Thursday, December 8, 2011

foam christmas tree tutorial {paper covered}

My Christmas decor is coming along, which is good, because I need to start Christmas gifts now! I added a trio of foam cone Christmas trees to my Christmas subway art for my holiday table display. Here's how I made the first one, covered with paper punched circles, sequins, and straight pins! (And see the other tutorials here and here to complete the trio!)

Foam Cone Holiday Tree Tutorial - Paper Covered


Supplies:
*Various holiday patterned papers
*1.5" paper punch (or die cut)
*Foam cone (available in several sizes)
*Straight pins
*Loose sequins
*Candlestick holder
*Hot glue gun


1. Cut circles from various patterned papers. I needed about 65 1.5" circles to cover my medium-sized foam cone.

2. Starting at the bottom, pin circles around the edges with a sequin in the middle. Overlap slightly.

Slightly bend up the bottom of each circle.
 

3. Continue up the cone, overlapping each row over the row beneath it.

 



4. When you get to the top, use half circles to finish it off. Fold over any overlap over on top and pin down.

  5. Take another paper circle and center on top of cone. Fold edges down like a little bottle cap.

Pin around the edges with pins and sequins.

6. Remember these candlestick holders? I spray painted a couple white and apply hot glue around the rim. . .

. . .then glued one to the bottom of the cone.
 

7. For a topper, I made of a couple of these 3-D paper stars and glittered them up with red glitter. Subsequently, I was once again prohibited from using glitter in the house. But it was worth it. I also painted a toothpick red.
 

Then I glued the toothpick to the back side of one star, then glued the two stars together.
 
 

And stuck it in the top of the tree. Voila!
 
 

There are two more tree tutorials to check out--see the ribbon version here and the fabric version here. Better get to JoAnn with those 40% off coupons!
 

This post was sponsored by Richard Burbidge – expertly crafted stair parts.

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Wednesday, December 7, 2011

share your favorite holiday traditions

18 days until Christmas! Yes, we are counting down. With three little boys in my house, we have to have a countdown calendar or otherwise I would be asked a bunch of times each day how many days there are until Christmas. I am so excited for Christmas this year. My boys are such fun ages and it's always my favorite time of year. We get to spend so much time as a family and feel the joy of the season.



We have a lot of holiday traditions. I look forward to them each year and they create such wonderful memories for us as a family. One of our favorite traditions is our Christmas morning breakfast. This started with my mom when I was a kid and now I do it for my own kids. My mom said we never wanted to eat breakfast on Christmas morning because we were too excited to open all of our presents, so she made us Swedish Coffee Cake because she knew we were likely to at least eat a slice of that. So we see all our gifts from Santa, then eat some coffee cake with hot chocolate before continuing with the rest of our presents.





Another tradition we have is letting our boys open one present on Christmas Eve. They only get to do one present each and it is always new pajamas. Then they get to sleep in something new and fun the night before Christmas. I try to buy or make pajamas that are in a theme/character they are really interested in that year. Then we read the Christmas story from the Bible before bed.



One of our favorite traditions is doing at least one act of service if not more each year. In the past we have helped a family who needed something, bought gifts and given them for an angel tree, bought food for a local pantry and supported Toys for Tots. It's a great way for our kids to appreciate the true spirit of Christmas.

We also do a gingerbread house each year. The boys love it! Especially the sugar high they get!


Now it's your turn! Tell International Delight what your favorite holiday tradition is for a chance to win a $200 Target gift card from BlogFrog.

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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of International Delight. The opinions expressed by me do not necessarily reflect the view of the International Delight Brand.

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jessica's photography print winner

Thanks to all who entered our Jessica's Photography Print Giveaway! We have a lucky winner to announce. The winner who will be receiving one 11x14 gallery wrap image ($60 value) is...

Kristen. Jason. Sofie who said
"i follow jessica's photography blog! i love any of the boat or dock photos. they'd be a great gift for the hubby! thanks for the giveaway!"

Congratulations! You will be so happy with your print. We have passed your email onto the sponsor, so she should be contacting you soon.

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Monday, December 5, 2011

framed christmas subway art {printable}

Yes, I'm still trying to get my holiday decorating done, aren't you? Please say yes so I don't feel so pathetic. Today I knocked out three projects in between trips to the auto repair shop and the grocery store that I'll share this week. Thank goodness for quick and easy ideas! The first only took a few minutes, thanks to my friends Kalli and Lori of Sister Secrets. Lori created this darling Christmas subway art, and Kalli framed it and added the bunting for a gorgeous piece of holiday artwork! (Doesn't it remind you of this countdown she made that I also stole? I love Kalli's style!) Lori is the sweetest--I met her this summer on a trip up to Minnesota to see Kalli and she was an instant friend! Love when that happens. I think you'll like her, too, especially when you find out she's letting us offer her cute Christmas wording as a free printable! UPDATE: The free period is up, but this darling printable is now available for purchase in the SisterSecrets Etsy shop!
 
To create my framed subway art, I first printed out the words on a piece of white card stock. I cut it down a little to fit in my 8x10 frame. Then I proceeded to copy Kalli's fab idea. I took a $2 frame I found at the best thrift store in the Twin Cities (Valu Thrift!) and painted it red. I used Martha Stewart Crafts awesome all-purpose acrylic paint (it's gotten waaay to cold to spray paint here!) and scuffed it up a bit with a piece of sandpaper after it dried. Then I made a little bunting out of scraps of patterned paper like I did here. I hung it on a piece of baker's twine and secured it to the back with a piece of tape. Voila!

Merry decorating! Thanks so much to Kalli and Lori of Sister Secrets for this free Christmas printable! Now go to the SisterSecrets Etsy shop and purchase your copy right now!

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fabric envy giveaway

Our fab friend, Andrea has started a wonderful shop called, Fabric Envy. Fabric Envy is dedicated to bringing you a seamless shopping experience.  It's your one-stop shop for fabric yardage, pre-cuts, fat quarter bundles, half yard bundles, and notions like fabric flowers, buttons, ric-rac, elastic, crochet lace, bias tape and more. The great thing is the shop has pretty much every top fabric designer you can think of! Fabric Envy also works to provide you with all the information you need for quality sewing projects with pictures, craft tutorials, free patterns, designer fabrics, and sewing patterns from the industry's top designers.

Sounds pretty perfect to me! I love so many of the collections.





Fabric Envy also has a great vendor program you should know about! If you own an Etsy, Ebay, Artfire, or other shop and use designer fabrics to make your products then you are eligible to apply. Some of the benefits include 15% off everything in the shop (always!), and $5 discount code per quarter! Purchase a 3 yard cut or more of any single fabric print and receive an additional 5% off of that fabrics price per yard. That means you can save upto 20% off on cuts 3 yards or more (discount will be given via price adjustment after check-out, upon yardage verification), and for every approved person you refer to the Fabric Envy Vendor Program, you'll receive a free fat quarter credit once they make their first purchase. Your fat quarter will then be sent with your next order. There is more too! Go check out the vendor program page to apply.


See the lovely products pictured above? Ya, one of you gets to win those! A Paris Apartment FQ bundle, a flower from Basic Grey, and a yard of the Riley Black Crocheted Lace in Teal.

All you need to do to enter is visit Fabric Envy and find your favorite item. Then come back and tell us what is is! For a second entry you can like Fabric Envy on Facebook and for a third entry you can follow Fabric Envy on Pinterest (leave us comments saying you did so). Good Luck! This giveaway will end Thursday, December 8th at 11:59pm PT.

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Sunday, December 4, 2011

uupp giveaway winner

Thanks for entering our UUPP giveaway. The winner of a $30 credit to the store is...

Mike and Shan who said,
"I love love love UUPP! What a cute shop! I can't decide I really like the Audrey Hepburn quote and the yoda quote! both my favorites!"

Congrats! I have passed your email onto the sponsor so she should be contacting you. Enjoy!

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Friday, December 2, 2011

jessica's photography print giveaway

Remember the great giveaway we had from Jessica's Photography recently? Well, we have another one for you today! Lucky, lucky you. Christmas is right around the corner. I am still a little in shock that is is December already. Just in case you aren't finished with your shopping yet, this giveaway will be a great help. Photos make great gifts for anyone on your list! Jessica has some beautiful prints.

I would love this one for my boys' bedroom...

 And this one for my other son's room...


And this one for my bedroom...


And this one for, well, anywhere in my house...

Ok, I will stop before my husband's tally (meaning unknown list of presents I already bought on behalf of myself) gets any larger.

Today, Jessica's Photography is giving away one 11x14 gallery wrap image ($60 value)! Take a look at all of the gorgeous prints HERE. To enter, Like Jessica's photography on Facebook or follow Jessica's Photography Blog. Then come back and leave us a comment saying which one you did! This giveaway will end on December 5th at 11:59 pm PT.

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Thursday, December 1, 2011

vintage snowflake & glitter ornament {tutorial}

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I'm still working on ornaments for our tree, but I need to hurry because we're going to pick one out this weekend! I created this vintage ornament with a chipboard snowflake, a little vintage sheet music, and lots of glitter for the ladies in our church group to make at an activity this week. We made almost 50 of them in under 2 hours, all while chatting and enjoying holiday treats! It was so much fun. Here's how to make a few for yourself, or for a beautiful neighbor gift!

Vintage Snowflake Christmas Ornament Tutorial


Supplies:

*Chipboard snowflakes (either cut with a die cut machine, or purchased--mine are by Paper Accents)
*Vintage sheet music
*Paper or chipboard stars, about 1.5" across (I cut mine with my die cut machine out of empty cereal boxes)
*Printed word strips with a favorite Christmas saying (mine say "Peace On Earth" using the Champignon font, found free on the Internet)
*Silver glitter
*Glitter adhesive (I like Elmer's spray adhesive, but Mod Podge or other glitter glue would work)
*Glitter paint (I love Plaid's Extreme Glitter in Champagne) and paintbrush
*White crackle paint (I used Tim Holtz's in Picket Fence White)
*Mini silver brads
*Small silver jingle bells
*Strong double-sided tape or Glue Dots
*Tiny tinsel, ribbon, or twine for hanging
*Scissors, paper cutter
*Crop-A-Dile or other sturdy hole punch

First paint each chipboard snowflake with a thin layer of glitter paint and allow to dry.  (It's hard to see in the picture, but when the crackle paint cracks you can see the glitter shining through--so pretty!)

If you're crazy like me, also paint your brads and jingle bell with some glitter paint. 
 

Paint the spikes of the snowflake with a semi-thick coat of crackle paint. Set aside to dry. Hint: the thicker the crackle paint, the bigger the cracks, and also the longer the dry time.

Cut stars out of cardstock, chipboard, or an empty cereal box. I used my Stars #2 die cut from Sizzix with my Big shot machine.

 Spray or cover stars with glue. Cover with silver glitter and tap off. Allow to dry.

In order to keep the glitter from falling off, I coated my stars with a layer of Krylon clear spray finish. I only had Matte finish, but they turned out looking great!

Cut a strip of sheet music about 1" wide and 8.5" long. You can use real sheet music from the antique shop, or download digital vintage sheet music from someplace like Etsy.com. Fold your strip of sheet music accordion-style to the end, using about 1/4" folds. Try to keep the folds even and uniform. 
 
Be careful if you're using vintage music--the paper can be brittle and tear easily!

Adhere ends of folded sheet music together with a piece of double-sided tape, so it forms a continuous ring. 
 

Place two strips of double-sided tape (or Glue Dots) on the back of your glittered star. Remove the paper backing.

Holding two sides of your accordion ring, flatten it into a fan circle (see a video here if you need a visual explanation).

Hold it flat with one hand and press the star in the middle, tape side down.  

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