Festive Friday - Two Styles!

Good morning, friends, and welcome to this week's Festive Friday! We're getting down to the wire now, folks! There is only one Festive Friday after this week. So today I have a couple of pairs of tags to share with you today (full disclosure: there were three of each, but a poorly placed baby wipe killed one of each. Boo!) Since there were only two survivors of each of these styles, I decided to share both today.

First up, I have some shaped shaker tags I made with the Hard Candy Christmas set from Ellen Hutson.

These may look complicated, but they're actually pretty simple. I stamped and die cut the front jar and backed it with a clear cardstock die cut before setting it aside. Then, I die cut folded cardstock so that the shape formed a tent. On the inside I stamped my "to:" and "from:" (I forgot to photograph the insides, but I used the same set as on the other tags from today).

On the outside of the tented bit, I stamped the peppermint from Hard Candy Christmas multiple times. I just did some very simple masking to keep them from overlapping. Then, I assembled my shaker using foam tape, chunky crystal glitter, and a few snowflake sequins. I topped the jar with a banner die cut stamped with a greeting from the same set.

The other tags are ridiculously easy, but I love how clean and simple they are. I die cut the tags from white cardstock and then stamped them with the ribbon stripes from Gift Card Cozy Sentiments (a set I designed a couple of years ago). I added the "to:" and "from:" from the same set.

Then, I stamped and die cut the bows and attached them with foam tape. I embellished each bow with a faux nailhead to look like the knot of the bow. It's a small thing, but it adds just enough shine to make it pop. A little crochet thread for tying and these were done.

Well, that's all for today! I hope you've enjoyed this week's Festive Friday post. I'll see you back here again next week for a final installment! Have a great weekend!

And if you've missed it, I have a post over on The Greetery's blog today, so be sure to check that out too!

Supplies:
Candy Jar Shaker Tags


Stamped Ribbon Tags

Festive Friday - Monogram Tags

Good morning, friends! Welcome to Festive Friday! It's hard to believe, but there are only two more Festive Fridays after this one. Christmas is coming at us fast! Today's tags are a nice, quick option for dressing up your seasonal packages though, so have no fear! Let's get to it!

I love a good monogram and gift tags are the perfect opportunity to use them (assuming you don't have several of the same initial in the family). I chose three from our list. I don't bother with the "to:" and "from:" on monogram tags because the "to:" is taken care of with the recipient's initial and they can usually guess the "from:" based on the handmade tag. But you could always add those bits of info on the back or on a second layer if you felt the need.

For these tags, I die cut the tags from one of Betsy's Make It Market Mini Kits from a while back. Then, I stamped them with the Jumbo Plaid background from The Stamp Market. I used the Skinny Upper Alpha die (also from The Stamp Market) to cut the monograms.

Then, I stamped a variety of foliage from The Stamp Market's Festive Floral set to use to decorate the tags. I die cut a handful of each piece and then assembled a few at a time on the tags. That means I have more pieces on hand to create additional tags. Bonus! I finished these off with simple white crochet thread for a clean, classic look.

By the way, I chose to go for monograms that didn't have a "floating middle" to worry about (like A or D or O), but you could still use those letters easily by adding a second layer to your tags. You could even do the pattern on the back so the letter was patterned rather than solid for a whole new look.

I hope you've enjoyed today's tag trio! I hope to see you back again next week for our second-to-last Festive Friday of the season! Have a wonderful weekend!

Supplies:
Plaid Monogram Tags

Festive Friday (or, you know, Saturday) - Gift Bow Tags

Hello, friends! Thank you for your patience with this week's post. Sometimes the schedule just fills faster that we expect, know what I mean? Well, I hope today's project is worth the wait!

Last year these glittered bow tags were some of my favorites that I did the entire series. So I thought it would be fun to recreate something similar with new product from The Greetery. I totally love the Fit To Be Tied die and I just knew it would make lovely statement tags. 

Quick tip: Often I just go for whatever colors appeal to me in the moment, but for these I looked at my wrapping paper collection and chose colors that I thought would coordinate nicely with a couple of the papers I have on hand. It's fun to wing it, but sometimes these things are more useful with a few extra minutes of planning.

I cut the bows (two of the solid parts, one of the detail xyroned on both sides) and set them aside. Then, I die cut the long, scalloped die from the Speed Tagging set. You could use more than one shape to do these tags in order to get a quicker result, but I just cut smaller pieces of white cardstock and die cut only the area I needed for the tags I wanted.

I splattered three of the tags with silver watercolor and stamped the sentiment when the paint was dry (it just took a few minutes since the speckles were so small). On the other three, I added the "to:" and "from:" in ink colors that would coordinate with the bows on the front of the tags. I adhered the tags together. Then, I tied each one with baker's twine and set them aside.

Next, I attached the bow detail pieces to their respective solid counterparts and removed the Xyron backing to expose the adhesive underneath. I sprinkled each bow with a matching glitter and burnished it into the adhesive to make sure there was as little transfer as possible later on. I curved the bows a bit with my fingertips and attached them to the additional solid bows with foam tape. The second bow just gives a bit of depth. I adhered the fully assembled bows to the tags and voila!

I love this style and I'm sure I'll be doing it again in the future! Thank you so much for joining me this week. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Supplies:
Gift Bow Tags

Festive Friday...on Saturday?

Good morning, friends! I just wanted to pop in and give you a heads up that this week's Festive Friday will be a little delayed. This week has been so full of fun and family that I completely neglected crafty time. I'll have my Festive Friday post up for you tomorrow morning. So while I apologize for the delay, I felt prioritizing those closest to me was the right way to go. Thank you for understanding and I'll see you tomorrow!

Festive Friday - Gable Box & Tag Team Tag Ensemble

Happy Festive Friday! I have a very fun project to share today pairing the very cute Tag Team kit from my friend Heather and Taylored Expressions along with an adorable new stencil and a favorite older packaging die I designed a few years ago. Let's get to it!

I loved the Modern Holly Layered Stencil from the moment I saw it, so when I saw that Heather also had a tag kit coming out I knew it was time to place an order! It looks like Heather's kit might be sold out (yay, Heather!), but you could still get a similar look (if not the same silly sentiments) with something you happen to have on hand.

I used the stencil to decorate a gable box that I cut from white cardstock. I'm totally smitten with that pattern, aren't you?! Then, I cut tags from Cherry Kisses and Leafy cardstocks and stamped them with greetings from Heather's set. I made the tags double-sided with one side being white and the other being colorful for a nice contrast.

Heather's kit came with candy cane striped twine, but it wasn't exactly the right tone of red to go with the Cherry Kisses, so I used some red and green twines I happened to have on hand. I also discovered while playing around with the gable box that it's the perfect size for the round Heirloom Ornaments I designed last year, too, so now I have another option for gifting those. Bonus!

I hope you've enjoyed today's project! Have a fantastic weekend and I'll see you all again next week for another Festive Friday!

Supplies:

Gable Box & Tag Team Tag Ensemble

We're Pining For New Botanicuts, Winter Sketches, and More From The Greetery

Good morning, friends! Today is the second introduction day for the new products coming your way from The Greetery. Day 2 is just as exciting as Day 1, so hold on to your hats!

If you were a fan of the previously released seasonal Sketches sets, the Winter Sketches set is sure to be a joy! These pine boughs are totally gorgeous and they make for quite a striking focal point.

I began by die cutting a Nordic Frames shape and trimming it at an angle to create a decorative panel. I stamped the sentiment from last month's Tree Trimmings stamp set. Then, I backed the panel with red cardstock to add a little contrast behind the die cut openings.

Next, I sponged a white card base with Slumber ink to give a little atmosphere and attached the decorative sentiment panel with foam tape. Then, I tucked three of the Winter Sketches branches below the sentiment panel, giving a nice, full appearance.

A few clear sequins were the perfect embellishment for adding a little shimmer and texture without introducing another color. The result is a frosty holiday card pulled right from nature.

Next up, I have a card made pairing the new Budding Beauties stamp set with the new Fit To Be Tied die.

I wanted to use the mistletoe image to create a "kissing ball" on my card. Since the mistletoe berries are white in real life, I decided to stamp on Kraft cardstock. But quite honestly, these images would look lovely with a little creative license applied so go forth and create pink, red, yellow, whatever-color-your-heart-desires berries instead.

I sponged and sprinkled a bit of white ink onto a Nordic Frames shape and then heat embossed my sentiment before stamping one of the mistletoe images. I stamped and die cut two additional mistletoe sprigs and attached them to the panel before adhering that whole piece to a Kraft card base with foam tape.

No kissing ball is complete without a bright red bow, so I used the new Fit To Be Tied die to finish things off in festive fashion. I layered two of the solid bows with foam tape and topped things off with a glittered bow detail. I couldn't be more tickled! Maybe I'll just hang this card in a doorway instead of getting the real thing!

Last up, I have a winter card pairing that same Fit To Be Tied bow with the Botanicuts Pine Bough. I wanted to use the same bow to show how it can be used through the seasons for more than just holiday projects.

I began by die cutting the Botanicuts pieces and sponging them with Spruce and Gathered Twigs inks for a bit of depth. I used the Copic Opaque White Pigment on the pinecone pieces to give them a slightly snowy appearance and assembled the pinecone.

I stamped the sentiment from Pine Blossom onto a Nordic Frames shape and attached it to a Kraft card base that I had stenciled with the Knit Wits pattern. Then, I attached the pine boughs and pinecone.

Next, I die cut the bow. This time, I just used one solid bow along with the detail die. And instead of glitter, I used sponging to give the detail die contrast. Those simple changes take the bow from an over-the-top-sparkling-holiday embellishment to everyday adornment. Don't you love a die that can do double duty?!

Well, that's it for my projects for the mini release from The Greetery. Thank you so much for joining me! Make sure to pop in on these lovely ladies to see more of what this month's release has to offer:

Kay Miller

Laurie Willison

Dawn McVey

Heather Nichols

Keeway Tsao

Angelica Conrad

Kelly Lunceford

Norine Borys

Wanda Guess

Now, a few quick thoughts about the Pinkfresh inks. In short, I really like them. They stamped crisply and cleanly, gave great coverage, and the inks in each color family work really well together. Not all of the inks cleaned off of my stamps easily, but that's something I expect from most inks these days regardless of brand (especially the reds and pinks). Using a stamp cleaner solution (like Ultra Clean) helps minimize staining. One thing I wasn't hugely fond of is the ease of use of the cubes, but that's not specific to the Pinkfresh inks. Some lids were really tight and I had a hard time getting a handful of them open. Inevitably, I lost my grip on a couple of them and they went flying. Luckily, no projects were harmed. Again, this is not a Pinkfresh issue. I'm sure there are some colors that I will gravitate to more often and I will probably order those colors in full pad sizes at some point. I would have no hesitation suggesting trying out these inks if you have a gap in your collection that you haven't been able to fill. It may seem crazy considering they just released 48 colors, but I, for one, would really love to see a family of more yellow-y greens. These inks are going to make layering stamps even easier and more fun to use.

Thanks again for joining me for The Greetery's mini release. All of the new products will be available on The Greetery's website at 10am ET tomorrow, November 22nd. I'll be back tomorrow with a Festive Friday post, so I hope to see you again soon! Take care!

Supplies:
Merry Christmas Card


Light & Love Card


Just A Note Card

Winter's In Bloom With Pretty New Products From The Greetery

Good morning, friends! Today I'm excited to share a batch of beautiful new goodies from The Greetery. This month's release is a mini collection, but that doesn't mean it's lacking in fabulousness - not at all! You're going to love the crafty goodness coming your way!

One of the sets releasing this month is called Pine Blossom and it is absolutely gorgeous! And maybe my favorite part is that the foliage can look like pine boughs or cosmos foliage, so you can use it any time of year! I tried out several different color variations while playing with this set and I'm totally going to use these stamps well into spring and beyond!

I also used a new set of die cut frames coming this month called Nordic Frames on this sweet thank you card. I began by die cutting the center panel from a card front. Then, I clear embossed a woodgrain pattern on the outer frame. The result is super subtle, but the texture is lovely. I attached that to a mint-colored card base and set it aside.

Next, I stamped the sentiment from Pine Blossom onto the Nordic Frame and adhered it to the card base with foam tape. I love that the color of the card base peeks out from the tiny diamond negative cuts on the frame.

Then, I stamped and assembled my floral swath. I used the large bouquet to built the majority of the design and then used the smaller sprigs and individual flowers in the set to add fullness and shape. I also embellished the tiny flowers with small spots of clear glitter for sparkle. Betsy's design makes it so easy to create something quick and easy or more involved, depending on what you need in the moment. It's so handy!

My second card uses the new Berry Branch Stencil and Inside & Out Berry Branch Die. The Inside & Out die is super clever! In one pass you are able to die cut several leafy and berry branches along with a beautifully delicate outline shape. I've used the solid parts on my card and the outline on my final project below.

For this card, I wanted to create a Christmas card with a Scandinavian vibe, so I went with a frosty blue and silver scheme with a bold pop of red. I really think it fits the bill! I began by blending Slumber ink through the new Berry Branch stencil. I've always been fond of a botanical background and this one is no exception. It's super versatile and I can see it being useful year round depending on the color palette.

Next, I used the middle Nordic Frames shape to impress a design into the blue panel. I embellished the top and bottom of that panel with strips of bold red cardstock and adhered the whole shebang to a crisp white card base. Then, I die cut the smallest Nordic Frames shape and stamped it with a sentiment from Pine Blossom.

I trimmed off one side of the sentiment panel and mounted it to the card front with foam tape. Then, I used silver and vellum leafy branches to embellish the sentiment. They add dimension without packing on loads of volume, making the card easy to mail. I always appreciate an easy-to-mail option!

Last up, I have a handful of tags to share. You remember that totally ingenious Speed Tagging collection that came out last month? Well, prepare to be thrilled! Betsy is releasing Speed Tagging Prints paper to make your holiday tags even easier! Each pack includes two pages each of three separate patterns so you have tons of beautiful designs from which to choose.

I die cut one of each of the sheets and picked a handful to embellish with some quick stamping and die cuts.

I loved this dark, floral tag, but I didn't want to have to bother with heat embossing, so I simply stamped my "To:" and "From:" on die cut banners and added them to the tag with foam tape (if you're going to do something like this, I suggest dimensional adhesive that will give you full coverage to make writing later easier).

I wanted to amp up the botanical angle, so I took an Inside & Out Berry Branch die cut and tied it to the back of the tag with my crochet thread. Not using any adhesive allows the branch to move freely as the tag moves on my package.

I used the Speed Tagging Christmas Sentiments set to add messages to the rest of my stamped tags. These patterned papers and that sentiment set together are a recipe for success when it comes to those last-minute tags. I'm super grateful to have them in my arsenal this holiday season!

One other quick note about my projects in the next couple of days: I was super fortunate to win a full set of the new Pinkfresh ink cubes recently. I've had several people ask about them and whether I like them, so I decided to dedicate this release to getting to know these inks. I used them almost exclusively on my projects (the only exceptions were specialty inks like Versamark and white pigment). I'll make sure to share my thoughts at the end of tomorrow's post.

Thank you so much for joining me today! Make sure to pop in on these lovely ladies to see how they're using this month's mini release to celebrate winter and I'll see you back here again tomorrow!

Kay Miller

Laurie Willison

Dawn McVey

Heather Nichols

Keeway Tsao

Angelica Conrad

Kelly Lunceford

Norine Borys

Wanda Guess

Supplies:

Sending My Thanks Card

Merry Christmas Card

Speed Tagging Christmas Tags

Festive Friday - Glittered Pocket Tags

Hello, friends! It's Festive Friday and I am in a holiday mood! The temperatures this week have been absolutely arctic and it's making me itch to put up my trees. Oh, yes, there are multiple. But I've always promised to keep my Christmas decorations to a minimum until after Thanksgiving, so it will wait for now. Soon though. Soon...

This week I'm sharing a set of pocket tags that I made with Concord & 9th's Holiday Cheer Tags bundle. I'd been eying this bundle for a while and I'm so glad I finally decided to take the leap and buy it during a recent sale! I know this die in particular is going to get plenty of use in the coming month and beyond!

Each of these little guys is a tag inside a pocket. This way, I can tape the pocket to my gift and the tag can easily be removed to see who the lucky recipient is for the package.

For each one, I die cut the pocket and then die cut the negative or shape out of the front. Then, I used sticker paper to make the open areas tacky (for the tree, I gently lifted the branches before attaching the sticker paper to make things a little easier). Then, I sprinkled crystal glitter over the exposed adhesive to make the open spaces sparkle!

To get the pattern on the ornament, I simply stamped on the sticky side of the label paper before attaching it to the pocket. The glitter kept any wet ink from smudging. I went ahead and adorned the tree and ornament with extra bits of metallic gold paper and then tied each tag with baker's twine. These were fun, easy, and they're going to look so fun and festive on my gifts!

Thank you so much for joining me today! I hope you've enjoyed this week's Festive Friday! Have a wonderful, crafty weekend!

Supplies:
Glittered Pocket Tags