Christmas Project Series: Projects #2 & #3

Hope your week is off to a great start and that you had some creative time over the weekend.

I was able to work on a card for Sybil (JandSib80 on YouTube).  I really love this knit stamp set from PaperTrey Ink. I know I will want to make several more of these little Sweater Cards.  I'm trying to figure out how to make one of those tacky Christmas Sweaters (I still have a couple in my closet that my Mom gave me - I think she secretly wanted me to be a kindergarten teacher! LOL)

Here is the tutorial I did for the Sweater Card. You can watch it here or on YouTube.

I also got the base pages made for my December Daily! Do you see muslin patches I sewed onto the base pages? I had some Coffee Dyed fabric left over from when I made my Thanksgiving Blessing Box during the Fall Project Series so check out that tutorial if you want to know how to make your own.  I tore it into strips and stamped some images and scriptures onto them.  I am going to use them as pockets in my finished book - so needed to add them now before I get to the binding. Here are a couple of base pages.

I did a step by step tutorial on how to create the base pages.




I have had this idea in my mind for a few years - and am really enjoying seeing it begin to take shape.

I will be doing 2-3 more tutorials on this project as we make our way through finishing it.

Here is what I have planned right now - but please feel free to leave me a comment if you have an idea of other aspects of this project I can share with you.

1. Binding - I am going to be binding these pages into the Charles Dickens "Stories of Christmas" book cover using a "Signature Binding" - it is really a versatile technique - and would work great on lots of other projects.
2. Creating the Date Tags I will be using throughout the month of journaling and adding photos and other Christmas Event Memorabilia. Even if you don't want to do the tags for your December Daily or Journal your Christmas project, the ideas I will share could work for an advent calendar or just a tags for projects
3. Decorating the Front Cover....right now I am playing with Tim Holz's new Poinsettia Die...and am pretty stoked about the possibilities.
4. And then - I will try and run through the techniques I will be using to create the content for the book. Stamping and watercoloring, Using Acetate, "Blinging it up!" And in the middle of it all - we are going to had FUN! How can I not have fun when my studio is filled to the brim with ooodles and oodles of Paper Crafting goodies! It just makes this girl smile to see it all lined up.

So - when we finish up the December Daily Journal - you will be ready to take up the task of being the documentarian for your family....and I will have hopefully given you some ideas for your own.

I have also a whole card series planned...my mind is a whirling...and a few little gift items for my sweet friends and family. (I'm Knittin....yeah - I know...just socks...but they are a bit addictive.  They can go with me wherever I go...good sanity check when I find myself with  extra time on my hands....waiting at the mall, the traffic light, book club (I'm listening - but knitting helps me be a better participant...keeps me from blurting everything out before anyone else gets a chance to speak.  So...I knit - and have better friendships, and I learn stuff too.

Ok...gotta run. I have some prep work to get done so we can move on to binding...it is gonna be FUN!

Hope your Tuesday is a "My Life is an ENTHUSED day!"

See you soon!