The Christmas cards of 2011

So I made a few cards last Christmas too, of course! I even made a few more than I usually do and surprised one or two friends. They were very happy! Unfortunately I can’t remember who got which card since I randomly put one in each envelope, I don’t like to choose. Maybe I should go for one design and ten copies this year? Problem solved!

Here are the cards I started in September but didn’t finish until December.. sigh! I’ve had such lack of inspiration lately and it’s really annoying but hopefully this year will be better.

I went nuts with warm embossing and the last card is the one I’m most satisfied with. I embossed the stars with white powder and used distress stain to color the background. I used the distress stain weathered wood from Tim Holtz on light blue cardstock.
The brown card has the recipe for gingerbread cookies but in Swedish. I practiced using my ProMarkers for coloring the stamps and it’s getting better and better, the techniques differ a bit from ordinary aquarelle but once you get the hang of it it’s a lot less wet and messy! I do believe the coloring is much easier if I stamp on aquarelle paper rather than plain paper or cardstock. I got the feeling the aquarelle paper dries somewhat slower which makes it easier to get the color even, but maybe it all depends on technique. I will give cardstock another try one day when I’m even better with using my ProMarkers!

The Chrismas Crafts of 2010

Christmas and the New Year celebrations are over. I finally have some time to update all the things I made for Christmas!

I hope this year will bring lots of crafting and inspiration to you all!

So, here are some pictures. I mostly made candy, I love making Christmas candy! I didn’t have time to make as much as I use to but it was more than enough anyway! Enjoy!

Sprinkles (I did not make them, they just look nice)

Rocky Road

Chocolate dipped marshmallows

A ginger bread house for granny, made by my brother

Christmas candy for granny, truffles with a taste of orange (cointreau) and chocolate covered marzipan and nougat (they were just too good, my favorite!)

Toffee, or knäck as we call it in Sweden!

And last but not least, some crafting. Cards and gift wrapping! I spent a day just wrapping up gifts together with Malin, Jen and Tricks. We had some sushi at the end of the day and Malin’s car had to be digged out from the parking lot, the amount of snow is just ridiculous. I was tempted to throw myself in, it looked so nice and soft.. and.. much and as far as I remember it’s fun to play in the snow!

All gifts wrapped up and looking neat. I went crazy with the decorative sticks.. he he..

The Christmas cards of 2010! Much better than last year ;)

Christmas embroidiery

The Christmas crafting continues! I finally managed to complete my Christmas cross-stitching embroidery after six months of waiting for a proper frame and time/inspiration for sewing it all together. There’s no inspiration like a deadline!

The embroidery says “Christmas mail” in Swedish. I had to edit the text a bit since it was incorrectly written on the pattern.

My mother made a similar decoration and we have had it up every Christmas for as long as I can remember, so when I moved out I missed having one myself but never bothered to look for one. I can’t remember seeing one in any store, but on the other hand, I haven’t been looking for one either. But this year I have one hanging on the wall in the hallway filled with Christmas cards from friends and family! Malin made me a really beautiful card this year, I love it!

Another really quick Christmas decoration I managed to make this year was pimping my new Christmas lights (not sure what they are called in English). They came with green plastic needle-looking decorations. Fugly and boring so I decided to make something nice and simple of a red ribbon I actually got from my local supermarket. I am quite pleased with the result, nice and simple! I might change it for next year, maybe add some paint or rhinestones.

Creating Christmas

As you might have figured from the previous post, I’m making some sort of Advent decoration. I have been thinking about buying a traditional Advent candlestick, kinda like this one but a bit more festive with white moss and mushrooms and maybe some Christmas gnomes. Just like the one we used to have when I grew up.
I still haven’t got a candlestick suited for this purpose or any kind of decoration, I just don’t know why I haven’t bought anything during these four years. Very strange, but on the other hand good because if I did, I might not have started with this neat project!

I went to IKEA yesterday with my oldest younger brother to buy large candles, FIXA floor protectors and fabric. I’m still looking for some nice fabric for my kitchen but it seems impossible to find anything I like.
So.. I had six items on my shopping list and I came home with about 20. I found lots of nice things I’ve been looking for for a while, such as patterned baking cups, a small Christmas tree plus decorations, pastry cutters, a splatter screen and (finally!) handles for my wall cabinets!

When I came home I couldn’t keep myself from decorating the candles, trying different materials and ribbons. I also had to find a solution for attaching hangers on my numbers. Luckily I have a few eye pins to spare, some super glue, a nail and a hammer. I made a hole with the nail, filled it with glue and stuck the eye pins in the hole. I made sure the loop was turned right in order to hang it on a ribbon or thread.
When the glue was dry I decorated the candles with organza ribbons, glittery embroidery thread and the tiny Christmas baubles. I’m not sure they are done yet, I will leave them for a few days to see if I miss anything. I also have to find another candle dish. The one I bought was a bit small and.. round.. I realized I need a rectangular shaped dish instead..
I also need to find some decorations for the candle dish so I have to go shopping anyway!

Here’s what the candles look like at the moment, not too bad to be honest! Less is more, right?

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It’s been a while…

So.. I’ve been quite quiet for a while now, mostly because of the photoshop course I had to finish. I put the rest of my life on hold and it took a while to get back on track again. Now it’s back to normal again and I have been working a bit with the DIY for the scarf and a new Christmas project!

It’s not finished yet but I’ll give you a sneak peak with some pictures of the process! I’m going to buy a few items for the project (and another one I’ve had in mind for a few years) later today! Yay!

I think I have to start working on my Christmas cards quite soon too and all the Christmas gifts. Christmas is the worst time of the year (I still love it tho), so much to do and so little time! I have a list of Christmas goodies I’m planning to make such as saffron buns (love love love), an awesome gingerbread house and some snacks! I might even try making my own truffle again, hopefully more successful than last year. I also plan to make my own Mozartkugeln. I just love them!
I think the list of Christmas cakes and candy will grow larger in the near future! Luckily I got a long weekend before Christmas Eve so I might actually have the time to do all this and more!

Anyway, here’s the promised sneak peak!

Started off with painting the numbers red.

Added some glitter…

..and some more glitter! Kinda looks like snow, doesn’t it?