Books (and bookmarks) for Christmas

A few days ago, I was shopping for a Christmas book to send to my grandchildren in Oregon.  As soon as I saw this one, I knew it was the perfect one!  

Have you heard of the long-standing tradition in Iceland of giving books on Christmas eve?  Click here for a good article that explains it all.  I can't think of a nicer way to go to bed on Christmas eve!

Books are one of my favorite gifts, both to give or receive.  When I give a book, I often make a simple bookmark to accompany it.  These are quick to make, using the Scalloped Tag Topper punch from Stampin' Up and patterned paper.  (And yet another use for patterned paper!)  Here, I used designs from the Quilted Christmas paper & the Merry Little Christmas paper.

This is a perfect time of year for hand-made crafts . . . take a look through our catalogs for some inspiration!  

Cards For December (other than Christmas)

One of my favorite things about Christmas is making and sending cards to friends and family.  But even with the holidays, there are still birthday, thank-you, & thinking-of-you cards to send.  I stamped up the cards above using the Quilted Christmas paper from the Holiday Catalog.  What I like best about this paper is that it can be used for occasions OTHER than Christmas.  The colors are bright & cheerful and the patterns convey a sense of warmth & friendliness.  

SIMPLE STAMPING TIP #2 - Stamp a stack of cards to have on hand to send throughout the month.

This paper comes in a stack of 48 6"x6" sheets and sells for $9.00.  There are also coordinating products with this paper, but it is easy to mix and match with many other stamp sets and accessories (like that cat punch!).

Thanks for stopping here today!

A Black Friday Tradition

 Black Friday, 2009

Today I want to share a tradition that I've enjoyed for several years.  I spend every year on the day after Thanksgiving stamping my Christmas cards.  I enjoy this the most when I can do this with family or friends (I miss you, my Alaska friends!).  This always puts me in a holiday mood and it gets me off to a good start in my preparations for Christmas.  I'm excited this year to have two friends who are new to stamping that will be joining me.

SIMPLE STAMPING TIP #21 - Spend "Black Friday" stamping Christmas cards. 

Here are a few cards, that might inspire you.  I stamped these cards to sell at a Christmas Crafters Market, which is this Saturday.  (At Coldwater High School, 9am-3pm, if you are local)  All of these feature current products from Stampin' Up's Annual & Holiday catalogs.

These first three cards were made using the "Quilted Christmas" designer series paper (Holiday catalog).

I used the Christmas Pines stamp set and the Wood Textures designer series paper (both from the Annual catalog) for these next three cards.

The next couple of cards were made with the Star of Light stamp set (from the Annual catalog).

This last one is my personal favorite.  I used the Hometown Greetings edgelit dies and also the mini tinsel trim (both from the Holiday catalog).

If you need any supplies to get you started, I would be happy to help you!  

Small & Simple Gift Bags

It's nearly that time of year when most of us are thinking  about gifts.  During the holidays it's nice to have small & simple gifts on hand to give away to people such as:

• someone who has invited you into their home
• someone who recently did something kind for you
• someone with a birthday, who is not expecting a gift from you
• an elderly person who you are visiting
• neighbors
• your child's teachers or other "helpers"
• your hairstylist
• delivery people

For these "small & simple" gifts, I like to give chocolate candies, tea bags, packets of apple cider or hot chocolate.  Of course, there are all kinds of other gifts that would be enjoyed as well.

Today's "simple stamping tip" is one that I shared a few months ago:  

SIMPLE STAMPING TIP #6 - - - Make your own gift bags using patterned paper.

These bags were quick and easy to make, with the Gift Bag Punchboard.   It punches out bags in a variety of sizes, from up to 3 5/8" wide and from 4" to 10" tall.   

Another reason I enjoy making these bags is because it is another way to use patterned paper.  The bags at the top were made from the Painted Autumn collection.  I am always surprised at how much "milage" I can get from one pack (12 sheets) of paper!  I bought a pack of this paper a couple of months ago and have made countless cards (many of which you've seen here on my blog) and scrapbook pages.  I am down to just a few scraps, but luckily I had enough to make a couple of bags.

Painted Autumn Designer Series Paper

The second set of bags were made from the Merry Little Christmas paper collection.  I have to admit that this is not an item that I would have bought!  But I won it in a contest for Stampin' Up demonstrators.  Black just doesn't seem like a traditional Christmas color to me!  However, I think that the black & white buffalo plaid has a nice winter look to it and I also like the floral prints that are included.

Merry Little Christmas Designer Series Paper

If you would like to get started on some hand-crafted packaging or cards this holiday season, let me know if I can help!   

A Bright Idea

Our daylight in November is waning with each passing day and the weather where I live has been damp and dreary this whole week.  This weekend marks the end of Daylight Savings Time, as we set our clocks back one hour this Saturday night.   As we head into this time of year, I like to bring out candles, to help brighten up little corners of our home.  The little tealight candleholder on the right is a special item.  I have had it for over 32 years now.  It was a small little treat that I bought for myself during our first year of marriage and thought it added a nice touch of coziness to our tiny apartment.

The candle on the left is one that I crafted just a few days ago.  It is a flameless, LED candle that I simply decorated, using a new die set from Stampin' Up.  It is called Hometown Greetings and it is from the Holiday Catalog.  I bought it to use for Christmas cards, but I think it is perfectly suited to use on candles!

Here is a smaller candle that I made.  I will probably keep this one out all winter.

I have a little seasonal shelf that I change every month and this morning I made the "thankful" candle to go on it.  I simply taped a strip of patterned paper (from the Painted Harvest collection) around the candle.  I added Copper Trim ribbon and then my oval label, with "thankful" stamped on it.  This took less than 5 minutes!  This is an easy idea that could be adapted for any holiday or other occasion.  And these candles are relatively inexpensive.  I bought the two small candles in a set for $2.76 at my local discount store.

SIMPLE STAMPING TIP #20 - Use your papercrafting supplies to decorate flameless LED candles.

Thanks for stopping here today.  I wish all of you bright & happy days this November!