More Christmas goodies

This afternoon I finished making the mint patty treat bags I'm planning to give as holiday gifts (see Christmas goodies post). I decided to make just six more bags with nine mint patties, and then for the last few I made smaller bags with four candies in each. I found some 4" x 6" treat bags at Michaels this morning that were the perfect size for four mint patties. Below are pictures of the finished bags as well as the stamp set(s), colors and ribbon used for each; the rest of the supplies are listed in the previously mentioned post. (One of the bags I made was the same as the set in my previous post, so I haven't included that picture here.)

Note: All supplies listed are from Stampin' Up!^®.

Stamps: Weather or Not, All-Year Cheer I
Colors: Whisper White, Vintage Violet, Purely Pomegranate, Kiwi Kiss
Ribbon: Purely Pomegranate polka dot (Sherbet Ribbon Originals)

This set has some non-traditional colors, and I really wasn't sure about it while I was making it. But I think it turned out to be one of my favorites!

Stamps: Darling Dots, Cute Converse
Colors: Whisper White, Green Galore, Taken with Teal, Poppy Parade
Ribbon: Red organdy

This color combo definitely has a retro feel.

Stamps: Merry, Circle of Friendship
Colors: Naturals Ivory, Almost Amethyst, Vintage Violet
Ribbon: Vintage Violet stitched grosgrain

For this set I stamped the snowflakes randomly on the card stock and then punched out the circles.

Stamps: Hung Up on the Holidays, Lots of Thoughts
Colors: Very Vanilla, Ruby Red, Soft Suede
Ribbon: Christmas Alpine grosgrain (Alpine Ribbon Originals)

Classic Christmas colors and images.

Stamps: Hung Up on the Holidays, All-Year Cheer I
Colors: Whisper White, Real Red, Green Galore, Glorious Green
Ribbon: Real Red polka dot grosgrain

This set has a bit of a retro feel, too. I like the red paired with two shades of green.

Left set:
Stamps: Hung Up on the Holidays
Colors: Whisper White, Chocolate Chip, Crushed Curry, Wild Wasabi, Ruby Red, Close to Cocoa
Ribbon: Chocolate grosgrain

Right set:
Stamps: All Wrapped Up Accessories
Colors: Whisper White, Real Red, Glorious Green
Ribbon: Real Red grosgrain

Left set:
Stamps: Season of Joy
Colors: Whisper White, Cool Caribbean, Soft Sky
Ribbon: Soft Sky stitched grosgrain

Right set:
Stamps: Season of Joy
Colors: Very Vanilla, Cranberry Crisp, True Thyme
Ribbon: Cranberry Crisp and True Thyme stitched grosgrain

I had a lot of fun making these (and I only ate a couple of mint patties while I was working!). But after decorating a total of 79 mint patties -- for a total of 158 pieces, counting the front and back -- my scallop circle punch is in definite need of a vacation. I wasn't sure it was going to last, but it held out. Whew!

Christmas goodies

Every year I like to give a little handmade gift to the families in my toddler class at work. This is what I decided to make this year:

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^® unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Cold Play, Merry, All-Year Cheer I
Card stock: Whisper White, Ballet Blue, Brilliant Blue
Ink: Basic Gray, Pumpkin Pie, Ballet Blue
Accessories: 1-1/4" circle punch, 1-3/8" circle punch, scallop circle punch, 1/4" hole punch (unknown), large flat cellophane bag, wide blue grosgrain ribbon (unknown), Scor-Tape (Scor-Pal), mint patties (Pearson's)

 I stamped the snowman's face (Basic Gray) and nose (Pumpkin Pie) on Whisper White card stock and punched it out with the 1-1/4" circle punch. Then I layered it on a 1-3/8" circle of Ballet Blue and a Brilliant Blue scalloped circle. I made eight snowman pieces and one with the greeting "merry & bright" (stamped in Ballet Blue). I also made nine pieces stamped with a snowflake. Then I adhered each snowflake piece to the back of a mint patty, and a snowman (or greeting) to the front. (Note: Be sure to use a strong adhesive so the card stock stays attached to the candy wrapper; I used Scor-Tape.) I arranged the candies in a cellophane bag, folded back the top of the bag, punched two holes and added a ribbon. I was a little worried that all the mint patties would fall down when I picked up the bag, but they seem to be staying in place pretty well.

Here is a picture of the back of the bag so you can see all the snowflakes. I could have stamped the same images for the front and back of the candies, but I thought it was fun to have the snowflakes on the back. I'm making five packs of mint patties for the toddlers in my class, and I should have enough candy left to make four more bags, so I'm also planning to give these as small holiday gifts to a few other people (my belly dance teacher, yoga instructor, etc.). I made one other snowman set like this one, but the rest will all be different with various winter and Christmas images. I've been working on the other sets today, and it's fun to pick out color combos and images; I'll post pictures of those sets when they're done.

Thanks for stopping by!

Birthday turtle

As I mentioned in my last post ("Stripes, circles and sparkles"), here is the "boy" birthday card I made last weekend:

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^® unless otherwise noted):
Stamps: Turtle & Co.
Card stock: Wild Wasabi, Whisper White, Soft Suede
Ink: Ink pads - Jet Black StazOn, Wild Wasabi; markers - Wild Wasabi, Soft Suede, Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point
Accessories: Pacific Point striped ribbon, "Just Because Cards Cricut cartridge (Provo Craft), Dimensionals

This is a fairly simple card (but, at least I think, still cute). For the focal point I stamped the turtle image first and then stamped the stack of presents and the party hat on the turtle. I managed to do a pretty decent job getting them aligned by just eyeballing it; the presents do lean a bit to the left, but I figure if there were ever a turtle carrying a pile of presents on its shell, they probably wouldn't be perfectly straight either. I colored the images and added a bit of doodling around the edge of the white card stock. Layered behind the white card stock is a shaped piece of Soft Suede that I had cut out quite a while ago with the "Just Because" Cards cartridge for my Cricut. It happened to fit perfectly with the size of my focal image, and the scallops add a fun little detail.

For the rest of the card, I repeatedly stamped the presents image on the top half of the background, stamped a greeting on the bottom and added some ribbon. Quick and easy! And you could change up the color combo to change the feel of the card, for example, pastels for a baby card or pink, purple and/or red for a more feminine card. It's always nice to have card ideas that can be flexible.

Thanks for stopping by!

Stripes, circles and sparkles

With Christmas cards finally made, it's time to get back into more everyday cards. There are only a few birthdays in my extended family this month, but two of them are for kids (one girl and one boy), and I'm still short on kid cards in my stash. So that was my Saturday project.

Supplies (all Stampin' Up!^®):
Stamps: Happiest Birthday Wishes
Paper: Regal Rose card stock, Basic Gray card stock, Whisper White card stock, Patterns Pack II DSP
Ink: Basic Gray, Regal Rose
Accessories: Basic Gray satin ribbon, Basic Rhinestones, large and extra large Tag punches, Scallop Edge Border punch, 1" circle punch, Dimensionals

This card probably turned out a little "mature" for the two-year-old for whom it's intended. But one thing I have learned as a childcare teacher is that toddlers like sparkly things. (And really, who doesn't?)

I started this card with the piece of Regal Rose striped paper layered on the Basic Gray card. I added the scalloped edge, ribbon and tag (which is adhered with Dimensionals). The rhinestones on the ribbon and in each corner added a great touch of bling.

But when I looked at the finished card, it didn't seem quite right. The stripes were too dominant, and I wished I'd used a different pattern of DSP on either the top or bottom of the card. But it was already done, and I didn't really want to rip everything apart. So instead I looked for another DSP pattern in the same pack that would compliment the stripes. The polka dot pattern was perfect: it used the same two shades of Regal Rose, and it even pulled out the polka dots in the cake on the tag. I punched a few 1" circles from the polka dot paper and glued them on the bottom half of the card. (I cut a couple of the circles in half so I could glue them right up to the edge of the striped paper.) I think this was a great solution because the circles help break up the stripes, and they add some subtle visual interest to the bottom half of the card.

To make the tag, I stamped the image twice on Whisper White card stock, once in Basic Gray and once in Regal Rose. I used the large tag punch to punch out the Basic Gray image. From the tag stamped in Regal Rose, I cut out just the cake part of the image and glued it over the cake on the Basic Gray image. Then I layered the tag on a larger tag punched out of Regal Rose card stock.

All in all I'm pretty pleased with how this card turned out. I'll share the "boy" birthday card later this week. Thanks for stopping by!

Thirty-one days of December

Twenty-four days until Christmas! I love the holiday season, the Christmas music on the radio, festive lights inside and out, and yummy treats. But last year (and so far this year, too) I felt stressed during what should be a joyful, festive and peaceful time of year. There's pressure to get cards made and sent out, to decorate, to find the perfect gifts. These are all things that I really enjoy doing, but at this time of year, it seems like they often become chores on a to-do list. (And don't even get me started on the whole commercial side of Christmas. I feel like I need to embrace my inner Charlie Brown and find an old scraggly tree to help everyone remember the real meaning of Christmas.)

So to help combat the stress and make the holiday season more enjoyable, I decided to create a list of thirty-one activities to do during December. They aren't listed in any particular order, and while some items are meaningful, others are very small. But I hope that by the end of the month I will have completed most (or maybe all) of these activities:

1. Read a holiday-themed story or book. (One of my favorites is The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans. It's a quick read but very touching.)
2. Send a card or letter to someone "just because."
3. Volunteer to be a Salvation Army bell-ringer (or help with another charity).
4. Bake cookies.
5. Turn off the lights and TV and enjoy the lights on the Christmas tree.
6. Listen to a favorite Christmas CD. Sing along!
7. Catch snowflakes on my tongue.
8. Curl up with a blanket and take a nap (without worrying that I should be doing something else).
9. Eat a candy cane.
10. Surprise a friend, neighbor or coworker with a small anonymous gift.
11. Go to the movies.
12. Give an extra donation to a favorite charity.
13. Smile at a stranger and wish him or her "Happy holidays" or "Merry Christmas."
14. Put together a jigsaw puzzle.
15. Make a snowman.
16. Make a mug of hot chocolate and watch a favorite holiday movie or cartoon. (I really like How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Miracle on 34th Street.)
17. Make a colorful paper chain.
18. Try a new recipe.
19. Make footprints in fresh snow.
20. Make at least one gift.
21. Light a scented candle.
22. Play Christmas carols on my flute.
23. Try a new card-making technique.
24. Play a game of Scrabble.
25. Take pictures of a peaceful winter scene.
26. Put out some crackers or bread for the birds and squirrels.
27. Color a picture in one of  my coloring books.
28. Make tea and cinnamon sugar toast and watch the yule log channel on TV.
29. Make a Christmas ornament.
30. Take an extra yoga class.
31. Donate a toy to Toys for Tots.

I hope you have a wonderful month and take some time to really enjoy the season!