A Sparkly Christmas Shaker Card

Christmas time has always felt to me like glassy snowflakes, elegant store windows, and beautiful sweets--so I tried to create a card to capture this atmosphere.  I made a window out of old transparency film and double-stick foam. I stamped the kids in a French candy store on a white scrap, added mica flakes, and then encased it all with pre-printed trim. It "snows" inside the window when the card is tilted. 

 All the stamps--music, French sign, children, and aqua pine trees in the background are from Oxford Impressions Stamps.  

Chalkboard Christmas Card

I've had this chalboard style on my mind all day, so I couldn't wait to get home from work and try to put a card together in that style.  I spread chalk all over a black piece of card stock, white embossed the trees and greeting, and then added hemp cording, a scrap of vintage lace, and a few other embellishments.  I finished it off with a spritz of shimmer.  I quite like it.  What do you think?

Graphics Fairy's Brag Monday

UPDATE:  So, so, so excited!!!!  I posted this little bottle last week for Brag Monday on the Graphics Fairy Blog and woke up this morning to see that it is featured this week!  Thank you, Karen, for your wonderful graphics!  I visit her site every day.  It's seriously awesome!

LAST Monday's Post: I had a busy weekend of creative activities--kinda stylistically all over the place.  Nice to be happy--really comes out in my projects!  I made this little wonderland out of a repurposed spice jar, sprayed the bottom with aqua paint, put 3 ivory sisal trees inside with snow and mica flakes, put the angel images from the Graphics Fairy on the outside with gel medium, and continued the trim-out with vintage elements!  Will have to do some of these for Valentine's day!  Decided to link up with the Graphics Fairy's Brag Monday.  There are many gorgeous projects posted.  Her graphics are wonderful and free!

Craft Room Christmas Love

The cool weather, finally, along with a happy family, black Friday at the local thrift shops, and all the great crafting mojo on Pinterest have really gotten my creative juices flowing!  I swooped up a basket full of vintage decorations at Fibber McGee's Closet (near my house) and created a focal point in my craft room. The ornaments in the jar look totally like something I would have done when I was 8 or 9.  The tall red decoration is a felt-covered Pringles can with a scene put inside (my mother-in-law made something similar years ago).  Not totally my style right now, but the colors work well and sure brings back memories!

Dreaming of a White Christmas?

Ahem, ahem... in Southern California?  Well, maybe in the mountains.  It's finally looking and feeling a bit like autumn, except for the 85 degree days, but everyone seems to be rushing head-long into Christmas, including myself.  I had to laugh yesterday when I came upon a group of carolers dressed in full Dickens attire singing "Let It Snow."  It was so hot and sunny!  Maybe that's why we all want some snow, as my latest creations attest:

Getting in the Christmas Spirit

Been really sick this week with a bug that has been going around, so as I started to feel better, got on Pinterest and started to get in the Christmas spirit!  Here's a project I made a few weeks ago for my design team commitment to Oxford Impressions stamps using a vintage tart tin, a bottle brush tree, and little bits of embellishments. All the images are from Oxford Impressions.

The next piece shows off my newly acquired soldering "skill."  Ahem, ahem.... wouldn't really call it skill yet.  Really beginner's luck that it even came out usable!  lol!  Can't wait to make more crafts with these bottle brush trees and tart tins!  Michaels, please get larger sizes!  I'll take a hundred!!!!! The stamps are from Oxford Impressions.

Kinda Lovin' Burlap

I've always loved elegant things, like silver and crystal, but I love nothing more than mixing elegant with rustic. So it's no surprise to me that I've fallen head-over-heels for burlap.  

Here's another decoration I put together tonight with an inexpensive resin vase I spray-painted black and then tied with a piece of burlap, black and white striped ribbon, and a rhinestone and silver-plated buckle that I repurposed from an old belt from Salvation Army.  (Love what I find there!)