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Holiday card making - part 1

There's a new collection out at Simply Crafty SVGs.  I fell in love with the penguin card as soon as I saw it and decided to jump and get the set as soon as it was released and put my spin on it.  I had ideas swirling!  

Here's my take:  
I cut an extra layer of the solid blackout version of the penguin.   I wanted to make sure the insert was stable enough to handle the wobble.  I also cut a vellum version of the lights and then trimmed the "bulbs" from the black cut.  I used an embossing tool to add a little dimension to the vellum bulbs.  You could also color them if desired or color the light different colors with alcohol markers if you didn't have any colored LED lights.

I used some lights from a chibi kit I'd purchased a while back.  Create your circuit.  I did cut a slot in the panel that goes on the card base back after coloring the panel with distress inks for a night sky.  The panel had been altered by adding some small holes in the spots where the bulbs would be.  You can do that before cutting or marking the panel after cutting.  Mark the back piece of the card base for placement of the LEDs.  Create your circuit.  Since I'd added a slot, i used a slider switch to complete the circuit to turn the lights on and off.  It is hidden behind the insert but very accessible.  The "handle" will fold down for mailing and doesn't add a lot of bulk to the card.

You'll assembly the card pretty much as directed in the video on Sandy's site -- I added some inking and used a small piece of cotton for the pom-pom on the hat for a little more fun.  

Hoping you'll find some creative time soon as well!  

An early start to Christmas makes

I saw a sample of something similar to this explosion box project, but the boxes used on the inside walls of the explosion box were too shallow for what I wanted to accomplish.  So I tried my hand at creating my own version with a little help from a friend.  Finished size is 4.25 x 4.25 x 4.25 inches.  

All patterned paper is digital and I was able to isolate one of the reindeer from the larger paper image and create a "sticker" with it.  There's a reindeer on each side of the box.  SCAL 6 makes it very easy to fill each shape with the paper and size as desired.  All of the images used were backgrounds that were scalable and seamless.  

When you open the box, you'll find 6 mini- cubes on each side panel.  Each cube is numbered.  

Each cube holds a  small single bit candy bar or a couple of hershey kisses.  They will also hold a small charm.  It's makes a perfect Advent calendar for the holidays or could be adapted to celebrate a birthday month or upcoming anniversary.  

I used print 2 cut to create all the panels using a digital paper package call Happy Holidays I picked up from Creative Fabrica a while back.  It's a fun set of backgrounds.  I added a little bling to the red-nosed reindeer in the panels using some flat sequins.  

I think it turned about pretty good!  Day 25 will be an envelope holding a gift certificate or voucher for a family to use during or after the holidays.  

Looking forward to starting another Advent box very soon... we need several more for this coming holiday season!  

Neighbor gifts

Pinterest has been my go to lately for some inspiration and we decided to a do a little more for a gift for our neighbors this year.  Using some fabric from my stash, I made some simple bags.  We added some boxed cookie mix, though with an adjustment in the size of the bags, you could add a mix in a jar if wanted or fill the bag with wrapped baked goodies or candies, etc.    

Some greenery, berries and a small wooden spoon found in the wood crafts section at Hobby Lobby worked well. 

The kraft tag was a print 2 cut done using SCAL 5 Pro and cut on the skycut.  The edges of the tag are swiped with some white ink.  We used some brown paper wrapped wire to pull everything together.  

Lanterns

 

I was asked to create some lanterns for some table centerpieces for a friend.  She needed 10 lanterns.  I remembered a post from a few years back where another designer for SVGCuts had altered a file and added some windows to the basic lantern file.  I figured that would work.

A pack of AC Cardstock in crimson paper was perfect!  Some greenery, berries, ribbon and a tealight and some "snow" finished these off perfectly.  They were ready to add to the other decor being used for the centerpieces.

The skycut C24 made easy work of all the cutting... including the transparency for the windows.  Bearly Art Precision Glue was used to glue the side walls and bottom piece together.  I did use some scor-tape to adhere the transparency to the inside walls.  

You can find the lantern file here and the adaptation for the windows and more here.  

I don't have a pic of the finished tables yet, but hope to have one soon.  

 

 

2022 Holiday Tags - #12

Today's the final day... the reveal of the last tag.  This digi stamp, Christmas Gnome with Lantern, from Polkdoodles.com was the perfect image to use.  

Colored with colored pencils and blended with Gamsol.  There is some shimmer added to the beard and a few stars around the tag edges.  It just doesn't show well in the above images.  

To add a little more to the tag -- the EZ light from Pear Blossom Press was added to the back panel.  There's no need to create a circuit as the circuit is built into the EZ light.  Just add the battery, secure the light in place as directed in the instructions provided with the product packaging - and making sure that the button is facing the front of the tag.  Once you have the light in place, add some foam tape around the edges.  I placed two layers of the tape along the edges and secured the two tag pieces together.

Press the button and voila!  You have light and a very special tag that will be fun for any recipient!  

This has been a delightful 12 days again this year.  Thanks again for stopping by.   I'll be posting a recap a little later this month.  If you're so inclined, we'd love to have you join us next year for our annual reveal and share your 12 tags as well.  All of the tags shared this year here and on the Facebook page can be found in the 2022 - 12 Holiday Tags Reveal album.  

2022 Holiday Tags - #11

Interactive cards are a favorite of mine.  Why not make a tag with an interactive element?  

This spinner tag is fun and festive.  Again, I used a paper from the Nordic Christmas Collection and the dotted paper is another digital image found in a pastel dotted and stripe collection.  Both are from Creative Fabrica.  

I used a rounded corner rectangle for the initial base.  An oval was used for the cut out and the tree is from the Winter shapes folder in SCAL.   Size and then fill both the shapes with the desired images using Pattern Fill on the Fill and Stroke palette.  Cut and assemble pieces to form a spinner.  Use a little ink if desired along the edges since the digital images are printed on white paper.  

Thanks for stopping by.... we're nearly done with the reveal for this year's 12 Holiday tags.  Feel free to check out all of the tags in the album on the Facebook page found here.  

2022 Holiday Tags - #10

Have you ever looked at the fabulous iced cookies that are being created out there?  They are amazing.  I wish I could hold an icing bag again to do some of them - but arthritis makes it a little more difficult.    Using a cutting machine and paper makes it possible to create this small paperquilt/paper-pieced tag.  

This star "cookie" was a fun one and adding some details using embossing folder added a little more texture for the finished tag.  It was fun to dig through my tub of embossing folders and choose what to use for this tag.  Both folders were from Sizzix.  Basic shapes for the five-sided star, circle for the nose and an oval for the face.  The raindrops in the Spring folder for the general make-up of this tag.  I used a couple of horizontal lines found in the Basic Shapes folder -- and used the wave effect to create a slight curve in both lines. This tag is also a great way to use up some of your scraps.  Nothing over 4 x 4!  Bearly Art glue was used.  

Thanks for stopping by!  Join us over on the Facebook page to check out the rest of the makes!  

2022 Holiday Tags - #9

I decided to create another tag using foiling.  The tree file were a purchased file from So Fontsy.  There are quite a few tree designs in the file.. I enjoyed picking the 9 used on this tag.  

The trim on the bottom was a print 2 cut using a simple rectangle filled with a pattern from the Nordic Christmas Collection I found on Creative Fabrica.  The foil quill came through again~ just make sure that it is thoroughly heated up before using.  One of the benefits of using the Skycut is that there is a USB port and you can heat up the foil quill using that port -- no extra battery pack or dragging another charger and plugging it in to use the foil quill.  

Thanks for stopping by -- hoping you're enjoying the reveal!  Our Facebook page offers the whole gamut of contributors this year... so stop by there too  

2022 Holiday Tags - #8

What can you do with a simple square?  Create a snowman, of course!  This tag is a perfect way to use up a few scraps in black, red and green or just a scrap of white and coloring with some alcohol markers.  Inspired by an iced cookie found on Pinterest, it was easy to translate into a paper cookie!  

Bazzil's medium kraft paper was perfect to use as a base.  AC cardstock for other pieces.  Playing with a some nodes, a couple of rectangles you can make the components for the hat easily.  A little gel pen, a micron marker, and some shimmer were added to finish off this tag.  

You're invited to drop by the Facebook page here to see all the other beauties being posted daily!  Thanks for stopping by again.  

2022 Holiday Tags - #7

Gingerbread!  I love how it smells and remember lots of baking days making gingerbread men and even a gingerbread house or two!  Lots of great memories.  The tag for today is a remake of something we made about 10 years or more ago.  A simple shaped cut with a couple of hearts popped up on foam dots.

Icing details added using a gel pen.  A small dauber with a bit of ink used for the cheeks on this cut.   This would be a perfect tag for a jar of gingerbread cookie mix -- and a day of baking with the grands.  

Again, if you haven't been checking the daily contributions to the Reveal on our Facebook group, here's the link again.  Feel free to stop by, our makers have been working hard to create their tags too.  Thanks for stopping by!