Merry makings issue 1

Issue 1 | 2013

merry makings

magazine

hi!

My name is Claire, I am the editor of heart handmade uk and Christmas is my absolute favourite time of the year! With that in mind, I thought this year was as good a time as any to create some simple and easy DIY projects. Of course they had to be created in the most budget friendly way possible! If you already have a stash of craft supplies and the ‘essential tools’ every crafter has, then you are going to be well within the budget this year!

Every holiday season I have the curtains pulled, candles lit and my incredibly tacky, festive jumpers on. I love Christmas, all of it! Every smell and taste of the season saturates my home which makes me get rather giddy and full of festive cheer!

With each November, comes the mammoth task of beginning to make the gifts, write the cards, prepare the December Daily* album and get the decorations out of the attic in time for the season. I keep it all contained within one room as each year I will get some complaints “Christmas already?!” Yes! It takes time to make things!

I hope you enjoy all of the crafts in this little publication and remember to enjoy yourself! Don’t forget to add your projects to the flickr group! *December Daily with Ali Edwards scrapbooking and memory keeping project for the holiday season.

e r i a cl xo.

13

57

14

1414

9

32.

4 55 10

11

19

43

43

Merry Makings 6 8

Meet The Team Things to do in December

10 Hand Lettered Christmas Sign

37

12.

Darling decoupage projects

16

Fabric Star Garland

18.

Paper Straw Garland

20. Embroidered Memo board and little decorations 22 Mini beaded wreath decorations

6

45 35

18

24.

Air Dry Clay Gift Tags

26.

Washi Tape Christmas Tree

30.

Recycled Christmas Cards

32.

Stars Above

33.

Snowflake Plate

35. Beaded Heart Wall Decoration 37.

60

24

Making Candles

40. Essential Christmas Photo Guide 45

Memory Keeping

54. Beaded Snowflake Gift Topper 57.

Gorgeous Gift Wrap

58.

Golden Evergreen Toppers

60.

Neon New Years Treat Bags

Ayda Algin Ayda Algin is a full time

Ira Zinko

Janna Werner

“I’m Ira from Ukraine. I’m 29 Janna Werner works as

Environmental Engineer and and married to my wonder- scrapbook

designer,

free-

part time blogger and crafter. ful husband for 7 years now lance writer and teacher for With her inspiring blog ‘Cafe and a mother to my adorable online and in-person workNohut’ which translates into

4 year old son. My passion is shops. She lives in North

‘Chickpea Cafe’, Ayda shares

photography, styling and

the most beautiful images

decorating. A year ago I Janna´s love for papercrafts

of her home and crafts and

started an online decor shop and mixed media art evolved

they’re all perfectly styled

called ‘Blueberry Jam’ and in 2010 when a friend

and absolutely beautiful.

together with my husband introduced her to the world

A special thanks to Ayda

launched our own wooden of scrapbooking. Since then

for contributing a lot of the

creations project - Dream- she has been working togeth-

content found within these

Wood.”

pages.

Ira is an incredible stylist and crafting

Germany with her husband.

er with well-known paper-

photographer, you can view companies, magazines and her fabulous images on her international artists. In May blog

2013, Janna published her

‘Blueberry Inspirations’.

first book called ‘Paper Art’.

Blog: jannawerner.de

6

Jordan Clark

Silvia Curti

Stephanie

“My name is Jordan and I

“I’m Silvia, a 24 year old girl

Stephanie is a student

am an 18 year old, starry-

from the beautiful town of

teacher of art and music.

eyed girl who is continually

Como, Italy. My passions for

Creativity runs in the veins

inspired by the beauty of the

paper and graphics led me to and was great at helping with

world. I’m a dreamer and a

open in 2010 a creative blog:

lots of projects in my home

wanderer, always looking for

Ghirlanda di Popcorn.

^_^ Many of the projects

new adventures and wonder-

This name combines two

made by me were assisted by

ful people to meet. I love the

things I love most; simple,

Steph with great thanks and

summertime, and if I could,

easy and handmade

appreciation heading her

I would live my whole life

decorations and Christmas

way!

by the sea. I spend my time

of course. My blog is my

- Claire

reading, creating things with

paradise, on it I can share

my hands, star-gazing, prac-

my craft and graphics

ticing music, thrifting, writ-

projects, my personal

ing letters, and photograph-

printables, my

ing my life.”

DIY tutorials, my feelings

Blog : Stellaire

and everything I love.”

meet the team .....................................

7

If you’re anything like me, you’ve been wearing your reindeer jumper and singing carols for at least a week already. I’m just preparing my never ending ‘To Do’ list for the festive season and I thought I’d share a few of the things at the top of my list!

8

1. Arrange Your Festive Craft Kit

Grab yourself an old shoe box and some beautiful gift wrap to cover. Within your little box you can store ribbon spools like those shown above available from LiveLaughLove.co.uk Stock up on items such as sellotape and glue stick as you might find you go through one a day, depending on the crafts you create.

2. Hang a wreath on your door

3. Feed The Birds

Whether it’s this delightful brussels sprout wreath from The Contemporary home or a beautiful traditional wreath, spruce up your front door for the holiday season.

It’s important to keep birds well fed when the ground has frozen. I usually throw bird seed on an upturned bin lid.Check Martha Stewart for this bird cake tutorial.

4. Decorate

5. Keep Warm

I get so giddy around Christmas time.

All the beautifully decorated houses, the sounds, the smells, all of it excites me.

Enjoy this time of year and spend it with the ones you love and decorate!

Keep warm this season with hot drinks.

Coffee, tea, hot chocolate and all the rest!

At this time of year I love getting flavoured coffee from the Christmas market that comes to town every year.

6. The Scent of Christmas

7. Create a giftwrap caddy

Get yourself 2 lemon wedges, 1 lime slice, 2 orange slices, 3 cinnamon sticks, 2-3 Tbsp. whole cloves, 3 bay leaves. Pour ingredients into a saucepan and simmer on low heat, add water as needed. Put in the fridge to keep fresh.

Create a giftwrap caddy like Christina of 2littlehooligans.com. This is an upturned stool with wheels attached. Christina then stitched pockets for accessories.

9

Merry Christmas Sign You Will Need Twine, String or Ribbon Pencil Ruler Eraser Black Felt Tip and Pen An Awl or something sharp to make a hole.

Balsa Wood (can be purchased in panels in different sizes, my panel measured 14 inches by 5 inches) To make this, I used a pencil to poke two hole is each end of this little balsa wood panel. The balsa wood is very light weight and delicate so be careful when you are poking your little holes. The holes are obviously for putting the string through and tying knots to secture.

My lettering is very dodgy and not perfect at all. I counted my letters and measured the approximate spaces for each letter and their swirly parts so; measure your wood and mark off 14 spaces. This is just a rough guide and it means you won’t be marking your letters and erasing a lot because it’s not really possible to do so with balsa wood. Written in pencil and then go over the pencil with your black marker.

10

11

12

Air Dry Clay Gift Tags

with Ayda Algin

You will need:

A beautiful, simple DIY project for

ribbon through.

•Tissue Paper or Napkins (these

you to make and adorn your tree or

Carefully cut shapes out of your

used are Cath Kidston napkins from

gifts!

napkins or tissue paper and use the top

Christmas 2012)

Take a lump off your block of clay,

layer of your napkin only. Napkins are

•Air Dry Clay

knead it (but not too much) and roll it

usually 3 ply which means they have 3

•Rolling Pin

flat. Use a lid or cookie cutter to

layers, so use the top layer only.

•Cookie Cutter or circular lid (you

create your circle and remove your

Use a small amount of decoupage glue

can be creative with your cutting

clay carefully. (It will be a little

to adhere to the clay and allow to dry.

tool!)

‘straggley’ when you pull it apart but If you are using a glue such as ‘mod

•Paint Brush for glue

you can file it down once dry.)

•Decoupage Glue

Clay can stick to most surfaces when it as a varnish once your original layer

•Scissors

it’s been worked too hard so be

is dry. Once you’ve left it to dry long

•An awl or something sharp to pirce

careful.

enough you are ready to string through

a hole

Use an awl or sharp object to create a

your twine and make your gifts

•Ribbon or Twine

hole so you can string your twine or

beautiful!

podge’ or ‘decopatch’ you can also use

13

Decoupage Coasters Decoupage Pillar Candles Whether these are a gift or they are for your festive I used the same technique as with the last two projects; home, these decoupage coasters are a fantastic. They’re using the top layer of a napkin only to adhere to the easy and an effective, decorative little gift idea! Using pillar candles using decoupage glue. I have done a small the same technique as the project on the previous page; test of burning these candles with the decoupaged napkin one layer of even decoupage glue, lay a square of your pieces and it just melts along with the wax but do not leave tissue paper or napkin (ensure you pull apart layers of candles unattended and if you have any concerns at all keep napkin and use only the top, printed layer) and leave to a fire blanket or small extinguisher on hand. Or just don’t dry. (Add the varnish layer if you’re using Mod Podge or make them! I’ve burnt them both down and had no fires at all!

Deco Art decoupage glue.)

14

Balsa Wood Star Garland A Panel of balsa wood * Star template *Sharp Knife * Gingham Ribbon * Tacky Glue

Cardboard Stars Star Template * Cardboard * Sharp Knife or scissors * tacky or PVA glue * glitter

This is an incredibly simple DIY project. You need to be VERY careful with your balsa wood. I actually used 4 panels of balsa wood measuring approximately 14 inches long by 5 inches high. When you are cutting the balsa wood, it can break easily so make sure your knife has a new blade and that you have a suitable cutting surface underneath. Use tacky glue to glue your star shapes to a length of ribbon.

I used a star template to cut stars out of pieces of cardboard I found in my recycling bin. I then used pva glue to add some Martha Stewart Glitter in two layers. Once dry you can thread string through the cardboard layers to create decorations for your tree or as a garland.

Just like on page 9, here’s the recipe to ensure your home smells like Christmas the whole season!

Get yourself 2 lemon wedges, 1 lime slice, 2 orange slices, 3 cinnamon sticks, 2-3 Tbsp. whole cloves, 3 bay leaves. Pour ingredients into a saucepan and simmer on low heat, add water as needed. Put in the fridge to keep fresh.

15

16

how to ......................

You will need: To make one star; gather your fabric and use your template to mark out the star shapes. Using the pinking shears, carefully cut out two •Pinking Shears stars from each piece of fabric.

•Pieces of Fabric or Fabric Scraps •Star Template •Awl for creating holes •Twine, Cord or Ribbon •Sewing Machine •Thin Wadding/Batting •Eyelets •Eyelet Setter •White or Matching Thread •Fabric Marker or Chalk

Cut out the same size star from your wadding/batting.

Create a sandwich layer of fabric, wadding and fabric and pin together. Stitch your layers together on the sewing machine and then mark a little dot where you want your hole to go.

Using an awl you can work holes through your layers or alternativelly mark an ‘X’ with your chalk and use very sharp scissors to cut along the lines of your ‘X’. You can trim the tips before placing in your eyelets and using an eyelet setter to secure your eyelet in place.

You can then take your cord, twine or ribbon and string all your little stars up.

Images and project by Ayda Algin

fabric star garland ................................................

17

18

Every year I like making a new garland for my craft room with common materials like acorn for autumn, paper doilies for spring and this year I decided to make a new do-it-yourself winter garland using paper straws: they are so pretty and ideal to use for different craft projects.

You will need: Paper straws (red-white straws are perfect for Christmas time but every other colour is good) Scissors Xmas silver bells String How to: Cut the straws in half.

Make a triple node in order to stop the string on one side.

Thread paper straws and little bells alternately up to complete the garland.

Make another triple node on the other side and your garland is done!

Project, images and words by Silvia Curti.

19

embroidered

memo board

20

embroidered memo board You will need: •Frame •Old Cork Board •Calico Fabric •Embroidery Floss •Embroidery Needles •Scissors •Decorative Ribbon How to: Trace or free hand write “Merry Christmas” onto your fabric and embroider. I used a little diamante red sticker to dot my ’I’ for added interest.

Attach your decorative ribbon just below your embroidery project.

Cut the cork to the size of your frame and cover with the embroidered fabric. Secure at the back with pins or a staple gun.

Remove the glass from your frame and insert your cork board as you

would a regular image in a frame.

This means you can stick your pins in there for attaching everything! ribbon ‘paper’ chain There is a little ribbon ‘paper’ chain there made with ribbons and double sided tape! wrapped yarn bauble You will need: •1 Styrofoam ball •1 Paper Clip •2 Tooth Picks •2 Beads •Tacky Glue •Bakers Twine How to: Secure one end of your yarn to the styrofoam ball and allow to dry before you begin wrapping.

While you’re waiting for your glue to dry, take your paperclip and bend

back and forth until it snaps in half.

This means you can now poke it into the top of your styrofoam ball to add twine for hanging. Wrap your yarn around and around and secure with tacky glue. Slide your tooth picks in and glue beads to the top. Add bakers twine and hang. ribbon spool with jingle bells You will need: •Short piece of ribbon •Spool •2 Jingle Bells •Bakers Twine •Hot Glue or Tacky Glue How to: Secure one end of ribbon to spool using glue. Create a loop & knots with your twine to secure inside the spool.

Use glue to really secure it. String the twine through the bells to attach, wrap your ribbon around the spool and secure with glue and hang! Ta-da! 21

easy decorations ....................................

Mini Beaded Wreath These miniature wreath decorations can be hung from hooks in your kitchen, on windows or even on fridges to add a festive touch to any room this Christmas.

22

mini beaded wreath decorations You Will Need •Small Hoops (we have used 15cm rings available in packs of 10) •Ribbons •Bakers Twine •Beads •Little Toadstools on Wires •Scrapbook embellishments •Crochet Flowers •Buttons •Pom Pom Ribbons •Fabric Scraps •Washi Tape •Beading Wire •Glue Gun •Tacky Glue •Scissors

How To: These little wreath decrations were made by taking mixed fabric strips and using a glue gun to secure a piece of fabric to the hoop and then wrapped, being secured at the end with tacky glue (most brands are suitable for use with ceramics, fabrics etc).

beads to the top of the hoop where we were attaching the bakers twine for hanging.

Project by Stephanie, Words and Images by Claire Donovan of hearthandmadeuk.

Beading wire was used to string any beads or buttons on as it was being wrapped around the hoop.

This is when you can choose to add ribbons or wrapping a pom pom string ribbon around the hoop. You can then add extra embellishments (the same way we attached the toadstool on a wire).

When the little hoops were

23

Air Dry Clay

gift tags

....................................................................

24

You will need: •Air Dry Clay •Scissors •Rolling Pin •Gold Pen or Paint •Cookie Cutters •Gold Thread or Twine •Awl or Sharp Object to make small holes •Littlebeads for added decorative interest

little rough, you can smooth those with sand paper after it dries.

Allow your tags to dry fully before you attempt to paint or you will destroy the nibs of your pen or your paint brush. Trust me! Once dry, decorate and doodle. Once paint or ink has dried you can use your gold thread to string up and add your little decorative bead.

Project and images by Ayda Algin

How To: Cut off a lump of clay from your packet and knead until it can be easily rolled out. Be sure not to knead too much as the clay can become quite sticky and will more than likely stick to your surface.

Use any choice of cookie cutter to cut your shape and carefully remove. Poke a little hole and set aside to dry.

It’s quite common with air dry clay for the edges to be a

25

26

washi tape

tree

................................................

Images and project by Ayda Algin

All you need to make this washi tape tree is a roll of washi tape, a large piece of poster board or foam board, some brads (the little brass tacks with two prongs at the back) and some string!

You don’t have to be perfect with your measurements, start at the top and start sticking and ripping tape.

Figure out where you are going to place your brads and mark little holes so you can use something sharp to make a hole to insert the brads. Fold your prongs at the back and that will keep them secure. If you were to use regular push pins, it is quite likely they would fall out when you add any decorations to your string.

Now you can add string to your tree, securing at the top and looping around the rest of the brads, securing at the bottom. Now decorate!

27

A Tabletop Vignette Display your washi tape Christmas tree ontop of a dresser, shelf or even a piano. You can add some string lights and some festive touches using little gift wrapped boxes and baubles strewn across the top. of your furniture.

Obviously this is not a practical idea for those of you with children!

Learn how to make these lovely pastel and glitter cards on pages 32 and 33 28

A Festive Arrangement Gather some sprigs of an evergreen, some candy canes and arrange them in a little latte cup. This makes a cute little festive addition to your home!

29

recycled greetings cards

30

You will need:

How To

•Old Christmas cards •Glitter •Scissors •Glue Stick •Scanner •Printer •Pastel Card Stock •White A4 Card •A Bone folder or the back of a knife

This is such an easy project and a great way to reuse your old Christmas cards. If you have a scanner, scan in your old Christmas cards. You can use free software such as picassa to print them out as four pictures on one sheet of A4 card.

Cut your little cards out using scissors (if you have a steady hand or a paper trimmer if you don’t). Then use glue stick or a glue pen to add little glitter (ensure you have a large piece of paper underneath your work that has been folded in half, this means you can save any excess glitter and put it back in your pot).

Once you’ve finished covering your card with glitter you can fold a piece of pastel card stock and glue the card to the front of your card stock. When folding card I always use a bone folder or the back of a knife to make sure the creases are

31

Toilet Roll

CARDBOARD STARS

..................................................................................

These cardboard stars (or flowers) are such a simple craft ro make!

Take a regular sized toilet roll, a ruler and a pencil, measure 1cm sections and cut. You will need a glue gun for this craft so plug it in and start adding small amounts of glue to the one end of your cardboard stars.

Just a dot is needed on the end and you can attach a second. Mine aren’t perfect so I can glue down any ends that don’t look even.

You can then paint and add embellishements!

32

stencilled snowflake plate Depending on whether you want a clear glass plate or to draw snowflakes on a ceramic plate you may need different materials.

I used 1 Glass Plate 2 Martha Stewart Snowflake Stencils 1 Oil Based Paint Marker (chalk wouldn’t dry on the glass plate) If you want to do this to a ceramic plate you will need 1 Plate 1 Porcelain Marker you can bake on so it’s safe for food.

Stencils

I used washi tape to secure my stencils to the top of my plate. As my plate is glass and I was able to turn the plate over and use the stencil as an outline. As I am using this technique you can print a snowflake template out from the internet and use that as your template.

I drew my snowflakes directly on the plate with my template on the other side and I kept moving my stencil around the plate where I wanted to draw my little snowflakes.

When I was finished with my wobbly snowflakes I then just used the pen to ‘dot’ all over the plate to look like snow.

They’re not perfect but they’re suitable for what I want to use it for!

You can be more precise of course and you can also use ceramic paint and a fine brush if you are going to create a plate safe to use with food and dish washing.

The templates that I used came as a pack from the Martha Stewart seasonal stencils.

You can print templates instead of buying.

33

Beaded Heart Lights

.................................................

34

wire hanger beaded

heart

lights

You will need: •1 Wire Coat Hanger •1 Set of Battery Powered Fairy Lights •1 Beaded Wire Garland (I used 5 Metres, available from any florists) •Set of wire cutters (not essential, I was able to bend the excess wire with pliers enough so it snapped off) How to: The steps are very simple, although you do need some muscle for this part - bending and shaping the hanger into a heart. I ‘detangled’ the wire from below the hook, flipped one side of the untangled wire upside down and retwisted the wire. At this time I left the excess wire hanging down until I had shaped the hanger into a heart; I had a little trouble getting it smooth but I kept working at it and it turned out very well. At this stage I used a pair of regular pliers and bend the excess length backwards and forwards until it snapped off.

You then need to begin wrapping your beaded garland around the heart shape. You should have plenty of the garland to wrap the beads tightly, or you can wrap loosely and create two layers. Once I had finished wrapping the wire I was able to twist the end of the garland wire to another part of the garland which secured it. It was then time for the lights! You can also wrap these (20 lights in a pack) quite tightly.

Your excess cable and battery pack will hang loose but you can find a creative way of hiding it! You could hide it behind canvas like I have shown on the opposite page.

35

making candles

You will need:

ended up covering my white walls in soot, which I discovered in the spring time!

•Soy wax container blend Soy wax is more eco friendly and doesn’t smoke like •Scented oil if you choose - I chose gingerbread! paraffin and is now the only type of wax I will use.

•Candle Wax Dye if you choose Buying soy candles can be quite expensive so I am go•A jug ing to be making all of my Soy pillar candles this year.

•A saucepan that you are happy to get covered in wax or invest in a double boiler but it’s cheaper to get a glass This means I should invest in a larger jug and use an old saucepan which is larger as I currently use a 500ml jug and small saucepan. I used what I had in my cupjug and old milk pan. board.

•Wick suitable for soy container blend.

I purchased all of my supplies from Whicksn•Empty glass jars Why choose soy wax?

I use a lot of candles in the winter for heat. I have a small room so it’s easy to heat. The parrafin wax I had

whacks and the owners have been kind enough to offer readers in the UK 10% on their purchases using code WNW11.

How to: Once you’ve chosen your candle containers (I used jars) make sure they’re clean and completely dry. Place them on a baking tray (or regular tray) with tin foil covering the base. This will ensure that any wax spills will be easy to clean up. Insert a candle wick in the center of each container. If you are using wicks with wick sustainers (little metal disks on the end), the wicks should stand up straight without any assistance (mine didn’t so I used a glue gun to secure them to the base of the jar). Using wicks with sustainers in containers is highly recommended as loose wick can be quite difficult to keep straight (your wax would melt in unevenly).

Now it’s time to start your ‘double boiler’ or jug and saucepan! The soy container blend wax comes in flakes so it’s easier to melt. Put it in the jug and wait until it melts. Then pour the wax into your chosen containers in layers. I usually poke some holes into layers when a skin has formed, to allow the wax seep in, if you pour it all in at once and leave to set you run the risk of creating an air pocket that will crack and create a small well once it has set.

37

pringles can candles You will need •Soya Pillar Blend Flakes 700g will make one large pringles can pillar candle •1 Pringles Can •Double Boiler (jug and saucepan) •Scents if you choose •Wick suitable for soy blend pillar candles (a larger width than some container wicks) •One (baking) tray with tin foil or wax paper to catch any spills How to: Start by applying a little washi tape to

38

the sealed end of the Pringles tube, in a criss cross to mark the centre point, then you can use a hammer and sharp nail to make a hole. I did not use the tape method to mark the centre hole and ended up with two holes! I was able to seal up one end with the glue gun. (You can learn from my own mistakes) You can cut the tube if you wish to have a smaller candle, if you decide to use paraffin wax (not recommended) you might need to peel the pringles can apart when it has set, soy wax candles come out much easier after it has been refriger-

ated.

Pass the wick through the hole at the bottom and you can secure with some blue tac.

Divide your wax into 3 x 150g portions and one of 250g Start your double boiler and place the first (lightest) portion of wax melted, as the first pour will be the top of the candle.

Put the pringles tin on your tray in case you haven’t properly sealed the end

Straighten and tighten the wick, use a bit of blutack or washi tape to secure it

down and hopefully it will come out of the can! If it doesn’t it can be easily cut away. Voila!

I’m still burning the pillar candles and so far they’ve been burning for 16 hours!

Melt the next portion of wax and when a skin has formed on the wax in the pringles tin, poke a few holes in it so the two parts will mix a little and then pour in your wax! Do the same for your last portion of wax.

A little advice

I’ve also been saving extra wax to reuse.

Wait for a couple of hours (once the skin has formed you can put it in the fridge) You will see a dip around the wick at the open end where the wax has shrunk (when it look’s like someone poked their finger in) Warm up your remaining wax and fill the cylinder Again, once a skin has formed, pop it in the fridge.

Leave it a couple more hours until it feels cool all over and then carefully tip the candle upside

For my candle projects, I have been using Wedo Eco Candle wick. I bought mine in metre lengths and created my own wicks suitable for container candles, aswell as using it continuously for the pringles can pillar candle.

To make wick suitable for containers you will need sustainers (little metal discs) and pliars.

If you go to www.whicksnwhacks. com you can use promo code WNW11 for 10% discount within the UK I have tried pre-waxed candle wicks and I have discovered that they burn too quickly for the soy wax. The soy wax burns for a long time and the small jars I used in my container candle project lasted for 9-10 hours burning time.

39

40

Each year everyone is looking forward to the winter holidays. Unfortunately, within all the fuss we seem to miss the opportunity to photograph some truly beautiful and somewhat important details of the festive season. In this article you will find a list of 12 images you should try to take this Christmas. I promise they will be memories to treasure!

What’s Christmas without a beautiful wreath adorning your front door? The first on your list will be your Christmas wreath. If you’re like me you will have more than one, or like a family member of mine, the flower arranging class will be in full swing creating swags and traditional style decorations. You can take a picture of it in the traditional style, hanging ona door, or you can simply put it on any surface ( a wooden surface would add texture and would fit particularly ince), scatter around spruce twigs, and add some ribbon to make your wreath look more attractive.

41

2. Usually we pay attention to the gift wrapping as much as to choosing the gifts themselves.

So why not take a picture of all these creative packages in different settings. Under the tree, the wrapping in progress, there are so many ideas for styling gifts and many boards on Pinterest for inspiration if you really want to make it like a photoshoot.

3. Christmas baking is an essential part of the holiday season. If you also like to bake, be sure to capture a photo of your creations. Just add some greens, red baker’s twine and pretty fabric into the frame, and your baking will immediately look even more tasty!

4 . Various arrangements can be made with the help of candles. They always look very cozy in the image. Light them, add some Christmas decorations and another festive photo is ready.

5 . Each of you definitely has a favourite Christmas ornament. Try to photograph them in a different way - hang them on the snowcovered twigs, hold in your hands or just put them on a snowy surface.

6. All kinds of pinecones and nuts also create a festive mood in your home for the holidays.

Why not scatter them on the table or put into a pretty basket or bag and take a picture?get a magical winter picture. (see previous page for the cozy shots).

42

7. For an extra coziness add some pretty mittens or socks into your shots. They are able to make any arrangement more charming. And if you sprinkle them with just a little snow, you’ll get a magical winter picture. (see beginning of article for the cozy shots) 8. What’s Christmas without beloved hyacinths.

These delicate flowers clearly make your photos more vibrant. Just add some moss, pinecones and vintage details into the composition.

9. Berrries always bring a bit of color into the photo. Thus don’t forget that they are easy way to complete any arrangement.

10. Most of us just adore vintage details. Not surprisingly, they always look charming in the photos. Take out your old stool, vintage books, various wooden boxes/baskets and play with them until you get the composition you like.

11. Children particularly anxiously await the holidays. Baking Christmas cookies for example can be so much fun, then why not take a photoshoot of all this magical process?

12. While playing in the snow, making snowman or just walking in a winter forest, grab a camera and try to capture the most memorable moments of this winter

43

memory keeping

&

Scrapbooking with Janna Werner

44

You will need •Patterned paper •Embellishments (Crate Paper) •Frame for 12“x12“ papers (Prima Marketing), •Sewing machine •White thread •Twine •Sar sequins •Reinforcement rings •Glue •Scissors

How to: Cut tags from three different patterned papers, punch a hole on top of each tag and adhere a reinforcement ring as well as twine. If you like, sew on the tags and let the thread hang lossely, this adds a pretty shabby chic touch. Glue them onto a 12x12“ patterned paper.

You can now put the paper into a frame.

Gather embellishments that fit the color scheme of the tags and spread them on the three tags – add gold and glitter for a Christmassy and classy look.

45

You will need: •Papers •Vellum •Alphabet stickers •Embellishments: Crate Paper •Stamp: SODAlicious •Ink: Tsukineko •Spray: Heidi Swapp •Black pen (American Crafts) Sewing machine •Yarn •Scissors •Photo •Glue •3D foam dots How to: Cut strips from glitter paper, vellum and patterned paper and adhere them on the top and bottom part of the page.

Do not glue them directly on top of each other, but make sure each stripe can be seen beneath the other. Adhere a garland on top of the page and stickers on the bottom right. If you like, use a sewing machine to adhere the stickers.

Cut a few patterned papers that are bigger than the photo. Place them behind the photo, add a clothespin and glue the papers + photo into the center of the scrapbooking page.

Add a title beneath the photo, use 3dimensional dots to apply the alphabet stickers – like this, the title will pop out of the page.

Stamp onto the page and write onto the photo. You might want to add the handwritten journaling before glueing down the photo as that is easier. Make sure to use a photo marker!

Add a few spritzers and more embellishments on and next to the photo, but make sure the motive doesn’t get covered.

47

Christmas Shopping Patterned paper (ILS) Tags (Chic Tgas) Alphabet stickers (Panduro) Wood veneer (Studio Calico) Stamps (swissgirlDesigns) Star sequins Black pen Photo Scissors glue White cardstock (Stampin’ Up) Sewing machine White thread 48

Cut two few strips from patterned paper, place one on the top and the other one on the bottom part of the cardstock. Place the title on the top left, the title on this page was created with a tag and alphabet stickers.

Cut a few patterned papers and place them and a few tags beneath and next to the photo. Glue the paper onto the cardstock, adhere the photo and add stitches with a sewing machine.

Stamp onto the page and add handwritten journaling, if you like. Drawing arrows helps to emphasize certain parts of the page.

You will need: Patterned paper and embellishments (Glitz Design) Spray (Heidi Swapp) Alphabet stickers (Glitz Design) Black pen Sewing machine White cardstock (Stampin’ Up) Glue Scissors Photo

Cut to strips from patterned paper and place them on top of the page. They do not need to be straight – nonstraight stripes add a interesting look to the page. Cut a triangle from a piece of patterned paper and glue it into the top left corner, adhere a sticker on top of the triangle.

Cut a few patterned papers that are bigger than the photo, use a sewing machine to adhere the papers. Place the papers in the middle part of the white cardstock or move them slightly to the right. Use spray to add a few blobs, gold spray underlines the Christmassy look of the page. Add a few more embellishments, a title and – if you like - handwritten journaling.

49

50

•Patterned paper •Embellishments •Alphabet stickers: Pink Paislee •Spray: Heidi Swapp •Masking tape: mt masking tape •Sewing machine •Sequins •Photo •Scissors •Glue •Black pen •Sewing machine •White thread

Cut strips from one or more patterned paper. Place them at the top and bottom of the page. Add stitches, if wanted. Place masking tape on top of the layout.

Create the middle section by using collage sheets, parcel tags, patterned paper, a photo and embellishments.

Embellish the rest of the page by using Pink Paislee City Sidewalks ephemera, snowflakes and ephemera.

Cut triangle from patterned paper and use them as photo frames or in

the corners of the page. Add stitches, if you like.

Add a title and journaling and set highlights with sequins and Pink Paislee City Sidewalks snowflakes.

If you like splatters, now´s the time to add some! Use Heidi Swapp ColorShine sprays and drop the liquid onto the page. Let dry or use heat gun to dry.

51

Scrappy Gift Tag

52

With Janna Werner

You Will Need

How To

Patterned paper (Prima Marketing) Cardstock (Stampin’ Up) Rhinestones (Prima Marketing) Spray (Heidi Swapp) Vellum Pencil Linen Cardboard Stapler Twine White gel pen Alphabet stickers (Prima Marketing), Sickers, (Prima Marketing) Sewing machine White thread Glue Scissors

Cut a piece of cardboard to the desired size and shape, apply patterned paper and vellum.

Cut two speechbubbles from patterned paper, one bigger than the other.

Adhere them on top oft he vellum, preferably with a sewing machine.

Use a stapler to adhere linen and twine on one side of the tag, then decorate the top speechbubble with alphabet stickers, stars, rhinestones and doodles. Outline the black stars with a white gel pen to add more contrast to the shape.

Beaded Snowflake

&

pretty giftwrap with Jordan Clark

..............................................................................................

53

you will need •Seed beads •A few larger beads •Beading wire (that fit the seed beads) •Book Page or newspaper page •White Paint •Washi Tape •Lace or decorative ribbon

how to Cut 4 pieces of wire about 6 inches, and one piece of wire about 8 inches.

(You can adjust the sizes if you would like your snowflake to be smaller or larger).

Fill each wire piece with seed beads, leaving a littleextra room for the wire to be twisted around later.

Put a larger bead on each end of the 4-inch wires and twist the wire around the bead to secure it.

Begin twisting two beaded wire pieces together in the middle. Add the other two wires, also twisting them around the middle, until you have a snowflake shape.

Use the 8-inch wire piece to go around the snowflake, twisting it once around each point to secure.

Begin twisting two beaded wire pieces together in the middle. Add the other two wires, also twisting them around the middle, until you have a snowflake shape.

Use the 8-inch wire piece to go around the snowflake, twisting it once around each point to secure.

You can add a ‘white wash’ using watered down white paint to a b ook page or newspaper page and leave to dry. Wrap your gift and secure using washi tape or decorative tape.

Use some decorative lace to attach the snowflake to your gift or you can use some 3d glue or pads to secure .

54

Project, Images and words by Jordan Clark

55

gorgeous gift wrap Project and images by Silvia Curti 56

Christmas is my favorite festivity ever and waiting for it makes me happy and enthusiastic. I’m a package lover and I love everything about paper, gift package and decorations so here is one reason for why I love this festivity so much.

Red is the color that best represent Christmas for me but every year I like to try new alternative palettes. This year I decided that pink will have an important role at some of my gift packages.

Here are my package ideas for Christmas 2013.

1. Search in stationery store a decorative gift wrap (I love this one with some little mushroomson it, aren’t they adorable?) and combine it with a ribbon and a bell in the same colours.

2. What about fluorescent pink and silver for this Christmas? I absolutely love it. Use a simple kraft paper, it is perfect for every decorations and colours. You need also a fluorescent pink washi tape, some cream-silver twine and a little silver bell to tie with the sewing thread (ideal because it is so thin that nobody will see it).

3. Have you got a special tissue? Use it to wrap you gift (you need just a little bit of hot glue to paste the fabric). At the end add

a glittering ribbon and a tag with a funny-xmas quote on it,you will have a very smart package.

4. One of my favourite decoration to embellish gift packages is paper rosette. You just have to overlap some paper cups in different size: from the biggest one to the smallest, stapled them together and paste a paper circle and a sticker on them . Your wrapping paper will become more beautiful and original.

5. Do not forget baker’s twine, perfect for last minute packages.

Decorate a simple polka dots wrapping paper with the classic white-red baker’s twine and with an handmade bow to be glued with hot glue. So simple, so cute!

57

All you need for this simple DIY project is gold paint, paint brush, gold ribbon and some evergreen sprigs. Gently paint the sprigs, set them on top of your napkin or gift and wrap with ribbon. You can adorn this with decorated little pegs and a name tag.

58

with Ayda Algin

59

You will need: •Roll of wax paper or parchment paper •Scissors •Pegs •Glitter •Glue •Washi Tape •Ruler or measuring tape How to: Cut one long strip of wax paper measuring 10 inches by 3 inches.

Fold in half (you may need an iron to flatten the little pocket) Use washi tape to secure the sides.

You can use some glue stick along the top of your pegs and sprinkle glitter over your pegs. You can fill your little treat bag with glitter, little stickers, terrible cracker jokes (to stay in the festive season!), much like the evergreen toppers you can use these at the party dinner table!

Thanks to Ayda Algin

New Year Treat Bags

61

With special thanks to all the contributors and everyone who helped with this publication!

If you make any of the projects from this publication, please provide credit where credit is due and feel free to add your projects to the Flickr group for a potential feature on the blog.

Claire http://www.hearthandmade.co.uk

Merry Christmas!