I switched up the stamps that I used, and was pleasantly surprised to find that the poem from 'Twas the Night Before Christmas was a perfect fit for the card front. I worked assembly-line style when making these cards and finished 20 of them in a weekend.
I so look forward to sending and receiving Christmas cards, we always hang them in the doorway between our living and dining rooms. I have been a little disappointed this year in the number of printed photo cards that we received. Don't get me wrong - I like to see photos of the little ones in our lives all dressed up in their holiday finest, but what bugs me most is that not a single one of these cards included a hand-written holiday message. Maybe I am old-fashioned, but I miss reading that little wish of joy for the season.. a connection between two families.
I will be choosing a winner for my little giveaway this evening, so if you have not yet left a comment it might be a good time to do so! :) I will be back tomorrow to announce the winner.
Have a fantastic day my dears!
I know that I didn't use a traditional 'thank you' sentiment, but I thought this Christmas Memories sentiment was heart-warming. It made me think of cozy times with family and friends, the excited faces Christmas morning, and fuzzy pajamas. I also thought it was a nice segue into the note I plan to write inside, about how the recipient helped to create some wonderful Christmas memories for me.
I'm so glad you stopped by today, please be sure to visit the other Design Team members to see their take on the challenge!
Yummy, yum, YUM!
Isn't he a cutie? I saw a snowman image like this somewhere and thought how easy it would be with my Circle Nesties! I cut three circles, each one smaller than the last, inked the edges a bit and then layered them onto my card with foam tape. I used a small dot stamp to create his face and buttons. His arms and nose were cut from scrap cardstock and his scarf is a few snips of ribbon. He looks like he's ready for a hug!
This month I was fortunate enough to have a card featured in both CardMaker and Paper Crafts Magazines. I just happened to have an extra copy that I would love to send to you! Please leave a comment sharing what you are most looking forward to this Christmas. Maybe it is time with your family, the giving of gifts, or maybe just that special 'feeling' this time of year has. On Thursday night I will randomly draw a winner to receive both issues and announce it here on Friday!
I used one of my favorite WMS Christmas sets, Sewing Box - Christmas for this card. Here is this week's sketch:
I liked the combination of dark purple and light blue for winter. I hope you've got a pair of fuzzy mittens like these, its really cold outside!
So lovey dovey - and sparkly!
Thanks for stopping in today. Head over to the Lizzie Anne Designs Blog to see what the other DT members have created for the January mix and to read more about the changes to the Mix Club!
A perfect card for your kiddies to find on Christmas morning, along with the empty plate of cookies they left for Santa! Keep the magic alive! ;)
Here is my card for today's Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge. I had not yet had a chance to use this half-moon Santa image from Around Christmastime, and today's sketch was the perfect opportunity.
The red, green, and light brown cardstock was all colored using Distress Inks. This is a fun technique using your Distress Inks if you've never tried it. I smooshed the ink pads onto my craft mat, spritzed it with water and then pressed my cardstock down into it. The result is a mottled, vintage look. Tim Holtz uses this technique often: he has lots of other technique ideas on his blog. I used a heat tool to dry the cardstock and then stamped my images. I am loving the combination of red and dark brown, paired with this Santa image it feels so cozy and Old World.
I used the present image from Deck the Halls to create these cute stacked boxes. Stamped in festive colors and cut out, I accented them with glitter (a must!) and a baker's twine bow.
And here is my card:
I followed the sketch pretty much to the letter, just couldn't resist putting my month image right there in that oval spot. Part of the image was paper pieced and other parts were colored with my Copics.
Here is the inside, using the It's That Time and the Happy Birthday sentiments. No reason why I can't use a Christmas sentiment for a birthday, no? I mean, a birthday comes around once a year too!
The Illustrated Month stamps are available in two sizes (the one I used on my card is the larger size). They are available individually or in a set; they are also available in Cling Sets with coordinating sentiments. Go check them out, the illustrations are really adorable!
I'm so glad you stopped by today, please be sure to visit the other Design Team members to see their take on the challenge!
Aren't these paper pierced luminaries beautiful? They are easy, too - keep reading for a step-by-step tutorial.
Step 1. If desired, trim your cardstock to size. I used one full sheet of 8-1/2 by 11 cardstock for the red luminary. Changing the width of the cardstock on the 8-1/2 inch side will change the height of your luminary. I used a different width for each of mine so they would all sit at different heights.
Step 2. Using your pencil line as a guide, stamp your pattern. I used Versamark ink, but you can use whatever ink you'd like. I used images from Santa Was Here, Festive Foliage, and Sewing Box - Christmas for my luminaries. Anything with a bold outline will work great.
Step 3. Using a paper piercer or needle, punch holes around your image to outline the shape. I would recommend using a piece of foam or a mousepad underneath to protect your work surface. I found it easy to punch a hole at each corner and then to fill in the rest - this seemed to help to keep things evenly spaced.
Step 4. Finish piercing your design and erase your pencil lines.
Step 5. To assemble your luminary, cut an additional piece of cardstock the width of your luminary (in this case, 8-1/2 inches). I used a strip approximately 1 inch wide. Apply strong adhesive (I used Scor-Tape) to this strip of cardstock.
Step 6. Remove adhesive liner and adhere the cardstock strip to one side of your luminary.
Step 7. Repeat on the other side, curving your cardstock into a tube shape as you go. This extra cardstock strip adds some stability to the junction of your cardstock as well as to give it a nice clean edge.
Now all that is left to do is to add a candle, dim the lights, and enjoy!
I think these would be so pretty as a centerpiece lined up along your holiday dining room table! I hope you enjoyed this project - if you give it a shot, I would love for you to share!
I used WMSC25 as inspiration for this one. I also used my favorite holiday color combination: red, cream, and sand with a touch of green for good measure!
A circle! Here's my card:
I was inspired by this quilted mistletoe my mom made for me. It has the cutest little felted berries, I just love it. Its very festive hanging in my doorway.
The sketch challenge will remain open until Thursday, 11:59 EST. You can link up your entry on the Waltzingmouse Sketch Challenge Blog. Top Mice will be announced along with the new sketch next Saturday! Be sure to visit the blog and check out what the other DT members and Mischief Makers have created for the sketch challenge!
I love that each of the images in the mix sets have at least one sentiment that coordinates. I particularly like this one - a great masculine encouragement sentiment - those are hard to come by!
You may have seen this candle that I made for last month's WMS release. I needed some craft show projects, and it was easy to come up with a few other designs based on that first candle.
I added some crystal glitter to the pine cones and tied the tag to my candle using baker's twine and a jingle bell. Isn't it just sweet? I made a few of these for a craft fair I'm participating in. Like I said, an easy gift or fun decor for yourself. If you want to light the candle (which smells like yummy evergreen) all you need to do is just slide the band off the candle.
When I was thinking about the card I wanted to make, this house image combined with the idea of home reminded me of one of those cute Home Sweet Home Samplers that you might find hanging on Grandma's wall. What do you think?
I used the Classic and Lacey Square Nestabilities to create the frame. I stamped the House image and colored it with Copics.
Look for the other Lizzie Anne DT members sharing previews of the singles then head over to the LAD shop and add them to your cart! :)
I used the two outline holly stamps from Festive Foliage to decorate my bowl. I just impressed it into the clay, bending around the shape of the bowl. The berries were made from extra clay. I painted the leaves and berries with a glaze, the bowl itself was fired with no glaze - the metallic brown color comes from the soda firing process.
So there you go - stamps are for more than just paper! This is a pretty addition to my mantle for the holidays.
Here is my card, for a friend celebrating a winter birthday!
The snowflakes are from Sewing Box - Christmas, a fantastic winter-themed set. The holly stamp is one of my all-time favorites. Kept things simple on this one, but made up for it with all that glitter!
Aren't these great? I used the Train Engine Large and Train on Track stamps from Serendipity to make these coasters.
Step 1. Score your cardstock at 1.5" and 3".
Step 2. Rotate your cardstock and score it again at 1.5" and 3".
Step 3. Repeat for each remaining side. (Your score lines will end up at 1.5", 3", 5.25"
Here is what the box pattern looks like.
Step 4. Here is what your box will look like once it has been scored and cut.
Step 5. Stamp frame and windows in the center of your box. This will end up being the front of your box, instead of what would normally be the box bottom.
Step 6. Color your frame and windows. I decided when I started that I was not going to color the fancy outer frame portion of the window. I wanted your eyes to be directed right to the window portion, and I knew it would save some time. I colored the window frame with Copic marker E43 and highlighted the window glass with W1, but the world is your oyster - make it your own!
Step 7. Finish decorating your windows. I *love* the little wreath included in this set. There are also lots of other elements that can be used to decorate the windows. I did something different in each of mine, but established a 'pattern' of sorts so that I at least had a starting point. I used the numbers from Victorian Alphabet to number my boxes for each day.
Step 8. Using a craft knife, cut along the top and bottom of your windows and then down the center in between.
Step 9. Score the outside edges of the windows. This creates a nice fold and allows the windows to open easily.
Step 10. Now you're ready to start assembling your boxes. I find it works best to fold all of your scored lines first. Then fold in the sides and adhere with a strong adhesive, as shown.
(I used Scor-Tape.)
Step 11. Repeat with the other side.
Step 12. Fold down the remaining flaps and adhere. I used a regular piece of tape on the bottom just to be sure.
Step 13. You have a finished box! One down - 24 more to go!! ;)
Step 14. Now you need to prepare your frame. You could, of course, do this step at any time in the process, depending on what you want to do. The frame that I bought was originally black, so I spray-painted mine. You could cover it with patterned paper, ribbon, glitter, or leave it plain - whatever you want!
Step 15. Once you've finished your frame, all you need to do to assemble the calendar is to slide the boxes in place. As I mentioned earlier, the actual frame opening is about 11.5 inches. The boxes were sized (2.25 inches) so that five of them would fit beside each other snugly and not require any adhesive to keep the boxes in place. I liked this plan a lot - if something happens to Day 11, for instance, you can just pop it out and replace it without having to tear the whole thing apart!
The finished product!! You can fill your little boxes with whatever you choose, I filled mine with little wooden ornaments, as seen here.
