The blur of bright lights, school Christmas concert rehearsals, holiday parties, potlucks at every turn, and shopping lists a mile long…
The hustle and bustle of December truly creates a frenzy of activity. But even though I sometimes feel my tinsel’s in a tangle, I always find joy in creating. My craft room is a place where there are no rules – only endless possibilities. I can blast my favourite festive tunes and design to my heart’s content (using as much glitter as I want)!
Handmade projects are part of what makes Christmas prep exciting for me, allowing me to take a break from traditional scrapbooking & cardmaking projects. And so, today I thought I’d share with you a Christmas countdown of eight favourite seasonal projects from the past few years.
"The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear."
* I think we could substitute “singing” for CRAFTING, don’t you think?!
8. Classroom Tree Ornaments
Every holiday season I put up a little Christmas tree in my classroom at school. The kids help set it up, fluff the branches, and decorate it. There are a few ornaments used annually (such as the garland, clear plastic balls filled with rolled paper, and the beads), but all the rest are handcrafted by my current class of students. It warms my heart to see what each group comes up with, and this year is no exception.
7. A Matching Gift Bag & Card Set
I love using my paper scraps to upcycle and reuse paper bags. The very first time I ever did this, I black embossed a Tim Holtz stamp with the Three Wise Men riding camels onto a kraft-coloured bag. Does anyone else have that “Joyful Song” rubber stamp set? It’s still one of my all-time favourites.
This year I used a wintery collection from my stash to decorate a matching bag & card set, which I gifted to the admin assistant at my school.
6. Frosty ATCs
You’ll likely recall my previous posts featuring Valentine’s Day and Halloween ATCs, so I decided I needed to keep the seasonal theme going for winter.
These two artist trading cards were designed using the Kraftin’ Kimmie Stamps sets Snow Day Lucas and Feelin’ Frosty. I don’t know about you, but I DEFINITELY look as grumpy as Miles the Mouse when the snowy weather comes.
5. Notepads (For Those Naughty/Nice Lists)
When you have pretty paper you just can’t bear to completely cut into (or hide on a layout), handmade covered notepads just might be your best friend. A few years ago I made an exorbitant amount and had so much fun layering ephemera and adding ribbon closures. Not only are these little notepads quick and festive, if you don’t want to keep them for yourself they make great stocking stuffers.
Here’s another version, revealing how the ribbon unties and the flaps open. By choosing a variety of seasonal/themed products, these notepads would be a versatile crafty project any time of year!
4. Tags Galore
Every year, as Christmas approaches, I seem to fall into a tag-making frenzy. If I sit down in my craft room and feel at all stumped about what to create, that’s what I make. Jumbo tags, mini tags, sets of tags…all the tags! This year I taught a class for a Kraftin’ Kimmie Virtual Retreat, and walked the participants through making a large pocket tag with pull out elements. I really enjoyed incorporating stamping, colouring, and pretty paper — all tied up with candy cane-striped twine and a pretty red bow!
Additionally this year, I crafted a set of Nutcracker-themed gift tags. They’re some of my most favourite to date! I kept them simple, to fully feature the Ballerinas Project Bases from Simply Stated Design. The black & gold feels perfectly theatrical. They are going to look spectacular attached to the presents underneath our tree.
3. Seasonal Bookmarks
The best projects usually end up being unplanned, and that was EXACTLY the case with these bookmarks. Just last weekend my mom asked if I could use these adorable highland cows to make a bookmark for a family friend. That endeavour turned into designing three – one for each of us. They slide perfectly between the pages of a cozy holiday read, don’t ya’ ken?! I expect you have your own favourite Christmas book they would be suited for.
2. Beervent Wrapping
For the last four years I have participated in a beer advent with three other ladies. Each of us is responsible for purchasing 6 different brews. Then we meet up in November to ‘build’ our advents, knowing there will be 6 flavours of our own and 18 that will be a surprise. We wrap each of our 6 ‘sets’ in matching paper, so when the beervents are put together we can organize them in such a way that each of us will be opening the same kind each night.
The first couple of years I used regular wrapping paper (which was actually torturous to cut, wrap, and tape around each can). Then last year I had the brilliant idea to use leftovers from my Christmas scrapbooking collections. A quick measured cut with my trimmer and a strip of double-sided tape turned out to be the ticket to success. Plus, once I added bits of ephemera, the patterned papers made the cans looked SO sharp! I don’t think I will ever wrap a can with anything but scrapbooking paper from now on.
1. A 'Twelve Days of Christmas' Book Advent
And now, for my NUMBER ONE most-favourite handmade Christmas project. Drumroll please…
…it’s my very own book advent! I took a holiday novella called Walking in a Win’tree Wonderland by Ella Beachley and divided it into twelve sections. I created dividers using folded pieces of patterned paper, adding tabs and countdown numbers onto each piece using ephemera & banner tags. Then, I crafted a decorated cover sleeve to wrap around the outside of the whole book.
The general idea is that, on the first day, you would remove the cover to reveal the title of the book. Then you’d slip off a folder to read a section each day, for the duration of the advent. Creating this project was bookishly satisfying. I’m proud of myself for seeing so many of these book advents online (most of which come with perforated edges you ‘open’), and figuring out how to make one myself. I stare at it lovingly on my coffee table every time I walk by. You could easily choose products to coordinate with any book, and I think it would make the sweetest gift.
PS – Although the ScrapHappy Blog is clearly meant to focus on scrapbooking and crafting, I would be remiss if I didn’t include the links to hook you up with this cute holiday read. From one bookworm to another, you’re welcome and Merry Christmas! <giggle giggle>
I hope my featured Christmas Countdown projects have inspired you to think beyond while crafting during the holidays. Whether creating for personal enjoyment or for others, may you choose to cherish the charm of handcrafted art.
Until next year…stay fun and fantabulous, scrappers!