Sweet Christmas Archives - Kathy by Design

Stamperia Pink Christmas/Sweet Christmas The Squirrel’s Christmas Party Gift Box Folio

Hello, Friends! Oh, the countdown for Christmas is truly on! But I still have time to share this darling Stamperia Sweet Christmas/Pink Christmas Squirrel’s Christmas Party Gift Box Folio with you. I made (and sold!) a lot of these this Christmas season, but I am still not tired of them. The 4 3/4″ x 5 1/2″ size makes them perfect for gifting. I shared a YouTube tutorial for building this base earlier this week. If you missed it, this gives you another chance to find it. The base for this one is scored at 5 1/2 instead of 5″, so the front flap is a little short. It’s so easy to vary the dimensions for the base simply by scoring. That is one of the things I love about this design: it’s very adaptable. The antique bronze bulldog clip helps hold the cover closed. Let’s take a closer look, shall we?

The Squirrel’s Christmas Party Gift Box Folio: Making the Nest

Meet Edith Squirrel. She’s the chairwoman of the village Christmas party. She is frantically decorating her nest for the holiday Christmas House competition. And she is wearing her favorite pearls as she decorates. Her nest is a vintage drawer pull that she found abandoned in the meadow. It’s a bit corroded from lying in the wet grasses, but still looks very festive surrounded by pine cones, flowers, Spanish Moss, and a wee sisal tree. If she wins the competition, Father Christmas will have tea with her. Here is how she decorated her nest.

Start with a ButterBee Scraps Antique Bronze Drawer Pull. Dry brush it with a little white gesso. Let it set for a minute then wipe it away from the edges.
Next, randomly tap with Versamark Ink and sprinkle with Seth Apter Patina Oxide Baked Texture. Heat emboss.
Dry brush another very light coat of gesso over the embossed areas. Tap the raised areas lightly with Weathered Wood Distress Paint.
Now turn the drawer pull upside down and fill with Spanish Moss, painted mini pine cones, a sisal tree and other goodies like berries that you might have in your stash.
Die cut a circle from patterned paper and adhere to the back of the drawer pull. Then adhere the drawer pull on the lower edge of the folio front. Surround with Prima Christmas in the Country Flowers and holly sprigs.
Add ribbon and Glass Globe Charms in the opposite corner of the folio front.

The Squirrel’s Christmas Party Gift Box Folio: A Peek Inside

The inside of this folio is filled with interactive features.

I built a magnetic flap/flip page on both the top and the bottom.

The middle panel is a sweet little accordion style folio.

And of course it has pockets and tea and tags!

it looks like Edith won the Christmas House competition because here is Father Christmas to have tea with her!

TIP: Score and fold large images to fit inside the folio. This is how you make a big piece of patterned paper fit in a small space.

The box pocket on the bottom holds a little wrapped parcel decorated with a vintage carved wooden candy cane.

Edith must have been a very good little squirrel this year, as Father Christmas has brought her lots of lovely treats! This envelope is a cut apart image from the paper collection. I simply folded and tied with ribbon. But if you have an envelope punch board, you can make your own envelope to tuck inside. I’ve done that as well on other projects.

So that is my Christmas offering for you today. I hope I shared some tips, tricks and ideas that you can use in your own crafty adventures. If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section below. Now I’m back to the kitchen to finish baking my Christmas cookies!

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheerio,

kathy

Stamperia Pink Christmas Ice Skates for Really Reasonable Ribbon

Hello, Friends! These Stamperia Pink Christmas Ice Skates are so dreamy when matched up with ribbon from the Really Reasonable Ribbon December Ribbon Club. Growing up in Vermont, I had to wear my older brother’s black hand me down hockey skates. Not exactly inspiring for a young girl who imagined herself to be a graceful swan. The reality is, I tumbled my way across the ice while pushing an old broom in front of me for balance. But a girl can dream…and this card is the stuff dreams are made of!

A Note About the Product

You know how you sometimes get down to the last few bits of a paper collection, and you combine it with another collection that matches it really well? I don’t do it very often, but because Stamperia Pink Christmas and Sweet Christmas were so very similar, I did combine them. I only had a few bits and pieces of Sweet Christmas left. The skates image is from that collection along with a few bits and pieces of border and such. Sadly, Sweet Christmas is no longer available…or if it is, I cannot find it in stock. So please forgive me for that oversight on my part.

Stamperia Pink Christmas Ice Skates: The Basics

This is a 5″ x 7″ top fold card with a 3/4″ spine. Machine stitching, paper doilies, glittery die cut stars and soft pink posies amp up the shabby chic vibe.

TIP: Create a shabby chic border by layering Mineral Ice Checkerboard Satin Ribbon with Aqua Shell Print Satin Ribbon along the top edge of the card. Tuck the ends of the ribbon behind the card panel to create a finished look.

Tie a triple loop bow from the Shell Print Satin and top with petite posies and silver glitter jingle bells. The Zutter Bow it All Tool makes it easy to tie these bountiful bows.

Tim Holtz Idea-Ology Ice skates and mini jingle bells top this tag. Hold everything in place with a bit of Iridescent Metallic String.

Stamperia Pink Christmas Ice Skates: A Peek Inside

Don’t forget to use ribbon inside your card! It makes a great closure for this little gift folio.

These sweet gift card folios are a wonderful way to present a little Christmas Cheer. I’ve filled this one up with some cookies, a Santa spoon, peppermint stick, honey stick, chocolate and tea. Have several of these folios on hand during the holidays because they make wonderful last minute gifts.

I hope I’ve shared some tips, tricks and ideas that you can use in your own crafty adventures. If so, I’d love to hear from you in the comment section below. And here’s a link to an older Stamperia Pink Christmas project.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheerio,

kathy