it is a truth, universally acknowledged...

...that the cards we love most are always the hardest ones to photograph. a fact i shall be happy to prove in a moment; but first, allow me remind you that this fortnight's card prompt at ♥JINGLE BELLES♥ is called "the hanukkah song"* and the brief is to make cards for our friends and relatives who don't necessarily celebrate christmas. despite the title, you're not limited to hanukkah however; ANY of the "other" (aka non-christmas) winter holidays will work: kwanzaa, new year, hogmanay, solstice... OR... you can go completely non-denominational and make a general winter-themed card.

i went with hanukkah this time, and built my card around a grungy, layery, digital collage i made in photoshop and printed on an inkjet transparency. that's where the photo troubles began. because of course anything reflective is almost impossible to photograph in sufficient light. which essplains why the background of picture has such a grey cast. sigh. but the card's pretty cool anyway, i think:

(digital products: trimmed down grungy blue background paper from kathryn wilson's "inner artist" set; handwritten "happy" overlay from anna aspnes' "retro holiday" art play palette; see-through snowflakes brushes by rhonna farrer; grungy lace brushes #1 by katie pertiet, designer digitals; real-life products: white texty patterned paper: basic grey; chunky silver glitter thickers: american crafts; glossy black cardstock: paper accents; ink: stewart superior; adhesives: staples brand gluetape runner, sewing machine)

you may not have noticed right away-- at least i kind of hope you didn't-- but there were NO official hanukkah-themed products involved in the making of this card. i used hanukkah colors (blue, white and silver) and sparkly letters to spell out the sentiment, and that's all; but i think it gets the message across. the letters are glitter-encrusted chipboard and the "happy" has been machine stitched to add a little texture. because even though i love and appreciate CAS cards, rather to my chagrin, i am physically unable to make them. here's a shot that shows the detail a little better. the operative words here being "a little":

be sure to hop over to ♥JINGLE BELLES♥ to check out Stephanie's gorgeous (and wonderfully photographed!) card and upload your own masterpiece!

*in tribute to the awesomely eponymous ditty by the great bard adam sandler! :)