Gift bags

Christmas may be long over but that doesn't mean I'm not still giving out gifts (nothing like being organized!). I finally dropped off my last couple of Christmas presents and so I can share the gift bags that I created for them.

The bags were super quick and easy to make. I used a couple of House Mouse stamped images that I had pre-coloured, matted them on some plain cardstock, and then added a shiny ribbon. The decorative border along the top of each bag was made with Martha Stewart's pine branch border punch and a strip of Sookwang double-sided tape with red glitter added. 

Challenges:

House Mouse & Friends - celebrate

Crafty Emma - all creatures great & small

Fuzzy Wuzzy - anything goes (with an animal)

Crafty Sentiments - anything but a card

ABC Christmas - anything Christmas

Fab n Funky - anything goes

Anything Goes Challenge - something "C" (I chose "C" for Christmas)

Mice in the house

The house is over-run with mice ... or is it just over-run with House Mouse? I decided to use House Mouse stamps for the bulk of my Christmas cards this year. I had such fun experimenting with different Copic colours, as well as trying to improve my shading techniques. I'm quite pleased with how the bows turned out (card #1).

Anyway, this is just a quick post as I don't have much time before running out to my son's Christmas concert. I just love this time of year!!!



Challenges:
Winter Wonderland - Christmas baubles

Midnight Madness - sketch (card #2 uses MMSC83; card #3 uses MMSC84)
Crafty Ho's - red & green (card #3)
Stamping Vacation - no no: no punches (card #1)
Paper Sundaes - no square or rectangle (card #2)
Top Tip Tuesday - Christmas inspired
Creative Inspirations - anything goes Christmas

More House Mouse Christmas

A couple more House Mouse Christmas cards based on the card kit I picked up at Photo Express on the weekend. I had such fun colouring these two images, especially the bows on the first card. I am so pleased with how well the shading worked on the bows (card #1) and the robe (card #2).

The images were pre-stamped and all papers were pre-cut in the kit so all I had to do was colour the images (with Copics), ink and distress the papers and then put it all together. I swapped the papers around a bit but otherwise followed the kit layouts pretty closely.

So, how are you doing with your Christmas cards? Getting close to being finished? I'm about 3/4 finished (yippee!!!) so will quickly be at the addressing & sending out stage. I have to admit, my least favourite part of the process is writing in each card so I'm dreading it. Might have to uncork some wine this weekend to make it happen.

Challenges:

Colour Create - robin's egg blue, seafoam green, cream (see card #2)

Digital Tuesday Challenge - animals at Christmas

Top Tip Tuesday - anything goes

Creative Inspirations - Christmas gifts (see card #1; I would love to get one of these cute mice for Christmas)

ABC Christmas Challenge - "Y" is for "yuletide"; include holly & berries (see card #2)

Sending Christmas Wishes

Go morning, and happy Monday! Well, perhaps it isn't a "happy" Monday but it's OK, right? I had a fun weekend of crafting and hope to be finishing up a few projects to share. In the meantime, here are a couple more Christmas cards that I created using supplies from a Photo Express card kit (House Mouse #4). The card kit included all of the papers & ribbons that I've used although I threw in some brads of my own and changed up the layouts.

Card #1 uses a digital image (Bronson & Beaker Letters to Santa) that I purchased from Pollycraft Digi Stamps & More. The image has been coloured for quite a while just waiting to be used and I thought the colours of this paper were a great match. 

Card #2 uses a stamped image provided in the kit - I just love all things House Mouse and this duo is particularly adorable. I coloured the image using Copics and then added a bit of Glossy Accents to the red flowers in the swag. I'm wondering if the gold bow is a bit too small though? There wasn't enough ribbon in the kit to make a larger bow but I think this might be a bit out of proportion - what do you think?

Challenges:

Digital Tuesday Challenge - let it snow

Simon Says Stamps Challenge - let it snow

Crafty Catz - Christmas

One Stop Craft Challenge - Christmas cuties

Pile It On - feathers 'n fur

Stamping Vacation - snowy Christmas wishes

A sampling of Christmas cards

I was absolutely scattered this year when it came to making my Christmas cards. I couldn't seem to settle on any one design or style or even colour scheme. As a result, almost every card that went out was unique. I really have to decide on one or two or even three designs for next year! Anyway, here are a few of my favorites.

Holly, the Christmas Fairy
This beautiful fairy is a digital stamp from Mo's Digital Pencil. "Holly" is so sweet and I had fun trying out a variety of colour combos. I added some glossy accents to the wings and the snow globe for added dimension. And there is glitter added to the sash and the holly in her hair. The papers are all part of Basic Grey's "Eskimo Kisses" line.


House Mouse Christmas Cookie Eaters

This next card also uses "Eskimo Kisses" paper along with a "House Mouse" stamp I borrowed from my friend Lisa. I used Copics to colour (as always) and added glossy accents to the cookies to make them look a bit more realistic. I had such fun colouring in these mice and I am thoroughly pleased with the colouring of the branches.

House Mouse Lifesaver Presents

Another borrowed stamp from Lisa. In fact, the background gold paper was also from Lisa. I off-loaded a bunch of my cards to Lisa and her daughters (I make more than I could possibly ever use) and in thanks she gave me a pile of supplies that she had hanging around. I have had, and will continue to have, a great deal of fun using the papers, embellishments and other items.

Anyway, I've survived Christmas and other than a couple of cards still to be hand-delivered, all got out on time. Another season survived!