Thanksgivukkah crackers

With the convergence of Hanukkah and Thanksgiving, I found myself in a slightly awkward situation.  I normally give gifts to to my children each night at Hanukkah, but I have company coming for Thanksgiving, and didn't want to create an awkward situation where only my children get gifts, or the equally uncomfortable one of buying a lot of extra gifts.  While I was shopping, I saw a display of Christmas crackers, and decided that would be my solution for that night - I could certainly afford a cracker for everyone, young and old! I'm thankful for all my friends; they deserve a little fun.
I found some that looked fairly neutral, kraft paper with lace trim.  After I got them home, I decided I could kick them up a notch:

It was not hard, and I got to use some punches that don't often get brought out.  I just hope that whatever is inside isn't Christmassy.  Regardless, I will have to do this every time Hanukkah and Thanksgiving happen on the same night.

Challenges:

• Hiding in my Craft Room - Thanksgiving
• Crafty Catz - tags
• Decorate to Celebrate - for a Thanksgiving party
• Everybody Art - Kraft

Holly Dolly

The Challnge this past week was to make an art doll attached to an ATC base, with limbs that could fold up into the ATC for storage.  This was a fun idea to me - I like making paper dolls of all sizes.  However, I couldn't think if a theme until I saw a diecut Christmas tree in my pile on the desk (POTD for you Canadians) and thought it would make a fun skirt.  Thus, Holly Dolly was born.

The holly print paper happens to be the reverse of the green snowflake paper.  I think you've seen me use this doll body (I printed a sheet of them) before on other projects, but this is the first time I've used it for a jointed doll. However, the assignment wasn't just to make a doll, but attach it to an ATC base.  As I was doing that, it occurred to me that it would make even more sense to put her on a Christmas card, so she could be displayed for the holiday season before being stored an an ATC album.  I figured out that by attaching elastic cord to the card base, I could easily display an ATC without making it difficult to remove later.

 You can see the ATC, the silver elastic cord, and the card base here.  The tree die is from A Muse Studio - I use it a lot this time of year.

Challenges:

• Hiding in my Craft Room - scraps
• Crafts for Eternity - anything but a card (there are two things that aren't a card here)
• Art Impressions - Holly Jolly Christmas
• Creative Knockouts - punches (holly is punched)

Santa in the city

Santa's flight is one of my favorite Christmas stamp sets, because the image is just so iconic, and it lends itself to so many techniques.  Although the image is very large, it takes very little time to color, and and works with a lot of techniques.  However, I feel like all my cards that I make with it are the same - Santa flying through the sky.  I was telling my friend and amuse studio demonstrator about this, and she handed me another stamp set, love is in the air, which has a nice cityscape.  I decided to give it a try.

The images are embossed in silver, and I colored them first with a white pen, then went over the white with glitter pens.  Although I wouldn't usually use so much black on a card, it really makes the color pop.

Challenges:

• ABC Christmas challenge - reindeer 
• Just inspirational - glitter
• Sparkle N Sprinkle - glitter and embossing
• Without Words - CAS Christmas
• Less is More - dark background with a splash of color

Center Step Card

Believe it or not, I started this project with the idea to make a Christmas card with a dancing bear on it.

The stamp is from SweetStamps, and the sentiment is pieced from an old CTMH alpha.  This is the first time I've tried to spell a word vertically with it. The outfit on the woman is paper pieced. My flower did not come out the way I originally intended, either.  I don't know what happened here, but I think it is all right.

Challenges:

• SweetStamps - centerstep card
• Crafting when we can - homemade flower
• Addicted to stamps - colors
• Sugar Creek Hollow - vintage
• A Creative Romance - metal

Bargello

I have admired the look of the Bargello technique for a long time, but this is the first time I've tried it.

Finding the paper scraps was the easy part.  Stamping some texture on them was just as easy (I used seasonal branch and marvelous marigolds from A Muse Studio).  Cutting them to size and adhering them in place wasn't really hard, just time-consuming and very fussy.  If you try this technique, I will make two suggestions - first, make sure that the two pieces on which you are gluing your strips are completely coated with adhesive.  I used Aleene's Tack It Over and Over.  Second, use dark or black paper under your strips, so that if there are any gaps, they don't show badly.

The hardest part of this technique is embellishing it - you hate to cover it up!

Challenges:

• Crafty Catz - paper piecing
• Fairytale Challenge - red, orange, yellow
• Moving Along with the Times - no designer paper
• Cuttin and Stampin - Autumn Harvest

Ho Ho Ho (not ugly)

My mother was lamenting endlessly about some ugly Christmas cards she had bought.  I asked her why she bought them if they were ugly.  She replied that it was at a tag sale at her friend's house; she felt that she needed to buy something, and the cards didn't seem too bad at the time.  I told her that I didn't think it should be too hard to fix them up, and she offered to send me a few as a challenge.

I got the envelope today - first of all, I don't think these were intended to be complete cards, just card bases that could be fixed up with stickers.  Secondly, they aren't ugly, just not the bright colors my mother likes.  It took me just a couple of minutes to dress one up.

You can see it's a muted green and red, but not terrible.  The colors with do well with a sophisticated or a playful image.  I had this little santa, and the right colors of markers, so I stamped and layered him up.  I started out stamping a sentiment right in the green area, but I messed it up, so I created a paper ribbon of ho ho ho's to cover my mistake.  I think a little extra white brightens the card a bit.  I think it is pretty good for not having any dimensional elements.

Challenges:

• Card Crafter's Circle - cute
• Challenges and candies - CAS
• PolkaDoodles - anything goes Christmas
• Aud Sentiments - Christmas sentiment
• Inky Impressions - traditional Christmas