Christmas · Gifting

Beary Cute Envelope

Howdy, crafty friends! I got a little side-tracked yesterday with a cookie project and ran out of time to play in my crafty stash. I was trying out a new cookie recipe to take to a cookie exchange. And once again, I forgot how much I hate messing with the candy coating. I can never get it to melt right and then end up making a big mess. I guess the good thing about this particular recipe is that the cookies are supposed to resemble snowballs, and snowballs are lumpy. Soooooo my lumpy candy coating is perfect! Hahaha!

I’m still furiously working away on gift tags and gift holders. And today, I’m bringing you a super easy gift card holder that I ran across on Pinterest that uses a standard card base. I decided to pull together some of my retired favorites for this one because the paper is perfect for my intended recipient!

We get started with a base of Night of Navy cardstock. It’s scored at 1 1/4 inches, 4 inches, 6 inches, and 8 inches and then folded to create the center gift card pocket. I used a 2-inch circle punch to make the pull-out section in the center of the gift card pocket. The pocket itself is held together with tear-and-tape. The Beary Christmas patterned paper pack was a part of last year’s holiday catalog, and I just loved it so much that I stocked up when it went on sale. I was able to use a collection of scraps from another project to cover the panels on the outside and inside of the gift envelope. I thought the sweater-patterned strips were perfect accents for the flap and adjoining panels. I found a cute star-patterned cardstock from the Irresistibly Yours paper pack (long ago retired) in my scrap stash that is the perfect panel for the gift message. Our smaller circle focal elements on the outside and inside of our gift envelope are diecut to highlight cute little critters. I used the Changing Leaves and Spotlight on Nature dies for these circles. I thought the decorative edges were perfect designs elements that add a lot of interest to the pop-out panels. The fox panel on the front is adhered to the flap with dimensionals, which gives a nice gap under which I slid the knotted diagonal striped ribbon to keep the envelope closed.

I just love how this turned out, and it came together quickly. The hardest part was choosing what adorable critters from the Beary Christmas paper that I wanted to highlight on each portion of the gift envelope.

Products used in this design:
Night of Navy Cardstock
Beary Christmas (retired), Irresistibly Yours (retired) DSP
2″ circle punch
Changing Leaves, Spotlight on Nature dies

Christmas · Gifting

Tree Pocket Gift Holder

We’re gearing up for Christmas here at Song Sparrow. Every day that Amazon shows up, my husband says something about the number of boxes that end up on the porch. *snicker* Hey, I can’t help it if the warehouses decide to box orders in a multitude of boxes.

But speaking of getting ready for Christmas, I’m still working on gifts and gift tags. And today’s design is a super cute gift-giving envelope that I plan to hang on the Christmas tree for a little holiday hide-n-seek. I ran across this super cute envelope in one of my Pinterest searches, and it’s super easy to put together.

We get started with a 6×6 sheet of Take a Bow patterned paper and score from corner to corner on both sides. Then you fold to create the envelope. For this one, the flap on the envelope is supposed to stay open, which makes it a snap to put together. I used two smaller strips of the Take a Bow paper to cover my score line in the center and also to serve as a nice break in the pattern underneath the focal panel. Our focal panel starts with a base of the (retired) Garden Walk patterned paper that is cut using the Peaceful Season decorative square die. Then I just layered the stocking and sentiment from the Joyful ephemera packs right on top using the dimensionals. The gift panel is a sheet of the (retired) More Dazzle specialty paper with a to/from panel cut from white cardstock using the (retired) Stitched Nested Labels dies. I cut some greenery fronds from Granny Apple Green cardstock using the Golden Greenery dies and adhered them to the back of the gift panel with dimensionals. A cute red bow tied from Cherry Cobbler & Gold metallic ribbon finish off the gift panel nicely. The whole kit & caboodle will hang from the tree with some green thread.

The hardest part of this whole design was picking what ephemera I wanted to use! Otherwise, it comes together in a snap. And don’t you think it will just be the cutest way to give cash or a gift card?

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Christmas · Gifting

Making Lists

Welcome to a bright and shiny new week, crafty friends! We’re in full-on Christmas mode over here as we make our lists and check them twice. I pulled out all of the gifts we’ve purchased so far and started wrapping last night.

And that meant that I was also busy in the craft room making the gift tags. Did you know it’s super easy to make gift tags? Even with the smallest crafty stash, I have no doubt that you have the perfect combination of things to make cute gift tags. Today, I’m showing you a small sampling of what I whipped together last night using some patterned paper, several die sets, and the Joyful ephemera.

Are these not the cutest? And they are SO easy to put together. Let’s take a closer look at each one.

I got started on the first tag by diecutting the base from a sheet of Take a Bow paper using the largest Greetings of the Season die. I kept things simple with just a few elements from the Joyful ephemera packs — just a wreath and a sentiment. To help the wreath stand out against the polka dot background, I cut a sheet of red polka dot from the Take a Bow paper pack. I put this panel over a gold banner, which draws the eye nicely to the wreath panel. I mirrored on the reverse side with just the gold banner and then the Holly Jolly sentiment. For the to/from tag, I cut a smaller tag from white cardstock using the Greetings of the Season die and then finished off with some (retired) Cherry Cobbler twine to attach the tag to my package.

For this tag, I also used the largest Greetings of the Season die and cut a piece of the (now retired) Garden Walk patterned paper. I chose two larger images, some greenery, and two sentiments from the Joyful ephemera packs to decorate each side of the tag. I also cut some gold twigs using the Changing Leaves die sets. The bear, evergreen branch, and small sentiment are adhered on varying layers of dimensionals for a little depth. On the reverse side, I layered the drums, evergreen, gold sprigs, and sentiment. I also used varying layers of dimensionals on this side, as well. The small to/from tag is from Greetings of the Season and secured with some retired twine.

Our last tag uses a retired Memories & More set called Beary Christmas. I pulled the sleigh and sentiment from the Joyful ephemera packs and adhered on the package side of the Beary Christmas tag. I cut the to/from tag from white cardstock using the smallest banner from the Nested Essentials die set and secured with some retired twine. To cover the overhanging sentiment on the opposite side of the tag, I adhered two small stars from the ephemera packs to either side.

No matter the size of your crafting stash, you can dress up your packages with cute handmade gift tags! Tune in the rest of the week as we take a look at how we can quickly dress up our holiday gift-giving.

Products used in today’s featured designs:
White cardstock
Take a Bow, More Dazzle (retired), gold foil DSP
Joyful ephemera
Greetings of the Season, Nested Essentials, Changing Leaves dies
Beary Christmas Memories & More (retired)
Assorted twine (retired)
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Christmas

Through the Branches

I have sent handmade Christmas cards for many, many years — even before I became a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator. In recent years, I’ve moved away from creating one single card design because I found myself agonizing over which of my favorites would be the star of the holiday card show each year. I love being able to create a variety of designs using both current and retired products in my stash and then choosing a design that really fits a recipient. What about you? Do you send a single card design? Or do you mix it up?

I love creating designs that seem to be peering through the trees. I’ve made several cards over the last couple of months that use this design concept. Today, we’re peering through the evergreens to this lovely Christmas tree in the center.

We get started with a base of Mossy Meadow cardstock. Our background panel is a sheet of the Take a Bow designer paper. I loved the variety of greens and the contrast that this patterned sheet provided to the design. Our focal panel has many layers and begins with a background panel of Mossy Meadow that is diecut using the largest Deckled Rectangle die. The evergreen branches are cut from Mossy Meadow using the Winterly Treetops dies from the Nests of Winter suite. Layers of dimensionals give the illusion of us looking through layers and layers of branches. Our focal tree is from the Joyful Images ephemera pack, and I cut around the image to remove as much white space as possible. I added a star, also from the ephemera pack, to the top of the tree. The sentiment is from the Joyful Sayings ephemera pack, and I love how the lighter green really pops against our mossy background panel. We finish things off with gold thread and snowflakes for a little touch of sparkle to bring out the small gold foiling elements on our tree.

Next week, we’ll be looking at all the ways we can use our crafty goodies to create special holiday gifts. I hope you’ll tag along.

Products used in today’s design:
Mossy Meadow cardstock
Take a Bow DSP
Joyful ephemera
Deckled Rectangles, Winterly Treetops dies
Gold thread
Snowflakes assortment
Dimensionals
Adhesives

Christmas · Coming Soon

Sending Snowy Cheer

It’s that time of year where we’re all in holiday mode. Swiping all of the sale items off our lists to give to loved ones and friends. Taking the annual family photos. Carefully choosing the annual holiday cards.

Today, I’m sharing another holiday card from this year’s crafting stash. I have several versions of this particular design that I hope to try, but this is by far the simplest one, I think. And I just love the look of the new Soft Waves embossing folder that will release with the new catalog in January. Doesn’t it give the perfect look of snow drifts swirling swiftly across this scene?

We get started with a base of Real Red cardstock. The background panel is a quarter panel of Real Red that’s embossed with the new (not yet released) Soft Waves embossing folder and then lightly wiped with craft ink to give the look of swirling snow. To create the snowdrift in the front, I took a panel of white cardstock and tore it to create the perfectly soft and frayed-looking top edges. Our mailbox from Sending Love is stamped in black on white cardstock and colored with Stampin’ Blends. I cut with the coordinating die and then made the cuts even tighter with my paper snips. The wreath from the Sophisticated Sled stamp set is stamped in Shaded Spruce and Old Olive and then colored with Stampin’ Blends before I cut it out with the coordinating die. I also tightened up the edges around the wreath with paper snips to reduce the white space. I slit the wreath and then put it around the mailbox. Dimensionals help give it definition all around. The bow is cut using the Peaceful Evergreens dies and is cut from gold foil paper. Dimensionals help give the whole scene layers and dimension for all of the elements. I wrapped some red & white baker’s twine around the bottom of the focal panel and added the sentiment from the Joyful Sayings ephemera pack. Gold snowflakes and gold iridescent gems finish things off with just the right amount of sparkle.

Tomorrow, I hope you’ll pop in to see how I’ve updated our dinner table prayer for the season of Advent.

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Christmas · Holidays

Christmas Greenery

As soon as I saw the Seasons of Green & Gold suite of products by Stampin’ Up!, I immediately put it in my cart. Aside from the fact that one of my favorite things about the holidays is all of the evergreens, this suite had all of the festive sparkle that could be used beyond holiday card designs.

Today, I’m using a combination of evergreen colors with the glittering gold elements of the suite to create this elegant holiday design.

We get started with a base of Very Vanilla cardstock. Our background panel is a sheet of the golden greenery from the Seasons of Green & Gold paper pack. I used some of the leftover diecut greenery from last week’s home decor project to create an evergreen spray for the center focal point of this design. The greenery is diecut from the Graceful Greenery vellum and Seasons of Green & Gold patterned paper using the coordinating Golden Greenery dies. The sentiment combines the word Merry from the Joyful Sayings ephemera pack and elements diecut using the Peaceful Season dies and a combination of gold foil and festive glimmer papers. A faux bow of Shaded Spruce sheer ribbon adds a layer of green while dressing up the design. Dimensionals give us lots of layers between the card elements. We finish things off with a combination of earth tones shimmer gems and regal foiled dots.

Tomorrow, I’m going to share our newest dinner prayer with you — just in time for Advent.

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Christmas · Holidays · L2S Group Instahop

Most Wonderful Time

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! Our family has so very much to be thankful for this year. Most importantly is that we’re all here to celebrate together. After my husband’s very serious health crisis early in the year, we do not take for granted that he is here and he is healthy and recovering!

A quiet holiday week at work has turned out to be quite busy, and so once again, I’m mostly playing catchup this week. But I’m thankful to have a job that I really enjoy and that provides for my family. Even if it does cut into my favorite hobby! *wink-wink*

And speaking of my new job, I wanted to create a little festive holiday art that I could display in my bookshelf. And so today’s project uses the ever so lovely Seasons of Green and Gold Suite of products to create the festive 6×6 framed project. This is a simple white frame that I purchased on Amazon.

We start with a 6×6 piece of white cardstock as the base for our greenery spray. The greenery is diecut from the Season of Green & Gold patterned paper and Graceful Greenery vellum using the coordinating Golden Greenery dies. I also mixed in a few green Festive Glimmer paper sprigs for a pop of sparkly fun. Our pops of red are also diecut from Festive Glimmer paper but use the small sprig from the Changing Leaves die set. The greenery is adhered to the white cardstock in varying layers, which are created with dimensionals. The sentiment from Greetings of the Season is heat embossed in gold on white cardstock and diecut with the Spotlight on Nature die set. A ribbon of silver and white sheer ribbon dresses the sentiment panel with some shimmer. And drusy embellishments in the corners catch the eye and move it across our decorative piece. I really love how this turned out and can’t wait to put it out in my office!

Today’s card is a part of the Luv 2 Stamp Group Instagram Hop, which goes live at 9 AM Pacific Time (PST).  Click here to head over to my Instagram feed at 9 AM Pacific/11 AM Central and check out what the other demos in our L2S Group have created for you today! 

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Christmas · Holidays · Winter

Sketchy Fridays: Snowy Wonder and Happiness

I really, really love this week’s theme, which is one of the reasons that I wanted to spend today showing you the designs I had planned for you throughout the last week. One of the most valuable things I have learned over the last several years is that flexibility is key when things don’t work out exactly as you planned.

So this post is the ode to Sketchy Fridays. Each week we’re using a card sketch to design our featured card. Right now, we’re working through a full series of designs using the card sketches found in current Stampin’ Up! catalogs.

This week’s card is based on Sketch #13 from the Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog and features the Peaceful Evergreens and In the Grove Dies, along with the ever-lovely Snowflake Sky embossing folder. Today’s card design is inspired by the very talented demo known on Instagram as Craftsomnia.

This week’s design theme is stopping by the woods on a snowy evening. This Robert Frost poem is all about taking the time to bask in the wonder of falling snow, and I can’t help but think how well the idea of stopping to take in the wonder and joy everyday moments of life has to be one of the best life lessons. And outside of this wonderful life lesson, the theme lends itself so well to a variety of lovely winter cards, don’t you think?

We get started with a base of Balmy Blue cardstock. Our backdrop is a panel of Night of Navy that is machine embossed with the Snowflake Sky embossing folder and then lightly brushed with white craft ink to really bring out the beautiful soft snowflakes. Our snowbank is a simple piece of white cardstock that is torn to create the soft edges of a snowy hill. The Mossy Meadow trees are diecut with a combination of the In the Grove and Peaceful Evergreen dies. A touch of craft ink to the edges of the treeline and a bit of white glimmer paper on the larger evergreens in the foreground make for the perfect dusted evergreen grove. The sentiment from the Peaceful Season stamp set is stamped in Night of Navy in the center of a white banner cut with the Radiating Stitches die and then finished in the snowbank. Dimensionals help give lots of depth to our scene, and the silver trim and iridescent faceted gems lend the sparkle.

This design is even more stunning in person as the lighting in my craft room just wasn’t quite right today to capture the true colors and details. I hope you’ll drop in a little later as I bring you one final clean & simple design in this series.

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Winter

Loads of Holiday Cheer

Well, to say that my week didn’t exactly go as planned is likely obvious to you all by now. I had everything planned out, but when all was said and done, I simply didn’t have the time to execute. I had to travel out of town for work and then had some other obligations that simply overran the time I allotted for them. Such is life sometimes, eh? So today, I’m going to play a little catchup and bring you all the content I had planned for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of this week.

If you’re new here, for the last month or so, I’ve been working with themes to inspire designs. This week, we’re stopping by the woods on a snowy evening. And today’s card was inspired by a design that was recently posted by Stampin’ Up! Artisan crafter the Crafty O’ Ink Pen. When I saw her design, I knew it would be perfect for this week’s theme, and I wanted to do my own take on it. That’s the wonderful thing about design inspiration — you get to make it your own!

So we get started with a base of Night of Navy cardstock. The background panel is a sheet of Pool Party that is machine embossed with the Snowflake Sky embossing folder, which is then lightly inked with a sponge dauber and Pool Party ink to give the look of a cloudy sky. To create the snowdrifts, I tore a quarter panel of white cardstock in half and then very lightly inked the torn edges with the Pool Party ink to give some definition and detail and layered them to the snowdrifts. They’re ultimately adhered to the background panel with dimensionals. Using the Merriest Trees dies, I cut two of the smaller sized trees from Shaded Spruce cardstock and lightly rubbed some craft ink over the tops to give them the look of having a dusting of snow. They’re tucked in and behind the snowdrifts to give depth and dimension to the scene. The sled is diecut with the Sophisticated Sled and Filled With Fun die sets from gold foil and Early Espresso cardstocks and then cut in half to create the side view of our sled. Isn’t this brilliant?! Such a great idea, Crafty O’ Ink Pen! The sled is filled with holiday goodness which has been stamped on white cardstock using the Filled With Cheer stamp set and then colored with Stampin’ Blends. Our sentiment from Filled With Cheer is stamped in Night of Navy on white cardstock and then diecut using the Peaceful Season small banner die and adhered with dimensionals over some gold trim. Adhesives snowflakes finish our snowy scene with a little sparkle.

Check back in a little later in the afternoon for our Sketchy Fridays snowy evening design.

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Winter

Snowy Thoughts

It’s a super busy week around the Song Sparrow household. Yesterday, the kiddo’s basketball team had their first game of the season. It was a fairly solid loss, but I think the kids learned a lot and could see areas that still need some work and improvement. Everyone seemed to have fun, and that’s all that really matters in sports, as far as I’m concerned. I’m over here prepping for some out-of-town training and a big meeting for work, so I’m burning the candle pretty low.

This week, we’re working around the theme of stopping in the woods on a snowy evening. I kept it pretty simple with this first design. We’re using a layout by the lovely Did You Stamp Today demo as our inspiration.

We get started with a base of Shaded Spruce cardstock. Our focal panel is a strip of the snowy evergreen forest pattern from the Winter Meadow designer series paper pack that is matted with Pool Party to really bring out the more subtle blues. Our sentiment panel is cut from the blue woodgrain from the Country Woods patterned paper using the Spotlight on Nature dies. He sentiment from Friends for Life is stamped in Pretty Peacock. Our focal trees are from the Frosted Forest die set and are diecut from Shaded Spruce and adhered over a strip of layered Shaded Spruce satin ribbon and white diagonal trim. A few carefully placed regal foiled dots finish things off with a little pop of color and sparkle.

I’ve really enjoyed working with design themes the last several weeks. I find it especially useful if I want to highlight a bunch of different products rather than focusing on just one. What about you? Which format do you like best? Let me know in the comments!

Thursday we’ll continue our stop in the woods with the Sophisticated Sled set. I hope you’ll pop in!

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