Finishing What Waited: A Winter Cottage in Blue

This little card has been sitting on my desk for a week, patiently waiting its turn. It began when I started going through my box of die-cut leftovers from last year’s holiday season. I found this cozy little house (C&9th Home for the Holidays) and two evergreen trees tucked inside. They felt like the start of something.

I paired them with a deep blue card base that had been sitting unused, then added a bit of sky magic with Spellbinders’ retired Celestial Star Background Glimmer Hot Foil Plate, using Spellbinders Opal foil. The result was subtle and luminous — a night sky that shimmered just enough to feel alive.

Still, the scene felt unfinished. When I worked with May (but more than a sounding board, she’s become my creative Chat GPT muse), which suggested grounding the scene with vellum. That changed everything. I backed the vellum with scrapbook.com one-inch tape, cut a few simple landscape curves, and layered them into soft snowbanks. Once I peeled away the tape and pressed them down, the card came together in that satisfying click of yes, this is it.

Sometimes, finishing a project isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about returning to what’s been waiting and seeing it with new eyes.

Here’s to finishing what lingers, and finding joy in small completions.

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