Holiday Gift Holders tutorial

Today I am sharing a step-by-step tutorial on the Sizzix blog. At this time of the year, we often need gift holders and I made two different ones, using Tim Holtz Pillow Box w/Labels die and Eileen Hull's Candy Jars die. They have a special surprise: an ornament that can be removed from the packaging and used; a star to hang in a tree and a dimensional Poinsettia magnet.

 

These work great for last minute gifts, filled with chocolates, small candy canes, or with small gifts such as jewellery. I used a different version of the Pillow Box recently as packaging for a gift necklace. If you don't need the gift holders, you can just make the Poinsettia or the star ornaments.  

To see how I made these, head over to the Sizzix blog.

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Snowy Woods: gift-spiration

This week we are focusing on gift inspiration at Simon Says Stamp and Show, perfect topic for this time of the year. I hope you will join us and don't miss the gorgeous DT inspiration.

 

In Sweden Santa knocks on the door on the evening of Christmas Eve, which is the main family celebration day of Christmas. We sisters used to sit in a window and see who could spot him first. Santa hands out the gifts one at a time, and there are often rhymes written on the gifts, so the recipient can try to guess what is inside. On the evening of the 23rd of December, the whole family would sit in separate places in the house and wrap gifts and make up rhymes. My project would work great as a gift, but I think I will keep it for myself :) I made this project about a month ago now, I am happy to be able to share it now.

 

I made a dimensional winter woods scene, based on my memories of driving through snowy forests on the way to and from my grandmother during Christmas. This was one of my favourite parts of Christmas, the snow covered forests. We also used to count the lit trees we could see in or outside the fairly few houses along the way. 

The dimensional deer is inspired by my team mate Tracy Evans' fabulous dimensional deers, check here and here. I had lots of fun creating this, particularly making snow in several different ways. I did a step-by-step tutorial:

The base is a wooden box, it is actually toy packaging. I knew I would find good use for it.

Paint the box with gesso or white paint.

Apply multi medium with a paint brush, one section at a time, and glue music tissue wrap on top, wrinkling it up as you go along. Do the outer edges too.

Paint the tissue wrap with watered-down white paint.

When dry, paint it again, with watery blue paint. I used Adirondack Aqua. Wipe the paint off some of the areas, until you are happy with the result. When dry, smear with Distress Stickles Rock Candy.

I used both the large and the small Woodlands trees and painted them with a mix of Juniper, Lettuce and Stream Adirondack paint, for a varied effect. I rubbed the paint into the trees with my hands (very green hands!). When dry, a bit of Avocado Liquid Pearls was applied with a paint brush, mainly on the outer branches.

Three Mini Pine trees, and four Tree Lines were die cut from grungeboard, leaving a fairly large area underneath the tree line. They were painted with the same mix of green as the Woodlands trees. I also used the top part of the Tree Line, after die cutting the Tree Line you will see that you have actually cut two tree lines.

When dry, they were dry-brushed with Avocado Liquid Pearls. The bottom tree line on this photo is the 'negative' tree line from the die. If turned around, it would fit perfectly as a puzzle into the tree line at the top.

Now to the snow. Dry-brush quite a lot of Snow Cap paint on all the grungeboard trees and on the two Woodland trees, focus on areas where you would find the most snow on trees - the tops, the branches, and below the trees.

When dry, apply white Enamel Accents to the areas where you want thick snow. Apply some here and there on the Woodlands trees too (I forgot to include them in this photo).

Immediately sprinkle the Enamel Accents with white flock, giving a fabulous soft snowy look.

Here's a close-up where you might see the flock better.

Here you see the effect on the Woodland tree.

And what is better for even more snow, than to add some glitter. I used faux-snow glitter. Apply Glossy Accents to the bottom of each tree line, to create lots of snow under the trees. Apply just a little bit here and there on the trees, since we don't want to cover up the flocking. On the Woodlands trees, apply Glossy Accents here and there on the outer part of the branches, I didn't use much.

I cut seven deer from mat board, you could use grungeboard or chipboard too. Carefully glue them together to create a dimensional deer. Also check this tutorial by Shelly Hickox where she covers it in book paper. I painted the deer, all around with Sandal paint dabber, and when it was dry, I dry-brushed it with Mushroom and a bit of Brown Sugar, for texture. It was stamped with snowflakes using Saddle Brown Stazon ink, and a sentiment was stamped with alphabet stamps.

To assemble, start by planning where the tree lines will go, starting from the top. Glue them down with hot glue, start with the trees at the back (the highest trees) and go forward, overlapping the trees so that you create the look of a dense snowy forest. The hot glue also adds to the dimension. Continue gluing tree lines all the way down, then tuck the three Mini Pine trees in here and there.

The snowflakes were die cut from grungeboard, painted white and coated with Rock Candy Distress Stickles dry glitter. The little bits of faux-snow glitter on the trees twinkle real nice.

Glue the trees and the deer to the floor of the box using hot glue. I first glued a stack of small left-over mat board scraps to the back of the deer, and glued that to the trees behind, to give it more stability. Squeeze out glue all over the floor of the forest, one section at a time, and apply a generous amount of faux-snow (there is a lot of in the jar, I can't even see that I have used any).

I glued just a little bit of snow to the deer too, snow that has fallen down from the trees as she walked past.

A close-up of the small tree. The snow created from white paint, Enamel Accents, white flock, and faux-snow glitter looks pretty cool.

The scene needed something else, so that the deer wasn't the only warm thing. I die cut the small Star Bright twice from cream cardstock and painted with the same paints used on the deer. When dry it was stamped with the script stamp from the Stamper's Anonymous Classics #9 set (love it). I folded the star and glued the two stars together. A hole was pierced at the top and it is hanging in a jump ring from a screw eye.

Here's a view from the top, so that you can see the dimension better.  

Share your gift-spiration with us this week and you could be the lucky one to win a $50 gift voucher from our sponsor Simon Says Stamp (that would be a nice Christmas gift for yourself).

Thank you so much for the visit! Have a lovely week.

Happy Crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:

Dies: Sizzix Tree Line, Star Bright 3-D, Reindeer Flight, Mini Snowflakes, Mini Pine

Stamps: Tim Holtz Stamper's Anonymous: Mini Holidays, Classics #9; Hero Arts Playful letters

Ink: Stazon Timber Brown

Paint: Adirondack Juniper, Lettuce, Stream, Snow Cap, Aqua, Sandal, Mushroom; Jenni Bowlin Ranger Brown Sugar dabber; Ranger Liquid Pearls Avocado

Glitter etc: Stampendous Cotton Ball White Fun Flock; Art Institute Faux Snow Glitter; Ranger Distress Stickles Rock Candy dry glitter; Distress Stickles Rock Candy

Accents: Ranger Enamel Accents

Surfaces: Tim Holtz Idea-ology grungeboard, Composer tissue wrap; Sizzix cream mat board

Embellishments: Tim Holtz Idea-ology Woodlands Trees, Screw Eyes, Jump Rings

Adhesive: Ranger Glossy Accents, Claudine Hellmuth matte multi medium

Watercolour Winter Scene

Today I am sharing my second scene for this month's Craft a Scene challenge - winter scenes. Don't miss the other DT scenes, it's a great variety of inspiration.

I felt like some watercolouring.

The images were stamped with Archival Jet Black ink on watercolour paper, which works best for watercolouring. You need to use a waterproof ink, since it must be able to handle the water. I lightly misted the scene with Goosebumps mist, a bit too lightly actually, you hardly see it, especially since the scene is coloured with light colours. You can see the mist, which gives a resist effect, in the shadow of the wolves. Let the scene dry.

The pine trees were painted with masking fluid, to protect the white, you can paint around them too, if you don't have masking fluid. Let dry again. I used only four colours: Cobalt Blue, Rose Madder, Neutral Tint and just a tad of Burnt Sienna. The sky was first painted with water and then with watery Rose Madder and Cobalt Blue. When dry, you can remove the masking fluid and continue painting the rest of the scene.

I added a bit of all the four colours on the snowy areas, creating shadows at the trees and the wolves, and making it somewhat darker at the front than at the back of the scene. The wolves were painted with Burnt Sienna and Neutral Tint.

While I was busy, I made a second version, because I needed more Christmas cards. It is almost exactly the same.

Thank you for looking! You still have another two weeks to join us in the challenge.

Happy stamping!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:
Stamps: Sutter: Snowy Fir Tree Large, Medium, Small set; Snowy Leaf Tree; Romping Wolves Small; Howler Small, sentiment
Ink: Ranger Archival Jet Black Ink
Paint: Daler & Rowney watercolours
Mist: Tsukineko Goosebumps Clear Texture Spray
Surface: Daler & Rowney watercolour paper (NOT)
Masking fluid: Daler & Rowney

CSI case file #50: with a mega pop-up

This week we have another lovely case file at CSI:Color, Stories, Inspiration and a fabulous reveal from the DT and guests. Don't miss checking out all the layouts.

I made my layout on 13 December, which is when Lucia is celebrated in Sweden (you can read more about this tradition here, if you are interested). I was inspired to do a Lucia layout, with a surprise element, a very large pop-up.

From the evidence items I used: ribbon, something transparent, something shiny, something that melts and string. I documented a holiday tradition, also very much associated with light (inspiration word). These photos are some of the last photos of my grandmother and were taken when we visited her at the hospital, relatively shortly before she passed away. I've wanted to scrap them many times, but never have, partly because they feel a bit sad. I am happy to have documented this memory now. I wrote a long piece of journaling about Lucia celebrations, visiting at the hospital, my grandmother and about when she passed away.

When I was eleven my hair was cut in a terrible short haircut which I hated immediately, here it is busy growing out again, but that took a long time. My sister is dressed up as Lucia, I seem not to have wanted to this time, I can't remember why I am not wearing a white dress too, only the tinsel in my hair.

I used a patterned paper with a bird and music for the background, the bird because it has a special meaning relating to my grandmother, the music because Lucia is a celebration focusing on songs. A music stamp was white embossed here and there, as well as a frame and an angel stamp. I liked the layered look of the background.

The holly branch was dry embossed on kraft resist paper, sanded, cut out and smeared with Distress Stickles Rock Candy. The star was cut with the Star Bright die, also coated with Rock Candy stickles and glued to the page.

Inside the frame, I stamped the first line from the main Lucia song. I wanted to use this pretty star stamp by Hero Arts, but it was too big for my layout, so I stamped it with brown Stazon on shrink plastic, punched a hole, and then shrunk the stars. Perfect size, love shrink plastic. I coated it with Glossy Accents for a more finished look.

The white embossed angel is holding one of the stars.

The flowers were made by first stamping a stamp with Swedish Christmas songs on white paper with Frayed Burlap and then die cutting it with the Mini Poinsettia die, adding a piece of rose trimmings in the centre.  I also had to use tinsel, since tinsel in your hair is a big part of Lucia. The blue paper you can see at the bottom is embossed with a Poinsettia folder and sanded.

Pop-ups aren't only for cards (also see this mini-book), but can be a great place for adding extra photos, journaling and embellishments on layouts, and adds a real fun interactive element. I wanted to try Karen Burniston's folding technique for doublewide pop-ups - check this awesome video. This layout has a real mega big pop-up, the whole photo panel lifts up to reveal a pop-up that stretches almost across the entire page. I placed the title on the pop-up label, and my journaling just in front of it. I used my base tray to cut the pop-up and made the cardstock as wide as possible, so that it would still go through my Big Shot.

The letters were die cut with the Word Play die, from a mirror sheet from Tim Holtz, and then again from white cardstock, to create a thin shadow.

There wasn't space for elements to be added at the top of the pop-up label, because they would show at the front when folded down, instead, I made a little lantern with the Flagpole w/Lantern & Sign die. The lantern was cut from the same paper as the star on the front and the centre piece from white cardstock, inked and covered with stickles. The bar it hangs from was cut twice from white cardstock to make it sturdier and then coloured with Brushed Pewter Distress Stain.

I used stamps from Ali Edwards that fit very well with these photos. I also white embossed the same music stamp as on the outside.

These candles are one of my first stamps, they were stamped on white paper and softly coloured with coloured pencils. Candles are a major part of Lucia. I also stamped the Christmas carols stamp used on the Poinsettia flowers all over the white cardstock.


Here you can see the pop-up mechanism better. The letters really are mirrors, you can see the text of the journaling reflecting in them on this photo.

I hope you will join us this week! Thank you for stopping by my blog.

Have a lovely weekend!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:
Dies: Sizzix: Label 3-D Pop-Up die, Flagpole w/Lantern & Sign, Star Bright 3-D, Word Play, Mini Cardinal & Poinsettia
Embossing folder: Sizzix: Textured Poinsettia Pattern Set, Holly Branch & Pine Branch set
Stamps: Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz: Mini Holidays 4, Holiday Wishes, Mini Ornates, Flourish; Hero Arts Wire Star K5610; Ali Edwards Technique Tuesday Favorite Memories; Wanda Candle; Stämpelboden Christmas song stamp
Surfaces: Tim Holtz Idea-ology Vintage Shabby paper stash, Holiday Pasts paper stash, Mirrored Sheets; Ranger shrink plastic; Core'dinations Tim Holtz kraft core cardstock; Core'dinations Tim Holtx color core cardstock
Ink: Distress Ink: Frayed Burlap; Versafine Vintage Sepia; Stazon Timber Brown
Stain: Distress Stain Brushed Pewter
Embossing powder: Ranger Seafoam White
Stickles: Rock Candy Distress Stickles; Star Dust
Embellishments: Tim Holtz Idea-ology Silver Tinsel Twine, Trimmings; 7Gypsies photo turn
Other: lace and trim; twine

Pillow Box

Yesterday I needed a little gift box very quickly, for a necklace I was giving away. I pulled out my new Tim Holtz Sizzix Pillow Box w/Labels die, and this gift box was made very quickly.

The Pillow Box die makes a perfectly sized gift box, you can fill it with candy or as I did with a small gift. I die cut it from kraft core cardstock, sanded and inked. A music stamp was stamped on top with Gathered Twigs and clear embossed for some texture. The branch was cut from Walnut Stain distress Core'dinations paper, sanded and smeared with a bit of Rock Candy Distress crackle.

Since the die both cuts and scores the paper, the box is very easy to assemble.

The vintage Christmas card was die cut from patterned paper, inked and the edges were distressed. After adhering the branch and Santa image to the box, I wanted more shine so I misted the whole thing with Biscotti Perfect Pearls mist.

The little Cardinal was die cut from grungeboard, inked with Distress Stains (Fired Brick and Walnut Stain), covered with a thin layer of Glossy Accents and then glittered with dry Rock Candy Distress glitter. The flower trim was a scrap from a previous project, it had been inked with Antique Linen Distress Stain.

Thank you for visiting!

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:
Dies: Sizzix Pillow Box w/Labels, Holly Branch, Mini Cardinal and Poinsettia
Stamps: Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz Holiday Wishes
Surfaces: Tim Holtz Core'dinations Kraft Core and Distress colour core cardstock; Tim Holtz Idea-ology grungeboard, Seasonal Paper Stash
Ink: Distress Ink: Gathered Twigs
Stain: Distress Stain Fired Brick, Walnut Stain, Antique Linen
Mist: Biscotti Perfect Pearls
Glitter: Distress Stickles Rock Candy dry glitter; Distress Stickles Rock Candy
Embellishments: Tim Holtz Idea-ology Trimmings, Seasonal chit chat stickers; red pearls

Frosty the Snowman: Inspired by 12 Tags of Christmas

Hi everyone! This week our challenge at Simon Says Stamp and Show is to be inspired by Tim Holtz's 12 tags of Christmas, or his 12 tags of 2012. Tim has posted his 12 tags of Christmas since 2007, and during this year he has given us tag inspiration every month. That is 72 fabulous tags to be inspired off! You can find links to his tags here.

I have followed Tim's 12 tags of Christmas from the start and there is endless inspiration to be found there. I have so much fun every time I make my version of his tags. So it was hard to choose what to do for my project this week.

I was looking through Tim's tags for a long time and for my tag I was particularly inspired by tag 4 and tag 12 from last year. I wanted to create a frosty tag with glitter and joy and I love the background from tag 12 and the fabulous crackle snowman from tag 4. The manila tag was first covered in Picket Fence Distress Stain, to make it a bit whiter. The Hero Arts Starry Sky stamp was stamped on top with Archival Jet Black. When dry, the tag was covered with a glue stick and tissue paper pressed on top, wrinkling it as I went along. The tissue paper was covered with Rock Candy Distress Stickles (love that it comes in a jar now), and when dry, I swept Brushed Pewter Distress Stain around the edges.

The snowman was die cut from grungeboard and the 'joy' movers & shapers die was positioned on his tummy and die cut in my base tray. A fun way to alter the snowman die cut. The snowman was painted with a thick layer of Rock Candy Distress Crackle Paint.

The December stamp (a favourite of mine, I used it just a few days ago here), was stamped on the back of one of the papers from Tim's Holidays Past paper stash. The papers have a lovely texture at the back, perfect for stamping.

I made a fringed flower from tissue paper, folding it twice before cutting. You can find a tutorial for this at the end of Tim's tag 12 of 2011. The fringes were a bit long, so I simply trimmed them a bit after rolling the flower up. A bit of Rock Candy distress stickles was smeared on the flower.

When the crackle paint was dry, the snowman was coloured with Broken China and the new Brushed Pewter Distress Stain.  The new metallic stains look very cool on top of Rock Candy Crackle paint.

The tag and tab were die cut from grungeboard and coloured with the Brushed Pewter Stain, very quick. I inked the edges with a bit of Black Soot distress ink.

Here you can see the shine from the Rock Candy Distress Stickles better and the Brushed Pewter Stain around the edges. Love adding tinsel to Christmas tags.

I can't wait to see what everyone will create using Tim's tags as inspiration. Remember that your project doesn't need to be a tag, it just needs to be inspired by a technique Tim uses in his tags. As always, our sponsor Simon Says Stamp gives a $50 gift voucher to one random participant.

Thank you for visiting! Have a lovely week!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:
Dies: Sizzix: Winter Wonder, Joy movers & shapers, Tiny Tabs & Tags,
Stamps: Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz Mini Holidays; Hero Arts: Starry Sky S5448
Ink: Distress Ink: Black Soot; Archival Ink Jet Black
Stain: Distress Stain Broken China, Brushed Pewter, Picket Fence
Paint: Rock Candy Distress Crackle paint
Glitter: Rock Candy Distress Stickles
Surfaces: Tim Holtz Idea-ology Grungeboard, Holidays Past Paper Stash, District Market Terminology tissue wrap; manila tag;
Embellishments: Tim Holtz Idea-ology Paper Strings Solids, Silver Tinsel
Adhesive: Ranger Inkssentials Collage Glue stick; Ranger Glossy Accents; hot glue gun

CSI case file #49

Hi everyone! I don't have a layout for this week's CSI:Color, Stories, Inspiration challenge. It is only the second challenge of the year that I miss (the other one was number 5 I think). The photos I developed for the challenge were ready a day late (time to look for a new place to develop photos!) and I've had a bad cold this week, so I just couldn't finish in time, or hardly even start. Here's the gorgeous case file:

Lovely colours for Christmas. If you have never tried doing the CSI challenges, I hope you will, they are awesome and CSI is a very friendly place.

Have a great weekend!

Anna-Karin