gold toned metal of the Prima wire spring embellishment.
Depending on your project, you can aim for each of the metallic items used to have a very similar tone to them, or vary things up for more of a mixed metal look. The fact that they’re all shades of the same metallic colour will generally still telegraph a sense of cohesiveness, even if each tone varies a bit.
By the same token, have fun and utilize different textures and materials. From paint to glitter, embossing powder to metal charms and buttons – not mention cardstocks and ribbons – the sky is the limit when it comes to the metallic products you can use on your papercrafting projects.
-Bust out your decorative edge scissors. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: old school as they may be, I adore decorative edge scissors. They’re no less versatile and appealing as when they were highly in vogue during the 1990s and on into the early 2000s.
I keep a small pencil holder with several of my most frequently used pairs of decorative edge scissors on my work desk and reach for them often for cards, scrapbook pages, and other paper crafting projects alike.
If it has been a hot minute since you last used your decorative edge scissors, why not bring them out of retirement this year and have fun playing with one of the OGs of the paper crafting world?
-Though not a hard and fast rule, oftentimes, if you’re trying to create a more refined card (or LO) design, sticking with neutrals and perhaps one or two small accent colours can be a really effective approach.
While there are various textures and prints involved here, for example, each colour (black, charcoal grey, white, cream, and gold) is a neutral. This reads as elegant and well-coordinated, but far from stuffy or drab – quite the opposite, I’d venture to say.
Products used to make this glamorous gold and black holiday season card
-Charcoal grey and white cardstock
-Gold glitter cardstock
-Glossy black cardstock – Glossy Black Mirror Card from Tonic Studios
-Sheet music print paper – Christmas Edition Collection Christmas Melody Paper from Kaisercraft
-Rectangle shaped ornate frame die
-Small(ish) sized snowflake die
-Decorative edge scissors – Paper Edgers Heartbeat Scissors from Fiskars
-Sentiment piece – Glisten Collection Incandescent from Kaisercraft
-Black and cream journaling spot – Sepia Journaling Frames from Creative Imaginations
-Metallic gold sequins trim (I purchased this one at a Dollarama store in our area)
-White ruffled trim – Parisian Anthology Ruffled Darlings Ribbon Strips from Pink Paislee
-Dark cream tulle flower – The Gatsby Collection Reception Flowers from Prima Marketing
-Cream velvet leaves – Brown Velvet Leaf from 7 Gypsies
-Wire and plastic branch embellishment – Candy Gems Blue Berry from Prima Marketing
-Glue gun and glue sticks (to adhere the larger/heavier embellishments)
-Dimensional foam, pop dots, or similar to elevate some of your layers
-Adhesive, such as a tape runner, of your choice (I often use my Scotch Tape Glider)
The festive season doesn’t have to end in early January
Granted the heyday of the winter holidays might wrap up in many (though certainly not all) parts of the world after the first week or two of January.
This doesn’t mean, however, that you can’t keep the festive spirit going strong well beyond that stage in the calendar (a point that I touched on recently in my previous project share post as well).
If you have holiday season projects that you haven’t shared yet, why not post them in January or February?
Longing for Christmas, Hanukkah, or Yule again already? Whip up some projects that celebrate your favourite (or the most infamous, as the case may be! 😄) memories from the latest holiday season.
And if you’re feeling extra ambitious, you could even get a major head start on your festive greetings for the next holiday season by creating a few cards almost a year in advance.
As much as I wish I was that on the ball when it comes to making my Yule, Christmas, and New Year’s cards, the realist in me knows that’s unlikely to happen anytime soon.
A layout or two devoted to this meaningful and joy-filled time of the year? Now that might just be realistic.
In the wake of the immense surge of energy, merriment, seasonal cheer and festive happenings that call December and early January home, our daily lives can seem a little lackluster or at least lacking for holiday cheer after the lights, ornaments and trees have come down.
Rest assured that this is a natural feeling and something many of us experience. I’ve learned over the years that we can help counterbalance it though via various means, one of which is crafting winter holiday projects weeks or even months after Santa has returned to the North Pole.
This January, keep the winter holidays that you observe going a little longer by creating a project that celebrates the festive season and reminds you all the more of why this time of the year holds such a special place in our hearts and craft rooms alike. 🎄❤️🎄
Project share
Pin the image below – or any other in this post – to Pinterest, pop it into your Instagram Stories, post it on Twitter or Facebook, or share it anywhere else you wish to help yourself find it again and to inspire others at the same time.
If you make a project based on or inspired by this card – or want to share any of your other handmade crafts with me – please use the hashtags #WitchcraftedLife and #WitchcraftedLifeMakes on social media so that I see can your beautiful creations.
Absolutely stunning creation. So much texture and the gold and black work beautifully together.
You’re splendidly kind, Pinky. Thank you so much for your sweet words about this festive project.
Wishing you a serene, safe, and very lovely February.
♥ Autumn
Another wonderful accomplishment of a card, full of interesting textures, layers and embellishments. Your friend must have been over the moon to receive such a joyous work of art! xxx
Your kindness knows no bounds, dear Ann. Thank you abundantly. I’m delighted to report that she did love the card – which was a fun holiday seasonal surprise, as I didn’t mention I’d be sending a handmade one her way.
I’d be honoured to create and mail a card your way next December, too, if you’d like, my sweet friend. Just email me your mailing address anytime in advance and I’ll set the paper crafting gears in motion on that front. 💌
♥ Autumn
Oooh! Glamorous and gorgeous! Another masterpiece. Once again, fabulous dimension and texture. Love all that sparkle and glitter. Your friend must have been so impressed.
I’m a huge fan of non-traditional unconventional colour palettes for Christmas cards, so thanks for all those colour combo suggestions.
Thank you abundantly, Trina. You’re very welcome. The pleasure is all mine. I have a lifelong love of coming up with (typically) harmonious colour palettes. I really got a chance to do so during the years when I was a vintage fashion blogger and now love that I can continue to indulge in that passion publicly via paper crafting (and the occasional outfit post still over on Instagram).
If you’d be interested in a whole post on the subject, please don’t hesitate to let me know. I suspect it’s one I’d really enjoy penning here.
♥ Autumn
Oh! This is so elegant! I am so glad you shared this after the holiday! I have actually only held of sharing a card once and that was last week! My mother turned 80 this month and I held off sharing the card on FB and my blog until she received it. She LOVED and said it was her favorite of all. It was watercolor and no stamping so I am very thrilled especially since there is often a “but” at the end of her favor. 🙂 I am a huge fan of sharing Christmas/winter all year long. And I am good with creating for different seasons and events. It makes my soul smile to be in a constant state of celebrating something! Hahaha. Your card is exquisite and I know it made your friend’s day to open this beauty! She must have been so thrilled with the color combo and the beautiful textures! Hugs!
That is so heartwarmingly wonderful. Happiest 80th birthday wishes to your mom. I hope that her special day was highly enjoyable – even in the midst of all we’re collectively going through these days.
Beautifully put, my sweet friend. I completely agree regarding the way that having something to celebrate makes your “soul smile”. That is a fantastic way to describe the important role that holidays and other special events can have in our lives. I’ve been a born “celebration” my whole life and have no doubt that’s all the more reason why I adore crafting for the festive chapters of the year.
Thank you very much for your splendidly kind comment. I’m delighted to report that my friend adored this card, which was a total surprise as I didn’t tell her I’d be sending a handmade one her way.
Big hugs coming right back at you,
♥ Autumn
Such a beautiful card. I love the colours and all the lovely textures you added to this. Wonderful piece. Have a great day. x
Thank you very much, dear Anesha. I truly appreciate the support and sweetness that you shower me + my project shares with here.
I hope that your January is going as well as can realistically be and that it will soon blossom into a relaxing, safe, enjoyable February for you and your loves ones.
♥ Autumn
This is stunning ! The colours are probably one of my favs!
Thank you abundantly, dear heart. I am a huge fan of this colour palette as well. It’s sophisticated, classic, glamorous, and, IMO, inherently festive to boot. From weddings to New Year’s, Christmas to birthdays, it’s a go-to colour combo that will stand the test of time.
♥ Autumn
Oh how magical this is!! My friend, as I sit here, enjoying a cold, but sunny morning, with a cup of coffee, I am whisked away to a creatively delightful place with your gorgeous art. Thank you for always sharing something inspiring for us to marvel at, and for allllll of your love over on my blog! We took a little digital break over the holidays, to catch up on some much needed life things. Hope you have been well and that you’ve had a good winter so far! Sending big hugs from Sk!
Your awesome comment warms my heart greatly, dear Ivana. Thank you so much for all being the sweeter-than-candy soul that you are.
It’s terrific that you were able to take a breather from the digital world for a wee while. I’m a firm believer in, and advocate of, doing so periodically. The internet has many positives and I’m certainly not against hanging out on it, but we weren’t designed as a species to stare at tiny electric screens day in and day out the whole year through. Time away from the web helps us reconnect with the world, can soothe our soul, and often leads (I find at least) to an abundance of fresh inspiration to help foster what we create and share when we return online again.
I hope that your year is off to a positive start and that you have an incredibly safe, serene, low stress, healthy, happy, and creativity filled 2021.
Immense hugs coming right back at you from BC,
♥ Autumn
This colour combination is stellar! I love the black/gold/cream – it’s very chic and classic. Excellent details, as always – I so appreciate the detail pictures, and seeing all the layers you incorporate, Autumn!
Thank you immensely, my very sweet friend. I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your supportive feedback.
Agreed completely. This palette is elegant, timeless, and wonderfully versitile. It works just as well in the fashion world as it does that of art and crafting (to say nothing of home decor).
Swap the cream for white (most shades of cream and ivory aren’t overly flattering worn near my face) and this is a palette I wear the whole year through, and likewise greatly enjoy returning to again and again on the crafting front.
♥ Autumn
WOW this is stunning! I love all of the layers and gorgeous textures, that ornate frame is so beautiful!
Tammy x
You’re terrifically kind, dear Tammy. Thank you SO much for bringing a smile to my face and heart alike with your wonderfully sweet compliments.
Many hugs & wishes for a serene, safe, and very enjoyable February,
♥ Autumn
A gorgeous card Autumn, lots of fabulous details and elegant design. I really don’t think it matters when you post cards on your blog, at the end of the day a beautiful card is still a beautiful card no matter what occasion it is for.
Pauline – Crafting with Cotnob
x
Wisely said, dear Pauline. How right you are! Indeed, it could be argued that one of the most delightful perks to being a crafter/artist is that we can connect with any point on the calendar all throughout the year by way of our creative projects. If that isn’t an awesome reason to adore crafting all the more, I don’t know what it is! 😃
Big hugs & many wishes for a relaxing, safe, beautiful February coming your way,
♥ Autumn
Autumn, I was amazed to return to your blog to catch up on posts and see the gorgeous card that you sent me. This is my card!!! I love it and am pleased to report that it is still on display – on a very prominent spot in our living room ( in fact, I keep glancing up to see it as I write this reply).
The colors, textures, and exquisite details are spot on!!! It’s as though you somehow astrally projected yourself into my home one night and soaked up all its details (did you???).
Thank you again my sweet and talented friend for such a stunning gift! Hugs, Debi
Sweet Debi, thank you very much for your lovely comment. You are wholeheartedly welcome. 💗
I didn’t know if you’d be comfortable with me mentioning you by name (and/or linking to your blog) here in this post, so refrained from doing so. Please know that I can happily edit my post to do so, if you’d like. Just say the word.
Your heart-touching kindness means so much to me. Aww! As much as I wish I could claim that I projected myself to your home, that didn’t happen (there’s no way my astro self would stop by and not say hi to you! 😄). Instead, I paid close attention to your personal style via your beautiful fashion and home decor photos and tried to capture the timeless elegance and immense eye for beauty that abound in both, channelling them into this festive greeting. 😘
Just between you, me, and the Christmas tree, I already have an idea in mind for your Christms 2021 greeting. 😃
Huge hugs & tons of February cheer coming your way!
♥ Autumn
What a beautiful creation and delightful post! I’m so glad I hopped over to thank you for your kind words on my blog.
You’re splendidly kind, Brenda. Thank you very much! It’s a pleasure to connect with you online.
Big hugs & many wishes for a cozy, safe, wonderful tail end of winter coming your way.
♥ Autumn
What a beautiful and unique holiday card. I love a completely different take on any holiday cards. This is just beautiful, the black and gold. This may be one of the best christmas cards ive seen. I love all your creations. Thank you for sharing.
You are extrodinarily kind, dear Christina. Thank you, truly, for touching my heart with your sweet, supportive words. They will stay with me for a long time to come, I’m certain.
It’s a joy to have recently discovered your blog and the captivating, gorgeous projects you share there. I’m following your site via feed reader now and look forward to continuing to see and be inspired by your projects.
Many hugs,
♥ Autumn
WOWeeeee! So very beautifulx
You are awesomely kind and supportive, dear Emma. Thank you SO much!
Not only for your blush-inducingly lovely words here on this project share post, but for each and every blog comment that you so sweetly bestowed my way this month.
I wholeheartedly appreciate them, just as I do you sharing your time with my wee corner of the interwebs.
Many hugs & joyful winter-into-spring wishes coming your way!
♥ Autumn